The use of prescription and RX drugs in Canada has steadily increased year on year for over a decade. One very clear and obvious explanation is that the population is ageing, and the elderly are far more in need of prescription medication than younger generations.
A report published by a pharmaceutical company revealed that drug use in 2008 among Canadians was higher than in previous years. This report released in March of last year by global pharmaceutical company IMS Health evaluated the use of pharmaceuticals by tracking the number of prescriptions dispensed. Also in the report, was information to show that the unfavourable economic climate had not affected RX drug sales in 2008, but there had however been a drop in the purchases of brand name medicines. This showed that it is not the purchase of prescription drugs that is dropping, but that the number of generic prescription drug sales has been in fact increasing slowly.
Generic drugs are extremely popular from online Canadian pharmacies due to their reduced and unbeatable prices. The prices are pushed down because these are drugs where the patent has expired, meaning that other online pharmacies can produce these drugs and charge lower prices. The drugs are subject to the same laws as branded drugs and must follow the same safety guidelines as those issued by governing bodies. This means that all generic drugs must be of the same composition chemically as the original branded versions. They must also have the same therapeutic effects as the original branded versions.
The IMS report also confirmed that the drug categories with the highest number of prescriptions was cardiovascular medication and psychotherapeutic drugs including antidepressants drugs Both of these categories has seen an increase of over 7% on sales since 2007.
There has been a lot of bad press for Canadian RX and prescription drugs over the past decade and even more so in the past five years, however this seems to be a band wagon that thousands of people are jumping on. There is no evidence to say that there is any issue what so ever with prescription drugs, or to show that prescription drugs are causing problems in places such as Canada, where they are prescribed so often.
My name is Jessica Moore; I am an author with an interest in health and wellness. I feel strongly that everyone should have access to affordable medicine, and I want all Americans to know that drugs from Canada are much cheaper than in the US. I recommend that you check out Big Mountain Drugs as a reliable Canadian online pharmacy from which you can buy generic medications
Prozac’s size effects are really bothering me. Is there another antidepressant I might tolerate better?
I’m on fluoxetine (the generic name for Prozac) for dysthymia with occasional episodes of major depression, various phobias, and irritable bowel syndrome. I’ve been taking 10mg a day for three weeks, and even at that low dose, the side effects are quite bothersome. I haven’t been able to have a complete bowel movement without the use of a laxative for two weeks. I have a history of constipation (mostly in childhood), but I haven’t had anything this bad for years, and since my digestive problems when I went on this medicine were the exact opposite of what I’m experiencing now (constant, and I mean CONSTANT diarrhea), I’m fairly sure that this is the drug’s fault. I also get nauseous often, but I haven’t actually vomited since I started the drug.
The medicine also makes me very drowsy, and I’ve been sleeping a lot more and a lot more deeply than I usually do. Before I went on fluoxetine, I was sleeping 3-5 hours a night, with no naps during the day. Now, I average on about 10 hours of sleep a night with a 2 hour nap in the afternoon, and I still feel exhausted. I also fall asleep at random times. I’ve fallen asleep watching TV, eating, on the computer, on the bathroom floor after taking a shower, even in the middle of a conversation. Also, I sleep so soundly that it’s pretty likely that I could sleep soundly through a bomb going off on my street. This past week, I have slept through three alarms almost every day: one on my clock radio, a timer on my TV in case I sleep through the clock radio, and an alarm on my cell phone to remind me to take my medication (because of this, I’ve taken a couple of doses late). To make sure that I woke up on time this morning, I asked one of my friends to come over and wake me up. He tells me that he came into my room and shook me while I was asleep, and even though I stayed in bed with my head under the covers, I had a conversation with him and he assumed that I was awake. I have absolutely no memory of this. In fact, I slept in three hours later than I intended to, despite setting three alarms and having someone “wake me up”.
I’ve also been having frequent nosebleeds. I’m not sure if this is related to the medication or to the cold weather, but starting this past week, I had a nosebleed nearly every other day, and on Friday, I had three separate nosebleeds. I remember reading that SSRIs can cause bleeding problems, so I’m a little concerned about this. I also feel a bit jittery; I’m constantly fidgeting, itching myself, and biting my nails, something that’s never really been a problem before. I’ve also had more of an appetite, but, paradoxically, I’ve lost five pounds since starting the medication.
It may be a bit early yet, but I haven’t noticed any change in mood at all, and these side effects are really annoying me, the constipation being the worst. I’m seeing my shrink tomorrow, and I’m wondering if I should tell her that I want to go off the medication or if I should ust wait and see if these side effects go away. I know that SSRIs generally have the fewest side effects, but do all SSRIs have the same side effects? Could going on a different SSRI get rid of the constipation and sleep problems? Is there another class of antidepressants that has less digestive side effects? I realize that I’m probably going to have side effects with any drug, but there are plenty that I can tolerate, like sexual side effects (totally celibate), weird dreams or nightmares (I’ve had those my whole life; I doubt I’d even notice if I experienced this side effect), or weight gain (I’m skinny anyway, so I could stand to gain a few pounds).
Sorry this is so long, and thanks in advance.
Answer
With irritable bowel syndrome, antidepressents are usually fairly common to perscribe because IBS is also a seratonin issue. as well as depression. Usually with IBS most people will get either constant constipation or constant diahrrhea. In your case before you went on prozac, you had the diahrrea…now you have constipation. So the meds could be too much for you.
I would consult with your doctor about switching your medications or decreasing the dosage. And yes, there is going to be side effects with any drug you take…but if i were you i’d try the decreasing the dosage first. But that is between you and your doctor. If it is affecting you physically and emotionally then its time to do something about it.
if your looking for a new drug i’ve heard good things about cymbalta and ativan.
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