Medication Withdrawal and Responsibility

I have been taking Effexor for years. I have been living in Guam for only a few months and during that time, the Effexor dosages that I had were destroyed in a record flood that the island experienced. The culture shock that I was already experiencing compounded this problem greatly and I found myself suddenly in a very uncomfortable situation. The situation seemed to be a bit over the heads of the people around me, unfortunately, and I have been waiting for the medicine to be shipped in.

It should be shipped in today.

While stateside, even while living on my own, the logistics of getting one's medicine, insurance policy and whatnot was all much more than I ever paid attention to. As someone has said to me, since being on Guam, I have become fixated with my own survival - making sure I do not fall ill, get robbed or befall other fates that can fall on a white guy on this island. I have to pay attention to this stuff now because nobody else will. It's a really, really rough and somewhat brutal adjustment but I'm having to find myself doing it as fast as possible. I'm not sure what I will turn out to be when I get through this but it may be a completely different person.

Following is a video of a man who experienced Effexor withdrawal and his story. There are videos like this throughout YouTube:



The problem with Effexor withdrawal is that the person can know that alot of what they are experiencing really is not real and is largely in their head. However, it can be overpowering. It takes a sort of self-control that only soldiers earn and a serious toughening up to get past it.

I have been living here with my uncle and, in observing him, I have become to coldly wonder if he suffers from similar symptoms. Anger, anxiety and depression are obvious on him, even if he doesn't want to admit or label them that. He drinks more beer than one would expect to be possible and has many downer medications that he has given me as a replacement. (I should be getting the real thing in the mail today, thank God.)

There is a healthy population of individuals with autism or Asperger's syndrome on Guam and their needs are as numerous as the diversity of the island. The best thing that I can suggest for parents and caregivers is to familiarize the children as much as possible with the insurance and prescribing process. Their interest may not be strong in it and they may be totally ignorant and clueless about most of it. However, they need to know these things. They need to know what they are taking in their body. When the doctor asks what medication they take, make them answer the question.