Last August I wrote in a column about starting to use prescribed opioid analgesics to combat the chronic pain I experienced daily from severe arthritis. The response from readers was amazing as I received about 30 phone calls and e-mails asking for more information. One call came from as far as Modesto, Calif. and another from northern Alberta, compliments of relatives who live in Vernon who passed on the information. Some of the stories were horrible as people spoke about their struggles to survive while living with daily pain.
This weekend I got a call from a person who had read this August column and had lost her copy. She related a story about her 92-year-old mother who was crying with pain from arthritis and whose doctor has told her that the only thing they could offer was Tylenol 3. She thought the doctor was afraid her mom would become addicted to the morphine derivative drugs I had mentioned in my article. Frankly if I were a 92-year-old senior crying with pain daily the last thing I would care about would be developing an addiction to morphine. I understand the concerns about any morphine derivative drug and the many abuses that occur without good supervision. I had deep reservations myself before I finally agreed to take this pain reliever recommended by my doctor, but I am so glad I did.
I have now been on this daily regimen for six months, taking a very low dosage of oxycocet with acetaminophen as prescribed and supervised by my doctor and have experienced few side effects and almost no daily pain unless I am going through a period of inflammation flare-up, when the dosage is increased. My heart goes out to all those who suffer pain daily, remembering how debilitating that can be and how it affected my quality of life. I wonder if those doctors who refuse to prescribe these analgesic opioids would change their minds if they had to experience what that 92-year-old woman is going through day after day with chronic pain.
Last year the Government of Canada cancelled the Home Adaptations for Seniors Independence (HASI) Program, a grant that provided seniors with home improvements, and have since replaced it with a new program called the Home Adaptations for Independence (HAFI) program now provided by BC Housing. It is available for seniors or people with disabilities who need to make renovations in their home to maintain their independence, and provides up to $20,000 per home. However the eligibility requirements have changed and your financial assets are considered as well as your home’s BC assessment value. For more information about this program call 604-646-7055.
The Seniors Bureau is sponsoring a very important information session for seniors. This presentation, called “Planning for Reduced Capacity and Beyond,” will be given by Tom Christensen, a former MLA for this area, on Feb. 23 at Schubert Centre from 10:30 a.m. till noon. It will deal with Powers of Attorney, Representation Agreements along with wills and other tools for dealing with assets after death. All seniors are welcome, and for more information call Dayle Drury at the Seniors Bureau at 250-545-8572.
If you have any comments or suggestions, you can reach me at 250-542-7928 or e-mail blackmail1@telus.net.
Pat Black is The Morning Star’s seniors’ columnist. She is coordinator of the Seniors Falls Prevention Program in Vernon.
