Is my dream of becoming a nurse possible while living on prescript pain pills

[nurscareer4me]

Hi,, I really need some sound advice and help!! I am 41 years young and have always dreamed of becoming a nurse. I have wanted to go to nursing school now since my children were toddlers. They are now 20 and 22 years old. I have lived with Fibromyalgia now for atleast the past 15 years and finally got my life back 4 years ago when I was treated by a wonderfull doctor who also has Fibro himself. In the very beginning we tried several different medications, anti-inflamatories, muscle relaxers. Nothing relieved my pain, and the majority of medications made me very depressed and suicidal, He eventially prescribed me the pain killer, Vicodin. Over these last y4 ears of taking this narcotic, I finally actually feel like a normal human being now. When you are in sooo much pain 24 hours, 7 days a week, it takes so much out of you, you feel like you are just struggeling to survive to get through the days. This is my question that I need help with. If I go to nursing school and make my dreams come true, will it all be just a waist?? What are the chances of getting hired by a hospital, doctors office, ect. if they know that I take a prescribed narcotic daily for my fibromyalgia pain. I am so afraid that I am going to spend all this time and money to finally make my dream come true of becoming a nurse, and in the end, it will all be for nothing because of this stupid pain pill that I take daily. I have thought about just to stop taking vicodin when I get myself thru school and graduate, by what if in the end I do that and then can't work because I hurt so bad??? It will all just be for nothing, not to mention my dream will be shot. Can anybody truly give me an answer or tell me where I can find out.

[leslie :-D]

fribblet, i agree w/you about objective data to measure/assess impairment or its lack.

you are correct in that nearly all would err on the side of caution, and assume some degree of cognitive loss and/or impairment.

definitely agree.

there really should be a policy in the making about this.

leslie

[my.toys]

Is there any way you could volunteer at a hospital to try to see how your body handles the stress?

I frequently work as much as 16 hours per shift and I am healthy as can be, but I still have to practically drag myself out to my car when I am done.

60 hour weeks, 300 pounds patients, constant standing, lifting and bending.

The reality of nursing is that it is just as physical as it is mental.

Those cushy office jobs tend to go to older nurses with years of experience and they also usually involve a cut in pay.

I know this is your dream but I would really try to see if your body is able to handle it, before you spend thousands on nursing school.

To me, the prescription drugs are just a side issue. The real issue is if you would be able to keep working while putting your body under so much stress.

I went to LPN school with a lady with fibro and there would be days where tears were rolling down her cheeks because she was in so much pain, and that was just during a 6 hour clinical.

I wish you success in whatever you choose.

[Fribblet]

On second thought, it's just not worth pointing out what's obvious. You want to see what you want to see, and despite the fact that it's untrue is of no concern to you.

I think you're too emotionally tied to this subject to think rationally about it. I'm not wasting my time explaining the obvious to you. But how about this? I'm sorry my post was worded in such a way that you were offended by it. Better? Now please, next time consider the whole post instead of focusing on one verb.

If I'm wrong and I've offended every poster who read my post, or if anyone else thinks I'm trying to say chronic pain sufferers are drug addicts and should be kept out of the workplace, let me know.

ETA: Grammatikal misteaks.

[Fribblet]

fribblet, i agree w/you about objective data to measure/assess impairment or its lack.

you are correct in that nearly all would err on the side of caution, and assume some degree of cognitive loss and/or impairment.

definitely agree.

there really should be a policy in the making about this.

leslie

If a way was found to make this quantifiable and objective, it would open up a lot of doors in a lot of professions/trades for people who routinely take narcotics and other drugs that are considered to impair.

I know the thread has shifted away from the OP and into a more philosophical realm, but if the OP is still around let me ask you a question.

Would you be able to go 12 hours without a narcotic? Could NSAIDS or other pain relief get you through the shift, and then you could take the narcotic when you got home? Also, do you think you would be able to manage an 8 hour shift? I'd have to check on this, but I would think a hospital would be willing to work with you, if you were able to manage an 8 hour shift. They might even be legally bound to under the ADA.

Worth looking into at least. You could always consult a lawyer who may advise you what your rights are under the law regarding employment and prescribed narcotic usage. There may be slight variations from state to state.

You may also want to consider a non-hospital job. Check out the job market regarding school nurses, home health, doing telephone triage, working in occupational health. Those are situations where you might not have to do tons of heavy lifting and may allow you periods of rest. There are also MD offices and the potential to work for pharmaceutical companies.

There are still a lot of options with a nursing degree (especially a BSN).

[LoveMyDaughters]

Working on prescribed pain meds is not working "impaired." Just be able to produce the scrip when you are drug-tested.

I have to respectfully disagree here. Having a prescription for narcotics doesn't give someone the right to be at work under the influence just as much as it doesn't give them the right to operate heavy machinery, drive a car, etc. Are you saying that if I have a Rx for Vicodin and take it before my shift, that's okay?

[Fribblet]

I have to respectfully disagree here. Having a prescription for narcotics doesn't give someone the right to be at work under the influence just as much as it doesn't give them the right to operate heavy machinery, drive a car, etc. Are you saying that if I have a Rx for Vicodin and take it before my shift, that's okay?

Not quite. They're saying that people who take a narcotic as part of a longterm pain management regime, and who have built up a tolerance to the narcotic are okay to work as the side-effects (drowsiness, fuzzy thinking, off-kilter coordination) no longer have as great an impact.

[TDCHIM]

I have to respectfully disagree here. Having a prescription for narcotics doesn't give someone the right to be at work under the influence just as much as it doesn't give them the right to operate heavy machinery, drive a car, etc. Are you saying that if I have a Rx for Vicodin and take it before my shift, that's okay?

Again, there is a difference between a normal person taking vicodin for a short-term issue and someone who has a longstanding major chronic pain condition using a maintenance med to keep pain at bay. And I drive a car, care for my four year old child, cook, and take university classes under the influence of a fentanyl patch, muscle relaxants, and neurontin. I have a perfect driving record. There are many people like me, living useful, normal lives again because of maintenance pain meds.

I do agree with Fribblet that some sort of standardized examination for competence should be researched and created so that those like me who wish to take on jobs where they are considered a potential liability - and who demonstrate that they are physically capable of handling them within the bounds of the ADA - could be evaluated. I certainly wouldn't want to be accused of medication-based incompetence every time I made an honest mistake! Thankfully, I won't have to worry about it in my eventual paper-pushing job. There, no one at my workplace will have the right to know about my medications.

[iluvivt, BSN, RN]

Does anyone see an issue with the use of Vicodin to treat chronic pain???? It is very short acting and the Tylenol adds up..perhaps pt should have been switched to a regime that is more appoprite for chronic pain. I think seeing a pain specialist is in order...you may just need one pill a day and be able to function even better

[Fribblet]

Does anyone see an issue with the use of Vicodin to treat chronic pain???? It is very short acting and the Tylenol adds up..perhaps pt should have been switched to a regime that is more appoprite for chronic pain. I think seeing a pain specialist is in order...you may just need one pill a day and be able to function even better

I could be wrong, but I think the Vicodin is in addition to other medications and is probably taken regularly for breakthrough pain.

That was my assumption at least.

[RNLMT, ASN, BSN]

Again, there is a difference between a normal person taking vicodin for a short-term issue and someone who has a longstanding major chronic pain condition using a maintenance med to keep pain at bay. And I drive a car, care for my four year old child, cook, and take university classes under the influence of a fentanyl patch, muscle relaxants, and neurontin. I have a perfect driving record. There are many people like me, living useful, normal lives again because of maintenance pain meds.

I do agree with Fribblet that some sort of standardized examination for competence should be researched and created so that those like me who wish to take on jobs where they are considered a potential liability - and who demonstrate that they are physically capable of handling them within the bounds of the ADA - could be evaluated. I certainly wouldn't want to be accused of medication-based incompetence every time I made an honest mistake! Thankfully, I won't have to worry about it in my eventual paper-pushing job. There, no one at my workplace will have the right to know about my medications.

I'm not trying to be rude or sarcastic....but....just because you can do something under the "influence" does not mean you should. I agree with Fribblet! Please just hear me out before you flame me. There are many functional alcoholics who drive around without getting into accidents! I knew someone personally that had a "perfect driving record". Does this mean it's okay for him to drive while under the influence of alcohol? Yeah I know there is a big difference between someone voluntarily drinking and someone involuntarily developing a disease such as fibromyalgia and taking Vicodin as ordered. However, the underlying principles are still the same. They are both drugs and they both legal. It's only illegal to drive while drinking and the same should apply to narcotics. What's next pilots flying planes while under the influence....yikes!!! We have to be careful what we wish. Do we really want to open this can of worms? I just think that nursing is a very critical area. People's lives are on the line and I would not feel comfortable with nurses walking around "under the influence"....as you put it. Furthermore, you stated your job will be "pushing papers" soo in that case no one should know about your medications. The medical field is a whole other animal and patients have the right to be in the hands of nurses, doctors, etc. who are not under the "influence".

[Fribblet]

I'm not trying to be rude or sarcastic....but....just because you can do something under the "influence" does not mean you should. I agree with Fribblet! Please just hear me out before you flame me. There are many functional alcoholics who drive around without getting into accidents! I knew someone personally that had a "perfect driving record". Does this mean it's okay for him to drive while under the influence of alcohol? Yeah I know there is a big difference between someone voluntarily drinking and someone involuntarily developing a disease such as fibromyalgia and taking Vicodin as ordered. However, the underlying principles are still the same. They are both drugs and they both legal. It's only illegal to drive while drinking and the same should apply to narcotics. What's next pilots flying planes while under the influence....yikes!!! We have to be careful what we wish. Do we really want to open this can of worms? I just think that nursing is a very critical area. People's lives are on the line and I would not feel comfortable with nurses walking around "under the influence"....as you put it. Furthermore, you stated your job will be "pushing papers" soo in that case no one should know about your medications. The medical field is a whole other animal and patients have the right to be in the hands of nurses, doctors, etc. who are not under the "influence".

Just to clarify, it's not illegal to drink and drive. It's only illegal if you're over the limit and thus, by legal standards, more likely to be unsafe.

I think that just as with people who drink and drive within the legal parameters, people who take legal, prescribed narcotics can safely drive and work. The problem is determining levels of narcotic and developing the "parameters."

Tests would have to be conducted. Unlike long term pain sufferers, alcohol intoxication is typically "acute." Most people recognize that alcoholics, and even regular drinkers, are able to "function" quite well despite having BAL that are fairly high. So, while someone who is a regular drinker can drive well at a BAL of .1, we have agreed as a society that the danger is too great, that the average person is too intoxicated at that level, and that a lower blood alcohol will assure safety.

This is what people who take narcotics long term want. The recognition that they can operate safely in the clinical setting while on routine narcotics. But there need to be parameters set. The trick is to find out a cost effective way to measure "intoxication" with narcotics users, and determine what level will guarantee patient safety, while still maintaining some therapeutic effect for the nurse.

Until then, though, it's too subjective. And subjectivity increases risk, both legally and to the patient.

[TDCHIM]

I'm not trying to be rude or sarcastic....but....just because you can do something under the "influence" does not mean you should. I agree with Fribblet! Please just hear me out before you flame me. There are many functional alcoholics who drive around without getting into accidents! I knew someone personally that had a "perfect driving record". Does this mean it's okay for him to drive while under the influence of alcohol? Yeah I know there is a big difference between someone voluntarily drinking and someone involuntarily developing a disease such as fibromyalgia and taking Vicodin as ordered. However, the underlying principles are still the same. They are both drugs and they both legal. It's only illegal to drive while drinking and the same should apply to narcotics. What's next pilots flying planes while under the influence....yikes!!! We have to be careful what we wish. Do we really want to open this can of worms? I just think that nursing is a very critical area. People's lives are on the line and I would not feel comfortable with nurses walking around "under the influence"....as you put it. Furthermore, you stated your job will be "pushing papers" soo in that case no one should know about your medications. The medical field is a whole other animal and patients have the right to be in the hands of nurses, doctors, etc. who are not under the "influence".

First, as to my status as a non-nurse: I make it a point to note that I am not and will not be a nurse in many of my posts, simply because I do not wish to cloud any issue of moment on which I choose to comment.

Now, for the main point: You have the right to you opinion, as I have mine. I hope that someday soon, the issue can be resolved one way or the other with research and hard data, not assumptions, fear, or cheerleading from either side of the aisle. I will not attempt to convince you through an online forum, but I do hope that you will carefully investigate the treatment of chronic pain with narcotic medications now and from time to time in the future, as I do myself, to better inform yourself. The viewpoint on treatment of chronic pain conditions with narcotics has changed a great deal in the last 15 years, and it will continue to change as researchers continue their work. I am thankful it has evolved to the point that I may once again seek a meaningful career for myself and a better life for my family.

Have a pleasant evening.