Help I Don't Want To Puke Again!

[grouchyturtle]

I just did my first boat dive off NJ a few weeks ago. I usually take Bonine and I'm fine. Well off NJ, as most of you know the conditions tend to be pretty rough at times, such as on my first NJ dive. Needless to say Bonine didn't cut it, and I fed the fishes!

I'm doing another boat trip this Sunday and hopefully a few more over the summer. If conditions are smooth I should be fine, but if it gets a little rough, I may be paying $80 to do one short stinky dive and then pass out on the boat the rest of the day after chumming the ocean.

I was hoping to get the Transderm Scop http://www.transdermscop.com/site2/ Scopace (the pill form of Scopolamine that is supposed to be as effective as the patches with less side effects).

I've heard that you can usually get a prescription from a doctor for either over the phone, after answering a few quick questions.

Problem is I haven't been to a doctor in a few years, started a new job about a year ago, and have a new primary physician.
The doctor's office staff claim the doctor can't give me a prescription if I've never been there, because it's illegal. Is this true?

Here's where it gets better. I can't go in just to answer the stupid questions either, I have to get a physical. The best part I can't get in for one until August 11th.

Keep in mind I didn't even get to talk to a doctor, and as you all know the girls that work in most doctor's office have personalities comparable to the DMV. I try explaining to them that over the counter stuff didn't work for me last time, that I dive, and that I have trips planned. As you can imagine that got me no where.

So what do I do now? Not dive on a boat until next season or the end of the summer anyway? I don't think so!!!
Novartis isn't far from where I live. Running into their offices and taking hostages in exchange for patches would happen before that.

HELP!

How can I get these things now?

 

[diver_paula]

This doesn't help you get what you are after but is an alternative. A couple fellow buddies and myself that have similar stomaches to yours have found the following works. Take your first dose of Bonine or Dramamine the night before getting on a boat. Helps us.

Good luck either way.
Paula

 

[Queen]

It'll cost you but a walk-in clinic or "Convenient Care" facility would probably help you out. I had to do the same thing on vacation a few years ago when my backpack (containing my scop patches) was stolen. I went to a walk-in clinic and 20 minutes later walked out with a script.

 

[Doc Intrepid]

Try Triptone. Take one around 5 AM when you first get up. Take a couple more just before you board the boat. It works for a number of folks...

 

[Laurence Stein DDS]

grunzster,

Let me give you a little perspective on why your doctor, who has never met you, requires you to fill out a questionaire and have an examination.

It is both unethical and illegal for a doctor to write prescriptions for patients that have no history at that office.

This is what is called doctor/Rx shopping. Remember Rush Limbaugh? He allegedly was getting Rx pain meds from his doctors. What Rush was supposedly doing is considered illegal and what the doctors were doing was both illegal and unethical. They weren't prescribing the medication for a painful condition....So....what, just exactly, were they prescribing the medications for? Why was so much prescribed without question?

What medications do you take, what allergies do you have, are there possible interactions between your current medications and the scopolamine patch you want. What medical do you have? Can they interact with the medication you want? Do you have an enlarged prostate? Do you have glaucoma? These are both conditions that can be made much worse if you take scopolamine. Should your physician who has never met you prescribe a medication that could result in eye damage without insisting that a proper medical history and exam be completed first? I don't think that is unreasonable.

A doctor's office is not a prescription writing machine. We already know that there are problems with internet pharmacy sites and unethical doctors who do an "internet exam" that then allows you to purchase, site unseen medications that have to potential to cause harm if improperly prescribed or used. Perhaps this is the few quick questions type of contact you are referring to. It is a very dangerous practice.

Your new doctor is actually trying to treat you with care. This isn't a matter of forcing you to his office so he can rack up an exam and charge you and your insurance company a fee for. No, I am not implying that this is what you think.

If you tell a new doctor that you have nothing wrong, he will not just take that at face value. He must evaluate you, your history, lab results, EKG, etc. and come to the same conclusions that your past doctors have made. He may even make direct contact with those doctors to verify the information. He cannot take your word or the word of an unknown doctor as reported by you, the patient.

I cannot tell you how many patients have come to my office and report that they have no problems only for me to find some upon a thorough exam. They frequently don't know what medications they are taking or what they are really taking them for. They report completed treatment that is incomplete and conditions that may not really exist. None of this is to try to pull the wool over my eyes. Rather, as a "lay" person, they may have no clue about any conditions they might have or not have and what complications may be involved.

It only takes one unfortunate outcome from a medication improperly prescribed for the doctor's liability to become evident. He must protect both you and himself and he shouldn't be faulted for it.

Is it a pain in the neck that you will actually have to make contact with your new doctor?...Sure. Do you actually expect a doctor to treat you or anyone ethically and with diligence?...You bet. Is it his fault that you discovered that you get seasick easily?...Nope. Is there some reason that you waited until just before a dive trip to see your new doctor?...It wasn't important to you until now. What's the big deal about waiting about a week and a half to see your new doctor for a non-emergency visit?...Nothing really. Sometimes it takes months to see a doc....Ah, but that's for another thread.

Down here in Miami, it seems that we have "doctors" working out of their garages. I'm sure that if you see one of them you could get your prescription quickly....is that your idea of a doctor or appropriate care?

I really don't mean to be so hard on you but rather than seeing the doctor as the source of the problem here, perhaps you should look inward. Hey, here's an idea, find a friend with the Scop patch. Borrow one. If you die or go blind, whatever, your friend is off the hook because they were just being a pal. You got your medication really fast like you wanted. It didn't cost you a thing. Nobody can blame a doc for a bad outcome. Perfect!

Laurence Stein, DDS

PS: The suggestion to go to an immediate care facility is a good one. You should get a quick exam/questions and if there is no contraindications, you'll have the Rx legally and safely.

PPS: When you finally get the patch, get several, you might want to give one a trial run. You may find that the dry mouth/nose is uncomfortable. You might find that it makes you too sleepy. You might experience hallucinations. These are all side effects that might happen. It would be better if they didn't happen under water.

These patches have to be applied well before leaving the dock. They may require several hours to reach peak effect. If you apply the patch at the first sign of sea sickness, it won't do much good. Removing the patch will not immediately stop the effects if you find it necessary to stop treatment.

 

[ShakaZulu]

http://www.seaproductsonline.com/index60.html

I've never used it but have seen people who does...........

 

[Diver Lori]

Dr Stein has it right. There are just too many factors to go wrong. I speak from experience as I'm allergic to scop. Tried it when I was in the Coast Guard, had allergic reaction.....soon after they took it off the market. I tried it again two years ago as I was told it had changed, same reaction as I had in 1990, but 10 times worse, maybe age???

My vision was significantly blurred to the point I couldn't read.....but this wasn't the allergic reaction I had. I was blessed with a huge, red, scally, raised welt the size of a golf ball in diameter and half as thick raised, behind both my ears where I had applied the patches. As soon as I realized what happened (it took a 3 or 4 days for the welts to rise) I discontinued use. Since you alternate each side of your head for the patch applications, I was "fortunate" enough to have these welts on both sides.

I returned home with my dilemma thinking it would go away in time, which was partially true, but not without a scare. Shortly after I returned home, I found a knot the size of a marble just below my ear in each side of my neck. Scared the bejeebers out of me. I immediately made and appointment with my regular doctor who was also the doctor who prescribed the patches. My mind is thinking CANCER or something....I was even thinking about the scop causing my problem.

I get to my doctor and she comes in reading my complaint taken by the nurse. She smiles at me, asks how my vacation was, tells me about her diving husband....(very nice person) and chats me up while pulling my hair aside to look behind my ear. She immediately stops chatting and exclaims "oh my God!" She recovers quickly and apologizes for her outburst and explains she had never seen a reaction to scop like this before. She then palpates my neck and assures me the knots are a further allergic reaction to the scop. My body & glands trying to fight off the allergen. She then states "NO MORE SCOPOLAMINE FOR YOU." and sends me off with a script for a topical ointment to aid the healing process. She also told me the knots would reduce themselves within a few days and should be gone within the week.

Sooooo.....how bad do you want that scop???

BTW, I am severely prone to seasickness and I successfully work around it with a little effort on my part, and alot of support and assistance from my regular dive buddy. In fact, I was discharged from the CG for seasickness. If you want to hear what I do, and what my buddy does for me. Let me know and I'll post again.

 

[grouchyturtle]

Dr Stein has it right. There are just too many factors to go wrong. I speak from experience as I'm allergic to scop. Tried it when I was in the Coast Guard, had allergic reaction.....soon after they took it off the market. I tried it again two years ago as I was told it had changed, same reaction as I had in 1990, but 10 times worse, maybe age???

My vision was significantly blurred to the point I couldn't read.....but this wasn't the allergic reaction I had. I was blessed with a huge, red, scally, raised welt the size of a golf ball in diameter and half as thick raised, behind both my ears where I had applied the patches. As soon as I realized what happened (it took a 3 or 4 days for the welts to rise) I discontinued use. Since you alternate each side of your head for the patch applications, I was "fortunate" enough to have these welts on both sides.

I returned home with my dilemma thinking it would go away in time, which was partially true, but not without a scare. Shortly after I returned home, I found a knot the size of a marble just below my ear in each side of my neck. Scared the bejeebers out of me. I immediately made and appointment with my regular doctor who was also the doctor who prescribed the patches. My mind is thinking CANCER or something....I was even thinking about the scop causing my problem.

I get to my doctor and she comes in reading my complaint taken by the nurse. She smiles at me, asks how my vacation was, tells me about her diving husband....(very nice person) and chats me up while pulling my hair aside to look behind my ear. She immediately stops chatting and exclaims "oh my God!" She recovers quickly and apologizes for her outburst and explains she had never seen a reaction to scop like this before. She then palpates my neck and assures me the knots are a further allergic reaction to the scop. My body & glands trying to fight off the allergen. She then states "NO MORE SCOPOLAMINE FOR YOU." and sends me off with a script for a topical ointment to aid the healing process. She also told me the knots would reduce themselves within a few days and should be gone within the week.

Sooooo.....how bad do you want that scop???

BTW, I am severely prone to seasickness and I successfully work around it with a little effort on my part, and alot of support and assistance from my regular dive buddy. In fact, I was discharged from the CG for seasickness. If you want to hear what I do, and what my buddy does for me. Let me know and I'll post again.

HOLY S***! Ok maybe chumming ain't all that bad. Sure, feel free to post what you do. The more weapons at my disposal the better.

Thanks for the suggestions. Maybe I'll give Triptone a try. For this weekend, though, I think I'll try the dose of Bonine the night before trick, or actually that morning since it is a night dive.

I may just be over reacting to my own seasickness. Like I said I've rarely got sick before. Even this last trip we were a good hour+ out in pretty choppy seas, before it hit me. And that was after sitting on the back of the boat too, probably breathing Diesel! To give you an idea of what it was like http://www.scubaboard.com/t59589.html

I admit, I did put this off. It was a last minute trip though, and this is the first season I'm diving off NJ. I can understand why I'd need to see the doctor for the script, but. The problem I have I guess is as Laurence Stein DDS said, "What's the big deal about waiting about a week and a half to see your new doctor for a non-emergency visit?" Try nearly a month and a half!

 

[tg54]

Paula,

My inner ear doesn’t always co-operate. I fed the fish on 3 of my 5 certification dives. The worse was after wading into the surf on my last dive. I did not want to postpone or reschedule, and felt that part of it was psychological, as I was aware of several facts associated with my nausea. I knew that I: (a) felt much better under the water, (b)could avoid the gag reflex if I breathed with the regulator as opposed to warm snorkel air while swimming out, (c) I needed to keep my field of vision as steady as possible, and (d) I had an excellent instructor in whom I trusted. That being said, we went down for the final dive and the skill tests. I fed the fish so much that my regulator could not be purged totally, so that I switched to the emergency one. My error of the day: I did not take Dramamine the night before, so I did not let the medication build in my system.

A few weeks after that we went on a 2 hour boat ride. I did not feed the fish, I took Dramamine the night before and ½ pill ½ hour before the boat ride, and ½ in reserve for the trip back. I did not use the second half, I did not get sleepy, and I ate lunch on board. The meds left my system slowly, I never felt symptoms.

Personally, I avoid the transderm scop. I used it on a cruise once; I was sleepy, and after I took the patch off, I felt worse. The med level had affected me so much; I went through a 6 hour withdrawal.

I guess I’d rather have my brain functioning correctly on less drastic meds.

Good luck! We each need to find our own cure!

 

[grouchyturtle]

Wow maybe that is the trick then, your conditions sound even worse than mine.