Please be careful with pharmacy drugs in Cozumel

[BoundForElsewhere]

I once tried to find a stomach remedy in China. That was a challenge.

I'd love to find out what you ate for that. No dis to TCM but I went to a traditional herbalist and, good lord, it was a little scary.

 

[Kimela]

That is my soon to be ex, not anyone that I agreed with!!

Pain medications are nasty nasty things - I only wonder if they have helped as many as they have destroyed....

Little known fun fact - "Long-term use of opioids leads to decreased pain tolerance and increased sensitivity to pain." A case where the 'cure' truly is worse than the symptom. Imagine taking opioids for back pain, experiencing constipation (because that's a 'thing' with opioids) AND now you can't tolerate the smallest amount of other kinds of pain. Eeeek.

 

[DandyDon]

Perhaps she could not find her usual remedy so she bought something, anything that would relieve the pain and help her sleep. This is why I travel with a veritable pharmacy of over the counter meds, including my most effective migraine treatment, which is also over the counter.

I encourage my friends and relatives to always take good trip insurance if they leave the country, most importantly for repatriation coverage, but also to encourage them to seek professional medical help if needed.

 

[Dan G]

I'd love to find out what you ate for that. No dis to TCM but I went to a traditional herbalist and, good lord, it was a little scary.

Someone I knew had immodium and it was as simple as that. Not a very glamorous story. Now I never travel outside the U.S. without because I don't want to have to try to read labels in a language I don't know and guess what's inside the box. This worked out better than my first time in China or when I was in Turkey and I kind of just stopped eating much until the symptoms cleared. Not a great plan.

 

[gopbroek]

It can be beneficial to have a few real OXY's (or Tramadol or Hydrocodone) in addition to 800mg Ibuprofen and a Tylenol in your dry bag for a Lion fish sting.

 

[NeilA.]

It can be beneficial to have a few real OXY's (or Tramadol or Hydrocodone) in addition to 800mg Ibuprofen and a Tylenol in your dry bag for a Lion fish sting.

All I have to do is twist the wrong way while taking off a fin next to the dive boat, or some other weird contortion that happens in diving, and I’m in pain. (Judging from the age thread, I would be surprised if I am alone in this)

Absolutely it can be beneficial!, I communicate with my doctor and have a plan in place. This is especially important if you have allergies to certain medications, or a medical condition that is specific, and you don’t want to try to explain it to a new doctor, maybe in a in a foreign language, while in pain.

My experience is that in the rare event of suffering fairly severe pain, one dosage of a more powerful pain reliever usually gives relief quickly and effectively. All done.

 

[Doc Harry]

Little known fun fact - "Long-term use of opioids leads to decreased pain tolerance and increased sensitivity to pain." A case where the 'cure' truly is worse than the symptom. Imagine taking opioids for back pain, experiencing constipation (because that's a 'thing' with opioids) AND now you can't tolerate the smallest amount of other kinds of pain. Eeeek.

I had a patient come into my ER for a minor sprained ankle. Very minor. He was regularly taking morphine 100mg daily for "chronic pain."

He was incapacitated and genuinely screaming in agony over a truly minor ankle injury. All because of long-term use of opioids.

 

[Kimela]

I had a patient come into my ER for a minor sprained ankle. Very minor. He was regularly taking morphine 100mg daily for "chronic pain."

He was incapacitated and genuinely screaming in agony over a truly minor ankle injury. All because of long-term use of opioids.

That is heart-breaking. And it's hard to muster compassion for what 'looks' like no big deal, but is 'felt' like a very, very big deal. The brain is amazing.

 

[Ongrade]

A little more fact on the woman in the OP. My wife and her friend who was on vacation with us were the ones who saved the woman. The woman bought the medication at one of the hole in the wall pharmacies not knowing that they really are not legit. She asked the pharmacist(or at least the person pretending to be one) for direction on what to take for a migraine because had left her prescribed medication at home. She had no idea of the fentanyl problem.
She came back to the Villa from the hospital the same day.

Dave‘s original post about the dangers of these pharmacies should be stickied as a warning. Most people don’t really understand the dangers of the tourist trap pharmacies.

Also Tramadol is legal in Mexico, with a prescription. My wife was prescribed this for an injury suffered on the same trip by a well known doctor at the San Miguel hospital.

 

[tomfcrist]

I bring antibiotics home with me on trips, but even self-treating with those is questionable.

If you’ve got the , you do what you gotta do though.