Story of the First Prescription drug Ad on TV- it was banned, I think they all should be.

originally posted by: N3k9Ni
Aren't hostility, agitation, depressed mood and suicidal thoughts pretty much the same side effects as quitting smoking without Chantix?

No, you get murderous thoughts without. I was quitting dip, though, so your mileage may vary. My homicidal ideation index was very high.

a reply to: boymonkey74
People don't just take the #, they BEG for it. And we have ads for unbelievable stuff. A couple years ago there was one for a drug that...I kid you not...made your eyelashes thicker. It framed thin eyelashes as a medical problem you needed a drug rather than a mascara wand to "fix." It could cause blue eyes to turn brown--permanently. It could cause eye infections, darkening of your eyelids (or other places it touched often, if you were careless.) It could cause hair growth in other areas it touched often. It had a big list of side effects, including, at the most extreme, blindness.

Incredibly, the "patient information" insert actually had the balls to state, "Remember that your doctor has prescribed this medication because he or she has judged that the benefit to you is greater than the risk of side effects."

Hmmn. Thicker eyelashes outweighs eye infections, brown eyelids, and possible blindness? Yeah right.

It was marketed with a commercial that looked like a makeup commercial, too. It's still on the market, but I haven't seen an ad in ages, thank god. It cost about $100 per month, took about 3 months to really work, and if you stopped using it your eyelashes went back to pre-drug shape. Thanks, but I'll opt for eyelash extensions thank you. Cheaper, easier, and no risk of going blind or having my blue eyes turn brown.

THIS is the insane world we live in here in the U.S.

originally posted by: Liquesence
we might cure your jock itch, but your semen might make your wife have a heart attack, after which you'll get leprosy and slowly die).

That was priceless.

originally posted by: shinethelight
It seems as most of the western medicine system is to keep you coming back, dependant on drugs and filling their pockets with money.

That's EXACTLY what it is. There's so much more profit to be made off of lifetime prescription users. Cure something, and boom, that profit is over. Make it just a little better, and you can keep people buying your product forever. And if you turn normal biological processes into "conditions" that need "treated" (I'm looking at you, menopause) it expands the market even further. Win-win for Big Pharma, lose-lose for us peons.

originally posted by: Tardacus
and whats really crazy is when they have one of these drug ads on and then the very next ad is some ambulance chasing law group:
"Have you or a loved been injured or died from taking (insert name of drug here) then call us we can get you money"

What's even crazier is when the science refutes the need to "treat" whatever the problem is, or shows that the drugs don't work any better than a placebo (there are quite a few of these), OR that the side effects outweigh the risks, but the drugs stay on the market. It's nearly impossible to get a drug pulled once it's been approved. Look how long it took to get Vioxx off the market, and it was lethal.

originally posted by: Bedlam

originally posted by: N3k9Ni
Aren't hostility, agitation, depressed mood and suicidal thoughts pretty much the same side effects as quitting smoking without Chantix?

No, you get murderous thoughts without. I was quitting dip, though, so your mileage may vary. My homicidal ideation index was very high.

Speaking of murderous thoughts--how about Ambien? People don't just sleepwalk on the stuff, they sleep DRIVE. It's even openly mentioned as one of the possible side effects. People have died because of #ed up people DRIVING IN THEIR SLEEP, and yet the stuff is still on the market. What?????

originally posted by: riiver

Speaking of murderous thoughts--how about Ambien? People don't just sleepwalk on the stuff, they sleep DRIVE.

I didn't make it through the first bottle of Ambien. About night 2, I started calling people in the wee hours and progressed on to driving about night 4. Luckily I went to work. Sort of. And that was it for Ambien.

a reply to: Bedlam
I am the walrus.

Goo goo joo goob.

a reply to: reldra

I remember the days when lawyers were not allowed to advertise on television and pharmaceutical companies were not allowed to advertise prescription drugs on television. The world was a much simpler place then. Ever since the rules changed everyone is either lawsuit happy, a hypochondriac or BOTH!

These ads lead people to believe either they are entitled to be millionaires just because someone tapped their car in a parking lot (lawyer ads) or that they are desperately ill both mentally and physically and must consume all of the proper prescription drugs or die (drug ads).

originally posted by: BedlamI didn't make it through the first bottle of Ambien. About night 2, I started calling people in the wee hours and progressed on to driving about night 4. Luckily I went to work. Sort of. And that was it for Ambien.

That is some scary #. And sleep driving isn't even the worst of it. It's incredible to me that this drug is still allowed on the market. I mean...it's a sleeping pill ffs. It's not some life-saving thing.

It's all about money. It's ONLY about money. So what if a few people die here and there because someone is driving in their sleep, and nevermind the ruination of the life of the sleep-driver either. As long as someone is making a billion-dollar profit it's all good. One would think that doctors would take this into consideration when prescribing this crap, but Ambien is still one of the most-prescribed. Last time I looked it was #2 behind Sonata. Unbelievable.

originally posted by: riiver
It's incredible to me that this drug is still allowed on the market. I mean...it's a sleeping pill ffs. It's not some life-saving thing.

Yeah, there's always Trazodone. The VA's go-to for everything. And one of the primo off-label uses is for recurrent insomnia.

It's also got some interesting side effects. It's sort of the guy equivalent of a roofie. If you had a woman who wanted to have sex with unwilling male partners, Trazodone would be the thing to drop into his beer, because after about an hour he's both asleep and...ready for anything. For hours. And he probably won't remember it all that well.

Might come in handy if you were Nancy Pelosi's personal bodyguard, I suppose.

a reply to: Bedlam

OMG Trazodone...

VA gave me some of that stuff last month. First night I walked outside to pee (yea... go figure) and felltight out onto a concrete stoop. Got up and was heading back to bed... fell out in the floor. Wife woke up and asked what the hell Inwas doing. I told her, "... I just need to make it to bed..." I made it to the bed and literally crawled into it and as soon as I got in I got sooo happy I made it. Wife laughing at me and threatening to phonecam me.

Threw that stuff away the next morning wondering how anyone could deal with that.

originally posted by: Terminal1
Threw that stuff away the next morning wondering how anyone could deal with that.

For a while it was a short night sleep, a long one that featured dead people crawling in bed with me or monsters dragging me out of the bed, or Trazodone. It sucks. Ambien was worse, though. Now I don't need it, luckily.

What gets me are the Viagra and Cialis ads, which if you're watching a football game they are about every other commercial.

But if you notice, they always have the hottest looking women in those commercials. I mean, no matter how old and wore out I was just looking at a woman like that walking into the room would be enough Viagra for me.

a reply to: reldra

Im going to straddle the fence here. The commercials can be overpowering and money oriented, screaming and ridiculous.

But on the plus side...there are millions of patients blindly taking whatever their doc's prescribe and those commercials at least...let them know about options...

Thats it...climbing off fence now....

MS
EMT

originally posted by: boymonkey74
As a Brit we don't get these...well we get Anadin and cough medicine but not prescription ones.
I find it horrid tbh but I have seen drug reps try and sell their medicine but we don't get it on TV.
I must admit why would anyone take that drug after watching the ad?.

I am a Murican living in Murica and I see these ads all the time on the tv. 10 seconds of naming the drug and the rest of the 50 seconds are describing the horrible side effects. Yet the sheeple in Murica buy these drugs by the truck full. I laugh and laugh. I work with a lady takes about 6 different drugs and she is sick every week, has no energy and is tired all the time. Gee George I wonder why !!! In Murica you take drugs to get rid of the side effects of that drug then take another that gets rid of the side effect of the previous drug. HURRRR DURRRRR

originally posted by: Urantia1111
a reply to: reldra

Hear hear! These Rx ads are highly predatory on largely weak-minded Americans. Aren't doctors supposed to be in charge of who needs medication? Every ad begs people to "Ask your doctor if (random pill) is right for you". Ban all of those commercials.

Also, I'm really tired of 4 or 5 auto insurance ads per commercial break. Toss those as well. That takes care of about 80% of ads. Good riddance.

Nope Now we have ACA (Obamacare) The IRS is in charge of all medical care in the US now. So as long as they pay all the taxes then the Rx is fine. Doctors are optional now, please consult you accountant for all further health care needs.

I wouldn't go as much as a long rant, more like a much needed rant that you've been prob pushing it to the side not to get into it because of all the bs...good read...didn't know some of the stuff...but i have been using weed for a while and as you said i have yet to turn into a bat....i actually now will puff up more hoping for a batman make over
a reply to: RomeByFire

When i first was DXed with fibromyalgia i was told that antidepressants were the only medication for fibromyalgia.

Antidepressants only made me feel a lot worse. no pain relief, unable to think straight. severe BPH.

If drug advertising had been banned i would never have found out about nerontin (gabapentin) a medication that works.

Some doctors do not want drug adds because it cuts there profit or lets them lie to you to keep the insurance companies happy.

Doctor win ether way. If they prescribe expensive new drugs they get a kickback from the drug companies and if they prescribe a cheap generic drug they get a kickback from the insurance company.