Should I try dicyclomine?! Help!?

It's getting hard to get Librax, as it has 2 depressents in it-belladonna and benzodiazepines. If a patient has a history of depression, eye problems, and other problems-doctors don't like to prescribe it. I've taken it since 1994. I go around and go around with doctors about it. A few years ago, there was a legal hassle with the stupid FDA-I was paying about $200 a month for 2/day. Now I pay any where from $38-$120. It's not on the medicare formulary, so many prescription plans won't pay for it. The generic name is CHLORDIAZEPOXIDE-CLIDINIUM OCE. It controls spasms, diverticulus, cramps, seizures, helps heal ulcers of all types, is good for painful menses, nausea, vomiting. Sometimes the intestines constrict and make you constipated, but Librax helps relax the GI system, it also quiets down spasms. I've noticed that flu sypmtoms are less severe-I seldom get sick to my stomach, unless I'm exposed to Tylenol. I'm having a colonoscopy Wed.

Expand this post...

I needed the GI clinic to FAX a new script to Costco. It took over a week, and I was down to one dose. Costco FAXed and called for a week. I was living on and near the phone. The GI clinic said that if they got a FAX-that I had to wait 72 hours for a panel to approve it because of the new drug laws. I called my HMO reps and explained this and I didn't want to end up in the ER with IVs. I told the GI people that too. I spent about an hour on the phone, as they researched the status of a pain killer not on the medicare-medicaid formulary, called the pharmacy to verify my story/account, etc. They called the GI, and were treated rudely-operator wouldn't even connect them to a nurse. The reps called me and said they'd have a supervisor call. Then Costco called me that the med was there-as they had put a priority on this. I called the reps. I got my medicine with maximim allowed refills this time. The reps called me Fri morning to see how my health was. If they had called today, I wouldn't have said good, as I'm being hit by cramps. I was really scared that the GI clinic decided not to prescribe this any more, and this was their way to make me take something else. I told the reps that too. When GI called yesterday to confirm the colonoscopy, I let them know that I'd do this, but what I went through to get a med. I got a letter today from the HMO-it doesn't like the thought that nobody would talk to them, and they might have been out of lots of money. The last time I had a colonoscopy in 1996, I went into convulsions-it was a prep med that they don't use any more and I was really pretty sick at the time. Again I talked too much. I'm getting real mad at the FDA-it seems that only scam artists can get what they want-and the rest of us suffer. The HMO says that it will require a method to get emergency meds for a problem like this. I checked and Costco was FAXing to the correct number. I don't have a history of losing meds or asking for early refills. This script was $38, last month $112. It's hard for me to budget money for this. It just depends which company Costco buys a batch from.
let me know how it goes. Blood work should show if you have an infection-it's cheaper-and it can be done the day you go in. here, it takes 3-5 months to get into GI-anywhere, and ER is useless. I had a 98 day wait for my exam Wed. Can you get into an Urgent care and get lab work done to see if it's an infection? So keep us in the loop about what's going on.

I hope that you don't take insult, but let me tell you what it's like in the rural West. I can see that you don't live in NM, or the Dakotas. We have a doctor shortage. That's one thing about this, so many presume that it's the same everywhere. Our good doctors usually leave to make money to pay off their student loans. Rural areas like this have a lot of auto accidents, so we provide the organs. The Organ bank decided that too many people in West Texas, NM, Utah, whatever were getting to many hearts, etc. We had a state of the art transplant center with some of the best surgeons in the world. The organ bank made it illegal for transplants to be done here. If you can't do transplants, you go to NY-back east so you can do the work that you love. Some surgeons and doctors do stay here because they have family here-or love the West. This is a problem in the Dakotas, Nebraska, West Texas.

Expand this post...

It's so frustrating that somebody has to go Back East, try to find the money to live, see your doctors, spend hundreds of thousands of dollars to get a heart or liver from somebody that died in New Mexico. I don't mean to sound snide, but what test can my doctor do or order that's not done in the GI clinic, don't mention the fecal ocult-blood exam. I will add, that doctors, specialists in these states spend much of their time driving through blizzards, sandstorms, extreme heat, dangerous mountain roads to very small hospitals to do exams-colonoscopies, follow up on pace makers. These doctors in NM-dakotas, etc. get the least amount of federal monies to care for patients. You guys take our men for combat ( the last medal of Honor recipient-was here 3 weeks ago to visit his family), you take our hearts and kidneys, you take our gas, oil, and coal, and our intelligence. We have one of the top 10 teaching hospitals in the nation, it has a waiting list, because to go to UNM, means that you can work anywhere. We have one of the best VA hospitals in the nation-along with 2 national laboratories that also does research for developing medical tools for the VA and UNMH-they all work together and provide life saving and quality of life things that helps everybody.We out think Harvard in developing techniques, procedures, etc. Our tax money goes to develop these doctors, that have to go elsewhere to practice.
My gut is basically under control. I have some spasms, I'll have diarrhea for a few days, but an increase and medication and drinking broth takes care of it. I had IBS diagnosed in 1965. I'm not in a bad way-and I can't see why I should take an opening that should be for somebody that's in distress. Part of the on-going dialogue in these Drug.com communities is the effect of the new drug laws. I think that's why the GI clinic decided to have the 72 hour wait and have a panel approve the new prescriptions. They also had an idiot answering the phone. The HMO is in a snit at GI for several reasons-That this happened, that when they called-they were treated rudely and not connected to the head nurse, the clinic manager,or even a janitor; that a healthy person could've ended up in the ER with IVs with the HMO paying the bill; that GI and the HMO obviously didn't have an emergency plan for something like this. This medical group has worked with the AF, and I've been in and out of it since the 1970s. They don't have my records, but the AF gave me copies of my colonoscopies etc, and made me promise to go in and get one, when I was in my 60s, especially if I did well. I'm keeping this promise-GI here asked me if they could get extra biopsies for research. I told them that's the main reason I came in. I also wanted to establish that I have IBS, as in January, I had a twit that didn't understand anything about IBS. GI helped me to get rid of her, and get me a young doctor that does understand IBS. He's a saint. Do you know how a GI doctor marks a patient that's provided useful data through out the years, and has participated in research? Color film. I had ultrasound before it was considered a standard practice. My records that I turned in were in color. this was a glitch caused by these new drug laws and somebody answering the phone that wasn't too bright. Friday a GI nurse called and said that the pharmacy and I should have called, I told her that everybody called. She said that they're behind in handling refill FAXes. I told them they need to take care of it. Librax isn't on the medicare formulary, so my HMO won't pay for it. This is a rescheduled exam, as somebody in billing decided that the extra biopsies should be paid for by me. I called up GI howling-rescheduled and GI said they'd take care of the problem. Now I'm not paying a red cent. I told them that it's patently unfair to have to pay to be experimented on. usually whomever answers the phone is knowledgeable and sympathetic, and connects you to the correct person.