Woman who uses opioids for chronic pain says negative attention hurts legitimate patients
For years News 4 has tracked deaths and injuries related to abusing opioids but a woman in the Metro East wanted to share the other side of the drug.
Posted — UpdatedAnna has several medical issues where her doctors prescribed opioids to fight pain.She's prescribed hydrocodone, an opioid to battle her fibromyalgia.
"It relieves my pain. It enables me to do the laundry, clean the house or just move because when the fibromyalgia flares, I cannot even move," said Anna.
She wanted to share her side because, she said, the negative attention of opioids is hurting legitimate patients like her.
Anna understands the drug is highly addictive but said she's monitored and undergoes a test to make sure the drug is not being abused.
At one point, her medical records had her listed as a drug addict – simply because she was prescribed opioids.
"Everybody's focusing on the epidemic," said Anna. "Nobody is looking at the true patients and what's going on is. When we show up for a true pain and emergency we get treated different."
Back in April, St. Clair County, Illinois filed a lawsuit against two drug labs, blaming the lack of responsibility while promoting opioids.
In June, Missouri Attorney General Josh Hawley filed suit against three large pharmaceutical companies basically on the same note, claiming their campaign is full of "fraud and deception."
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