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Joined: 03 May 2007 Posts: 25 Location: Ontario Canada
Posted: Tue May 08, 2007 2:42 pm Post subject: What is good about your methadone clinic:)
Hi
Many times when I use to go to my clinic, I would feel happy about all the good things the clinic had to offer. I also had a private doctor for methadone at one time and found that to be even better.
What sort of things did you or do you find good about your methadone clinic or private doctor with in a doctors office.
Joined: 07 May 2007 Posts: 11 Location: Edmonton, Alberta ,Canada
Posted: Tue May 08, 2007 3:03 pm Post subject:
Hi It's good to talk about the good things that are happening in our lives. I believe it intensifies positive energy for all of us to use.
Over the past 4 years I have been able to make some relationships with some of the people who work at the clinic. Our Doctor is awesome and is open to letting us the addict determine what is best for us. Within reason. Ijoke around with the urine test coordinator all the time. She keeps asking for some of the drugs I am on.lol
I believe that if I treat people with respect, that is what I get in return. Aside from the HOOPS that are in place for us to navigate all is well in the land of ID.
Roy _________________ Everything Happens For a Reason
AS IT IS
Joined: 03 May 2007 Posts: 25 Location: Ontario Canada
Posted: Tue May 08, 2007 8:16 pm Post subject:
Hi Roy
That's nice to hear. There are some working staff within these clinics that are very USER FRIENDLY. Having staff user friendly really helps with recovery. What I'm really happy to hear is that they are letting the patients say what they feel would be good for them as far as what may be needed at your clinic. I think that is very important.
Have you asked to set up a methadone support group ran ONLY by the users at the clinic. That is a good thing and would like to see more of that. It helps the patients feel a part of things and helping others with recovery always feels good.
Brent and I are going to be running a USER ran support group in Belleville we HOPE. We have to see if any funding could be avialble for it. We've spoken with the users that go to the clinics in Belleville and they seem to be all for it if it's possible. So Brent and I have to write up a proposal and hand it in to the health unit.
We haven't had time yet to do that we've been so busy lately.
What are the things you would feel your clinics needs to more benifit the patients there?
Hey you know what a good joke is to play on the person that does the urine testing.
Get an empty urine jar and take it home and fill it up with apple juice.
When you go for your next urine test, do your test as normal. As soon as she turns her head for a second
get the other one out with the apple juice in it and say to her "LET ME RUN THAT THROUGH AGAIN" and drink the apply juice. I bet her face would turn as white as a sheet....lol...I did that once in the hospital to a nurse. She just about droped.
Joined: 02 May 2007 Posts: 26 Location: Ontario Canada
Posted: Tue May 08, 2007 9:45 pm Post subject:
Hi Roy
I sear I submitted a post reply back to you. It was a long one as well. I seawr I saw it up and now I loged in again and it's not there...lol...oh well, I'll just reply again.
It is so good to have staff in clinics that are user friendly. It's so important to our recovery when we are treated like people rather than a number. So I always like to hear when people like their clinic and have good things to say about it.
What I really liked reading was that they allow the patients (USERS) to have say in what they feel is needed for them to benifit more from.
Have you got a USER RAN methadone support group. Only ran by the uses of your clinic. If not you should ask about setting one up. We once ran a user ran methadone support group. They felt more comfortable talking about things with out staff there. When staff can trust that the users can take care of themselves and run a group it also helps to take off the stigma about users not being able to do much for themselves.
In another city we are on a harm reduction task force as well and talked to guy at the health unit about setting up a user ran support group for methadone and hep c and user issues. He thought that was a great idea and told us to write up something and he'd see if he could get funding to set it up.
What's so great about this is that the health unit in Belleville is very user friendly and very supportive of things we feel users may benifit from. It's when professionls work with us and support us and our ideas as user or patients that really helps take away the stigma. We feel so good when they offer or suggest things for us to do or try out. I have more respect for them now then when I first started getting to know them. It only goes to show that getting to know people before judging them can take us a long ways to something better.
Also on the HEP C task force. At first I didn't know what to think or if they really wanted to hear anything I would have to say. I saw that I was judging them first not them judging me. Once I got to know them better I found out how supportive they really would be towards users.
Users if only they could have more of a chance to work or do something with professionals both sides learn more about each other and in time gain more respect for each other. I'm so lucky to be able to do this and help in some small way to work towards some positive changes for drug users.
What do you think your clinic needs right now to benifit the patients more.
How do you feel about the way carries are set up now.
How do you feel about urine testing
How do you feel about once a week visits and so on and so on and so on.
Oh a joke to play on the person who does your urines.
Get an empty urine bottle
Fill it up with apple juice.
Once you get the chance next time you leave a urine.
Pull out the apple junice and say to her "LET ME RUN THAT THROUGH AGAIN" and watch her face turn as white as a sheet.
Just some hummour to play around with with the staff.
Joined: 07 May 2007 Posts: 11 Location: Edmonton, Alberta ,Canada
Posted: Wed May 09, 2007 5:37 pm Post subject:
Hi all
I also have made a post that has some how gone to that place where glitches live. Cyber space must have been created by a human being. Just look at all the mistakes. Any way I don't know exactly what I said but in response to your question regarding Methadone Support Groups. We have an ongoing group that meets every Tuesday AM. It is there for us to share our experiences with the program. We have a facilitator from the clinic who adds input and keeps things on track. She is an Angel. She has no experiential knowledge but she is open and unbiased (as anyone can be). I used the group quite a bit when I was just starting and I still drop in every couple of months. I lost a lot of my support system when I quit going to; Narcotics Anonymous fellowship. There was a lot of ignorance towards the Meth Program. My sponsor is nonjudgmental but he lives in Nanimo now so its a long distance sponsorship. I still try to apply alot of what I picked up in 8 years of attempting to live their program. Anyway it always helps to have someone else who has been there before to help guide and answer questions. I
I went to a good friends funeral this morning and it reminded me to make the most of every moment I have. You never know when your turn is going to be. He was diagnosed with abdominal cancer 3 1/2 WEEKS ago.
AS IT IS
Roy _________________ Everything Happens For a Reason
AS IT IS
Joined: 02 May 2007 Posts: 26 Location: Ontario Canada
Posted: Thu May 10, 2007 9:17 am Post subject:
Hi Roy
Hope your day goes well. You're so right. It always seems that after lossing someone that our own life seems to mean so much more. It becomes that much more important to life it and not take it for granted. I know when my dad died of cancer it made me think of life more. Just watching him in pain for months not being able to ease it no matter how much morphine he was given. That I was lucky and not in his postion. You're so right we just never know when our time will come. And to live each moment as positive as can be.
I'm not a believer in A.A. or N.A. but am happy that it has helped many. I am a believer in what ever works for that individual for treatment or recovery. I found it to judgmental towards those on methadone and didn't like the guilt tripping stuff. But it does work for a lot of people and that's what matters. You sound now as if you're doing well, I hope you are. You seem to have suport when you know you need it.
It's so hard for some, knowing they need to build up a support system yet taking that step at times for some is so hard and such fear can arise. I'm not saying to all but only for some. I feel for those people cause they want help and support yet can't get it out of fear of taking that step.
I can remember when I was strung out badly and when I'd be sitting alone. Thinking about my family and other families wishing I could be happy and with them all not having to worry about getting that hit into me or I wouldn't be able to join them in anything. It was so bad I just stayed away from them missing them and them wondering why. It hurt them and me. It's such a lonely life being strung out. Wanting to be free of it all yet so strung it was impossible to be free.
Fear of where to go for help and not be judged and who could be trusted to help me. Trusting in doctors is so hard yet we have to put a little trust in them. I totaly trust in the doctor I have right now. And I'm so thankful for the other doctors that have helped me in the past. Once that step is taken and lucky to have a great doctor who understand is a lift off of shoulders for sure. And to be able to really talk with the doctor about what's going on really makes us feel that they are interested and do care enough to help us.
So it's always nice to be able to say something good about treatment and doctors even though at times some of us may want to rant and rave about them not understanding our helping us the way some think they need to be helped. I've tried many forms of treatment and the last one i did was the best one for me. It took years to get to that but now that it's been done I'm so thankful for my doctor for really saving my life. Now that life is good and you look at those that don't have much time left, yes take each moment for all it's worth.
Have a great day. We have a friend down from out west Vacnouver that dosen't live far from the down town east side. She's here for a week. She's doing well on her methadone and it's nice to see how well she'd doing.
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Any way I don't know exactly what I said but in response to your question regarding Methadone Support Groups. We have an ongoing group that meets every Tuesday AM. It is there for us to share our experiences with the program. We have a facilitator from the clinic who adds input and keeps things on track. She is an Angel. She has no experiential knowledge but she is open and unbiased (as anyone can be). I used the group quite a bit when I was just starting and I still drop in every couple of months. I lost a lot of my support system when I quit going to; Narcotics Anonymous fellowship. There was a lot of ignorance towards the Meth Program. My sponsor is nonjudgmental but he lives in Nanimo now so its a long distance sponsorship. I still try to apply alot of what I picked up in 8 years of attempting to live their program. Anyway it always helps to have someone else who has been there before to help guide and answer questions. I