The drug store wouldn't sell me a box of 10 Claritin D today

[BuelahWitch]

It wasn't the actual brand name, it was their store brand (which is a few dollars cheaper). Apparently I was over the monthly allowance, or close to it (they finally let me have 5). Their records showed I had bought a box of 10 on March 8, and another on March 18. This being March 28 (ten days later), I am again in need of these overpriced meds in order to deal with the hay fever season.
I don't have health insurance so I can't go to the doctor and get a prescription. I don't do drugs (not even pot). I haven't a clue about how to build a meth lab. Funny thing, if I knew how to make and sell drugs I could afford to go to the doc and get REAL fucking meds, couldn't I?
This never happened to me before, and I am really pissed off. Doesn't the government allow me to treat my allergy for the entire month? When I asked the woman that question she told me she had no idea and I should write my Congressman. I don't know that there was a real pharmacist there who could answer my questions, and I had other things to do, so I left.
I guess i need to find another place to buy this over the counter shit. One that has a computer that can count to 10...

[Richard D]

1. If they ran your driver's license

the data base is the same in any pharmacy.

[SoFlaJet]

2. They think you're brewing up a batch

of crystal meth I guess-I like Tylenol Allergy Sinus

[Ninja Jordan]

They think you're a meth head.

[BuelahWitch]

6. LOL, anyone who takes a look at me would know I'm not

Aren't "tweakers" skinny? I'm a short, chubby woman.

[rkc3]

16. Just smile for them - meth heads aren't known for proper oral hygiene.

After the enamel is eaten away from your teeth, no amount of flossing will help.

[ShortnFiery]

23. And I bet we both have GOOD TEETH too!

I saw a show about what Meth does to one's teeth. It is horrible. :puke:

[Sal Minella]

28. I'm a short, chubby, OLD, WHITE-HAIRED woman, and they glare at me like I've got a meth lab in the

trunk every time I buy pseudoephedrine for my godawful sinus headaches. It's the only thing that works, but sometimes I just put up with the headaches in order to postpone another trip to the pharmacy as long as possible.

[BuelahWitch]

44. we better start dressing like gangstas or something, IH

At least flash a tattoo at them. :hi:

[I_Make_Mistakes]

29. Benadryl (Rite Aid has a similar product 1/2 price) will fit your bill

as it is an antihistamine (I cannot, since childhood, tolerate psuedophedrine (sp?). It makes my heart race to the point I think I am dying).

It does make you tired, but, I believe they have non-drowsy available now. Good luck with your allergy's, probably gonna be bad this year, so, I wish you good luck!

[BuelahWitch]

33. Thanks for the tip

Yeah, I need the non-drowsy stuff. Sometimes I will take Chlortabs at night,but then I'm not worth shit the next day.

[I_Make_Mistakes]

43. Benadryl doesn't do that in the non-drowsy. I was having sleeping

problems with the Lyme disease and my Psychologist also subscribed Benadryl for sleeping problems.

Rite Aid, has an equivalent brand, and the side affects of Benadryl are not an issue. I even asked my Primary (now), if I could build up an immunoresponse to it, he said no!

If the makers of Benadryl were smart, I give zero credit to the Pharma, would lower the purchase price they would make millions on the drug benefit side. They are too ignorant!

[BlackVelvet04]

61. The Dollar General store

has a brand of Diphenhydramine (generic for Benadryl) as a sleep aid. Same milligrams as Benadryl and cheap. I think it's $1.50 or $2.00 per box and the name is just Sleep Aid I believe. I buy it all the time and save a bunch of money. Just be sure to check the expiration date.

[I_Make_Mistakes]

75. Thanx n/t

[BlackVelvet04]

82. You're welcome. n/t

[Shallah Kali]

92. Big Lots also has generic benadryl and claritin cheap for under $1.50 per box

used to take claritin until I found out it had lactose which I can't tolerate as I have a non-deadly but still unpleasant milk allergy. I found one brand without lactose but I decided my head didn't bother enough for me to pay $1 per tablet instead of $1 something for 10 tabs. i also have celiac and when I went gluten free my sinus troubles got much better, heaven knows why.

[kestrel91316]

51. I can't take Benadryl, lol. I took it ONCE, and it made me really agitated

and kept me up, pacing the house, all night long. When I was sick and needed rest,no less. I felt like I'd taken speed.

Back to Sudafed for me - no side effects at all.

[etherealtruth]

76. Same here ...

I guess its an "idiosyncratic" reaction that isn't all that rare ... unfortunately Sudafed gives me a headache and makes me nauseous ... sometimes you can't win:)

[meldroc]

10. If she was a meth cook, she'd be trying to get them in quantities larger than ten.

Tweakers have been known to buy (or steal) pseudoephedrine hundreds of pills at a time. Your average allergy sufferer who buys ten or even thirty pills isn't getting enough pseudoephedrine to make more than a minuscule amount of meth.

[ShortnFiery]

19. I have to take the same medication and the drug store makes me sign like some sort of addict.

It's shameful. Dumb asses think that little bit of decongestant is going to put a meth lab in business.

Remind your drug store that most of our Meth Amphetamine comes from Mexico and the drug cartels do not shop at their chain stores. :rofl:

BTW I forgot to take my 24 hour Claritin D this morning and by the time I was done volunteering at my daughter's school at 1:00 PM, my nose was all stuffed up, and felt like someone had lodged an Icepick in my forehead. Only THAT junk (decongestant) works. Damn those Meth dealers making it hard for us to get THERAPEUTIC meds. :(

[malta blue]

3. Wow, that's a crappy situation.

I'm sorry that happened to you.

You would think that you could purchase a 10 day supply every 10 days. Makes sense to me.

[aquart]

4. Yeah. I love baby with the bathwater legislation.

They forced us to give up a safe and useful medication because of the huge profit drugmakers can make out of it. Here's a thought: Remove the profit. Legalize drugs. Poof! Nobody needs to melt down sudafed anymore.

[Firespirit]

39. You don't want to legalize crystal meth

It is not nearly as comparatively benign as cannabis.

The "solution" to the meth problem is to crack down on illicit trade on the black market -- and people need to accept that any "solution" will NOT eliminate all use of the drug. There are legitimate businesses in places like Canada that take prescriptions and offer them at cheaper rates to U.S. citizens; that's not what I mean -- although that's a separate issue that could be eliminated with single payer healthcare. Then there are the true black market dealers who know full well that their products will be made into illegal drugs and sell them anyway.

[MadHound]

60. Like cracking down on illicit black market drugs has ever worked.

Face it, the human race seems to have an inherent need to change the state of its conciousness, and use everything from alcohol to acid to meth in order to do so. All that cracking down on a black market does is make the price of the product go up, instills more desperation in the users and addicts, and results in an ever increasing secondary crime wave that harms the surrounding society. How successful was Prohibition? How successful has the War on Drugs been? Prohibition led directly to an immense explosion in organized crime whose effects are still being felt today. The War on Drugs has taken away an ever increasing amount of civil rights and liberties from the ordinary citizen, made our cities and suburbs increasingly dangerous, and fueled an explosion of violence throughout our country.

And the funny thing is, neither Prohibition nor the War on Drugs ever decreased the usage of the substance that they were supposed to. Alcohol usage went up, drug use has gone up, the crimes associated with illegal drugs have gone up. So who wins? Certainly not the ordinary citizen. No, the winners in this game are our government, they get to further increase the scrutiny and oppression of their citizens, all in the name of the War on Drugs. They get to command massive sums of money for unknown purposes, all in the name of the War on Drugs. They get to seize citizens property for such petty reasons as having a joint in one's car or house. These forfeiture laws also benefit local and state law enforcement agencies, since they keep a share, and generally have the ability to purchase such property of their choice at auctions that are easily rigged. It benefits the legal industry. How many attorneys are employed in either defending or prosecuting drug cases? Millions.

Yet the vast majority of Americans fail to see any benefit from the War on Drugs. Instead, people like the OP are hassled and harassed while trying to take care of their health. Old car hobbyists like myself are hassled and harassed due to certain chemical purchases we make for our hobby. Crime is rampant as addicts try to get money to feed their habit. Violence ravages neighborhoods.

Now then, let's take a look at an alternative. In London and Amsterdam they have come up with a humane way of dealling with their heroin addicts. The addict comes into the city on the tube, stops by a govenment health center, gets their shot of heroin for the day, goes to work, is a happy, productive, tax paying worker, gets off work, stops back by the government health center and gets their evening shot, goes home on the tube, spends a comfortable, relaxing evening at home, and has a fine life. Gee, how enlightened.

We should legalize all drugs. If you legalize drugs like amphetimines, then speed freaks wouldn't have to turn to kitchen brewed trash like meth to feed their habit. If you legalize drugs, you can tax them, and use that money for real treatment and education programs. If you legalize drugs, you can eliminate a large part of our crime problem. If you legalize drugs we can all be free citizens in a free country again.

Sorry, but it is past time that we declare the War on Drugs a failure and legalize all drugs. Anything else is simply more of the same insanity.

[Warren DeMontague]

65. Here's an idea: Since meth is made from mostly legal ingredients, it's rise in "popularity"

can be tied to the drug war, first and foremost. The VAST MAJORITY of the $40 Billion a year "drug war" doesn't go to fighting meth, it goes to fighting pot. Pot growing, pot smoking. Putting potheads in prison. Wheee!

Free up that $40 Billion, legalize and tax marijuana, treat other drugs (like meth) as a public health issue; people running meth labs can probably be charged with a whole laundry list of crimes, I don't think there's any danger of meth being sold at the 7-11. Stop paying for bullshit "public awareness ads" that tell kids if they smoke pot they'll get date raped and their testicles will fall off, and start being HONEST about drugs; namely, that some shit, like meth, and alcohol, and nicotine, is EXTREMELY dangerous.

$40 billion a year plus tax revenue from legal marijuana could pay for an awful lot of education and treatment on demand for things like meth and alcohol addiction.

[truedelphi]

77. I think that they keep pot illegal because

Without marijuana to bolster their statistics, people could easily see that the War on Some Drugs is a fruad.

Somethinglike 99% of all people qwho admit to doing drugs do so because of marijuana use.

So the only way the 60 billion plus budget on the War on Some Drugs can be justified is by pointing to this huge number of supposed drug fiends - most of whom only smoke a little dope now and then.

[Firespirit]

95. This makes sense.

I agree with you that pot isn't more harmful than alcohol or tobacco. It should be legal to use, with similar legal restrictions to those on alcohol and tobacco. I'm no expert on it, but I imagine that a heavy-smoking drunk has pretty much the same physical effects as a pothead would. Implement reasonable ways to keep people from endangering the lives of others while they are using it.

However, I cannot support legalization of crystal meth. (I know your post didn't say this, but a number of other replies did.) It would be completely irresponsible to make legal the use of something that devastating to the human body. And I don't think that legalizing it would cut down on the use of it. There can't be that many people who use hard drugs to piss off The Man. It is a public health hazard and meth-heads need to be treated before they destroy their bodies with it.

[Warren DeMontague]

105. There's the philosophical principle, then there's the reality.

From a purely philosophical standpoint, the social libertarian in me says that what a consenting adult wants to do with his or her own body is his or her own business, insofar as they're not harming or endangering anyone else- drive a car, neglect your kids, rob a bank, then you're a criminal- but don't make people into criminals for the contents of their bloodstreams or nervous systems (presuming they're not behind the wheel)

but the realist in me understands that full "legalization" of some substances- like meth- would be problematic. I think the Netherlands has the right approach; treat use of hard drugs as a health issue, not a law enforcement one. And at the very least, pot should be legal, regulated, and taxed. No question in my mind.

And I say this stuff as someone who has been clean and sober for years; alcohol nearly killed me more than once- but I hold no illusions that alcohol prohibition would have "saved" me from booze. Prohibition doesn't work. What works is providing people the tools and resources to help themselves, (the Zen parable of getting the goose out of the bottle without breaking the bottle comes to mind) tools like treatment on demand and honest education- because in my experience, the most persuasive advertisement against meth is methheads themselves. It is an ugly, ugly, ugly drug.

[Richard Steele]

74. That "crackdown" solution has never worked for anything, so let's try it again!

:crazy:

[aquart]

78. If there's no profit in selling it, who will make it?

Legalize.

[hvn_nbr_2]

59. I think they're gonna restrict dirt and shovels next.

Ya know, people grow pot in DIRT! No normal gardener needs more than a cubic foot of potting soil in a year. And any shovel bigger than your hand obviously isn't for transplanting African violets. Auntie Mae, you pothead, put down that bag of turf builder and back slowly away, and no one gets hurt.

[piedmont]

68. You've described exactly the mentality behind gun-bans, too. nt

[Firespirit]

5. The War on Pseudoephedrine is the ultimate

If anything, all they're stopping are the small-potatoes high school punks who want to make a quick buck and make crystal meth from ingredients that they can get for cheap at Wal-mart. By putting customers through this BS, they're not making a dent in the big meth producers, who are bound to get their ingredients over the black market from illicit drug websites who will sell in bulk. It's just more invasive, privacy-violating crap from the corporate world and its enablers.

[BuelahWitch]

11. You know, that's the whole thing

I am gladly complying and running my ass over there every 10 days or so when I run out. But now they're saying I'm buying too much? It's total bullshit.

[xmas74]

13. I'd heard that

the major makers of meth fifteen years ago were small time practices in the Midwest. Now w/ the legislation in the past few years it's all become Asian and Mexican mafia.

[DURHAM D]

7. That is funny - I went through the same thing here in NC

last year. I could only buy a 6 day supply every 30 days. I fixed it by buying some while visiting in Kansas.

[BuelahWitch]

15. Don't come back and try that now

I'm IN Kansas! :hi:

[greenbriar]

46. The bill that caused this is the Matt Samuels Law. He was a Greenwood county Sherriff that was

murdered while serving a warrent to a meth lab

it was tragic and senseless...

I applaud the law

[Occulus]

54. I condemn these laws

as enforcement of them seems to me to be an act of prior restraint.

Tragic and senseless police death >< good legislation. Often, as in this case, it ends up being the reverse.

[Goblinmonger]

107. I understand the basis for the law

but isn't there something wrong with the legislation when you can't buy a 30-day supply of a drug in a 30-day period? That seems pretty stupid and hardly impacts only the meth lab people.

[benEzra]

112. And his death relates to preventing allergy/sinus sufferers from getting affordable meds HOW?

Most meth in this country is made from bulk chemicals purchased outside the United States, and is not made by allergy-suffering grandmothers.

My wife and I are in the same boat with regards to Sudafed (the real thing, not the worthless phenylephrine crap the DEA wants to push everybody toward). Sudafed is the ONLY medication that treats my frequent headaches (in combination with an NSAID, neither works for me alone), but the purchase limits in NC are so low that if we buy ONE BOX every payday (2 weeks), we become drug criminals.

Welcome to Utopia, land of needless headaches and runny noses because politicians (including Shrub and Feinstein, who just blessed the rest of the nation with a similar law to NC's) want to be seen as "doing something" about (mostly imported) meth.

[RC Quake]

27. Yep, I had to store hop for the first 6 months

This new law has been in effect for at least a year where I'm located. Only allowing a 10-day supply for 30 days had me store hopping to keep the family going. Both my spouse & I take it daily. At least now (at Costco) they don't track your purchases and turn you down for buying over any limit. They just track each purchase and send the listing into the Feds every month. I guess if the Feds think you are using it for something other than allergies/hayfever, you'll get a knock on your door someday.

It's getting ridiculous!

[DURHAM D]

42. I noticed you were in Kansas - that is why I was so amused.

North Carolina was just a little earlier than Kansas to get this nonsense started.

[xmas74]

8. Thought you'd like this

since your profile says you're from Kansas.

http://www.dpfks.org/KSLeg.html

"SB 270, a bill that would change the regulation of the sale and dispensing of schedule V ephedrine and pseudoephedrine products by pharmacies.

The bill would add the requirements to include the buyer’s address, the date and time of the sale, and the drug name and quantity sold. Patients would be limited to purchases of 3.6 grams per day or 9 grams in a 30-day period."

(Just thought of this-do you know anyone making a monthly trip to MO? It's the same here-9 grams in 30 days-but you could double up that way.)

[BuelahWitch]

25. What's different about Missouri? I thought they were taking the address info now

Which is why we have to give them the DL.

[xmas74]

34. But MO just writes it down.

No scanning and supposedly the books aren't handed over very often.

One pharmacist actually called it a "formality" and said that if I needed more I could drive across state lines into Kansas or Iowa since MO probably wouldn't know about it.

[BuelahWitch]

36. Hmm, good to know

Thanks xmas74! :hi:

[xmas74]

48. You're welcome.

But as a reminder-Blunt is an asshole and I wouldn't be surprised if this law were to change soon.

[blues90]

9. This year they began scanning my license

This is insane , now if they see you had bought a case of these then yeah maybe you are in a lab production but for regular use it is insane .

[Virginia Dare]

12. Didn't you know? You're presumed guilty, and you can't prove yourself innocent..

I ran into the same thing last year trying to buy some cold medicine for my daughter. It really pissed me off!!!

[Hekate]

14. Brilliant minds. It really is a key ingredient, but the gov should be squeezing the manufacturers...

...who apparently overproduce. Apparently the only way they can think of to regulate the product flow is by limiting the amount that can be purchased OTC, because those who don't actually steal the stuff to cook clear the shelves of local pharmacies via purchase.

I'm really sorry that you, an ordinary allergy sufferer, have to put up with this.

Hekate

[endarkenment]

26. Oh screw that. Stop the prohibition madness.

Print warning labels, regulate purity, and limit sales to adults. 35 years of hardass drug prohibition has been a total abject failure, but the remedy is more of the same.

[Hekate]

37. "Brilliant minds" is a sarcastic term. I think the policy is stupid.

PBS (probably Frontline) did a comprehensive program on meth. One of the big problems is overproduction of pseudephedrine at the legitimate plant.

The US government in its infinite wisdom (that's sarcasm again) apparantly can't come up with a better idea than squeezing allergy sufferers.

The whole war on drugs is a complete and costly failure.

Hekate

[endarkenment]

45. Well you can't put corporations in jail

so they have no interest in going after the manufacturers. The whole WOD is one corrupt sick game that has created a prison-enforcement-blackmarket alliance that enriches itself off of the population it preys on, while convincing that same population that for its own good they must pass ever more draconian laws, reduce what remaining freedom they have left, and toss their own children in jail. Not content with that, they transitioned the same fear induced methods into their grand permanent WarnTerra.

I've pretty much lost hope that we will ever wake up from this nightmare.

[Robb]

58. You should educate yourself better.

Meth is not like anything else out there, period. Read up a bit, there is no amount of regulation that could make a legal meth work out.

And I say this in agreement with you on virtually every other drug that's illegal. Meth is very, very different.

[Hekate]

81. Yes, meth is different; it's got to be about the worst thing invented

I've totally come around to the notion that legalizing pot would do no harm and would go a long, long way toward emptying out our prisons. I think it only qualifies as a gateway drug because in order to get it in the first place you have to go through criminals.

But meth? No way. That is a hugely destructive drug.

Hekate

[High Plains]

100. Meth is NOT the worst drug, according to the experts.

Despite what you see on TV.

Here is what two groups of British drug experts determined in their ranking of the relative dangers of various drugs:

1. Heroin
2. Cocaine
3. Street methadone
4. Barbiturates
5. Alcohol
6. Ketamine
7. Benzodiazapines
8. Amphetamine
9. Tobacco
10. Buprenorphine
11. Cannabis

Peer reviewed article published in the Lancet:

http://www.thelancet.com/journals/lancet/article/PIIS0140673607604644/fulltext#fig1

[endarkenment]

102. it is faith based reasoning here. facts are not welcome.

It is actually rare that you can find anyone who supports prohibition who can actually discuss the issue using established facts and rational discourse. Of course as the established facts do not rationally support prohibition that is quite understandable.

[endarkenment]

94. Oddly legal meth worked fine for about 30 years.

But I guess you do not quite understand my point. Regardless of the horrors of the demon drug du jour, prohibition does not work, does not protect anyone, and causes far more harm than a sane effective policy of legalized regulated intoxicants, open access to rehabilitation therapy, and honest effective education.

[Nutmegger]

17. Now every time I have to buy my meds

I have to get a pharmacist to unlock the giant plastic casing now protecting the precious medicine and do the license bullshit. I'm so tired of it all.

[kerry-is-my-prez]

18. It's a freakin pain in the ass - you have to go find a pharmacy that's open.

I was at a CVS and couldn't get it because the pharmacy was closed.

[SacredCow]

20. That "law" is the most ridiculous piece of crap....

Yeah, you CAN make meth from pseudoephedrine but I guarantee you that VERY few people were actually going in and buying the allergy meds even before the law was passed. I don't know the exact figures, but you'd probably need at least a case of the stuff to make an appreciable quantity of methamphetamine. It was (and likely still is) being stolen from the warehouse or stockroom.

Just another stupid knee-jerk reaction, courtesy of the powers that be....

[1monster]

21. No, the government doesn't allow you to treat your allergy for a whole

month if there is pseudoephedrine in the med.

I have a family of four who all suffer from tree pollen and other allergies. I'm allowed to buy 96 tablets of pseudoephedrine per month. If everyone in my family needs pseudoephedrine, those 96 tabs will last twelve days.

Right now, I'm hanging on by my fingernails because we all got some really nasty upper respiratory infections in late February and early March. I was out of work for five days (with the weekend in between), went back on Thursday and wished devoutly that I hadn't because I felt so miserable). We ran out of meds before all of us were well. Tough tiddly winks. The law is the law.

So I bought the only available alternative, phenylephrine HCI. That caused my stomach to burn... I've been very uncomfortable for several days now. I'm only just beginning to feel a bit more normal.

And a pharmacy tech told me that even if a doctor writes a prescription for pseudoephedrine, by law, I'm still only allowed 96 tabs per month... At four tabs a day, those ninety-six tabs last twenty-four days.

edit: spelling error

[triakis36]

22. I bought Sudafed and felt like a criminal

It was horrible. I didn't like being scrutinized just so I could get some cold medication.

[underseasurveyor]

24. MMmmm let me see

10 pills every 10 days must mean you take one pill a day {/gasp} :freak:

Yup sounds like you're a HUGH druggie alright :eyes:


On a serious note it's a sorry state of affairs that our government is so paranoid that people with real problems suffer because of the so called war on drugs. It's so ridiculous. Hope you find some needed relief for your allergies.

[BuelahWitch]

50. Shit, they should see how much aspirin I take

Especially at certain times of the month! I'm sure I'd be sent up the river for LIFE! :rofl:

[Mend]

30. and my daughter's insurance company won't cover Singulair....

the prescription allergy medicine that really works and you can't make into meth...the stuff is great but very expensive. They insist she take sudafed or Claritan which knocks her out making it unsafe for her to drive and the nose sprays don't work. The system is so broken. Singulair should be over-the-counter...it is very safe with no side-effects but NOOOOO, we need to keep pharmacies stuffed full of shit that kids O.D. on and/or make into meth.

[hedgehog]

108. My family LOVES Singulair - For my son it meant replacing three

other asthma meds with all their side effects for something very effective with apparently NO side effects. I love it for my allergies - I actually smell things now! You'd think the insurance company would wise up and realize that it would prevent a lot of ear and sinus infections!

[onenote]

31. its a screwed up approach -- you should go back and talk to them

take a copy of this:

http://www.accesskansas.org/pharmacy/word%20files/PSEUDOEPHEDRINE%20QUESTIONS%20AND%20ANSWERS.doc

It indicates that in Kansas (per your profile I'm assuming thats where you are) a purchaser can purchase 3 packages or containers within a seven-day period and that the law does not restrict or specify the size of packages that can be sold.

Worth a shot.

[BuelahWitch]

38. The woman tried to say it was a Federal law, not KS specific

I thought she was full of shit. I will take a copy of the stuff at that link. Thanks! :hi:

[kimmerspixelated]

32. My friend,

First do some real research on what your body needs to help you heal. Mainstream doctors, their poisons, and even OTC meds are not designed to really help you, just mask the symptoms. There are plenty of health food store remedies that will help you. I'm not completely sure, but I thought feverfew was good for allergies. Sometimes a complete body cleanse or detox helps.Most illnesses are due to a deficiency of some kind, something out of balance. Do some research, and keep in mind, tonics and so forth.... it's not all snake oil! Some things actually work. Always look to nature first!..... Okay, I can feel the naysayers flamin' already!

[BuelahWitch]

41. I used to use Ma Huang, but they outlawed that too

Because some kids took too many fucking diet pills and had a heart attack :banghead:
I'm not about to give up my cat. Of course, she's not the only thing that causes my allergies...

[kimmerspixelated]

49. Do some research, there's other things that are safe!

[wuushew]

35. Maybe you could buy additional amounts online

http://www.drugstore.com/products/prod.asp?pid=80857&catid=60&brand=27330&trx=PLST-0-BRAND&trxp1=60&trxp2=80857&trxp3=1&trxp4=0&btrx=BUY-PLST-0-BRAND

I have no idea if the pseudophedrin database is crosslinked with the purchase by mail database. Its worth a try.

[Rex]

40. That is because you are guilty until proven innocent in 2k7 America.

nt

[kerry-is-my-prez]

47. The meth dealers will just start robbing the drug stores or will smuggle it.

They apparently are now smuggling it in from Mexico.

[Bake]

52. It's a pain in the ass, and I don't think it's slowing down the meth cooks.

It just makes it more difficult for allergy sufferers like my wife. I have a route of several drug stores to get Claritin-D just to get her through springtime in Mississippi (where, by the way, the sun shining in the morning on the fallen pollen looks like a blanket of yellow snow ...).

Bake

[RamboLiberal]

53. I think it's a BS law and giving up our freedom

but I was amazed at posting in the past how many DU'ers stick up for this silly law.

Guess I'll be in your boat soon since my spring allergies should soon be kicking off and I'll be miserable till July. Be my first time experiencing this BS!

[mikelgb]

55. can any of the DU meth cookers out there weigh in on this?

[freeplessinseattle]

56. I am so freaking congested

but have about a week left before I can get my allotment. In the meantime am just miserable with a bad headache every day. I don't know what I am going to do this summer

[BuelahWitch]

66. I've never had a problem before

That law has been in effect over a year, yes? Of course, sometimes I have to buy 5, just because I can't afford the box of 10, and then come back 5 days later and gotten 5 or 10 more. This really knocked me for a loop...

[vanlassie]

57. It's part of the USA Patriot Act

Combat Methamphetamine
Epidemic Act of 2005
H.R. 3199, the newly enacted USA PATRIOT Im-
provement and Reauthorization Act of 2005, includes
the Combat Methamphetamine Epidemic Act of 2005
(CMEA). Under this new federal law, a lawful nonpre-
scription drug containing base chemicals is defined as
a “scheduled listed chemical product” (SLCP). A retail
distributor, including a pharmacy, is barred from selling
to any purchaser any SLCPexceeding a daily amount of
3.6 grams of a base chemical. Nonliquid SLCPs may
be sold only in blister packs, each blister containing
not more than two dosages, or in unit dose packets or
pouches. ThesellermustplaceSLCPsbehindthecounter
or in a locked case to ensure that consumers do not have
direct access to them.
Further, sellers must maintain an electronic or written
logbook identifying the name of the SLCP sold, the
quantity, the names and addresses of the purchasers, and
the dates and times of such sales (this does not apply to
the sale of a single package containing no more than 60
milligrams of pseudoephedrine).
Before the sale can take place, the prospective purchaser
mustshowthesellerastateorfederalphotoidentification
cardandmustsignthelogbook,enteringhisorhername,
address, and the date and time of the sale. The logbook
must include a notice to consumers that providing false
information may subject them to criminal prosecution.

[BuelahWitch]

63. Well the store was in violation

B/c the stuff is NOT in a locked cabinet.

Shit, now that I've gotten "the maximum" I guess I'm headed for Gitmo! :eyes:

[Rosemary2205]

62. "My" stores don't even ask - they just hand you what you ask for

never once have I been asked to show ID when purchasing decongestants in metro Atlanta.

[alfredo]

64. For temporary relief if you find yourself without medicine.

Go to a pizza parlor and get the crushed peppers. When you start having symptoms, pop a seed in your mouth and chew it. You will get immediate relief. It will last a few minutes. Tobasco or other hot sauce will do the same but can be messy.

[BuelahWitch]

70. Sorry, I'm looking for longer term relief than a few minutes.

[alfredo]

83. It's for those times when the medicine is wearing off or hasn't taken

effect yet. Trust me, there will be those times, you know, right when you wake up and have to scramble for the medicine cabinet. I'm a long time hay fever sufferer. I seem to have outgrown it, or became acclimated to the region.

[demobabe]

109. I've done what you suggested before....

Horseradish can give some relief, too - for a moment...

But sometimes I get those sinus headaches that just drive me NUTS... pseudoephedrine is the only thing that works for me under those circumstances. fortunately i don't have these problems year round, and many of my allergies have gone away since moving away from the east coast to less polluted areas. I keep a stock of pseudoephedrine around for the times I have trouble, and really didn't like having to sign to purchase the pills.

[alfredo]

111. Mysinus goes into a migraine. Imitrex is the only

cure that works.

[huskerlaw]

67. The "real" pharmacist

wouldn't have been able to help you either. Nor would another store.

It's a federal law (hence the 'write your congressman' comment).

[MadHound]

69. And meanwhile, as legitimate people suffer for this tightening on pseudophedrine

Out there somewhere some black market chemist is cooking up yet another substitute, one that won't require pseudophedrine. And like meth before it, it will be even more horrendous and hard on user's bodies. And people will get their fix, and we all will have lost more of our rights, and the problems will not have been solved.

Just legalize the goddamn shit, legalize amphetimines so that these meth heads can get their speed fix on, and the rest of us can get on with our lives.

[BuelahWitch]

71. I don't know if you're being sarcastic. I'm not asking for legalization

All I want is my one fucking pill a day. One pill. I will gladly stand in a fucking line at the fucking pharmacy. All I want is to be able to control my allergies for 365 days a year.

[MadHound]

73. No, I'm not being sarcastic

Meth was developed due to the crackdown on amphetimines. Instead of using relatively clean ingredients, some black market chemist cooked up a recipie that uses battery acid, sulphur and pseudophedrine among other poisonous things. Now that pseudophedrine has been made all but illegal, I guarantee you that some black market chemist is cooking up a substitute, using ingredients that are even more poisonous than meth, and once again when this drug becomes the rage, the main ingedient, whatever it might be, will be all but banned. And around and around we go.

Frankly, laws are never going to stop mankinds inherent need to alter their state of conciousness. Therefore, rather than harassing people like you and me, simply legalize these drugs, offer clean, quality controlled doses, and let the rest of us get what we need to cure our maladies.

[aquart]

79. Of course, the privatized prison industry would suffer.

Can't have that.

[meldroc]

97. Already done.

Just google and you'll find the "recipes" - all of them guaranteed to turn your house into a Superfund site.

I'm with the legalization crowd. Meth is very dangerous crap - it's one of the most dangerous, vile and addictive substances known to man, but prohibition is only making things worse. Make it legal, put it on the counter with a big red warning label saying "WARNING! THIS SHIT WILL KILL YOU!!!", keep it out of the hands of kids, and make sure the stuff's clean and of known doses. Go ahead and tax the hell out of it - I'm willing to throw the .gov some bucks if it'll help them live with legalization. Use some of that tax money to fund rehab and addiction treatment. That's a hell of a lot better than throwing millions of addicts in prison, forcing them into a life of crime, and making them cook the stuff using toxic chemicals in a hotel room, turning the place into a toxic waste dump.

[wildflowergardener]

72. loratadin

Have you tried Loratadine by itself and it doesn't help? I buy that either as Alavert or Walvert (Walgreens brand) cause it disinigrates - cause I have trouble taking pills.

There is also a replacement for sudafed that I've bought called Sudafed PE which is another decongestant. Perhaps you could try the loratadine and the sudafed PE. I actually couldn't take regular sudafed after awhile because it made me dizzy and the sudafed pe doesn't.

The other thing I've also found that helps is nasal irrigation with a neti pot. It does wonders for a sinus infection, for example - though it's a little weird at first to try.

Meg

[eridani]

88. I'm confused--doesn't loratidine = Claritin?

http://www.rxlist.com/cgi/generic/lorat.htm
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pseudoephedrine

Its chemical structure is different from pseudoephedrine, and I don't get why the battery/acid sulfur trick would work with it.

[wildflowergardener]

93. claritin

Loratadin is Claritin, but they are trying to get Claritin-D which also contains the decongestant, Sudafed.

Meg

[eridani]

121. But if the meds contain more than one ingredient--

--doesn't that screw up the bathtub methamphetamine reaction?

[meldroc]

98. Neti pots work!

You can get a neti pot or sinus irrigation kit at Walgreens. It's simple - you're squirting a bunch of saline up one nostril until it comes out the other nostril and washing out your sinuses - physically removing all that tree sperm. Trust me - it works! I know it sounds nasty and painful, but it really isn't - as long as you're using saline, it doesn't hurt, and it does remove a whole bunch of crap from your sinuses.

[Dorian Gray]

104. Yes!

When my allergies get bad, I do the nasal irrigation. It's awesome! It works wonderfully. I don't do it every day, but I know people who do who say it's changed the face of their allergies.

[judaspriestess]

80. did you try another drug store?

just asking :)

[BuelahWitch]

84. No, I didn't

But I think when my 5 pills run out I will try another place. We'll see if I have a "record" there.

Like I said, I've been buying these ever since they started signing the name. One time I even bought a couple of packages (one each at two different stores) when they were on sale within a week's time with NO PROBLEM. Now all of a sudden I've reached my limit when I have bought two packages of 10 in 20 days.

It's bullshit.

[Jonathan50]

85. Not to denigrate your problem

But there are people in far worse predicaments due to The War On (some) Drugs.


http://www.reason.com/news/show/117351.html

"The Doctor Wasn't Cruel Enough"

How one physician escaped the panic over prescription drugs

Maia Szalavitz | June 2, 2006


When Dr. Paul Heberle was arrested last April, dozens of chronic pain patients were left in agony. One of Heberle's patients called no fewer than 37 doctors seeking care—all of whom refused to see him once he revealed the name of his prior provider. Finally, Robert Holmes, a 40-year-old man who suffers from a lung injury and requires supplemental oxygen to breathe, resorted to visiting a methadone clinic for drug addicts. He was turned away there, too. More than twenty others reported similar experiences at a meeting of patients affected by the arrest. Six would later attempt suicide.

For many patients, the situation was devastatingly familiar. Heberle had agreed to care for many of them after their previous physician was arrested and then convicted on some of the same charges that Heberle now faced: illegal prescribing of narcotics. That doctor, David Klees, got 12 to 24 years in prison. This time, however, the government would find it wasn't so easy to railroad a pain doctor.

In the last five years—since a media panic over prescription drug abuse began with law-enforcement-driven reports of an "Oxycontin epidemic"—dozens of doctors have been prosecuted for "overprescribing" painkillers. The Justice Department and the DEA have pushed this aggressive new campaign in the war on drugs.

More:

[NashVegas]

87. Wow, That's Really Sad

I've had the opposite experience; a clinic doctor prescribed barbiturates that I didn't need and didn't ask for. I probably should have reported him, but was too stunned.

I've also had contractors (in an old apartment, in an otherwise well-managed complex) go through my medicine cabinet and empty out a bottle of hydrocodone leftovers. I couldn't stand the stuff, myself, but what if I'd needed it?

[Dorian Gray]

86. Does regular Claritin work?

I use regular except for my worst days? I just bought two ten packs of Claritin D the other day. What exactly is the monthly allowance? They said that I could still buy more if I needed to. But those two ten packs will last me for a couple of months, so I don't need to worry.

[eridani]

89. Have you tried Nasarel?

Nasal spray that I use with prescribed pseudoephedrine. It might work by itself.

http://www.drugs.com/cons/nasarel-nasal.html

[BuelahWitch]

117. Don't you need a prescription? I don't have health insurance

Or else I'd get some real meds and forget about the otc stuff.

[eridani]

122. Yes, you need a prescription, but--

--try these folks--they might be able to get you some Canadian help

http://www.healthcareforallwa.org/Helpline/tabid/59/Default.aspx

[JCMach1]

90. I hear you... the most effective medicine for my allergies is pseudoephedrine

fortunately, I don't have to worry about the laws here...

However, every time I go back to the states I just want to scream.

[JCMach1]

91. Why should doctor's have the monopoly on minor prescriptions?

Over here, it's a simple trip to the pharmacy to get most basic meds (including basic anti-biotics.

[porphyrian]

96. Can't you just go to another drug store?

Is this a state database, or just that particular store's?

The bandaid solution to the illegal meth problem is complete bullshit. The only people hurt by it are regular people. Serious meth producers aren't buying it over the counter, for Christ's sake.

[Lars39]

99. In TN you can't buy more than 9 gram *every 30 frickin days*.

And if you try to stockpile the damned stuff to keep your household in Sudafed, there's that nice little law that states that any amount over 20 grams means that you intend to make meth.
I am so fucking sick of this damn law. It is harassment and a hardship on honest people to just keep their noses from draining all over the goddamed place. I'm having to go back to the doctor today because the Sudafed PE does not work, and my doctor won't call in prescriptions even though I'm a cancer patient. Fuck this shit.

[TornadoTN]

101. Welcome to the People's Republic of Tennessee

It really grates me this time of year when I need something to stop the drainage that comes along with having horrible allergies. After having went through the "you can't buy any more" b.s. the past two years, I went to the doctor early this year and made sure I had several prescriptions ready. That's about the only way to deal with this madness that is this supposed "Meth War" that the state is conducting.

Funny thing is, I know a guy that was on the meth taskforce and he said that most of the busts that they make that amount to anything significant are using bulk-purchased medications from outside sources rather than the small-time purchases at the drug store.

[peaches2003]

103. regular Claritin

Can you not take regular Claritin which you can buy OTC anywhere until they will let you have more of the 'D' which has to be signed for?

[BuelahWitch]

116. That's what I may have to try and do

The regular Claritin generally doesn't do much, but I can mix it with the Tylenol PE and it MIGHT work :P

[bullwinkle428]

106. Can you buy the economy size generic version?

I've been doing that the last couple of years to deal with a general hay fever allergy I've dealt with since childhood...

[benEzra]

113. The law limits the total amount (grams) you can buy in a given period

and you're a criminal if you accidentally exceed it.

[bullwinkle428]

120. I buy the generic Claritin as an on-the-shelf product with no restrictions -

is there something extra in the Claritin D that restricts the sale of it (pseudoephedrine)?

[benEzra]

123. Yes, it's pseudoephedrine that is controlled...

which Claritin-D contains, IIRC, but not regular Claritin.

The DEA has been pushing manufacturers to replace pseudoephedrine with a much less effective compound called phenylephrine, which is what "Sudafed PE" and similar crap contains. BTW, if you haven't noticed, Nyquil bowed to the pressure and took pseudoephedrine out of its products, making them IMHO worthless crap unless you take a dose of pseudoephedrine with it.

[bullwinkle428]

124. Okay, that makes more sense now. Pseudoephedrine has

never done much for me anyway, whereas I do seem to get some benefit from loratidine. I live in Iowa which I believe was the first state to really start cracking down on pseudoephedrine because of the meth problem, and know how many medications have to be obtained by asking the pharmacist, and require signing your name and other info in a "journal" maintained by the drugstore.

[in_cog_ni_to]

110. Big Brother knows which medicine you need and when. Sheesh.

You expect to be able to go buy allergy meds without permission from your government? :sarcasm:

I needed some Sudafed a few months ago and had to get it from the pharmacy. Pretty damn stupid if you ask me. All meth makers are going to find their supplies any way they can. Having drug stores control the sales is pretty damn ignorant, IMCPO.

[paparush]

114. Just how much crystal meth are you cooking? ; -)

[BuelahWitch]

118. Apparently not enough, I'm still driving a beater car

And I can't afford to go to the doctor. :banghead:

[kineneb]

115. ever try chlorpheniramine maleate?

otherwise sold as Chlortrimeton? It is one of the few OTC allergy meds that work for me. They are not controlled like Claritin or any of the psudoephedrine-type allergy pills because one can't make meth with them. And they are much cheaper- RiteAid sells them for $6-7 per bottle of 100. Now granted, they only last 4 hours, but at that price, I'm willing to cope.

[BuelahWitch]

119. It makes me too sleepy

I sometimes take them at night, but the hangover is really bad the next day.

[otohara]

125. Go Get Yourself a Neti Pot

and get off those Claritin's - Best thing I ever did - I also found a homeopathic nasal spray that works wonders....Euphorbium Nasal Spray is a unique homeopathic formula that promotes the proper functioning of nasal tissue and sinus passages, helping to regulate various disorders of the sinus passages. Euphorbium moistures, restores free breathing, and helps to eliminate nasal and sinus congestion. This remedy also helps inhibit viral growth by up to 35 percent.

I use natural sea salt w/ my neti and be sure you use it a few hours before going to bed. Do some bending over to make sure all the water is out of your sinuses.

[NewJeffCT]

126. Just go to another store

Even though I don't buy as much medication containing pseudofed as you, I do buy some. And, I make sure I go to a different store each time - but, I'm lucky in that I have several different places to choose from: a few CVS' and Walgreens, not to mention grocery stores.