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Disclosing illegal drug use to doctor

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  • 08-03-2023 3:17pm
    #1
    slither12
    Registered Users Posts: 119 ✭✭


    Is this a wise idea? I don't mean in a hospital context where someone is going for treatment but simply discussing this with a therapist/psychologist/psychiatrist. Anecdotally, I know a few friends who discussed smoking a joint or taking cocaine with their GP and were denied effective pain relief because the doctor wrote in their chart that they were a 'drug abuse'. My cousin with ADHD learned that never received stimulant meds as a teenager even with a diagnosis because his own mother admitted to the psych that she had a problem with alcohol in the past and they were afraid she might steal his meds.

    It seems commonplace among doctors not to distinguish between drug use and abuse.



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    #2
    Wanderer78
    Registered Users Posts: 28,806 ✭✭✭✭Wanderer78


    my own doc asked me upfront if i smoked weed, in an ideal world, we should be able to discuss such matters with our health care providers, without prejudice or judgment, but thats not our reality......



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    #3
    2ndcoming
    Registered Users Posts: 3,569 ✭✭✭2ndcoming


    If a doctor is judging you for that then you need a new doctor. They can't provide proper care without knowing what they are dealing with.



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    #4
    Graces7
    Registered Users Posts: 32,634 ✭✭✭✭Graces7


    https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120330267#Comment_120330267

    It may put them in a hard place professionally and legally? If they know that you are doing something illegal? and/or something that is potentially harmful to you? Not a question of judgement. If you died and they had to give evidence at an inquest? There may be a lot more to it than " prejudice and judgment." And yes, he needs to know as it may affect how you are treated. Medically. Not as a prejudice.



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