The Schizophrenic Medicine
by Michael Estabrook
The doctor prescribed something for my pain,
for my chronic back pain. And after taking it
for some time I noticed how good it made me feel
less pained, certainly, and even somewhat happy. So I
took out an old PDR from 1991, the one my brother Todd
sent up to me from Florida. And I found the drug in
there and it listed the side effects, which were
dizziness, sedation, nausea, vomiting and elation.
Elation! So it’s official, this pill is making me feel
better, not only physically, but mentally too. That’s nice,
that’s a freebie. But I wonder what it means, what I should
think, that there’s a warning attached to this which states:
Do not prescribe propoxyphene for patients who are
suicidal. It seems peculiar that someone could be elated and
suicidal at the same time.