Pain in Canada. This article was given to me, by my doctor, when she was telling me how and why I was being treated like an addict - she told me it made interesting reading. She was right, it does. My Year on Death Row This is from a woman who has worse pain trouble than I do. Suicide has been on her horizon because of such extreme pain. I am not really surprised. The situation in Canada is ridiculous. Basically if you are in pain and take pain pills, you are an addict!!! I have been given Lyrica which, at the moment is doing nothing for pain but it sends me to sleep all the time. I am being weaned off my Tylenol 3 and if at the end, I am still in pain, surprise, surprise, they will send me to a Methadone clinic!!!!!!! Sorry, but I object to being treated like an addict. There are doctors who have lost their licenses because they are not obeying the new laws properly and have actually given their patients sufficient medication for their pain. I have posted a lot of this on Facebook and am requesting those who can, to share.
Can't remember if I have mentioned this before, but I was re-reading a blog - A View from The Bench - about their installation of solar panels. My comment was surprise it has taken so long for North America to catch on to solar. I was in Greece 60 years ago and they were installing solar panels all over. The farmer at the asparagus farm I go to, has installed solar panels on his home and some farm buildings. A few years ago, he had a field which was going to lie fallow for 20 years so he applied to the local council to be allowed to install solar panels. In the end, they wouldn't let him do so. How stupid he could have provided a lot of power to the local grid.
Bon Appétit have a few Bean recipes I thought I might try. This is one of them.
Sausage, Greens and Beans Pasta
1/3 cup olive oil
2 sprigs rosemary
8 oz spicy Italian sausage, casings removed
1 15.5-ounce can chickpeas or cannellini (white kidney) beans, rinsed, patted dry
¼ cup dry white wine
12 oz paccheri, rigatoni, or other large tubular pasta
Kosher salt
8 cups (lightly packed) torn escarole, kale, or Swiss chard leaves
¾ cup finely grated Parmesan, divided
Freshly ground black pepper
2 Tbs unsalted butter
1. Heat oil in a large Dutch oven or other heavy pot over medium-high. Fry rosemary, turning, until crisp, about 2 minutes. Transfer to paper towels to drain.
2. Add sausage to same pot and cook, breaking up with a wooden spoon and stirring occasionally, until browned and cooked through, 8–10 minutes. Transfer with a slotted spoon to a plate.
3. Add chickpeas to pot and cook, tossing occasionally and mashing some chickpeas with spoon, until browned in spots, about 5 minutes. Transfer about half of chickpeas to plate with sausage. Add wine to pot, bring to a boil, and cook until liquid is almost completely evaporated, about 2 minutes.
4. Meanwhile, cook pasta in a large pot of boiling salted water, stirring occasionally, until very al dente, about 3 minutes less than package directions.
5. Using a spider or a slotted spoon, transfer pasta to pot with chickpeas and add escarole and 1 cup pasta cooking liquid. Cook, tossing often, until escarole is wilted, pasta is al dente, and sauce is thickened, about 4 minutes. Add another ¼ cup pasta cooking liquid, then gradually add ½ cup cheese, tossing until melted and dissolved into a luxurious, glossy sauce. Thin with more pasta cooking liquid if needed. Season with pepper, and more salt if needed. Add butter and toss to combine, then mix in reserved sausage and chickpeas.
6. Divide pasta among bowls. Crumble rosemary over top and sprinkle with remaining ¼ cup cheese.
Servings: 4
Author: Claire Saffitz
Source: Bon Appétit
Have a great day
Can't remember if I have mentioned this before, but I was re-reading a blog - A View from The Bench - about their installation of solar panels. My comment was surprise it has taken so long for North America to catch on to solar. I was in Greece 60 years ago and they were installing solar panels all over. The farmer at the asparagus farm I go to, has installed solar panels on his home and some farm buildings. A few years ago, he had a field which was going to lie fallow for 20 years so he applied to the local council to be allowed to install solar panels. In the end, they wouldn't let him do so. How stupid he could have provided a lot of power to the local grid.
Bon Appétit have a few Bean recipes I thought I might try. This is one of them.
Sausage, Greens and Beans Pasta
1/3 cup olive oil
2 sprigs rosemary
8 oz spicy Italian sausage, casings removed
1 15.5-ounce can chickpeas or cannellini (white kidney) beans, rinsed, patted dry
¼ cup dry white wine
12 oz paccheri, rigatoni, or other large tubular pasta
Kosher salt
8 cups (lightly packed) torn escarole, kale, or Swiss chard leaves
¾ cup finely grated Parmesan, divided
Freshly ground black pepper
2 Tbs unsalted butter
1. Heat oil in a large Dutch oven or other heavy pot over medium-high. Fry rosemary, turning, until crisp, about 2 minutes. Transfer to paper towels to drain.
2. Add sausage to same pot and cook, breaking up with a wooden spoon and stirring occasionally, until browned and cooked through, 8–10 minutes. Transfer with a slotted spoon to a plate.
3. Add chickpeas to pot and cook, tossing occasionally and mashing some chickpeas with spoon, until browned in spots, about 5 minutes. Transfer about half of chickpeas to plate with sausage. Add wine to pot, bring to a boil, and cook until liquid is almost completely evaporated, about 2 minutes.
4. Meanwhile, cook pasta in a large pot of boiling salted water, stirring occasionally, until very al dente, about 3 minutes less than package directions.
5. Using a spider or a slotted spoon, transfer pasta to pot with chickpeas and add escarole and 1 cup pasta cooking liquid. Cook, tossing often, until escarole is wilted, pasta is al dente, and sauce is thickened, about 4 minutes. Add another ¼ cup pasta cooking liquid, then gradually add ½ cup cheese, tossing until melted and dissolved into a luxurious, glossy sauce. Thin with more pasta cooking liquid if needed. Season with pepper, and more salt if needed. Add butter and toss to combine, then mix in reserved sausage and chickpeas.
6. Divide pasta among bowls. Crumble rosemary over top and sprinkle with remaining ¼ cup cheese.
Servings: 4
Author: Claire Saffitz
Source: Bon Appétit
Have a great day
Solar is very expensive here in Michigan; plus, we do not get a lot of sun. One neighbor tried it way back in the 70's and the panels are still up on the house, but haven't functioned in years and years. Was a waste of money according to the original owners. I was told when I was in Germany that all those wind farms are also money losers.
ReplyDeleteWell the farmer seems to be very happy with his Denise. I see Betty from A Bench with a View is also installing them now. It depends where you live I think.
DeleteBetty lives in Arizona. And it might also depend on local heating and cooling costs. I do not have high utility bills due to good construction and insulation.
DeleteThat would, of course, make a difference Denise.
DeleteTheir regulation of pain meds is crazy.
ReplyDeleteWe're seeing a lot more solar panels here now.
Isn't it Alex? I am trying to spread the word in Canada.
DeleteYes, the Carolinas would be a good place for them I think.
They'll send you to a clinic? That's nuts.
ReplyDeleteCouldn't agree more Diane.
DeleteHi Jo,
ReplyDeleteSo sorry to hear you are In so much pain and that the health care system in Canada is so OFF... there are so many alternatives to relieving pain without popping a pill.
And as for the Solar panels.... STUPID.... Geez. I honestly thought Canada was more progressive and in tune... I guess I was wrong...sadly.
Another yummy dish! Thanks for sharing and take care!
This is a recent thing brought in by the government because of the opioids crisis. I am NOT an addict.
ReplyDeleteI meant the whole of North America Michael. Haven seen much in the way of solar panels in the States, no the parts I have visited.
I think I will be trying the recipe out fairly soon.
I have to agree with you, Jo. You are definitely not an addict and shouldn't be treated like one. Its sad because a lot of people (not you) have abused the system and it makes it harder for people with genuine pain (like you) to get relief without going through a whole bunch of stuff to get that relief. I know people in the States have to sign a contract that they won't get their meds through anyone else but that pain doctor, they have to submit to random drug testing (to make sure they are actually using the medication and not selling it) and there are databases in pretty much every state that monitor the use of controlled substances and those databases are checked frequently by pain medication doctors to make sure there is no abuse by patients. One of the accounts I type for is a pain management place and a patient does have to perform all sorts of things just to get the medicine to try to get relief.
ReplyDeleteThe sad thing about the solar panels (thanks for the mention) was that it took us so long to get on the band wagon. We talked about it before but never acted. The other sad thing about it was how long the process was. We signed up at the end of May and it wasn't until September 10th that the whole process was completed and we were able to turn on the system (that had been installed August 6th) to start generating solar power. Since the system is still so new, we haven't had but one bill generated from the electric company so we haven't seen any immediate savings, but was forewarned that would be the case by the solar company (and that's why they did a rebate type of check that basically paid for several months of electricity until everything balanced out). We're just glad it cooled down here a bit and we haven't had to run the air conditioner for the past 2 days.
betty
Yes, we had to sign contracts too. Matt takes even less Tylenol 3 than I do but is still being treated as an addict. This was from the family doctor Betty, not a pain management clinic. The Lyrica just puts me to sleep all the time.
DeleteInteresting about the panels, sorry it took so long. I think you will find it of great benefit when it starts working properly.
Hi Jo - pain is so frustrating and I hope things can sort themselves out for you. The sausage dish looks and sounds delicious ... I love that sort of supper dish - cheers Hilary
ReplyDeleteI hope the government sorts itself out first Hilary. Does sound good doesn't it?
DeleteThat was a great article. I'm really sick of people being treated like junkies thanks to the junkies. I have to go 2 towns over to see a doctor that will still prescribe xanax. No one else will. My refill record shows I'm not an addict and it pisses me off.
ReplyDeleteYou're so right JoJo, We are being treated as junkies.
DeleteI tried Lyrica at one time, Jo. It made me sleepy and disoriented and didn't do much for the pain. I had to give it up. Recently they changed the rules here for painkillers containing codeine. You used to be able to buy them over the counter, now they have to be prescribed by a doctor. That's much more reasonable than what you're describing.
ReplyDeleteWe installed solar panels ten years ago and send the power back to the grid for a deduction from our power bill. It's not a great deal but every little helps. It's really common to do that here. We're waiting for storage batteries to get smaller and cheaper - and government regulations to catch up - then we intend install more panels so we can use them for our power and use the grid only as a backup.
How long did you try it for Helen. I haven't been on it long but it doesn't seem to be doing much yet. We used to buy painkillers over the counter in Britain, not sure what the rules are there now. Here, we used to get them from the doctor, but now they are forcing doctors to wean us off - bugger the fact that we are in pain.
DeleteYou are the first person I know who has had solar panels that long. Hope the batteries become cheaper.
I think I tried Lyric for about six weeks, Jo. It made me feel so 'off' with not much pain relief so I told my doctor I wasn't continuing with it.
DeleteOur doctors are obviously given more trust than yours as regards prescribing pain medication. Even the really strong medications can be prescribed by a GP. They need to get approval but as long as they can prove the need they can prescribe a month's supply which is reasonable, I think. It means people don't have to suffer. I was once told by a specialist doctor who had researched chronic pain that if a patient was only taking enough painkillers to control their pain they would not become addicted to them. If they gave them up because their pain levels had deceased they'd have to be weaned off them due physical dependence but it would not lead them to crave the drug which is essentially what addiction is. (He was a fascinating man and we used to have interesting discussions on medical matters totally unrelated to what I was seeing him for - he's retired now unfortunately).
This is a new thing Helen, the government have decided we are to be weaned off whether we like it or not. They don't, apparently, give a damn if you are in pain or not, just care about whether you take an opioid. The British did a lot of research on addiction and have found most people, who take pain killers, do not become addicted and as you say, can be weaned off once the pain has declined.
Delete