spouse ordering prescriptions under my name for him

[sakurarose2022]

This is the first time I have posted here.... Here goes....

Not sure what to do but my husband has been ordering painkillers under my name... Co codamol. He requests the prescription for me however he uses them for himself. He regularly requests tramadol under his own medical records and is therefore not able to request co codamol since they should not be taken together. So I have since found out that he has been ordering co codamol without my knowledge and consent, I am mad about this because he has been ordering them on a regular basis, typically every 2 weeks. There are 100 tablets per prescription so roughly speaking it works out that 7 pills are taken daily. This is on my health records! So it looks like I am taking these when I am not. . More to the point it looks like I am addicted to them as the guidance says you are to have tablet free days. I am worried because I have health conditions where this could impact my treatment, etc. I am so cross about this, I spoke to my husband about it but he thinks I am not supporting him by allowing him to continue with ordering them.

I have explained to him how I feel about this and how it could effect my health plan in the long run but he doesn't seem to get it, it's like his need is greater than mine. He is obviously addicted to pain killers but I need to put myself first. He gets angry when I explain and tell him that I will speak to the Drs to prevent anyone other than myself to request medication. I am in a stuck situation... Continue to let him do this or put a stop to it and have to put up with his behaviour towards me.

Any words of wisdom of advice would be gratefully appreciated!

Not if it's a four weekly prescription. If you ask for the first repeat prescription on, say, the 10th so that it's ready on the 17th, the following month you ask for it again on the 10th, not the 3rd.

I would ask your GP to take your Cocodamol off repeat prescription and personally I would explain why. In relation to the concern about your health records, I would put in writing that you have not requested or taken this medication since (relevant date/time period) and ask for your letter be added to your medical records.

You have to report it to your GP otherwise it might affect your future treatment especially since you're waiting for surgery on your liver. I think this would be the end of the relationship for me. I'm so sorry this has happened to you

He has a massive addiction to opioids op. He needs proper help.

It is no different to being addicted to other drugs.

Your dh has an addiction problem. You need to contact the GP surgery ASAP and let them know what’s happened so they can adjust your records.

Going against the grain here, I have family members with co-codamol (amongst other things) addictions who have also stolen medication from other family members.
Don't cancel your prescription or make him stop abruptly, he needs to see a gp and be weaned off these gently. You don't know how many he's taking, he could have another source too.
My brother was taking 70 a day!
He needs to make a Dr's appointment ASAP.

Tell your pharmacist that you don’t want anyone to collect your medication accept for you. They’ll put a notification on your file so whenever someone collects it they will know.

This must be hard OP. But

Your DP has a serious addiction which will lead to a very bad outcome.

You are enabling his drug use by not taking any action.

The poster above is correct that suddenly stopping the co-codamol could be disastrous.

You need to get him professional help to withdraw safely. Or he needs to.

But you also need to protect yourself.

You should not be worrying about getting him in trouble, he already is.

good luck

He is committing fraud but I know how easy it is if they're on prescription
I have cocodamol on repeat and request it on the App
Ask your surgery if they have Airmid
You download the app and the surgery emails you a log in and a password( I set up Touch ID too)
It also contains your health records
I request and then collect from pharmacy about 3 days later
That will outwit the bugger

This is why she should definitely tell the GP. They need to know that they have to treat him for the addiction and be aware of this stuff.

My dad is a painkiller addict and I was his enabler. I’m estranged now. The problem is, that if you do anything to get in between an addict and their painkillers then they will often make your life a misery because the addiction is so all encompassing. My dad made me watch him take a paracetamol overdose when I was 17 and he was able to leverage that trauma for decades by violence/screaming all night/threatening suicide if anything got in the way of his 10-15 painkillers per day. I even snuck them into hospital when he was an inpatient. He could have OD’d in there and they would have known it was me that provided the drugs.

the situation was complicated by the fact that he did have a bad back so he could guilt trip me.

OP, will your DP make your life a misery when you put a stop to what is happening?
He isn’t just going to stop taking them, is he? Will you be safe as he becomes increasingly desperate? You probably intuitively know when he’s clucking already and subconsciously try to placate him.

the point I’m just trying to make is that you may actually need to leave him, even for a short time, until he hits his rock bottom and seeks help for himself. Because as you said you need to put yourself first.

If you don’t raise it with the GP, it’s YOU who will end up in trouble if you can’t get the medication you need.

HE is also in deep trouble if he is so addicted to his pain medication. That means he needs help for his addiction as well as for the pain he is experiencing.

Having a chat with the GP about it is important for his health too

He’s an addict. Very obviously. And he’s abusing both tramadol and cocodamol