QUESTION: I obtain my prescriptions from a well equipped and modern pharmacy that provides a little slip that lists the cautions I should observe while taking the medication.
A warning about driving while taking the medication appears frequently, even when the medication is not a sedative or tranquilizer.
Could you explain why, since I have never experienced any difficulties with my medications?
ANSWER: Despite all the controls and experimentation done before any medication is allowed to be prescribed, we humans continue to react to all new things, including medications, as individuals, not as collections of statistics.
These individual reactions are different for each of us, and so while many people never experience a negative side effect from medications, some do, and it is to protect them that the cautions are published.
When the investigation of a new medication has shown that it may cause drowsiness, dizziness, overstimulation or confusion in some people, the notice is given to all that are to take a new medicine for the first time.
There is no way of predicting who may be affected, and so good sense dictates that you refrain from driving until you are sure that you will experience no ill effects from the medication.
Give your system a trial period, and when you have proven that nothing unusual is occurring, you may then return to your normal routine without anxiety or doubt.
The material contained here is "FOR INFORMATION ONLY" and should not replace the counsel and advice of your personal physician.
Promptly consulting your doctor is the best path to a quick and successful resolution of any medical problem.
