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Oct. 22nd, 2001 11:37 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
rivkaAt English Country Dance this evening, I fell into conversation with an older woman. We got to talking about flu shots, and I mentioned that I need to get mine early in the year because I work with immunosuppressed patients in an HIV clinic. Then, abruptly, she started this conversation:
"At the HIV clinic, do patients ever take Megace or Marinol?"
[These are both prescribed to people who are wasting - losing weight and lean body mass - to both increase appetite and improve weight gain.]
"Yeah - Megace, Marinol, sometimes testosterone to help them gain muscle mass."
"Oh, really? My husband - he doesn't have HIV, he has cancer - he took Megace a while back and he didn't like it. Now he's on Marinol, and he just hates it. The side effects are so... he can't even drive."
"I've heard people say that about Marinol. It's..."
"It's marijuana, you know." [She's right. It's THC.]
"Well, yeah, but I've heard people say that it's different..."
" People tell us that marijuana has fewer side effects."
"I've heard that too. It's easier to control the dosage, so you don't get sedated."
[She laughs nervously, checking me out to see how I'll take this next bit] "A couple of people have said they could get some for us."
"Well, you might want to try it."
"It's just... the Marinol doesn't seem to be helping much, for all the side effects. We asked our doctor, you know, about the marijuana, and he said no no no... he's very religious, you know, a strict Christian. But then his nurse took us aside, on the q.t., and told us to get some."
"Sure, why not? There's nothing against marijuana in the Bible."
"They tell us, though, it's very expensive. $400 an ounce."
[It didn't cost that much when I was buying it, but I imagine that the average 70 year old woman doesn't have a wealth of drug connections.]
"Well, you know, an ounce is an awful lot. You might want to get a couple grams or an eighth of an ounce, see if it works for him, if he likes it. You know, just to try it out."
"Oh, really?" [she looks relieved.]
"Yeah. It only takes a little, you know, and..."
"Because, you know, in his condition I'm not even worried about him becoming addicted. He's an old man, and he has very advanced cancer, and really, who cares if he gets addicted?"
"It's not really addictive..."
"Well, it says on the Marinol bottle, could be habit forming. But he's been sick for a long time. It's metastasized to his liver, you know. I just... you think I should get some?"
"Sounds like it might help. Good luck."
She was so desperate for answers. They're making this so hard for her. I have a difficult time imagining her on the street, going up to Lexington Market, a tiny elderly woman looking to buy weed for her sick husband. But there must be a lot of little old people in the same position these days...
"At the HIV clinic, do patients ever take Megace or Marinol?"
[These are both prescribed to people who are wasting - losing weight and lean body mass - to both increase appetite and improve weight gain.]
"Yeah - Megace, Marinol, sometimes testosterone to help them gain muscle mass."
"Oh, really? My husband - he doesn't have HIV, he has cancer - he took Megace a while back and he didn't like it. Now he's on Marinol, and he just hates it. The side effects are so... he can't even drive."
"I've heard people say that about Marinol. It's..."
"It's marijuana, you know." [She's right. It's THC.]
"Well, yeah, but I've heard people say that it's different..."
" People tell us that marijuana has fewer side effects."
"I've heard that too. It's easier to control the dosage, so you don't get sedated."
[She laughs nervously, checking me out to see how I'll take this next bit] "A couple of people have said they could get some for us."
"Well, you might want to try it."
"It's just... the Marinol doesn't seem to be helping much, for all the side effects. We asked our doctor, you know, about the marijuana, and he said no no no... he's very religious, you know, a strict Christian. But then his nurse took us aside, on the q.t., and told us to get some."
"Sure, why not? There's nothing against marijuana in the Bible."
"They tell us, though, it's very expensive. $400 an ounce."
[It didn't cost that much when I was buying it, but I imagine that the average 70 year old woman doesn't have a wealth of drug connections.]
"Well, you know, an ounce is an awful lot. You might want to get a couple grams or an eighth of an ounce, see if it works for him, if he likes it. You know, just to try it out."
"Oh, really?" [she looks relieved.]
"Yeah. It only takes a little, you know, and..."
"Because, you know, in his condition I'm not even worried about him becoming addicted. He's an old man, and he has very advanced cancer, and really, who cares if he gets addicted?"
"It's not really addictive..."
"Well, it says on the Marinol bottle, could be habit forming. But he's been sick for a long time. It's metastasized to his liver, you know. I just... you think I should get some?"
"Sounds like it might help. Good luck."
She was so desperate for answers. They're making this so hard for her. I have a difficult time imagining her on the street, going up to Lexington Market, a tiny elderly woman looking to buy weed for her sick husband. But there must be a lot of little old people in the same position these days...
