Just Say No

One of the things that women never tell you about pregnancy: It really, really sucks when you can’t take good drugs. (The legal ones, of course.)

I had a pretty bad cold after we got back from Florida, but I was really only miserable for a day or so before my body kicked it and it was gone. There was a 24-hour period where I really wished I could take drugs, but it wasn’t THAT bad.

My current cold (summer colds are the worst anyway, aren’t they?) has been a whole different story.

My mom called me on Monday or Tuesday to tell me that she had suddenly come down with a really bad cold, and that she hoped I wouldn’t get it (since I spent a good chunk of Sunday at her house with her, finishing the baby’s bedding). I wasn’t too worried, but sure enough, I woke up on Wednesday with the beginnings of a scratchy throat. Still, it wasn’t bad.

By the time we did all of our HOURS of prep work for the carpet on Thursday night and got into bed, my throat was feeling pretty horrific. Not sore, but scratchy, and it was awful. I really could’ve benefited from some Nyquil, but since I had to go without, I was up ALL.NIGHT.LONG.

I hoped that the scratchy throat would just hurry up and turn into congestion already, but unfortunately, I spent yesterday trying to nurse the scratchy throat, too. I can only consume so many cough drops, people! As we were eating dinner and starting to get the house back together last night, I felt the scratchy throat begin to subside little by little… the price for the relief, however, was that my nose got stuffier and stuffier. By the time we were climbing into bed, I had developed a lovely cough and was blowing my nose pretty constantly.

And this morning, I woke up with a full-fledged cold. Niiiice.

The thing about the drugs is–when you’re pregnant, you can take PLAIN Robitussin (no DM, or any of the good stuff) and PLAIN Sudafed (again, JUST pseudophedrine). And come on, we all know those don’t do shit!

I have been trying to avoid taking medicine during pregnancy, but today, I was miserable enough where I just HAD to take something. Anything.

So I started treating my cough with the plain Robitussin. But I didn’t have any plain Sudafed for my nasal congestion. Off to the pharmacy we went. Unable to find it on the shelves, I asked the pharmacist about it and he informed me that I’d have to buy it from behind the pharmacy counter. Since I used to work in a pharmacy years ago, I suspected this might be the case, but wasn’t sure. So I go up to the cashier at the pharmacy and say I need to buy some plain ol’ Sudafed. The kid says he needs my driver’s license.

Like, an ID. To buy Sudafed.

The kid says to me, “People use this to make meth.”

Suuuure. The meth-heads have to go and ruin it for all the miserable pregnant ladies out there. Figures.

And, pardon me if I’m wrong, but doesn’t it seem a little backwards that the ONLY drug I can take while pregnant is the same drug that people use to make METH??