Sheryl

His problem is not pain of that type. It is withdrawal pains. Very gradual tapering helps. There are also some medications used specifically for withdrawal symptoms but these need to be individualized and are really not something that can be safely and effectively self prescribed. There are doctors who specialize in precisely this. While pain is OP's main complaint withdrawal also often depletes serotonin levels leading to a general dysphoria that further reduces what (in addictive personalities) is often an inability/unwillingness to tolerate even temporary discomfort. Proper medical management can substantially reduce pain and discomfort from withdrawal as well as provide encouragement and moral support. However it cannot be rendered completely easy and confortable so motivation/ determination is important. Unfortunately these are often weak. A desire for immediate gratification/relief are often features of an addiction-prone personality and part of why it us so difficult to get off drugs and so common to relapse.

Not the nearest hodpital. The nearest adequately equipped hospital. Big difference. Smaller private hospitals in particular are often not equipped to handle major emergencies. Some do not even have round the clock Xray or surgical capacity .

He had NON Hodgkins lymphoma

While government hospitals cost much less (usually about 1/4) than private, a single hospitalization at a government hospital can easily run over 1 million baht if specialized surgery, ICU care etc is required...as is often the case after serious accident.

There are a wide range of devices. What hospital has she been attending? Where in Thailand is she? She can get care for free under the government health system but has to follow the correct referral pathway according to the hospital where she is registered under the govt health system.

Has cancer already been confirmed by biopsy? If do, has it been dtaged? More infotmstion needed as this very much affects choice of doctot. Is the patient Thai? If do, which hospital are they registeted at under the universal health scheme or SS?

It definitely needs to be tapered gradually. There sre some medications that can help but I doubt a pharmacist will be aware of them (e.g. clonidone, which is not a pain medications but can help with withdrawal...and sometimes an SSRI Your pain is actually a withdrawal symptom). Needs to be done under medical supervision. Unfortunately although there are (very expensive) private rehab places in Phuket there do not seem to br any psychiatrists specislizing in addiction medecine. And that is what the OP really needs. I can recommend an excellent one in Bangkok.

Has a cardiologist diagnosed uour psin as agina? If do, what is the undetlying cause and have spptopriate interventions (e.g. dtents) been considered? Angina cannot be self diagnosed. Pain ftom gastritis among other things can be indistinguishable; even a doctor may confuse the two initially. It is not common in this day and age to treat angina with nitrates since there has been so much progress in interventions that correct the underlying cause as wrll as other meficatikn regimines (aspirin, anicoagulants, beta blockers etc) . There is no substitute for seeing a cardioliogist.

It is normal for thyroid levels to fluctuate widely in the first year or two after thyroidectomy and to need frequent dosage adjustment. Make sure your labs are taken at same time relative to doses (preferrably before dose but at minimum, same intervals) and also to take the meds on empty stomach and separate from any other medication by an hour or more. Allow at least a month to pass after dose adjustment befilore repeating labs (exception bring if sympymtomatic) Lastky, if you are using a lab on your oen (i.e. not hospital lab) make sure it is ISO certified.

2 posts with misinformation/ conspiracy nonsense and/or links to unreliable sources have been removed. It has never bern claimed, by anyone, that the PSA test diagnoses cancer. It has always been known that there are non-cancerous causes of an elevated PSA (though the odds of noncancerous cause decreases rhe higher the PSA is). The PSA is dimply a preliminary screening tool, and a valuable one provided the results are used judiciously. Years ago, before the developement of sophisticated prostate-specific MRI tools, there was a tendency by dome ficyord in some countries to do a prostate biopsy solely on an elevated PSA ((as opposed to elevated PSA plus other clinical findings). That was never recommended, but some patients insisted on it, and some doctors (especially in litigation-prone countries) were afraid to risk not doing it. Nowadays multiparametric MRIs of the prostate have greatly improved decision making on the need for prostate biopsy.

https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jama/fullarticle/187981

There is no quota. UK and US visa issuing procedures have nothing to do with each other. As others have said, introducing information about her partner would have been seen as negative, not a positive. Though I suppose unavoidable if she has no income of her own. If they were legally married and the partner resident in Thailand on long term visa that would have helped. Non-marital partners hold no weight in visa decisions. Lack of a job and lack of spouse or dependents staying behind in Thailand would be a significant negative in the eyes of consular officer. The other unknown is of course how she replied to questions in the interview. My guess is that her odds of success in a repeat application are very low unless her circumstances change (e.g she marries her partner).

As above. For knee issue see Dr. Panya.

8 gleason is a high grade cancer. Make sure you are fully informed before deciding against surgery. Get a second opjnion ss previously suggested and get concrete estimates of risks both ways - robotic surgery vs active surveillance. With a high grade cancer like this the latter is likely to end in surgery anyway but with more risk of spread. Remember that metastatic prostate cancer can be very painful and you won't be sexually functional with it, either. No one can guarantee anything but quite possible your best odds of long term sexual function/urinary continence/quality of life are with robotic prostatectomy. Provided surgeon is sufficiently skilled and ecoerienced, if course.

Thus is rather dated information (and was never universally true). Newer nerve-sparing robitic techniques have low rates of l9ng term impitwnce.

Should never buy meds at a hospital mark up is huge. Make a note of what they are and buy at a pharmacy.

You should seek an immediate appointment with your doctor to investigate cause of the fatigue/depression. It could be a number if things. And I suggest resolving this before returning to Thailand. When you do come, bring detailed medical records wih you.

Correct. Neither is permanent residency a requirement for SS.

Correct assuming you are from one of the (many) countries eligible for visa exempt entry.

True but more important -- it does nto enable one to be "added" to a spouse's "insurance". I suspect what he is calling "insurance" is not insurance but rather either SS or the "universal" (AKA "30 baht") system and there is no way to be "added" to another person's eligibility. Only in the Civil Service SS is that a posisbility, and in that instance it has nothing to do with reisdency status.

p.S. I forgot to add - but it is very, very important -- how recently have you had a complete blood count done? As the extreme fatigue you report might be due to the after effects of the radiation treatment, which can kick in many weeks later. In other words, might nto be the hormones at all. At hte very least this possibility should be excluded. Where in Thailand do you live?

I assume the middle paragraph is a quote? If so, from where? It is incorrect. Permanent residency confers nothing in terms of government health care.

Correct, exception being if the spouse is a Civil Servant covered by the Civil Servant social security scheme.

Unless your spouse is a Thai civil; service, you do not.

The only time being married to a Thai confers access to government health benefits is if the Thai spouse is a Civil Servant. The Civil Service SS, unlike regular SS and the "universal" scheme, covers spouses. These other 2 systems (the 3 together comprising Thailand's system of health care access) do not. Permanent resident status does not make one eligible for the government health scheme; only citizenship does that. Of course, anyone - married or not - can take out private health insurance. Private insurances may vary in terms of whether or under what conditions a spouse can be "added" to a policy. Under the 3 components that make up the government health scheme, only one -- the Civil Service SS - allows a spouse to be added, and in that case it does not matter whether or not the spouse has permanent residency.