House: A Not-So Merry Little Christmas
The episode "Merry Little Christmas" finds Dr. House not so joyous himself as his sources of Vicodin are drying up. Aware of his little problem, his comrades have cut him off and informed the D.A., who has offered him a deal that would necessitate his going into rehab for two months.
House begins to exhibit some very characteristic symptoms of opiate withdrawal as he tries unsuccessfully to score more Vicodin. When drug addicts are accustomed to a particular level of drugs in their system and this level begins to fall, they experience the symptoms known as withdrawal symptoms. And this is exactly what's happening to Dr. House. We see him looking unkempt and miserable, complaining of nausea and vomiting. Abdominal pain, sweating, shaking, and rapid breathing are some of the other symptoms he's undoubtedly experiencing.
House being House, he still manages to diagnose a very rare condition in a case that has stumped his partners, despite his symptoms. Since withdrawal symptoms don't necessarily interfere with intellectual acuity, we'll just assume that his superhuman brainpower, which served him well throughout his addiction, is still working just fine, thank you.
He's certainly still clever enough to try to figure out some creative ways to get more Vicodin -- again, something not unusual for a highly-functioning addict. The bogus visit to a 24-hour clinic, armed with a convenient excuse regarding why all the milder pain meds won't work, and the attempt to steal another (deceased, in this case!) person's pills are both tried-and-true ways that addicts survive. Again, House being House, he eventually finds a way to dupe a pharmacist into letting him pick up drugs intended for the deceased cancer patient.
House enjoys Christmas Eve alone with a bottle of pills and a fifth of some form of liquid comfort, ending up in a pool of his own vomit. When Wilson finds him, it's odd that he leaves him there, since there is a great danger of overdose and death when relapsing drug abusers take more drugs to try to overcome withdrawal symptoms. I suppose he figures (rightly, as it happened) that House would pick himself up from yet another crisis, but still, that was quite a risk. Obviously Wilson has issues of his own, but he's just a supporting character, so we'll leave those alone for now.
Should House go into rehab? It would certainly make more sense than what he's doing now. In rehab centers, detoxification from drug addiction is carried out under medical supervision, with the aid of medications to manage the withdrawal symptoms. The teaser shown at the end suggests House will in fact be in rehab soon, which is bound to provide him (and the viewer) with some interesting escapades.
Related Topics:Rehab's Role in Treating Addiction The Price Tag of Chronic Pain
Technorati Tags: House, Dr. Gregory House, Vicodin, Drug Rehab
House begins to exhibit some very characteristic symptoms of opiate withdrawal as he tries unsuccessfully to score more Vicodin. When drug addicts are accustomed to a particular level of drugs in their system and this level begins to fall, they experience the symptoms known as withdrawal symptoms. And this is exactly what's happening to Dr. House. We see him looking unkempt and miserable, complaining of nausea and vomiting. Abdominal pain, sweating, shaking, and rapid breathing are some of the other symptoms he's undoubtedly experiencing.
House being House, he still manages to diagnose a very rare condition in a case that has stumped his partners, despite his symptoms. Since withdrawal symptoms don't necessarily interfere with intellectual acuity, we'll just assume that his superhuman brainpower, which served him well throughout his addiction, is still working just fine, thank you.
He's certainly still clever enough to try to figure out some creative ways to get more Vicodin -- again, something not unusual for a highly-functioning addict. The bogus visit to a 24-hour clinic, armed with a convenient excuse regarding why all the milder pain meds won't work, and the attempt to steal another (deceased, in this case!) person's pills are both tried-and-true ways that addicts survive. Again, House being House, he eventually finds a way to dupe a pharmacist into letting him pick up drugs intended for the deceased cancer patient.
House enjoys Christmas Eve alone with a bottle of pills and a fifth of some form of liquid comfort, ending up in a pool of his own vomit. When Wilson finds him, it's odd that he leaves him there, since there is a great danger of overdose and death when relapsing drug abusers take more drugs to try to overcome withdrawal symptoms. I suppose he figures (rightly, as it happened) that House would pick himself up from yet another crisis, but still, that was quite a risk. Obviously Wilson has issues of his own, but he's just a supporting character, so we'll leave those alone for now.
Should House go into rehab? It would certainly make more sense than what he's doing now. In rehab centers, detoxification from drug addiction is carried out under medical supervision, with the aid of medications to manage the withdrawal symptoms. The teaser shown at the end suggests House will in fact be in rehab soon, which is bound to provide him (and the viewer) with some interesting escapades.
Related Topics:
Technorati Tags: House, Dr. Gregory House, Vicodin, Drug Rehab
9 Comments:
Vicodan is not even the appropriate medication for House's condition. His has nerve pain, and inflammation, neither of which should be treated with opiates. Whatever HealthCare Provider startted him down the opiod path should be sent to Pain Management Classes.
Personally I find Dr. House Obnoxious towards patients in all the years I was a student nurse and years on never saw such an obnoxios doctor.
This is entertainment? Where is Dr. Welby when you need him? Robert young is turning over in his grave.
Curious about the legalities here: Could House lose his license to practice medicine, yet still have a role in the hospital as some sort of diagnostic consultant? If so, I can imagine him manipulating things so that happens and he can't work in the clinic anymore :-).
Chronic pain needs some sort of release. Do people realize that Dr. House is not just addicted to pain medication, he also has extreme pain which reduces his ability to function without some sort of release? The addiction is a symptom of a much greater issue. If he does end up in rehab, he will need something to help cope with the debilitating pain he is constantly under. It would be nice if it weren't a bunch of drugs. It would be good if the storyline where to explore unconventional treatments to his pain issue, such as some other approach like tens, accupuncture, surgery, or chiropractic care. Keep in mind that the pain his character suffers also increases tempers and additudes of it's victims. Of course he's an a*s sometimes, what person do you know that suffers long term, chronic pain isn't? If at the end, he has to go back on pain medication (Vicodin) to control the issue and can function, healing patients, (I don't think I would want him to actually perform surgery), but he can diagnose anything. Why make his pain be his prison by not allowing him to function any way he can as long as he is functioning and not overdoing? I definately think the Vicodin should certainly be done with extreme supervision - (weekly perscriptions - daily even?).
It is entertainment -unfortunately technical mistakes happen in movies and tv shows - so, if folks like this sort of entertainment (including errors etc) - why not? It beats killing etc. - I think House is a great character and the actor does an excellent job!
I wish I had someone like him and his team around me in the real world. My doc is great, but can't stand to House's intelligence and problem solving ability - does anyone see the underlying care this character has for his patients, not to mention the dry sense of humor?
The real world could use more caring medical staff (all inclusive) who take the time to find out what's wrong.
In the meantime we enjoy House - we do hope his character eventually will be less dependent on pain killers.
I watched this for the first time last night (a rerun, of course), and thought the writing was great, but the plot stretched a little thin to me, especially when House gave her the meds to induce a seizure to prove that he was right.
The writing isn't bad, but it seems like medicine has enough real drama in it that they don't need to invent more.
Most generally I steer away from "medical shows" as who needs it for entertainment when you live it every day, however, I love watching House! Although I don't think I would like to work with him in a real life setting, I think it is great television. I like how they bring up odd and rare things that aren't seen very often but could be confused with the more normal run of the mill things initially. It is awlways a challenge to me to see if I can figure out the answer before the end of the show. As far as his addiction, I agree with other comments posted that he really should seek help for his addiction and look at alternative treatments. I absolutely would not want him doing surgery or any procedures on me.
It's sad that some of you can not understand that an addiction is a lot more complicated than you think. Obviously some of you have never had an addiction and think it's ok to just badger this doctor. This doctor needs support and love from everyone. The withdrawals from these kinds of drugs just make you want to die. It's the worst thing for your body to go through. Have some sympathy for crying out loud.
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