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Post by Jollyjunklass on Jul 4, 2005 19:40:43 GMT 7
Can you get sleeping pills in China? How does it work, do I have to bring a prescription from home or will they give me one there.
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Post by George61 on Jul 4, 2005 20:10:07 GMT 7
25Kuai...750 ml...name of Huadong....works like a charm!
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Post by Jollyjunklass on Jul 4, 2005 20:16:25 GMT 7
Thanks George, I have my final doctor's appointment in an hour so it was kinda urgent.
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Post by Mr Nobody on Jul 4, 2005 20:52:35 GMT 7
Millana, I don't think you need a prescription for it. Rx in a 4 ounce glass, maybe six before bed.
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Post by Raoul Duke on Jul 4, 2005 23:51:34 GMT 7
Actually, most meds can be bought directly in a drugstore here without prescription. Hell, odds are that the drugstore clerks know more about the medicines available than the alleged doctors do, anyway. Odds are you do, too. Most locals just skip the alleged doctor part and just go straight to the drugstore. In most places, however, you can't buy anything terribly fun or effective. However, I saw Valium over-the-counter in a couple of cities, and codeine was fairly easy to find in the north. (I can't buy these anywhere around here! If any of you can buy them in a nearer province, such as Hubei, Anhui, or Shandong, please let me know! I'll come see ya!) Most sleeping pills I've seen here are melatonin, which doesn't work very well for me. Again, if you know something better please let us know (I'll check out Huadong). I have insomnia something awful. A recommendation: given the roll-your-own nature of medicine purchases, and the alleged doctor training that approximates the training received by the guy who does the oil changes down at Jiffy Lube, some English-Chinese medical dictionaries are a smart purchase. I rely heavily upon one called the Concise English-Chinese Medical Dictionary. It has definitions and extensive descriptions of many medical terms in both English and Chinese. It's great for describing symptoms, telling the alleged doctor what condition you have (since it's unlikely they will know), and trying (unsuccessfully) to request medicine that actually works in less than 5 days. It also makes extremely disturbing reading, especially at dinner. It also gave me the name of a condition I always knew I had but had no name for: dromomania. Look it up.  The only downside to this book is that it's only English to Chinese. You can communicate with the alleged doctor, but they can't talk to you. Therefore, I also pack the English-Chinese and Chinese-English Dictionary of Medicine. It has a lot more terms but no definitions or descriptions, and the alleged doctor can use it as the Rosetta Stone needed to let you know what they are saying. When going to an alleged doctor I like to take a friend with me if I can. Even with a friend these books are handy, because most of our Chinese friends are not educated in medical English. However, in a pinch you can go see an alleged doctor on your own, if you have these two books and know how to say such basic words as "moron" (sha3 zi), "cretin" (ben2 dan4), "impostor" (mao4 ming2 ding1 ti4 zhe3), "fraud" (zha4 pian4), "negligent" (shu1 hu1 de), or "Please give me a NEW needle!" (Qing3 gei3 wo3 yi1 ge XIN1 zhen1!) in Chinese. I purchased both of these fine books at a very reasonable price in a local Xinhua bookstore. |
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Post by MK on Jul 7, 2005 0:13:28 GMT 7
This kind of info could make a rather appropriate sticky. Some folks might abuse it, but that would be their choice..
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Post by Jollyjunklass on Jul 7, 2005 0:33:25 GMT 7
Thanks Rauol, I have insomnia like no tomorrow. It's okay right now because I am not required to be anywhere at a certain time. But, once I do, I will start to run on empty if I don't take care of it.
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Post by Jollyjunklass on Jul 7, 2005 0:38:00 GMT 7
Gravol works for that Rauol, can't you find Gravol there or some type of anti-nausea. That's easy to come by here.
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Post by Jollyjunklass on Jul 7, 2005 0:40:32 GMT 7
LOL, I just found another definition (Science: psychiatry) An uncontrollable impulse to wander or travel. Origin: G. Dromos, a running, _ mania, insanity I guess the two can work hand in hand  |
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Post by Nate M on Jul 7, 2005 7:08:34 GMT 7
Melatonin always worked great for me. Maybe everything you get in China is horribly diluted?
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Post by George61 on Jul 7, 2005 7:24:21 GMT 7
Doesn't Melatonin give you Brown skin??
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Post by Nate M on Jul 7, 2005 8:47:22 GMT 7
Kind of. But a melatonin pill basically tells your body that you've experienced a full day's worth of sun, and so now it's time to go to sleep. At least, I think that's what it does. Here's wiki's take on it all: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Melatonin |
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Post by Mr Nobody on Jul 7, 2005 9:40:20 GMT 7
Try bananas. High in tryptophan. This is converted to seratonin which is converted to melatonin. Hot milk before bed. Same thing.
I wonder about the rice connection, and the libido suppression.
I would suggest that it isn't so much diluted drugs here, as even when you even get the right drug and not an outright fake peice of chalk, even if the drugs are fresh and undecomposed, it is dosed for someone 2/3 of your body mass.
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Post by Raoul Duke on Jul 7, 2005 22:07:50 GMT 7
Doesn't Melatonin give you Brown skin?? That's melanin, you extremely silly person.  MK, I'd like to do that too. I may copy out the useful bits and make a Library thread out of it. I need to find a great translator and go try to get some more information. I fear the Chinese output of my med dictionaries is characters-only, no pinyin. No idea on the nausea drug. I'll see what I can find out. But vomiting seems to be generally encouraged here anyway. Yeah, a lot of drugs here are counterfeited. According to the Shanghai Drug Administration, drug poisonings killed an estimated 200,000 Chinese and hospitalized 2.5 million in 1999. In some cities the proportion of fakes is estimated as high as 40% of all medicines sold. About half of the fakes are antibiotics. Melatonin (aka the dreaded Lao Bai Jing and others) is rather expensive and therefore apparently high on the fakes list. But melatonin didn't do too much for me even in the States. Too gentle. I need the chemical equivalent of a lead pipe to the back of the head. |
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Post by Mr Nobody on Jul 7, 2005 22:32:56 GMT 7
Ginger plus palm sugar, boiled as a syrup, mixed with hot or cold water, sipped, mild antinausea due to several things. Not real good, but good enough except for seasickness or real bad nausea.
Try the Doxylamine succinate, find it. It is good. Not too strong, not too many side effects.
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Post by George61 on Jul 7, 2005 23:16:55 GMT 7
Oh..right...as in Melinisian?...they're all brown, yeah?
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Post by Jollyjunklass on Jul 8, 2005 0:15:23 GMT 7
That is a scary thought Raoul, is there any way of being cautious about this or are you always having to take a risk?
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Post by Raoul Duke on Jul 8, 2005 1:00:32 GMT 7
Life is ALWAYS a risk...at least doubly so in China. I now tend to buy medicines at the big chains (I use Nep-Star) rather than at the grubby little counters. This may help reduce (but certainly not eliminate) the risk. I've found absolutely nothing to be completely trustworthy here above the individual level. Indeed, the more government and other certifications a place/product displays, the more likely it seems to be dodgy. Nep-Star also offers a discount card that gets you 2% off all the questionable medicines you buy from them! |
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Post by Jollyjunklass on Jul 8, 2005 10:57:00 GMT 7
Is that a contribution to your life insurance or your  funeral arrangements? Cheap bastards. |
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