This is what we find....

Dear Congressman,

The other day I was sitting watching the evening news. As usual, the commercials that ran during the broadcast were all from the pharmaceutical companies pimping their latest products to an unsuspecting public. I say "unsuspecting" because one of them caught my attention with some of the "fine print" that the announcer tries to gloss over while reading the list of potential side effects that the Food and Drug Administration require them to disclose.

"There have been reports of patients experiencing intense urges to gamble, increased sexual urges, and other intense urges and the inability to control these urges while taking...."

Excuse me? This drug is being proscribed for a minor ailment referred to as Restless Leg Syndrome, that a fair share of doctors believe is being exaggerated by the drug maker as to the quantity of suffers bouncing on their beds on a nightly basis. A possible side effect is the overwhelming urge to double down on a pair of nines while I attempt to mount the casino's cocktail waitress?????

Excuse me if I say, for the sake of my marriage, that I would probably attempt another non-pharmaceutical solution if it were presented to me.

BTW- since the FDA makes the drug maker disclose other potential issues, here is a list of them for future reference:

From phase II other adverse effects categorized as frequent: Abdominal pain, constipation, gastroesophageal reflux disease, stomach discomfort, toothache, asthenia, chest pain, influenza-like illness, rigors, bronchitis, gastroenteritis, gastroenteritis viral, lower respiratory tract infection, rhinitis, tooth abscess, urinary tract infection, muscle spasms, musculoskeletal stiffness, myalgia, neck pain, osteoarthritis, tendinitis, hypoesthesia, migraine, anxiety, depression, irritability, sleep disorder, and erectile dysfunction, asthma, pharyngolaryngeal pain, night sweats, rash, hot flush, hypertension, and hypotension.

I did not include the infrequent list as it contained about 3 times as many ailments as the frequent list.

As a side note, I do not mean to understate the trauma of this condition to anyone who suffers from it. I just personally have never met any of you.....