Korean Job Discussion Forums

[kingasiatic88]

[quote="DrOctagon" and I think the drugs that make benzo's are opiates.[/quote]

no. this is why teh internets is a bad place for informations.

[aweitzm1]

Do SSRI drugs show up on the drug test? I take an SSRI drug and am wondering if I need to stop taking it before I come to Korea.

[rach123]

[ironclad80]

rach123: they're not testing for SSRIs, it's not a drug that people abuse for pleasure. abruptly stopping your SSRI meds is dangerous and will for sure cause insane withdrawal.

[Honooko]

Old thread, but just thought I'd add this:

I'm Bipolar/Panic Disorder and literally do not function without my medication. I take four, and all are fairly hard-hitters in the scale of crazy pills. Lamictal, Xanax, Remeron, and Seroquel. I was taking them before I got to Korea, and continued taking them once I got here. I wrote on my Visa app that I'm Bipolar, and it has never once been an issue.

So, I had no problems on my drug test, I never had to shown proof of my prescription, and I didn't have to tell my boss!

Amusingly, my friend takes Valium and asked a Korean doctor for a sleeping medication. The doctor gave him pills but didn't tell them what they were. They worked great, so my friend looked them up. Turns out the doctor gave him GHB. He had to figure out a way to bring it with him when he went back to the US for the holidays. XD

[Illysook]

I was on an ssri when I took my drug test and it was fine.

[elliot79]

can i ask, for those who are on SSRI's did you declare this on your health form?

[Illysook]

Taking Paxil for mild depression and the physical changes that I'm experiencing in this stage of life is pretty common and nothing that I'm really ashamed of, but I was not going to lose out on a good job by telling immigration about it. I'm not crazy!

[kardisa]

[MIKESHU]

Hello everyone,

Very old thread, I know - but as many of the others who have posted previously, I too am very concerned about my Rx benzodiazepine and the drug test needed to fully complete the visa/ARC process.

Reading this thread is so inconclusive and inconsistent that I'm really concerned about two things in particular: 1) passing the test w/out any reprucusions for my Rx, and 2) the need to actually continue taking the medication upon arrival in Korea (which has been hinted at, but nobody seems to have implied how this is actually accomplished (i.e. getting my prescription here in the U.S. in Korea) Any info about personal experiences and/or advice for both of these issues would be greatly appreciated.

I am scheduled to arrive to teach in Incheon on Feb 25th - I have all of the paperwork completed, the signed contract, and everything else except actually going to washington d.c. to the embassy for the visa interview/approval (which isn't a big deal since I live in MD, it's a short drive away thankfully)

I am prescribed - as others that posted previously - Klonopin (clonazepam, or Rivotril in S.Korea) 2 mg /daily for the treatment of panic attacks. I have been taking the medication twice daily for about three years, and have not had to increase dosage, no issues w/ tolerance, and have not had any panic attacks since starting. Myself and my doctor are both aware that benzos are usually not prefered for long term usage, but in his own words, "most patients I try to eventually ween them from the beznodiazepines, but in your case I actually want you to stay on the medication - so long as you don't notice any side-effects and it continues working, I don't see the problem with long-term use - panic disorder is probably the only situation in which I don't recommend short-term use only, as removing the medication will almost always result in the reoccurance of panic attacks"
Yes, SSRI's are an option for some, but b/c of the common sexual side-effects my doctor and I both agree that this has been the best option, and I should continue the medication.
Additionally, a taper from the medication is not feasible at this point... there is just not enough time to do it safely. I function normal on the medication... I don't get drowsy, no memory problems, nothing... I can go about 36-48 hrs w/out the medication w/ ease... but after about 48 hrs I do begin to notice the withdrawal symptoms, which left untreated are more dangerous than the condition for which I actually take the medication - I accept this fact and have no problem with using a medicine that works well and doesn't interfere w/ my life (actually it improves it tremendously), the cost is low, and the benefits far outweigh any slight inconveinences of getting a Rx once a month, seeing the doc every 3-4 months, and simply taking pill twice a day - not really a big deal at all.... here in the U.S. at least

How does this process translate to Korean society? I've told my doctor my plans, and he is willing to write a note stating his recommendation that I stay on the medication and I'll have my Rx, but for those that have come to Korea on a certain Rx that you 'must' take, or else experience w/d symptoms - how was the process of actually getting the medication once in Korea? Do you do this shortly upon entering? Do you find a new, regular doctor? Go to the hospital? Take your U.S. Rx to a Korean Pharmacy? This is a huge concern for me at the moment, b/c really, I can't stop taking it so suddenly, and I don't want to risk not having access to my medication once I run out of the supply that I will take with me into the country. Not to mention that these concerns are second to the initial issue of having problems with the drug test and immigration process itself... it's mentally exhausting me and online resources are terribly limited - which really surprised me...

And please, if you read this in a judgemental way and think or comment suggesting this is addictive or drug seeking behavior (as some prior comments have done... and others are so wildly incorrect it actually scares me that some are some misinformed - like benzos being the same as opiates? Wow, just wow..), please don't waste your time adding insult to a reasonable concern. This is a legit medication for a condition that is not even anxiety related in my case- that's right, you can have panic attacks w/out associated on-going, clinical anxiety... very stange phenomenon indeed. But it's true, I don't have anxiety issues at all, and never did before the medication - the panic attacks would be so random... nothing to do with my mood or any predictable factors... and downright terrifying for the few minutes they lasted... And this itself brings about another concern (and these are concerns... I can already imagine a snarky comment along the lines of, "sounds to me like you do have anxiety and are in denial of it, why so worried?" - sorry I'm defensive, but the ill-informed posts I've seen have made me vary I suppose - oh, right, the other concern is just the terminology: 'panic attack' - it seems that this is a bad thing to readily admit to, and perhaps the word 'panic' may make someone not educated in the area of mental health think that this implies some sort of deranged, lunacy? Is that correct? I am strongly considering using the medication for 'sleep and restless legs' as my reason for taking it - I did not put anything about it on the health form, b/c honestly, I technically haven't had any mental problems... I've had a reaction or symptom that is common in anxiety, but not the anxiety itself - yes, sounds like a lawyer using loophole logic, but it's also true nevertheless... I was aware of the possible negative connotation when I filled out the form, so I avoided it... not really lying, but not entirely being honest.

My next refill, oddly enough, will be just before my scheduled arrival, but from there I have a 30 day supply that could be streched to 45-60 days if necessary, but it would probably be uncomfortable to drop my dosage 50% all at once - I believe a proper taper is no more than 10% reduction/week, or something similar and definately not as drastic as 50% immediately.

Also, I was really happy upon seeing this link posted, thinking, "finally a way to verify my need to continue taking my medicine!" http://worldlingo.com/ma/enwiki/ko/Clonazepam

And then I translated and read it....
WOW - this makes klonopin appear to be a very harmful, dangerous drug!!! I have NEVER experienced any of these crazy side effects, and the article does not go on to note the % of the patient population that experience them - it is so exaggerated from what I've experienced I'm actually concerned that this would be a bad idea to present to my recruiter, who I've informed about the medicine and she wants to know the name (although I already named it in my email lol, w/out mentioned Panic Attacks of course... but anyways...) to find out if it will be available at the hosptial, and well, I'll just copy/paste the email:

Hello Michael,

About the medication that you take regularly, I would like you to name those medicine so I could check the hospital in Korea to check if you could get that in Korea.
Also, you will have the medical check(for AIDS and Drugs) at the hospital within a week after your arrival in Korea and some of the medicines come out positive reaction which won't be acceptable at the immigration office so
you couldn't stay in Korea to teach English. I hope your medications won't be matter for the medical check so please give me a response as soon as you check it and it will be a good idea to bring the doctor's note and prescription
from your doctor in the U.S. Look forward to hearing from you soon. Thank you!

So now that has me concerned... I'm loosing count w/ all these 'concerns'... UGH!!! All for something that I don't even think about in my day-to-day life at all here in the states, that might now be a potential reason to think I'm a 'high-risk' hire, or psychopath, unstable, or drug addict, etc.??? - My major is actually Psychology and drug addiction treatment (illicit abuse) was my specialization in college including internship senior year, so I'm familiar with DSM criteria for anxiety/depression, etc. as well as addiction - and although I know I don't meet such criteria, I know that DSM probably means nothing when going through the crazy-detailed process of immigration w/ medicine involved...
I may actually be having anxiety for the first time in my life just trying to avoid the assumption that I take medicine for it -how ironic, eh?

So, for anyone out there that has taken the time to read my long winded short novel of a post, and can provide me any useful information that is not biased by personal opinion or judgemental, etc. PLEASE DO! OR better yet, if someone could actually explain how the situation went in their case (for those that have came to Korean while taking a benzo and continue to during your stay...) that would be extremely helpful to either ease my concerns, or at least give me a reality check (even if its bad news for my situation... I just want legitamate information... anecdotal or objective... I just need to know... ) I've been planning this for over a year now, and finally found a school I think I'm really going to like, a great agency *appletree*, and really need to know if two little pills are actually a possible barrier to my goal to teach for a few years abroad...

Thanks in advance for reading and to anyone who has anything helpful to add.... I really, really do appreciate anyone taking the time to relate anything that would be relevant to my seemingly never-ending concerns about medicine.... If I knew it would have been an issue, I would have probably tapered off a year ago (and just dealt w/ the PA's if they returned, which is a good chance they would - I had about 1 a month prior to medication), but now that's too late... it wasn't until my last doctor visit that I thought about it, when he said, "you need to find out if the drug is available in Korea and if not do a taper..." - well, I know the drug is available - but will it be available to me? and wil the fact that I need it to be aviailable to me be a bad thing?

I can't wait to have this put to rest... hopefully someone here can help w/ that, b/c I'd really hate to find out bad news for my cause after I've arrived at the end of the month..

Ok - finally done... I'm a freelance writer currently, so sorry this is so long, I'm just used to fast typing and figured the more details I provide the better the responses can be... so for those who did, thanks for bearing w/ me. Many, many thanks...

- mikeshu -

[ironclad80]

I also take klonopin 2mg/day and I did the drug test twice with no problems. I completely understand your concern. I was just like you.

Look at the forum here, was anyone rejected a visa because they take klonopin or other benzos? No. Furthermore, you're taking it legally, and it has other uses than emotional issues.

Last May I took my test for my current job. My new boss sent me alone for the test and to pick up the results because she is quite a busy person. I opened the envelope and it said I passed. I can read Korean and it had a checklist of everything they tested for and Benzos was NOT one of them.

Both times I showed them my prescription for benzos and they brushed it aside. I even said in Korean "I take klonopin, is it okay?" And they almost laughed. They're testing for HARD drugs, well except marijuana but that's illegal.

If it makes you feel better, you said you can go without it for 48 hours? I doubt it would be out of your system because it's a long-lasting benzo compared to the others but it might give you some peace of mind. I tried going 3 days without it before my test. The withdrawal was insane combined with jet lag. About 6 hours before the test I took one while telling myself my well being is more important than a stupid test. I still passed of course.

You asked about availability here? It's prescribed quite often. The strongest pill is .5mg but my doctor understands I'm larger than Koreans and need my 1mg twice/day so he just doubles it up.

You'll be fine....

[MIKESHU]

Thank you so much for posting again Ironclad80! - I read many posts from a year or two back, and it didn't seem like anyone had returned to this particular thread to say: "hey, I just went through the process and everything was Ok w/ the test" - and the last comment prior to my first one in this thread worried me ALOT

Although I've been registered here for a year, I have not been very active in the forums.... yet, so I am still learning the ropes on how to quote, etc. - this is actually a repeat of a long thank you post I just somehow lost? - but, yeah, the post prior to my first one describing 2 people being denied visas for panic attacks alarmed me for sure... I still think I'll refrain from voicing that part, but I'm no longer worried at all now... I really appreciate you taking the time to return and relate your experience as it sounds pretty much exactly the same as my situation (medication and dosage.. small world huh?) which gives me tremendous peace of mind... FINALLY !!!

Now I can focus on the my writing (it's hard to concentrate on freelance writing when you have something so urgent on your mind) and all the other important personal things I need to do in the next three weeks before I jump on the plane. Very refreshing indeed.

I don't know if there is any sort of Rep. points or a '+1' type of recognition I can give you (and if so, I doubt I have enough activity yet), but at least as a show of gratitude, I'm doing it anyway: here's to you and the very informative comment that covered my very long and detailed post wonderfully - +1! Very well done - the best in this entire thread so far, imo

I should point out that I'm not only saying that b/c the information is peace of mind and good news for me, but b/c you provided accurate information that is really helpful - Even if you'd said that the medication was not accepted, despite my inner-despair *lol* it would still have been a great post b/c of the accuracy and your own personal experience (although I'm certainly very happy that it didn't turn out that way..lol), which is esp. nice to know... I don't plan on discontinueing for as long as I can physically stand it - as you had attempted - and I'm sure I would have w/out knowing what I know now... which as you pointed out, would have been a futile effort, knowing the long half-life of clonazepam... I would never be able to extend cessation to the point of complete elimination... that would be over a week perhaps two, and could well have me flopping like a fish out of water in w/d induced seizure... no thanks to that prospect... whew!

I agree wholeheartedly with you that physical well-being is not worth compromising for the sake of the test, but I'm sure I would have attempted to do it (as you did) anyway... even knowing it would be a losing battle... three days is impressive... I'm sure when you finally gave in to what your body was telling you it seemed so ridicolous that if that's what it comes down to, then it's really not worth it...
I'd liken the situation to a diabetic avoiding insulin b/c it may show up on a test and recieved in a negative manner - I think the situation for both of us seems the same... it would not be worth it to try to 'just stop' taking a medicine that works and we need, don't abuse, and actually is dangerous to stop w/out doing so slooooowly...

Anyways, I can feel another novel is happening here, so I'll try and wrap this up (and perhaps the thread can be considered finalized even (?)... remaining as a good resource for future prospective ESL teachers that have similar, legit concerns)

Geez, lol, I'm terribly long-winded in forums sometimes, as you can see, but that's usually just from either being very concerned or lots of enthusiasm shining through about something- and rarely both on the same day and on the same thread no less, lol - so, once more, thank you very much! - You have certainly made the next 3 weeks much more comfortable for me - or as relaxed as you can be when you're about to embark on a new life in a different country lol. I'm so excited!

Very, very well done - a model post for any topic imo: solid, current, and helpful to the question by adding personal experience related to the question...

+1 for sure Ironclad80 - THANK YOU!

- mikeshu -[/quote]

[MIKESHU]

Thank you so much for posting again Ironclad80! - I read many posts from a year or two back, and it didn't seem like anyone had returned to this particular thread to say: "hey, I just went through the process and everything was Ok w/ the test" - and the last comment prior to my first one in this thread worried me ALOT

Although I've been registered here for a year, I have not been very active in the forums.... yet, so I am still learning the ropes on how to quote, etc. - this is actually a repeat of a long thank you post I just somehow lost? - but, yeah, the post prior to my first one describing 2 people being denied visas for panic attacks alarmed me for sure... I still think I'll refrain from voicing that part, but I'm no longer worried at all now... I really appreciate you taking the time to return and relate your experience as it sounds pretty much exactly the same as my situation (medication and dosage.. small world huh?) which gives me tremendous peace of mind... FINALLY !!!

Now I can focus on the my writing (it's hard to concentrate on freelance writing when you have something so urgent on your mind) and all the other important personal things I need to do in the next three weeks before I jump on the plane. Very refreshing indeed.

I don't know if there is any sort of Rep. points or a '+1' type of recognition I can give you (and if so, I doubt I have enough activity yet), but at least as a show of gratitude, I'm doing it anyway: here's to you and the very informative comment that covered my very long and detailed post wonderfully - +1! Very well done - the best in this entire thread so far, imo

I should point out that I'm not only saying that b/c the information is peace of mind and good news for me, but b/c you provided accurate information that is really helpful - Even if you'd said that the medication was not accepted, despite my inner-despair *lol* it would still have been a great post b/c of the accuracy and your own personal experience (although I'm certainly very happy that it didn't turn out that way..lol), which is esp. nice to know... I don't plan on discontinueing for as long as I can physically stand it - as you had attempted - and I'm sure I would have w/out knowing what I know now... which as you pointed out, would have been a futile effort, knowing the long half-life of clonazepam... I would never be able to extend cessation to the point of complete elimination... that would be over a week perhaps two, and could well have me flopping like a fish out of water in w/d induced seizure... no thanks to that prospect... whew!

I agree wholeheartedly with you that physical well-being is not worth compromising for the sake of the test, but I'm sure I would have attempted to do it (as you did) anyway... even knowing it would be a losing battle... three days is impressive... I'm sure when you finally gave in to what your body was telling you it seemed so ridicolous that if that's what it comes down to, then it's really not worth it...
I'd liken the situation to a diabetic avoiding insulin b/c it may show up on a test and recieved in a negative manner - I think the situation for both of us seems the same... it would not be worth it to try to 'just stop' taking a medicine that works and we need, don't abuse, and actually is dangerous to stop w/out doing so slooooowly...

Anyways, I can feel another novel is happening here, so I'll try and wrap this up (and perhaps the thread can be considered finalized even (?)... remaining as a good resource for future prospective ESL teachers that have similar, legit concerns)

Geez, lol, I'm terribly long-winded in forums sometimes, as you can see, but that's usually just from either being very concerned or lots of enthusiasm shining through about something- and rarely both on the same day and on the same thread no less, lol - so, once more, thank you very much! - You have certainly made the next 3 weeks much more comfortable for me - or as relaxed as you can be when you're about to embark on a new life in a different country lol. I'm so excited!

Very, very well done - a model post for any topic imo: solid, current, and helpful to the question by adding personal experience related to the question...

+1 for sure Ironclad80 - THANK YOU!

- mikeshu -[/quote]

[ironclad80]

Well I'm happy to help and I'm glad it gives you some peace of mind. I remember when I was searching for information I couldn't really get a straight answer. People without any actual credibility posting wasn't exactly useful either.

I probably just unnecessarily tortured myself for the time I went from refraining from the meds. You're right about the half life. If you've been on them daily for years it would take 7-10 days to be completely out of your system and 2 weeks to be 100% sure (this is what my doc back home told me when I asked.) Maybe if you took it for the first time in your life 2-3 days would be sufficient.

For what it's worth, my brother had to take a drug test for a job back in the states. He completely forgot about the fact he takes klonopin (yea it runs in my family) because he doesn't consider himself a drug user. So he didn't even disclose it. Anyway, he took the test and passed, I think he later said they tested for benzos, go figure.

It's a shame people take benzos for "fun." They give legitimate folks like us a bad name. I take them to prevent panic attacks and to get a decent nights sleep. I don't even think the "high" they give (if you want to call it that) is even pleasurable. If anything, too many just make me groggy.

I don't even remember the last time I had a panic attack, they do exactly what they're supposed to do!

Good luck!

[J Rock]

I personally take Xanex, Clonopin and Celexa everyday. I took the proper paperwork with me to the medical exam just in case I had to prove that they are prescribed to me.

Nothing came up at all on my test.