"LIFE'S TOO SHORT TO EAT BAD NUTS"

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Perching here and gathering my thoughts ...

Anti-drug policy gone mad

19 January 2004 ~ 13:28

A friend of mine works for London Underground who operates the London subway system. She does not drive a train nor operate any machinery. She merely sells tickets.

London Underground has a policy of drug testing. Fair enough, you might say.

No company wants their employees coming to work while �high� on an illegal substance.

I was talking to my friend on the phone recently and she told me that she had been suffering from depression, and had been prescribed antidepressants. However, it turns out that LU counts any antidepressant as a �drug� that they do not allow. So my friend had to come off the medication or lose her job.

I was shocked to find out about this. I take antidepressants myself, as does my husband, and I know what a lifeline they can be. All they do is correct an imbalance of chemicals in the brain to make the patient feel normal. They do not give any kind of buzz or fix. Nor do they make one drowsy, except for the first few days whilst the body gets used to them.

As someone whose brother committed suicide, I find this stupid policy indefensible. Supposing a LU worker came off medication because he or she was afraid to lose their job, and consequently killed his/herself. Is LU going to pay compensation to that person�s family? I should hope so.

Today�s society is rapidly becoming drug obsessed, but when you start counting prescribed medicines as �drugs,�anti-drug policies become laughable. I wonder�would LU fire a worker for taking aspirin if they have a headache?


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