I love drugs (the perfectly legal non-perscription kind)

Yesterday was a very sad day indeed. I took my last tablet of loratodine (allergy med) and said a little prayer. For it seems that the further I am from the US, the further my allergies amplify. Whilst in the Czech Republic, I had such a cough that my friends referred to it as 'the plague.' Upon returning home, my doctor informed me the cough was due to allergies left untreated.

My allergies have redoubled as a result of my being abroad, and the cough returns when I forget a day of allergy meds. Having miscalculated the number of pills needed before leaving the US, I had run out. Today, I gathered my dictionary translations for itch, cough and sneeze and I made my way to the Lekarna (Pharmacy).

I explained (in Slovene) that I have allergies and that I had run out of medicine. The woman asked me what my allergies were (I really have no idea) so I told her dust and pollen. Low and behold she offered me CLARITIN!! Oh how my heart sang! The very drug I was after (although I always buy the generic kind) is available in Slovenia!!

The strangest part of my tale, is that Claritin is CHEAPER in SLOVENIA than in the UNITED STATES. I paid something like $12 for 20 tablets. In the states, this would cost me at least $25.

As explained in my previous blog about the Czech Republic, Europeans have a different relationship with over-the-counter medications than we in the states have. You cannot simply walk into a Lekarna, pluck the drug of your choice from the shelf, pay and leave. You must discuss with the clerk what your symptoms are, and they recommend something for you. All the medicines are kept behind the counter. I took a picture to demonstrate.

P.S. I know I just wrote an entire blog about Claritin. . but this excites me so!