# House 5/17 **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [May 18, 2005, 1:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/house-5-17/304345 "2005-05-18T01:51:50Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![pinkfreud](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pinkfreud/32/17603_2.png) [@pinkfreud](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pinkfreud)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2005, 9:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/house-5-17/304345/41 "2005-05-20T21:35:38Z")
> [@Brynda](#): > > Although the show itself seems to misuse the terms, House wouldn’t be allowed to practice if he were an addict. He is dependent on pain-killers, but not an addict. To be considered an addict, his use of pain killers has to be inappropriate (not needed for pain), and he has to do things that cause legal, social, or occupations consequences (stealing, writing illegal prescriptions, etc). I think you’re confusing the terms “addict” and “drug abuser.” House certainly appears to be an addict: he is a habitual user of a synthetic narcotic, and he has withdrawal symptoms when he doesn’t get the drug. He is not a drug abuser, by most definitions, since he is using the drug for legitimate pain relief. ---
**Author:** ![Strinka](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/strinka/32/512_2.png) [@Strinka](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Strinka)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2005, 11:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/house-5-17/304345/42 "2005-05-20T23:36:15Z")
Maybe this is the show’s secret plan. Have the first half of the season go by a strict formula. In the next fourth of the season change and loosen the formula a bit and at the very end throw it out. Then people will naturally consider those last episodes to be great. > [@foolsguinea](#): > > (This _is_ a guy who once casually tasted vomit to make a diagnosis.) When was that? ---
**Author:** ![shadowfax33](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/65b543/32.png) [@shadowfax33](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/shadowfax33)\ **Post date:** [May 21, 2005, 2:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/house-5-17/304345/43 "2005-05-21T02:25:34Z")
> [@ISiddiqui](#): > > House IS addicted to painkillers, however the drug addict wasn’t him, IMO. I believe he said that the drug addict was misdiagnosed by the doctors and died 3 days later and then House switched to his own story where he didn’t tell the doctors about his injury until 3 days of misdiagnosis. Really? Because I didn’t catch that. I think House was telling his own story from the beginning. He was extremely hesitant to begin at the outset. Of course, I initially took his hesitation to be related to emotional turmoil over seeing his old flame (Stacy?) and being asked to treat her hubby. Now I think that at least part of his reluctance came from a decision to use his own misdiagnosis as an example for the class. At any rate, I think it would be interesting and surprising if he was an addict prior to his aneurism. To me, he doesn’t really seem the type to get addicted to something without reason. YMMV. ---
**Author:** ![ISiddiqui](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/97f17d/32.png) [@ISiddiqui](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ISiddiqui)\ **Post date:** [May 21, 2005, 7:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/house-5-17/304345/44 "2005-05-21T07:11:23Z")
I may have misunderstood it. House said that it was 3 days before the doctors found out… then said sometimes you’ll screw up, you’ll kill someone. I guess I figured he was saying that the guy died. Though like others, I’m confused. If House was the drug addict who was injecting himself with dopamine, he never would have been a doctor. Perhaps the other explination is most correct, that House snatched the syringe out of the doctor’s hand and thus the docs thought he was a druggie. I guess that was cleared up because he couldn’t practice otherwise. Also the hospital where he worked would have probably knew what House was allergic to (it is kind of important). ---
**Author:** ![ISiddiqui](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/97f17d/32.png) [@ISiddiqui](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ISiddiqui)\ **Post date:** [May 21, 2005, 7:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/house-5-17/304345/45 "2005-05-21T07:13:13Z")
… oh and remember, the drug addict went in for the dope, then LEFT… then came back saying his leg hurt… and got the rod in his penis to see if he was faking it. ---
**Author:** ![BobT](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/8e8cbc/32.png) [@BobT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BobT)\ **Post date:** [May 21, 2005, 7:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/house-5-17/304345/46 "2005-05-21T07:14:49Z")
And the urine that was coming out was tea-colored, which was House’s problem. He was passing both blood and muscle tissue in his urine. ---
**Author:** ![Cheesesteak](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cheesesteak/32/3694_2.png) [@Cheesesteak](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cheesesteak)\ **Post date:** [May 21, 2005, 10:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/house-5-17/304345/47 "2005-05-21T10:34:00Z")
For some reason, I got the impression that the suspected drug abuser wasn’t actually a drug abuser once it was determined that his leg was really hurting. House spoke about the catheter as proof that he wasn’t just a druggie looking for a fix, that the pain was real. I think they only suspected he was looking for a fix because they didn’t know there was something really wrong. ---
**Author:** ![YWalker](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/y/6f9a4e/32.png) [@YWalker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/YWalker)\ **Post date:** [May 21, 2005, 11:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/house-5-17/304345/48 "2005-05-21T11:08:40Z")
My take on this is that because the doctors couldn’t identify the cause of his pain, they automatically assumed that he was faking it — classical drug seeking behaviour. When he grabbed a syringe out of their hands and injected himself (knowing how to do it correctly), they then assumed that this verified their initial assumptions — classic drug seeking behaviour. Then again, if they’d done any history at all, they’d have known he was an MD, and wouldn’t have had to come into an ER begging for good drugs. ---
**Author:** ![Ethilrist](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ethilrist/32/4604_2.png) [@Ethilrist](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ethilrist)\ **Post date:** [May 21, 2005, 1:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/house-5-17/304345/49 "2005-05-21T13:11:40Z")
People, House was talking about two other patients at the hospital within a couple months of his case. How could he know about them? He was a doctor at the hospital at the time. That silly Occam’s Razor thing, it’s kinda sharp sometimes. ---
**Author:** ![Wile\_E](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/c37758/32.png) [@Wile\_E](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wile_E)\ **Post date:** [May 21, 2005, 8:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/house-5-17/304345/50 "2005-05-21T20:59:17Z")
> [@ISiddiqui](#): > > I may have misunderstood it. House said that it was 3 days before the doctors found out… then said sometimes you’ll screw up, you’ll kill someone. I guess I figured he was saying that the guy died. > > Though like others, I’m confused. If House was the drug addict who was injecting himself with dopamine, he never would have been a doctor. > > … He wouldn’t be a very good drug addict either if he was shooting himself up with dopamine. I believe it was demerol. > [@Ethilrist](#): > > People, House was talking about two other patients at the hospital within a couple months of his case. How could he know about them? He was a doctor at the hospital at the time. That silly Occam’s Razor thing, it’s kinda sharp sometimes. Since the other cases involved his students (or whatever those 3 are) they did not take place at near the same time as his own case. It was likely several years later. He was essentially telling true stories but he was mixing them up a bit, not following events chronologically, and he was adding some stuff for effect. It’s possible he did see something when he was dead for a minute but it wasn’t those people. Or the writer’s really missed that big glaring error. ---
**Author:** ![Wile\_E](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/c37758/32.png) [@Wile\_E](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wile_E)\ **Post date:** [May 21, 2005, 9:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/house-5-17/304345/51 "2005-05-21T21:05:08Z")
Oops, I meant to add that his 3 students didn’t know his full story so it’s doubtful they were working there under him at the time. Hadn’t 5 years gone by? I don’t think the program would last that long for them, since the idea is for the doctors to learn and then go out on their own. So basically House was telling stories that were based on “true stories” but were not entirely factual. ---
**Author:** ![5que](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/5/3bc359/32.png) [@5que](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/5que)\ **Post date:** [May 22, 2005, 2:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/house-5-17/304345/52 "2005-05-22T02:52:36Z")
I just got to watch this episode on TiVo last night, and I am just awestruck how great it was. Right up there with the original series on HBO. I’ve already watched it twice more today. I hope it gets an Emmy nod. ---
**Author:** ![shadowfax33](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/65b543/32.png) [@shadowfax33](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/shadowfax33)\ **Post date:** [May 22, 2005, 3:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/house-5-17/304345/53 "2005-05-22T03:28:09Z")
> [@5que](#): > > I just got to watch this episode on TiVo last night, and I am just awestruck how great it was. Right up there with the original series on HBO. I’ve already watched it twice more today. I hope it gets an Emmy nod. Original series on HBO? I don’t get HBO and am woefully ignorant. Was “House” originally on HBO? ---
**Author:** ![Superdude](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/superdude/32/13450_2.png) [@Superdude](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Superdude)\ **Post date:** [May 22, 2005, 4:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/house-5-17/304345/54 "2005-05-22T04:15:47Z")
> [@shadowfax33](#): > > Was “House” originally on HBO? No. Methinks he’s referring to _Deadwood_. ---
**Author:** ![5que](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/5/3bc359/32.png) [@5que](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/5que)\ **Post date:** [May 23, 2005, 2:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/house-5-17/304345/55 "2005-05-23T14:04:05Z")
> [@shadowfax33](#): > > Original series on HBO? I don’t get HBO and am woefully ignorant. Was “House” originally on HBO? Sorry, I meant House is on par with the qualities of original series that are on HBO – like Deadwood, Carnivale, and The Sopranos. Kinda strange to find it on Fox, land of American Idol and When _\_ Attack. ---
**Author:** ![Hal\_Briston](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/a9a28c/32.png) [@Hal\_Briston](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hal_Briston)\ **Post date:** [May 23, 2005, 8:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/house-5-17/304345/56 "2005-05-23T20:25:37Z")
Got back from vacation and watched this one yesterday. Wow…terrific episode. To echo several others – yes, please break formula like this more often. Not too much, mind you…the “patient of the week” works nicely for me most of the time…but this was wonderfully twisty. > [@shadowfax33](#): > > Is House currently addicted to painkillers? He seems to be, and I don’t know if it has been referenced on the show. Yes, he’s most definitely addicted. In an earlier episode, Foreman challenged him to lay off the painkillers for a time (I’m a bit hazy on the specifics – somewhere between 24 and 72 hours). He managed it, but spent the episode going through a nasty withdrawal, to the point that Foreman finally _gave_ him back his meds so House would be able to function. In the end, House admitted that yes, he was an addict, but he was a functioning addict. ---
**Author:** ![5que](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/5/3bc359/32.png) [@5que](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/5que)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2005, 1:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/house-5-17/304345/57 "2005-05-24T13:09:39Z")
> [@Hal Briston](#): > > Yes, he’s most definitely addicted. In an earlier episode, Foreman challenged him to lay off the painkillers for a time (I’m a bit hazy on the specifics – somewhere between 24 and 72 hours). Actually, it was a bit more interesting that that. Cuddy made the bet with House to go off the painkillers for a week to get out of some clinic duty. At the end of the episode you found out that it was actually Wilson’s idea, with he and Cuddy working together to try to get House off the pills. House never knew Wilson was behind it. ---
**Author:** ![shadowfax33](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/65b543/32.png) [@shadowfax33](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/shadowfax33)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2005, 1:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/house-5-17/304345/58 "2005-05-24T13:22:59Z")
Just checked back in on this thread, and wanted to say thanks to Superdude, 5que, and Hal Briston for answering my questions. Tonight’s episode looks like another that is breaking formula, and will hopefully be great! 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Hal\_Briston](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/a9a28c/32.png) [@Hal\_Briston](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hal_Briston)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2005, 4:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/house-5-17/304345/59 "2005-05-24T16:25:14Z")
> [@5que](#): > > Actually, it was a bit more interesting that that. Cuddy made the bet with House to go off the painkillers for a week to get out of some clinic duty. At the end of the episode you found out that it was actually Wilson’s idea, with he and Cuddy working together to try to get House off the pills. House never knew Wilson was behind it. Ahh, you’re quite right…looks like I was hazier on the details than I thought. Must be the drugs. ---
**Author:** ![Superdude](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/superdude/32/13450_2.png) [@Superdude](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Superdude)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2005, 8:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/house-5-17/304345/60 "2005-05-24T20:00:46Z")
> [@Hal Briston](#): > > Must be the drugs. Pass some over here. Less than 5 hours to go until the season finale! You know, I’ve watched this show since the beginning. Two thoughts: 1. It’s rare that a show has been this captivating right off the bat (for me, anyway), and B) This show is one that I don’t think will lose anything watching the summer repeats. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/house-5-17/304345.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/house-5-17/304345.md?page=4)