I NEED A JOB!!!!!!

Also there are 2 things. One is a substance may not be allowed by DOT. But a company can have even more stringent policies. You need to make sure the med is good with both. Otherwise your potentially wasting everyone's time.

 

Got to be honest with you, don't worry about it. Be truthful, tell them what you are taking and why and leave it at that.

As for ptl, all companies are the same but have their quirks, no company out there is so bad that people can't work for them, for every failure, po'd poster and so on, there seems to be a positive side you never heard about. So I would go for it, learn as much as you can and if you are worried about being left at some truck stop, save up enough money to get home from the farthest point from you home and put it into a debit card or something you can use quickly.

Good luck with your new career.

 

Umm you should definitely bring your prescription with you and make sure whoever tests you sees that you have a script before you test. don't take chances. also id think you would want to bring any prescriptions you might need on the road with you.

 

Take what you read with a grain of salt. Yes, some complaints will be legit... but, on the flip side of that coin, the person who swears up and down they got screwed over when they got fired isn't going to be keen to mention their multiple preventable accidents, service failures, etc. if those are applicable to them. Truckers can be a lot like politicians in that they're never at fault for anything, and look at reviews for anything, and you'll see people in general can be extremely shallow and pretentious... e.g., before moving to the apartments I live in now, I remember reading a review which gave one star and the reviewer was upset because she was charged a late fee for paying her rent late... and you'll see that with trucking companies, as well.
I can't tell you about PTL - never drove for them, have no desire to. But any company you go to is going to be a crap shoot. Some drivers have bad experiences at companies typically known to be 'good', and some drivers have had good experiences at companies typically known to be 'bad'.... you're not guaranteed to have a bad experience there, and you're not guaranteed to have a great experience elsewhere. And part of how of it turns out does depend on you, as well, so figure out how you're going to approach it, go into it with the right mindset.. then you're holding up your end, and if the company doesn't, then you move on to greener pastures.
You're going into a whole new career. It's normal to be nervous and even prone to overreacting.

 

Hydrocodone is not a schedule i drug, but it is habit-forming so your prescribing doctor would need to say it is safe for you to operate a commercial motor vehicle.

Each DOT medical examiner would have the option to certify you, at their discretion (PTL's doctor might not even though you already have a valid medical card certified by someone else).

You would not fail a drug test. You would test positive for opiates, the medical examiner would call to ask about prescriptions, & you would give them your valid prescription and the matter would be settled.

 

PTL is not that bad. From a 30 yrs driver veteran be patient and learn the ropes. After one year of experience you can start looking at other companies that better benefit you. It will take some time for the income to increase as well. Always be safe, and don't ever put yourself in a bad situation when your out there. If running otr always try to shut down early before 1900 hrs that way you can get the best parking.

 

Good luck to you. I hope everything works out.