I have spent this entire summer working my tail off to get my private pilot license. Looking back, I should have dealt with my medical first to make sure there weren't any complications, but I didn't. I fell more and more in love with flying the more immersed I became in it. I was focusing too much on just getting my hours before I have to go back to UCF mid August. The AME that recently conducted my examination flagged two medications I take for a neuropathic pain in my shoulder (Neurontin and Elavil), a residual effect from my Chiari Malformation that was corrected ten years ago...

The FAA's problem with these meds is that they MIGHT cause drowsiness, although I have been taking them for TEN YEARS and haven't experienced any side effects whatsoever. If anything I need more sleep than I am getting now. This is another reason i waited on the medical; I had been under the impression these medications were virtually side-effect-free. Thing is, I have to take them. The pain is too much without them and according to my neurologist there aren't any substitutes that don't state "drowsiness" as a possible side effect. I understand the FAA's obvious concern with this but as my neurologist explained, my meds only have this slight effect when you first start taking them (when I was 10). I would never consider flying if I thought the safety of myself or anyone else is in jeopardy.

So even though my AME said to "wait 2-4 weeks to hear from the FAA regarding the necessary information about your condition/medications," what I got instead was the cut and dry denial letter. What is the best way to get past this? Is a reconsideration request a waste of my time? The deadline is August 18th. Also, if I stopped taking these medications (I'm looking into nerve blocks) how should I go about explaining this to the FAA.

Flying is a major passion of mine and I had hoped to pursue a career in chartering or flying for a regional airline. Obviously these ambitions now seem slightly out of reach... but I won't give up on this because the simple truth remains: I am perfectly capable of safely operating aircraft. Isn't that the point?

Any advice on the topic or similar experiences would be much appreciated.