Painkiller Addiction Treatment and Risks

An addiction is the inability of being able to stop using something. There are many different types of addictions such as alcohol, shopping, food and pain medications. The most common form of addiction is cigarette addiction, millions and millions of people smoke and they cannot stop. When the craving for something is so stronger that it wins over not taking it that is addiction. Drug addiction is the second most common form of addiction. Pain medication is the third strongest addiction. Some people take so much medication for something like an accident and when the injury heals and the prescriptions stop, then the addiction kicks in.

There are three terms that have become intertwined with each other and some people think they mean the same thing when all three are three separate entities. The first one is tolerance, tolerance means that your body has adapted or accepted the use of a drug. When a person builds a tolerance, it means that the drug or substances no longer has that affect on the person. If the person has adapted to the use of a painkiller, then a higher dosage must be given in order for the drug to work.

Physical dependence is when the body has adapted to the fact that a drug in present and that you may feel a sense of withdrawal when the drug leaves the body. There are drugs that are considered addictive such as Vicodin and Oxycotin and then there are drugs such as beta-blockers and corticosteriods that are deemed non addictive but the body can be physically dependent. Meaning that you can still feel withdrawals when you stop taking the medications.

There is no real way to tell if someone is going to be an addict. People who experience depression, anxiety and loneliness are said to be people at risk to be addicted to some drug or another. That is not to say that everyone who has taken pain medication has become addicted because that would not be true. The important part of medication is to take exactly what the doctor prescribed to you, not a pill more and not a pill less. Get the instructions in writing, this way you have it in front of you and you can't forget by thinking did the doctor say one or two, that is how the addiction begins.

There are always warning signs to people who are becoming addicted, the key is to know the signs and recognize them if you see them. The first warning sign is that you or someone you know is taking a prescribed medication and you are taking more than the doctor ordered. The second sign is that you or someone you know is requesting prescriptions from more than one doctor. The third sign is that when you take the medication, you are also chasing the medication with alcohol in order to get a heightened effect of the medications. The fourth sign is that you are taking the medication to escape from everyday life. Lastly, your doctors and friends and family have told you they are worried about you and about the medications you are taking.

You, your self may think that you may become addicted, if that is the case, tell your doctor and he may prescribe something else and maybe another way to take it as well. Your friends and family will let you know when they feel that the medications are getting out of control. Listen to them, it may mean the difference between an intervention and an out of control addiction. But there is help; there are treatments facilities, meeting you can attend as an outpatient. There will always be some one there to help you; the trick is not to need it.

Addiction is a disease and people need help in order to take control and to cure it. Addictions are dangerous to you physically but mentally as well. They also hurt the people around you. Here are some examples of addictive pain medications. Codeine, Morphine, Oxycodone, Demerol, Duragesic and Darvon.