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Subscribe to RSSSarah Mayer, 27, and her father Randy, 54, of Hilliard Ohio, share her story of addiction and recovery with NBC News.
The use of prescription painkillers recreationally is at epidemic levels, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. What is it about the pills that makes them so dangerously addictive and a potential gateway for heroin?
The surprising answer, at least to many non-medical professionals, is that the common painkillers that doctors and dentists prescribe to patients after injuries and surgeries have the same active ingredient as the drug that alleyway users inject into their arms. And both act in similar ways on the human brain to produce a sense of pleasure that can overwhelm its reasoning functions.
While many who abuse prescription painkillers think of heroin as a low-class drug that will never make its way into their lives, they don’t realize, they’re already addicted to a form of it.
Prescription painkillers of the sort that 12 million Americans used nonmedically in 2010, according to the CDC, are narcotic opioid drugs, more commonly referred to as opiates. They include hydrocodone and oxycodone, also known by the brand names Vicodin and Oxycontin, respectively.
Reward system
According to the National Institute on Drug Abuse, when opiates are consumed, they enter the bloodstream and activate neurotransmitter receptors in the brain’s reward system. Scientists call the link between the drug and the receptor a lock and key relationship, because one specific neurotransmitter activates specific receptor molecules, the same way only one key fits a particular lock.
When the opiates reach the opiate receptors, the latter release the hormone dopamine. The dopamine – which acts as an “excitatory neurotransmitter” – produces feelings of pleasure and satisfaction. It’s this action at the most basic cellular level that provides the foundation for drug addiction.
Young recovering heroin addicts Tej Yaich, 20, Holly Yates, 20 and Tara McCormac, 22, and Dr. Joseph Gay share their stories and discuss the growing heroin crisis in Ohio.
Although the initial effect of the drug is rewarding and results in a “high,” or feeling of euphoria, the effect is time stamped. When it wears off, the user feels much worse than before having taken the drug.
Addiction psychiatrist Dr. Stuart Gitlow, president of the American Society of Addiction Medicine, compares this phenomenon to alcohol use, saying that people drink for the immediate effect, regardless of the inevitable hangover that will follow.
"The only connection a patient makes is that use of the drug leads to immediate relief -- not the longer-lasting discomfort that follows. Unfortunately, the drug causes both the immediate relief and the following discomfort. As time passes, the discomfort becomes more apparent than the relief and the drug is used merely in an effort to avoid the discomfort that the drug has caused in the first place."
Gitlow explains that humans are not biologically programmed to think about cause and effect in this way. “The only thing a patient connects in their head is with the immediate relief -- not the effect felt days later,” he said.
Also, as with alcohol, the pleasurable effect diminishes over time, he said.
At the cellular level, chronic activation of the opiate receptors eventually saturates them -- requiring higher and higher dosages of the drugs to achieve the same pleasant feeling. It is for this reason that an addict will seek more potent forms of the opioids.
“There are certain medications that invite an escalation to more serious drugs and narcotics and opiates are two of those” said Dr. Nancy Snyderman, NBC News chief medical editor.
The speed with which the different forms of opiates enter the bloodstream and flood receptors depends on the form in which it’s consumed, explains Snyderman. Consuming a pill by mouth can take up to a few hours to have an effect because it has to be digested by the stomach and intestines before it makes its way into the bloodstream. Injection is the second-fastest way to achieve the desired effect, as the drug enters the bloodstream instantly but has to make its way to the brain. Snorting a crushed pill or a powder crosses the blood-brain barrier in a matter of seconds; that’s what makes snorting so addicting and the drug delivery system of choice.
It also means there’s less margin for error if a person has a drug reaction or overdoses, Snyderman said.
In an opiate overdose a person may experience confusion and physical discomfort. In severe cases, a person’s breathing can slow down so much that breathing stops, resulting in a fatal overdose. The CDC estimates that more than 100 people die every day from unintentional drug overdoses -- many of them involving prescription pain killers.
In addition to the immediate effects produced by the drugs, numerous short- and long-term side effects can be associated with opiate use and abuse.
Among the most common side effects reported are constipation, nausea and what’s known as pin-point pupils. As an addict increases consumption, the side effects become more severe and can include extreme sleepiness and slowed respiration and pulse rates.
The most widely known side effect is the physical dependence that occurs with long-term use.
Dr. Joe Gay, director of Health Recovery Services in Ohio, points out that “As tolerance goes up, susceptibility to withdrawal becomes a real factor.” Withdrawal symptoms can be excruciating and including muscle aches, anxiety, sweating and insomnia, to name a few.
Like any addiction, opiate abuse is considered a relapsing brain disease. While you can’t predict whether a given person will become addicted to drugs or not, certain factors can increase a person’s risk, including genetic makeup, environment, socioeconomic status, and others, researchers say.
One example comes out of a new study from the Seattle Children’s Research Institute, in the June issue of the Journal of Adolescent Health. It found that adolescents and young adults with mental health disorders were about 2 ½ times more likely to become long-term opioid (synthetic opiate) users that their peers without such disorders.
Msnbc.com contributor Rita Rubin also contributed to this report.
Read more of NBC's special report:
Crackdown on painkiller abuse fuels new wave of heroin addiction
For parents: Opiate use warning signs and getting help
Leave a Comment:
This is about as much of a stretch as the "marijuana as a gateway to other hardcore drugs" theory - one that has, in fact, been disproven. The mainstream media and "Drug War" advocates will never admit that, of course, but it's still a stretch.
Take a look at Gary Johnson, Libertarian candidate for President. He wants to end the farce we call the "War on Drugs."
Wall of J; This article is absolutely, 100% spot on. Folks addicted to pain pills, when they have the money will eventually run out of money and turn to whatever is cheaper. Heroin is cheaper and when a person starts feeling the withdrawal symptoms, heroin offers just as much relief as pills, if not more.
It's funny to see a comment like yours, where you clearly don't know what you're talking about, but stated so robustly and confidently as if you know more than all the people that researched, contributed to and experienced these things.
I agree about the pot comment, and the war on drugs comment, but neither have anything to do with pills leading heroin.
Pot and heroin couldn't be less similar, as heroin is wildly addictive. I agree that marijuana doesn't lead to harder drugs any more than coca-cola or coffee, but oxycodone is basically synthetic heroin, and works on the brain in the same manner. These drugs are highly addictive and can be deadly taken in high enough doses. If this issue makes us take another look at our "war on drugs" failure, and has us approach drug use, abuse, and addiction in a more humane way, perhaps some good will come of it.
I was given Vicodin a couple of times. First time was fine, but the second made me sick. Can't stand Percoset either. Viva aspirin!
As for gateway drugs, the theory in the article makes perfect sense to me. You start out on a prescription meant to control pain, get hooked, then the prescription runs out. What are you going to do? We need to find painkillers that aren't opiates.
That doesn't mean the "gateway theory" has any credibility to it. It just means addicts will go elsewhere for their fix when their main supply runs out. Frankly any use of the term "gateway drug" is disingenuous nowadays.
Big Pharma makes a killing pushing opiate painkillers even for minor pain issues. It costs them next to nothing to make this stuff, and it IS addictive... what a great business model...
I use hydrocodone every night and oxycodone on many nights and I am not an addict, nor will I ever become one. I want pain relief so I can sleep, not a high to escape reality. The "gateway" to drug abuse is not knowing enough about the technology you are surrounded with to be able to be engaged by it. Sure, you know the icons of sports and watch all the TV programs to stay in the discussion around the water cooler but do you know anything useful? Can you buy a 'broken' 300 disc CD jukebox on eBay for $9.99 and fix it with $5.00 worth of belts? Does your home HVAC use an Arduino processor that you programmed and sensors that you built? Maybe that is a little over the top for some of you, but there are a lot of things you can do yourself that will get you in a better frame of mind than a high from drugs. Plant a garden.
Having a legitimate need for opiates, I could care less about people who lack the self control to leave the stuff alone when it isn't needed. Nobody forces you to try to get high.
The problem, softdude, is that one of the symptoms of painkiller withdrawl is intense pain. So is the pain you're feeling caused by an injury, or withdrawl?
Why do people seek to escape reality if it is so great? I am not talking from second hand experience, I was a heavy drug user in my younger days and have known drug users all my life. The reason many turn to drugs and alcohol is due to this lie we have been forced to live. Humanity has no goal or focus, our only purpose is to wait for death so we can go to heaven where everything will be all better. Until then we are expected to blindly follow the rules set forth by people who themselves make the rules up as they go, usually to benefit the few at the expense of the many. From birth we are told by religion that we are sinners and we must suffer for our sin while worshipping an imaginary father figure who will make all our suffering away when we die, our only goal on earth is shop till you drop and wait to die. I saw through the lies at a very early age and was unable to play along with the charade. I needed to know the truth but every time I reached for it I was knocked back down and told to get back in line with the rest of the sheep. I finally just gave up and sought to withdraw inside my own mind where the reality made more sense than this extremely transparent LIE. I have worked with many a drug addicted in the Positive Alternative Program that I started in college after I kicked hard drugs and most have similar feelings, some just give up and accept the lie, turning to Christianity as the answer but they rarely stay clean and usually become antagonistic towards others who wont blindly follow their lead. Others, like myself, choose to immerse themselves in science and history to find meaning and purpose while choosing a more personal spiritual awakening than what the organized mythologies were offering.
If mankind had a purpose other than simply shop till you drop while waiting to die I feel the abuse of mind numbing drugs like alcohol, meth and heroin would become a thing of the past. I do feel however that Marijuana, Ayahusca, Mushrooms and Peyote has a place in opening up the minds eye, perhaps that is why the religious establishment is so dead set against their use, they are afraid they will help people see through the veil of lies and misinformation. In the time Jesus was supposed to have lived their were Gnostic Mushroom cults all over the middle east, many believe that is where and how the Christian religion first materialized, through the hallucinations of the so called prophets.
Arthritis, mostly. When taken for pain, opiates are not addicting. I am very careful with the dose, as too much renders me wide awake and unable to sleep, which defeats the purpose of taking a painkiller to begin with (at least for me). If I rest enough, I don't need any painkiller at all, so I have no reason to take it, and I don't. Without some means of dealing with the pain that even simple tasks cause, I would lose all muscle tone and die a lot sooner. I have been taking opiates for 5 years now and have never tried to get high. Why waste something so useful for such a stupid reason.
All this 'victimhood' crap is making excuses for very poor behavioral choices. The 'need' to get high is the problem, not the drug.
I hope you didn't take my previous comment personally, I was just being careful.
BodyDouble From a strictly biological view, your purpose on earth is to make it a better place for the next generation. From a philosophical view point, that works too. Religions are businesses in the business of keeping the sheeple working for the 1%. Did not the church crown the kings? Even in our government, legitimacy is claimed by an oath before god. Your purpose comes from within and only you have the power to find it. 98% of what you do is instinct, even though we rationalize it as choice. Your past pretty well determines the scope of your 'choices'. That 2% that is left pays compound interest and if you have been steering in the same direction for decades, you might just be the person you always wanted to be.
Ruken You made a legitimate point. When it gets to the point where you need the drug because of the drug, you have gone too far. I have stopped taking the opiates on occasion for the sole purpose of making sure I had not developed any tolerance or need from my use. Funny thing, I was drug tested by my doctor to make sure I was using the opiates and I would suppose, to show that I was not selling them.
Bodydouble -
Pretty standard for an addict to blame outside sources for their problem.
Yeah, that's just wrong. Their addictive properties don't magically disappear because of the reason you use them. But you probably won't develop an addiction as long as the regular doses are low.
Whats funny max is that when we try to follow a similar business model they throw us in jail and take everything we own. Marijuana isn't even addicitive but it sure helps the pain I experience from a migraine vanish instantly without affectig my liver or kidneys the way the pills do that big Pharma gives you and the muscles tremors in my neck that cause my head to shake uncontrollably disappear within minutes form just a toke or too. It can be grown in a closet for just a few dollars increase in your electric bills so your neighbors arent offended by the site of the "evil demon weed" or you could grow it for free outdoors if you lived in a more liberal world than this sick conservative society where the only legal painkillers are harmful to your liver and highly addictive. We have EVERYTHING completely upside down and backwards from the way it was meant to be.
Brian, pretty standard for an idiot to make a comment on something he knows nothing about!
Why take any of this crap to begin with? That is applicable to drugs/pills, heroin and whatever. What is the matter with people? Anybody taking this garbage is responsible for it and a weak person. And please, stop finding excuses, there are none.
softdude,
This is a big problem in Florida, we have pain clinics on every other corner, handing out scripts to anyone that says they are in pain! They claim to be legit, and make their patients get MRI's, but it's all a scam...kids are dying daily. It's BIG business! Young people are abusing them, and they are highly addictive!
I don't think the article is aimed at someone like you, that take them as prescribed.
Just my two cents (and the opioid addiction literature):
Risk of opioid addiction when used to treat cancer pain is vanishingly small
Risk of opioid addiction when used to treat acute causes of pain (for short periods) is vanishingly small
Risk of opioid addiction when used to treat other forms of chronic pain is quite small but real; in the single digit percent risks
Risk of opioid addiction when used as a recreational drug is very high; high double digit risk
Identifying dependence (by withdrawal) is more than the recurrence of pain e.g. increased heart rate, sweating, piloerection, diarrhea. Identifying addiction, which is different, is based on other criteria.
I thoroughly enjoy reading both softdude and Ruken's comments on all articles and hate to see them disagree. It is like watching your parents fight.
Softdude:
You don't really believe that do you? Pain is the reason opiates are prescribed. Why are you taking opiates for arthritis? The common therapy for arthritis are anti-inflammatories. Those don't work well enough? Hmmmm.
Just about everything you posted, would tend to make some think you are addicted.
Second post
The real question is: What would you do if your doctor cut you off from the opiates? Only you can honestly answer that question for yourself.
Coming full circle, I hope you are one of those people that do not become addicted from long term use of opiates. Thank your God, because the vast majority of people will become addicted.
I have had back surgery twice, once in my 20s and once in my early 30s. Both times I was prescribed vicoden, percoset and oxycoton. Before and after the first surgery I was in a great deal of pain, and I absolutely needed the vicoden and percoset to relieve the pain so I could sleep, work and just get through the day. I took one oxycoton after surgery and I slept for 15 hours straight and didn't feel normal for 2 days - and I never took another again. I called the doctor and told them that the oxy was WAY overkill for the amount of pain I was in, and they may want to consider not prescribing that in the future for others in my situation. Why not hold off on prescribing the really hard stuff unless the patient can't get sufficient relief from the (relatively) milder vicoden and percoset was my point... but nope, the doctor said prescribing the oxy was standard procedure. I feel like that lack of consideration contributes to eventual addition problems.
This isn't to say that oxycoton isn't a necessity at times, but I do think that doctors can be a bit too liberal at times with their prescription pads, simply because they don't want to take the time to properly evaluate a patients needs.
For my second surgery I took the bare minimum of vic and perc and never touched the oxy. Despite taking very few of the vic and perc, when I did stop all together I definitely went through withdrawal symptoms. I didn't realize it at the time, but for a few days the muscles in my legs ached, I could never get comfortable in bed, I couldn't sleep... and basically felt miserable mentally and physically. I now understand how people can form an addiction without trying and without even realizing that it's happening. It can definitely sneak up on you.
I guess what surprised me throughout both of these experiences was how easy it was for me to obtain these dangerous drugs from the 2 different doctors who performed my surgeries. Neither ever mentioned how addictive they are, and they never said I should use them as sparingly as possible. They both gave me more prescriptions for the pills than I think anyone would ever need.
I think doctors and nurses are the front line of defense when it comes to preventing this addition. Sure, there are a lot of people who start their addition by taking these pills recreationally, but many others become addicted after taking the pills for legitimate pain relief. Doctors and nurses must take the time to understand their patients needs, not over-prescribe, and have a serious conversation about the potential dangers of these drugs before they pull out the prescription pad.
lolfattynerdswhoknew Your body makes enkephalins and beta-endorphins that are 10,000 times more powerful than heroin. Just so happens, those same sites in the brain that were designed for the natural pain killer, react to the opiates. If you know how to search the web, you will quickly discover your ignorance about addiction and how use for pain is not addicting. You can get a natural high from eating wickedly hot spicy food which causes the release of the natural pain killers. Runners also get a natural high and some screw up their bodies in the process of overdoing it. There are many ways to enjoy life and the best rule would seem to be moderation.
Correction to post 1.21. the vast majority to long term use become addicted is wrong. Sorry
No, fritter and wait, comments like yours are the ones that are hilarious.
There is no "gateway drug" and this headline is a farce. Painkillers do not "pave the way" for heroin use.
This is a classic example of why the war on drugs is not working, and will never work.
People who want to get high are going to get high. Period, end of conversation. Every time you shut one door, they will open another. Possibly a more dangerous other.
Where do you think meth came from? People started having a hard time getting crack. Especially white people. Cocaine flow into the US got stemmed, and white people started having a hard time getting the pure stuff to cook their own. It is very difficult for white folks to go into a black neighborhood to purchase crack, so they made up their own stuff. And this stuff is way more dangerous than crack ever tried to be. When certain areas like Colorado started doing serious damage to the meth influx, a new drug was born. It was called MSM (not the typical MSM either) This stuff was made basically by spraying Raid onto an electrified screen. The shavings were substituted for meth. Having a Behavioral Psychology background, I know this to be fact, from research.
I will almost guarantee you, if marijuana is legalized, we will see a sharp drop in the use of drugs such as Heroin, Oxycontin and many other similar drugs.
It won't do much to stem the use of crack, meth, and stuff like that because the desired response is different for the user.
Legalizing marijuana and discontinuing the billions of dollars of money thrown at the War on Drugs will help this country in so many ways the list is a mile long, and this is the only sane route to take. Unfortunately, Legalizing marijuana will also result in the decimation of many of the areas of pharmaceuticals, so it is going to be a long uphill battle getting it done.
I repeat: Certain people have the desire to get high, in one form or another. Someone starting with marijuana will NOT necessarily move to a heavier drug. There is no "gateway drug".
jennyt-2211966 All hydrocodone has an analgesic compounded with it. Oxycontin is a large dose, time release pill that might be useful for sleaping. I asked my doctor specifically for the oxycodone that has no analgesic in it. I take a 7.5 mg hydrocodone with enough extra acetaminophen to make a full gram. After waiting an appropriate amount of time, I can then adjust the dose starting at 1/4 of a 5 mg oxycodone or up to a whole one depending on the level of pain. With both sciatic nerves pinched, both hips, both knees and the left foot hurting at full capacity, besides the spasms in my back causing all the pinched nerves, I'm glad my doctor was willing to trust me with the 'hard' stuff. She was limited in how much she could prescribe and warned that refills were not allowed and was afraid I would run out. What she gave me for 3 months, will last for 9 months because I only use what I absolutely need to get to sleep. In 5 years, I have only taken hydrocodone twice during the day and then just surfed the net all day. Extrapolating your experience into a prescription for everyone is a bit short sighted don't you think?
This article is very accurate and I say that as a parent. Those pills are passed around in high school and the next thing you know, your child who was so happy and funny, is depressed and in life threatening trouble. They're young and think it's harmless until it's too late. I wish there was some sort of drug detector kids had to pass through or sniffing dogs or something. If the parent is fortunate enough to get help for the child before it's too late, the child may still need antidepressants for the rest of their life due to the way opiates effect dopamine levels in the brain.
crazy after all these years The most superficial research into opiates will tell you that they are NOT addicting when taken for pain (see Wiki link below). I effectively never take opiates during the day. (twice in 5 years) What do you suppose the result of the inflammation is? Aspirin is the only NSAID I can take and I take it often. I can, and do sleep, with the aid of the opiates. I also have a BiPAP machine now which makes the sleep I do get actually worth the time. I stop breathing 80 times per hour, without the machine, and would awake hurting worse than when I went to bed. Overall, my quality of life is greatly improved by the opiates and having been successful in getting the oxycodone from my doctor has actually reduced my overall opiate use, because, as shown in studies, the full dose of acetaminophen makes the hydrocodone far more effective and the analgesic free oxycodone lets me adjust the dose as needed.
As to the assertion that the 'wide awake' is a high, yes in the sense that I have taken too much, no in the sense that I really wanted to get to sleep and I don't enjoy being awake. Being bipolar as well, sleep can be all too elusive anyway, even when I am taking my meds (which I always do). I have severe sleep apnea, bipolar disorder, coronary artery disease (two stents), glaucoma in both eyes (twice, first closed angle and then open angle ten years later), diverticulosis, GERD, central serous retinopathy (blind in the center of vision in the left eye), hypertension, PTSD, and chronic severe depression. Plenty of excuses, none of which I will let myself use.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Opioid_dependence
Studies show that most opioid dependent patients suffer from at least one severe psychiatric comorbidity.[2] Since opioids used in pain therapy rarely cause any of these conditions, they are assumed to have existed prior to the development of dependence. Opioids are known to have strong antidepressive, anxiolytic and antipsychotic effects and thus opioid dependence often develops as a result of self medication.
Softdude:
Excuse me. I'm sincerely sorry. I reponding to "mostly arthritis and sleep". Since then you have added sciatica from back spasms to hips, knees and even a foot. Also sleep apnea, bipolarism, coronary artery desease, glaucama, diverticulosis, GERD (extreme heartburn), retinopathy, high blood pressure, PTSD, chronic severe depression.
I take it back, with all of your maladies, you're worried about muscle tone? are you a hypochondriac? What other drugs are you on? Anti-depresives, anti-psychotics. It sounds like you should be a walking drug store. Opiates solve all of your problems?
Junkies are not dumb. Junkies also have an excuse for everything.
The question still remains: What would you do if your doctor cut you off from the opiates? Only you can honestly answer that question for yourself.
Wish you well in the future.
I had a dream last night... Do you want to hear that dream?
I was drowning in a sea of liquor....
And I washed up on a beach made of cocaine...
The sky was made of LSD...
And every tree was made of Marijuana...
But the cops pulled me over...
But they did not arrest me.
Instead they (omitted for the faint of heart)...
And it was so beautiful that God himself came down from heaven,
And he said we will no longer spell the word God: G-O-D.
I said, how do you want to spell it God?
He said, give me D! Give me an R! Give me a U! Give me a G! Give me an S!
And what does that spell?
Drugs!
See, I think drugs have done some good things for us, I really do, and if you don't believe drugs have done good things for us, do me a favor. Go home tonight and take all your albums, all your tapes and all your CDs and burn 'em. Cuz you know what? The musicians that made all that great music that's enhanced your life throughout the years? Real f*cking high on drugs. --Bill Hicks
Open your Third Eye
Here's a short (massively incomplete) list of songs which derived some or all of their content from the use of drugs:
Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds-- The Beatles
Margaritaville-- Jimmy Buffet
Because I got High-- Afroman
One Toke Over the Line-- Brewer & Shipley
Reefer Man-- Cab Calloway
Mothers Little Helper-- The Rolling Stones
Astronomy Domine-- Pink Floyd
Mary Jane-- Rick James
Mary Jane's Last Dance-- Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers
Sweet Leaf-- Black Sabbath
Purple Haze-- Jimmy Hendrix
Rocket Man-- Elton John (Outstanding cover: here)
Dark Star-- The Grateful Dead
White Rabbit-- Jefferson Airplane
Opium-- Marcy Playground
There are thousands upon thousands more... Drugs have a place in the pantheon of human experience. To deny it is to deny our entire history up to this point. Do yourself a favor and watch the History Channel's "History of Drugs" programs. Expand your mind (without polluting it... or both, if you wish. You'll not find me arguing against it).
"I hate to advocate drugs, alcohol, violence, or insanity to anyone, but they've always worked for me."-- Hunter Thompson
BodyDouble, if you have not encountered them yet, you would be interested in (do a search) The Skeptics Society.
I so agree with you Wall of J!!!!!!
Well, this explains the state of mind of Rush Limbaugh. They took his oxycodone so he's on withdrawals and talks like a blooming idiot.
Actually, J is almost totally wrong. While the pot-as-a-gateway theory is pretty much dead scientifically, prescription pain killers absolutely can lead to heroin abuse. The reason for this is that heroin and prescription pain killers target the same receptors in the brain: the Mu Opioid receptor. Some of the areas where these receptors are located regulate pain, and others are part of the basic reward system in the brain. The addictive thing is not the drug itself, but the activation of those receptors. Thus, any drug that activates those receptors can feed the addiction.
In fact, the drug known as China White is actually an opiate called Fentanyl, which is a powerful, fast acting compound frequently used as the primary analgesic in surgery.
Agreed Wall of J! In 2007, 11,499 people in the United States died from opioid overdoses, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. That was more than the number of overdose deaths for heroin and cocaine combined. Not to mention the thousands, if not millions of people who are hopelessly addicted. But hey...... since they're legal like cigarettes, they're obviously totally fine.
booze too!
Question for Wall and K.M. and Deemo. How many friends have you lost to drug overdoses, car crashes, aids, and the fact that they no longer can function in today's society?
One close friend to pain meds, he was stealing from people to pay for his Oxycontin habit. When he was in rehab for that, he was prescribed Methadone to help him cope with the withdrawals, and go figure...... he OD'd on the Methadone. Did I mention he was 14? Another friend of mine died from a Nitrous Oxide overdose, but that was more just stupidity on his part. I've also lost an uncle to aids but I don't really see the relevance to this story.
Some! However they haven't given up.Accidents do happen.I do understand death is a part of life Jersey.
An addict is an addict. No sympathy here. Sorry. Grow a pair and deal with life.
Glad your not my doctor. If that's what you REALLY are?
Well doc, I HOPE you don't tell your patients that with treatable pain. It's one thing to be able to live a normal life with chronic pain. It's another to lie in bed due to it.
Because I was called a liar for my endometriosis, I took so many nsaids that I now have chronic gastritis, ibs and an esophageal ulcer. After my son, pain eased up a bit, so I am VERY lucky. But it was HELL to lie there on the floor without being able to have access to any medication. I restricted food intake, which in turn helped calm the cramping and I ended up with gallbladder issues. Thanks to guys like you! Now it seems I am given narcotics with less of an effort (post surgery, dental) but I use maybe 1/4 of it before I throw it out. Guess I suffered in vain (and still suffer GI issues now years after).
Honestly, I think you should be able to prescribe controlled drugs responsibly rather than holding back, and no matter what YOU do, addicts will still readily obtain what they want in another form. Until we find a way to divert an addict's cravings, we will have this problem. Google "rat park", it's an interesting study I read about in basic psych.
Also, alcohol is just as deadly, but that's a socially acceptable form of drug abuse, even for families who suffer because of it. Ever see the guy who comes home after work, has his 2 glasses of wine and turns into a mean ass? That's perfectly OK, because it's good for your heart, right? Never mind your family.
There's no way Jim is a doctor. Even the worst doctors are educated enough to realize that some people are predisposed to addiction and others become an addict as a result of circumstances like cronic pain. Some people can recover with treatment, others will unfortunately stay an addict until they die.
Jim, maybe you should stick to pretending to be a doctor on your fake facebook page.
Alcohol affects people differently. Some I know went wild and thought they could whip Mohammad Ali while others went mellow.
Yes pain killers can be helpful but doctors should understand what they are doing to a person's body. My wife took a high blood pressure medication that caused her to develop diabetes. The doctor knew it was a side effect of the medication but claimed it was a trade off for treatment of high blood pressure. Then they gave her medication for the diabetes that caused he kidneys to shut down and they knew that too was a side effect of the medication. After a week in the hospital to get her kidneys functioning again she's now on insulin. The point is the doctors know that the medication they prescribe can cause other problems but the money and presents they receive from the drug companies eases any guilt they may have for screwing up people's bodies from legal medication.
All the problems the wife was having could have been prevented if the doctor had told her (maybe insist) to lay off salt, caffeine, and do more exercise. Since she has done that she no longer takes blood pressure medication but still has kidney problems and diabetes. To get back to the pain medication, doctors should prescribe it intelligently and stop just giving it to those who ask for it. Especially the ones that are addictive.
OK so I take anywhere from 5 - 6 Norco a day (24 hour period) for nerve damage pain in my back...this article intimates that I'm an addict?!! This type of reporting is irresponsible and basically says I should just suck it up and deal with the pain. The Norco is basically a placebo effect that never gives me a "buzz" it just makes me think that I'm at least trying to deal with the pain
Chronic pain sufferers aren't the same thing as people who get addicted to painkillers through temporary use, such as post-surgical meds. Unfortunately, many people think they are. My BF suffers from chronic back pain, and people make ignorant comments about it all the time.
If you need painpills to manage everyday life, odds are you are an addict (I'd bet my fortune). That is just medical and physiological reality. You are not being honest with yourself.
Painkillers are obviously a godsend to people with severe pain (chroic or otherwise). But technically you probably are addicted. I know you don't want to be lumped into the same category, but anyone who takes several of these a day (even for legit reasons) will face things like withdrawal. Basically, anytime your body will face withdrawal symptoms if stopping a medication you are biochemically addicted. In any case, if you regularly use painkillers the only way you will know if you're not addicted is when you try to stop -- that is the test.
give me a break!!! what an as*hole to say when you don"t have a clue!!!
I would definately say i have built up a tolerance and am drug dependent. a dependence on drugs is not the same as an addiction. most people on anti depressants are dependant, if they stop, they get sick, same thing, however, drug dependence and drugg addiction can go hand in hand. Iv been on opiate therapy for around 7 years now, due to a birth defect in the spine, then hit by car while on motorcycle, There is no fix for my spine so far. Long term opiate therapy is like making a deal with the devil. I wouldnt be working if it wasnt for the opiods, however the drawbacks are a bitch, along with the stigma, If your on opiates, your an addict.
Addicts don't take pills to get a buzz. They take pills to not go through withdrawl.
If you're taking 5-6 a day...you're addicted...try not taking them and see what happens...There are ways of dealing with pain...try pain management classes...damaged back nerves are great for getting prescriptions
Addictions come in all forms. People can even addicted to caffeine and suffer headaches if they don't have their daily coffee. Addiction does not have anything to do with your behavior on the drug. It is your body needing something to function properly.
I have chronic hip pain and take, as little as possbile but, daily pain meds. I was concerned about addiction and went off of them for two weeks to gauge my true level of pain and to test myself on addiction. It was not fun.
When I went in to see my doctor, we talked about it at length. I had titrated down, so it wasn't cold turkey, but he didn't make me feel like a horrible person and a nasty addict. He explained that I was dependent, not addicted (As Simply Put put simply). When you need medication for pain and use it, not for the high, but for the pain, and use only enough for the pain - you do become dependent. Your body needs it. If you quit cold turkey, your body isn't going to like it. But it's not the same thing - you don't have the same mentality as an addict. So don't beat yourself up Luv (geez, the people on the board will be happy to do that for ya!).
there is a difference between addiction and dependence and there is a difference between knowledge and ignorance.
American citizens use over 50% of the worlds opiate derivatives, (legal prescription heroin). Heroin ADDICTS everywhere, law enforcement, school teachers, preachers, and moms and dads. All being fueled by big Pharma courtesy of the US Military involvement in Afghanistan. #1 Priority, grow more poppys, to supply a nation of addicts.
I pride myself in not requesting anything stronger or more of a "per day" boost...Most of the time I don't even take the prescribed amount so all of you who judge can Kiss My As*
GUANTANAMO...You are a freaking idiot
guantanamo ... you are a genious!!! cause that is the truth!!! all the us is on it!!!
For all you naysayers I hope you never have to eat your words
I don't understand the allure of these drugs at all. First of all, whenever I've been prescribed Vicodin after a surgery or something, I take one and get so woozy that I don't take the rest -- I'd rather feel the pain than feeling nauseous. Why does someone want to feel numb and nauseous? I don't really take drugs, but if I did I'd want one that made me feel actually good -- numb and out of it just doesn't seem like a desirable feeling. I guess for some it is due to some it is? All I know is that in the several times I've been prescribed painkillers in my life I've never taken them -- pain is better.
you're not an addict...you wouldn't understand.
The article states that many young adults with mental disorders are more likely to become addicted. This is clearly the case with many addicts I have meet. They are usually dealing with anxiety, depression and other disorders so they self-medicate. Addiction can happen to anyone, some are just more likely to fall victims to it. There is such a stigma with metal illness that it is easier for some to use drugs and medication to "feel better" and "numb the pain" than to actually deal with months or years of therapy and antidepressant meds it might take to deal with the root issue.
Yeah, I get the nausea too. I HATE nausea. Which is why I don't drink!
Not everyone reacts the same way to every drug. I never get sick or tired. I have a terribly high tolerance for EVERY kind of drug. At the dentist, it take 5 or 6 shots of novacaine to get me numb and sometimes I can still feel the drill. It's awful! I've woken up during surgery. Horrifying! Just because you get nauseous doesn't mean everyone does. For many people, all they get is high. I don't get that either. Bummer man!
I took vicoden/percoset after a few surgeries, and I definitely needed them for pain relief. When your pain is great enough, the drug works against it and the side effects of wooziness and lethargy are limited. When you don't have that much (or any) pain to treat, the side effects get stronger or change. After the second surgery I knew I didn't need the pills any more when I started to feel nausea, so I stopped.
I will say though, and I know some people are going to jump all over me for this, the pills made me feel full all the time for some reason, and it was hard to choke down even a small amount of food. After I was feeling better and off the pills I got on the scale and I had lost 15 lbs over the course of a few weeks. Oddly enough, a year later the weight stayed off and I think that being a little lighter helped relieve some of the pressure on my back and I haven't had pain since. How ironic!
Not a stretch at all. The pills are nothing more than legal heroin. It stands to reason that if you cut off an addicts big phar heroin supply they will either quit or go find it else where.
As far "marijuana as a gateway to other hardcore drugs" I agree its no more of a gateway than cigarettes are. However in case you didn't know it opiates are hardcore drugs even if they do come from a drug store so its not a stretch to connect it to heroin use IMO. What's amazing is that it's what our wonderful government allows us to use instead of that evil natural marijuana.
Waaaaaaaah. So for the losers who abuse drugs to start with, they're being "pushed" into harder drugs? Waaaah waaaah waaaaaaah.
Pushed? You want to make it simple so you can BLAME someone. Don't be so quick to show your lack of knowledge.
I don't think Cynic is understanding that it's not a harder drug but a cheaper alternative they're moving too. Most folks don't start popping pills because they're feeling fine it's usually due to some pain or illness that gets them hooked. My father in law got hurt at work and after a back surgery and hip replacement got hooked on Oxycontin. We had to send him to rehab as he was so high he actually popped his hip out of the socket and didn't feel it. Once he returned he said 80% of the people in the center were there for Oxycontin dependency. So my question is why big pharmacy isn't footing the bill for this if 80% of our drug users are getting hooked on prescription drugs?
Why isn't Pharma footing that bill? Because their coke has gotten too expensive!
Taking drugs for recreation is stupid. Learn from your dog. He is happy as long as he gets to run and get fed.
Wow Road Warrior, I actually gave you + 1 for a post.
"Painkillers as a recreational drug". This is part of why the 30% per year medical plan expense is coming from. People "tell" their Doc they hurt. SHe/He can't prove or disprove it. So they prescribe ! What the heck. It's no skin off them plus they make a fee from it. The patient gets hooked. The law cracks down on Rx abuse. Soccar Mom and Executive Dad now go up an alley and hand cash out the car window. Now the rest of us have to pay more to our medical plans to cover the abuse they do to themselves. Look at all the Rx Ads on TV. They all have the same theme - tell your Doc you have (__whatever we just said___) and ask for our drug to fix your problem. And the Doc's, with no skin in the game, say why not. IF they try to talk you out of it, what do you do, cry, scream and carry on till the Doc says, heck with it and writes a prescription. And the costs of the drugs and the damage they do is all just passed on the the rate payers or the gubmint. As long as all these people use the med system this way you are going to have a less capable med system and ever increasing costs for the damage. The Docs and the Insurance companies have got to stop supporting this abuse.
IRead.... you are right... doctors do prescribe it when told by the patient/addict that they are in pain..... and doctors know it... as do nurses like myself... BUT if we don't respond to their claims of pain or discomfort.... they are free to SUE the SH%T out of us for negligence......... and usually win or get settled with by the insurance companies or hospitals......
I think licking his own genitals has something to do with my dog's happiness as well. Unfortunately, I'm not that limber (joke)
Well Paul L.-1923570
Having retired from the nursing profession after 32 yrs., I have worked with MD's who have refused to renew scripts for pain meds they think have run their course...Now, if MD's continue to write scripts so the insurance companies will continue to pay their bills...you've got yourself a different colored horse.
Right Rock N:
Docs and or their spouses can get addicted to a lifestyle same as others. IF they "need" that cash fix coming in from Ins Co's. I guess they may write scrips just to keep the cash flow up.
My son was addicted to oxycodone to the point of freebasing it. His habit was costing $800 per day. The only thing that saved his life was the Waismann Method (visit opiates.org to learn more). It was a procedure that, while grueling, and coupled with nearly a year of therapy, saved him from devolving into a $1,000+ per day addict that surely would have died a slow and agonizing death at too young an age. While many of you may not understand what drives opiate addiction, it is REAL and can happen as the result of following a well-intended doctor's prescribed treatment program for injury. My son sustained a hockey injury in high school, re-injured his knee four years later and thus became an opiate addict...It's real and it's horrible.
That's $24,000 a month. How'd he pay for that ? Robbing people ? B&E ? It's amazing to me.
We have a society that has 'gotta have a pill' to solve every issue. Tolerate a little pain? No way!
Doctors are co-conspirators with idiots who become addicted to pills.
Definitely. Some doctors believe there is a pill for everything and you need to stick with it for life. It doesn't work for everyone but diet and excercise can be so key. It is tough to get in that frame of mind but once you do it you find a new way of getting high. Not easy though. Takes time.
Clearly you have never had to "tolerate" more than "a little pain". Try agonizing and excrutiating pain - it isn't pretty, it's impossible to function, and the pills can help. That said, I watched a vulnerable family member take more and more oxy - and then took the path written about here - heroin is WAAAY cheaper to buy. Addiction is a PHYSICAL thing with the brain being a big part. Those of you "holier than thou" folks need to walk the proverbial mile in someone else's moccasins before you shoot off your mouths.
If weed was legal, none of that would be happening.
Exactly!!!!!!!!!!!!!...but then I would be high all day long
And I would still not smoke that stuff at all.
It also comes in edible and pill form Max. shhhh..... big Pharma doesn't want anyone to know.
as well as in a snuff form... :)
i love it!!!! ha...and it does!!!
When I was injured on the job six years ago I was prescribed "Avinza" (time released morphine), Soma (muscle relaxant) And "Norco" plus blood pressure meds because the pain spiked my blood pressure. I quit the morphine and soma because I didn't want to take drugs...So unless you deal with my pain issues don't judge, just makes you look effin stupid
Absolutely. I posted earlier about the sometimes diet and excercise is so key to mental health recovery. I should have added that people who live in pain every day should not be judged. It can be a horrible existence.
Creating a new wave of methadone addicts...... trading one addiction for another....... sex, pills, alcohol, food, tobacco, illicit drugs etc. You cannot declare war on a social problem.
Agreed. Pain meds should be for pain, not addiction habits.
What a bunch of judgmental people most of you are...You talk sh*t about something you can't possibly know about!! I don't wake in the middle of the night sweating because I need a pill!! As long as I'm flat on my back on my Tempurpedic mattress all day then I'm good. I read about everything I take and took...what I read about addiction was startling but I'm not going to feed your judgmental BS
So should we just baby the addicts and point the blame elsewhere?
Now the addicts have a finger to point at... sue and get money to afford their habits.....
Help is out there IF they want it......they chose the path... they can take whatever fork they choose.....
Addiction is real... and avoidable.....or at least treatable...... but again, when did it become "acceptable" to be high on so-called "legal" drugs but not on heroin??? And the big question...... if not the abuser, who is to blame?
Wow.... when the drug abuser's "drug of choice" is limited... they move on to other drugs....whodathunkit?
And these costly studies have shown what? That legal drugs that are abused are the "cause?" Really?
The "Cause" is weak individuals who chose to abuse drugs and when their source is cut of move on to other drugs to abuse. Our society has resources, agencies and places to get help. There are "groups" on every college campus, high school campus, church and more to get help IF you want it. They obviously didn't until it went from the "acceptable" legal prescriptions (which incidentally aren't legal if you don't have a prescription and they aren't being used according to that prescription) to the ugly stuff......It's OK to be high on Vicadin but not heroin?
No one has mentioned the hell for the loved ones around you who think it's okay to start the 'painkillers' in the first place....Lived this life for 27 years with a family member....split our family and made life very, very difficult...Don't start the medication to begin with and you won't have to worry about it....and before you say I'm pain free....I'm not...I just take very simple things and deal with the rest.
You can blame the pharmaceutical companies for this one. Look at these advertisements for all these new pain killers coming out its worse than supermarket ads on a Sunday. After the ad you always see a list well in a metaphor (a mile long) containing all the possible side effects that appear to be far worse than what the drug is suppose to help cure and in many ways you have to chose which you would rather have, either the condition you currently have or, trade that in for something far worse from their list of possible other effects that you may get from that drug.
It makes you wonder at times under what guidelines the Federal drug and food administration (FDA) works under. How can some of these drugs being advertised actually make it to the pharmacy. I cannot think of the name of it but one pain killer out there has a rare but possible side effect that death may occur. Well if it does and your alone how exactly do you tell someone? (haunt them I guess) this pain killer is available through a prescription that insurance companies pay for. But yet a cure-all drug (cannabis) a drug that has never killed anyone and does help cure some forms of cancer and a list of other health conditions is only legal for medical use in 17 states including the District of Columbia, is still federally illegal.
Why is our government which is suppose to be created by the people for the people so afraid to stand up to big corporations, insurance companies and, pharmaceutical companies. Yet we keep electing the same people back into office time and time again never learning our lesson so are we also partly to blame here for allowing this to happen and being afraid to stand up to our government?
You can blame the companies for the plethora of opiates, and maybe even getting some of the patients hooked.
But the fault still lies with the addict for maintaining the addiction.
I'd like to say its completely up to the corporations here to slim down their advertising, however, other countries like the UK do not advertise the drugs on tv and they have just as bad of a prescription drug problem than we do, that would kill my argument that it is advertising causing the problem. So the fault lays in somewhere in society.
I wonder if you can blame the FDA for allowing some of these drugs to go through? Why some of them like the Oxy's are not placed under a different schedule?
I've found that people who use drugs are the ones who get angry and defensive when anyone discusses the concept of " gateway drugs. "
B I N G O
"It found that adolescents and young adults with mental health disorders were about 2 ½ times more likely to become long-term opioid (synthetic opiate) users that their peers without such disorders."
The amount of brainwashed ideas about painkillers and drugs are very apparent in the comments above. The article is spot on about drug abuse, not drug usage as prescribed by physicians. I had similar ideas about drug addiction as this article implies and from working in the medical field for 34 years, until I developed several herniated discs from long hours of on your feet and heavy lifting. I now understand what it means to be in chronic pain, on pain meds, and hearing the ignorant rhetoric about legal and illegal drugs. Where has all the compassion gone in this world. Has the media, government, medical field, and religion brainwashed us all to creating negative opinions on everyone who uses painkillers?.. of course it has. Please everyone.. keep your compassion for those who become addicted and those who are victims of it, and those who are in chronic pain.
Addicts aren't victims. They choose to keep their addiction going rather than seek help.
It's easy to become addicted when it is "acceptable" to be high on "legal" drugs, alcohol, weed etc. It's only the ugly ones like heroin, cocaine, crystal meth and the like that we respond to with anger.......
We laughed at House as he slammed prescription drugs.... Laugh at celebs when they are teetering around on their "prescribed" drugs....... Whitney Houston, Elvis, Morton Downey Jr, etc.... and only get indignent when they use the "bad" stuff......
Ruken you can argue that addicts are victims caught in a bureaucratic never ending cycle. When it is more profitable to send someone to prison for being an addict than it is to treat the condition. So why not further fuel the problem keeping thousands of employees employed?
People in this country are such followers, no personality of their own. Have to be doing what everyone else is