Pain Management And Drug Dependence
The Dangers Of Drug Dependence
By Jarrett Kruse
Medication is an effective and viable form of pain management, and many patients are grateful for its effect on chronic back pain. Unfortunately, it can be so effective that the patient risks becoming an addict. Drug dependence is a common pitfall of chronic pain patients, who then can face the prospect of treatment for drug dependence in addition to treatment for their back pain. Pain management specialists recognize that back pain can be among the major causes of drug dependence when main pain management with medication has been the primary approach to dealing with back pain. If you are handling your pain with medication, it’s important to know whether your pain medication is addictive, so that you can change treatments at the first symptoms of drug dependence.
Chronic back pain can be so excruciating that you’ll try almost anything to stop it. That often includes some powerful drugs that are extremely effective but also can be addictive. Among the most addictive are: Codeine, Oxycodone or OxyContin, Morphine, Dmerol and Vicodin. To avoid falling into the trap of addiction to your pain medication, be alert for the warning signs that you may be getting too dependent:
- You need to keep increasing your dosage to kill the pain
- You feel compelled to take your pain killer even when you are not in pain.
- When you stop taking your pain medication, you experience withdrawal symptoms, including any of the following: diarrhea, abdominal pain and cramping, vomiting, runny nose, eye tearing, sweating, agitation or irritability, restlessness, twitching and tremors, or intense craving
If you experience these symptoms, it’s important to get off your pain medication as soon as possible. You will need to enlist the help of your doctor, health care provider, or a pain management specialist. In the long run, you will be healthier for it
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