Print This PageHow Pain Killers Sometimes Increase Chronic Pain
July 10, 2007
by: Stephanie
Becoming addicted to pain medication is a disease. This is because the painkillers (e.g. Vicodin, OxyContin,
Physical impact of pain killers
Doctor Clifford Bernstein, a pain management physician and author on Spine-health.com clearly outlines how these pain medications physically affect the body:
- The brain responds to the pain medicine by increasing the number of receptors for the drug, and the nerve cells in the brain stop functioning
- The body stops producing endorphins (the body's natural painkillers) because it is receiving opiates instead
- The degeneration of the nerve cells in the brain causes a physical dependency on an external supply of opiates, and reducing or not taking the pain killers causes a painful series of physical changes, known as withdrawal.
At this point many people (an estimated 7% who are prescribed narcotic analgesics) continue taking the pain medication to avoid the withdrawal symptoms rather than to treat the original pain. When this occurs the person is dependent on or addicted to the prescription pain medicine.
Pain killers may actually increase pain
Most people do not know that taking painkillers over a long period of time may in fact increase a patient’s sensitivity to pain (hyperalgesia). This happens because long term use of opiate painkillers causes a decrease in your ability to tolerate pain, and an increased sensitivity to pain. When the pain increases, people are often led to believe they need to take higher doses of pain medication than they were on initially.
For those who are addicted to narcotic pain medications, a detoxification program is often needed. Pain killer addiction is a chemical, physical disease, one that requires expert medical treatment in a safe, humane environment.
Posted by: Stephanie
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Subject: "Turn it over to your Lord"
Awesome advise Bill! Can't get any better than that! I totally agree with you, besides God won't let you go thru anything that HE knows you can't handle..If He brought you to "it" HE will bring you thru it!
Blessings to all.
August 4th, 2008
Subject: Not a Disease
Why does it have to be disease. I think that if doctors payed more attention to what they were prescribing and in what doses they were giving maybe less people would gain access to the drugs. Another thing is that with the FDA allowing so many types of "medicines" to be put on the market with such effects it just gives users a reason to be at the edge of their seat just waiting for the new legal drug to come out.
Vista Bay
October 19th, 2008
Subject: At The Pharmacy
I'm just sick of pharmacists assuming that because I am prescribed an opiate (or two) I must be abusing it. Man, that really irks me!
January 8th, 2009
Subject: I know quite a few kids who
I know quite a few kids who were addicted to painkillers and had a really tough time getting off them. They went to a number of drug rehab treatment centers before finally staying off them.
April 22nd, 2009
Subject: pain
I had a friend who was taking narcs for pain to his shoulder after a motorcycle accident. 3 years on the meds and then his doctor decided to take him off of the RX because he was (addicted)The doc tried other non-narcotic meds. he suffered for about 5 months and then killed himself.
The doctor was afraid he would be addicted?? we'll, he was.
He suffered in the name of withdrawls and then died! He died of the pain not the addiction!
Our body produces a small regular amount of endorphins.
Taking opiates, can overide the natural endorphin levels no doubt!!
There comes a time when all else fails and you are just a lifer to the Narcs. The key, is to try everything else first!
When a Doctor puts someone on a narcotic pain medication, he needs to be ready to deal with the right way to bring them off the medication and be prepared to put them back on if they can't find the cure!
May 28th, 2009
Subject: I guess those types of pain
I guess those types of pain killers should be avoided. They're basically useless. wooden folding chairs
October 5th, 2009