Are You Celebrating the Holiday Addicted to Painkillers?

Don’t Celebrate the Holiday Addicted

This holiday season, whether you are a functioning addict or in full-blown addiction, you will want to think about giving up prescription painkillers for good. You may not even realize how you are hurting your family, friends and loved ones by being emotionally numb this holiday season. Even though you believe that you are physically present, sober people around you can pick up on your emotional disconnect.
Dependence on painkillers, prescribed or not, will make you somewhat detached. You will be consumed with your next dose and unable to relax or have fun. After you have you medication, you will feel the effects of pain relief but also struggle to stay awake, even though you say you’re not tired. Sometimes your friends and family will point out other behaviors. No one is attacking you by pointing out your behavior; they simply are concerned. Find out if and how you may have acquired your addiction to painkillers.

Two Ways of Getting Hooked

1. Secondary to Pain. There is a legitimate reason to take prescription drugs:  Because doctors believe the painkillers will produce relief. You will be pain-free and get your quality of life back.  Your life returns to a pain-free environment, but this is temporary. The strength of the medicine wears off and you need to increase the dose to feel pain-free again. You are getting hooked and becoming dependent, secondary to your medical condition.
2. Drug Abuse. Another way you get hooked on painkillers is from taking them illegally. Taking pain medicine when you have no pain means that you are only looking for the euphoric effect. Consuming painkillers for fun will also lead to dependence, tolerance and addiction.

 

Are You Addicted to Prescription Drugs?

Let’s just say that you have been prescribed painkillers for legitimate reasons. You have chronic pain and you feel trapped by dependence. If you don’t have your medication, your body ends up in withdrawal. This limits your ability to be spontaneous, you can’t go on vacation without making sure you have enough pain pills so you won’t get moody. Initially, the problem lies with the functioning addict. Painkillers offer relief and you are able to continue working, exercising, having a relationship, providing for you family, etc. It isn’t until the progression of dependence and tolerance that you experience the effects of addiction.  

Common characteristics of the functioning prescription painkiller addict:

Nodding off Mood swings Irritable Sweating/Clammy

Entitlement Muscle aches Doctor shopping Denial

Many of these characteristics are also found in non-functioning addicts. If you are losing your independence to addiction, you may also have many physical issues associated with your dependence on prescription pain medicine.

Common characteristics of prescription painkiller addiction:

Drowsiness Constipation Depressed breathing Dizziness

Fatigue Anxiety Dry mouth Muscle spasms