Prescription Painkiller Addiction: When to Seek Help

Painkillers are prescribed every day for many legitimate reasons, but they are highly addictive and must be used with caution. Prescription painkillers also come with a risk of overdose when abused. If you have been taking prescription painkillers and think that you might be addicted, it’s important to understand the signs that it’s time to seek help.

Understanding Prescription Painkiller Addiction

Prescription painkiller addiction is characterized by compulsive use of the drugs and an inability to stop in spite of negative consequences. The most commonly prescribed painkillers that have the potential for abuse are:

• Oxycodone: As strong as heroin, this drug has the highest potential for abuse and is the most dangerous.
• Hydrocodone: Often combined with acetaminophen, with common formulations including Vicodin and Loracet.

Both drugs are opioids.

These prescription painkillers bring feelings of pleasure and euphoria in many people because they trigger the release of endorphins in the brain, which are “feel good” chemicals. These feelings only last for a short time, which often leads to a desire to take more to get the “feel good” effect back.

Over time, the brain comes to expect painkillers and does not produce endorphins naturally, which means that pleasure can’t be felt without the medication. Additionally, tolerance to the drugs builds, meaning that more must be taken to get the same pleasurable effects.

Signs That You Need Help For Prescription Painkiller Addiction

If you have an addiction to prescription painkillers, it can be extremely difficult to stop using them without help. To determine if you are in fact addicted, you can do a self-evaluation by seeing if you meet any of the 11 criteria that define a prescription painkiller disorder. These criteria are:

1. Taking prescription painkillers in larger amounts or for longer than intended.
2. Having tried to stop or reduce painkiller use but not being able to.
3. Spending excessive amounts of time trying to get painkillers, use painkillers, or recover from the effects of the painkillers.
4. Having intense cravings for the drugs.
5. Failing to meet obligations due to the use of painkillers.
6. Continuing to use painkillers in spite of its negative effects on your relationships.
7. Giving up normally pleasurable activities in order to use painkillers.
8. Using painkillers in dangerous situations, such as while driving.
9. Continued use in spite of negative physical or psychological consequences.
10. Needing more painkillers to get the same pleasurable effects.
11. Having withdrawal symptoms when painkiller use is stopped.

Meeting two to three of these criteria indicates a mild addiction, four to five is moderate, while six or more is severe. It’s important to note that even mild addictions can be difficult to overcome without professional help.

You can also evaluate your symptoms of prescription painkiller addiction, which may be behavioral, physical, cognitive, or psychological.

Behavioral symptoms may include:

• Risky behaviors
• Shifts in energy
• Seeking ways to get more painkillers
• Increasing use
• Lying about your use
• Hiding stashes of painkillers
• Decline in work or school performance
• Social isolation

Physical symptoms include:

• Changes in eating or sleeping habits
• Constipation
• Nausea and vomiting
• Slurred speech
• Itchy skin
• Tolerance
• Withdrawal symptoms
• Overall decline in health

Cognitive symptoms may include:

• Confusion
• Blackouts
• Poor judgment
• Memory problems

Psychological symptoms may include:

• Mood swings
• Feeling defensive about your drug use
• Overall decline in mental health

Long-Term Effects of Prescription Painkiller Addiction

It’s important to understand the dangers of long-term prescription painkiller use. Sometimes people think that their painkiller addiction is not dangerous because the drugs are prescribed, but this is not true. In the long-term, painkiller abuse can cause several health problems.

Gastrointestinal Effects

Long term painkiller abuse can lead to chronic constipation and may even lead to a bowel obstruction, which is life threatening. Painkiller abuse can also cause vomiting, nausea, and bloating.

Respiratory Effects

Painkillers can cause slowed breathing, which can lead to coma, brain damage, or even death. This respiratory distress is what causes most overdose deaths.

Cardiovascular Effects

Some studies have linked long term painkiller use to cardiovascular conditions including atrial fibrillation, coronary heart disease, and cardiovascular disease, particularly in women. Overdose also often results in cardiac arrest.

Reproductive System Effects

In women, painkiller use may decrease fertility and increase the risks of pregnancy complications and pregnancy loss. In men, it affects testosterone production and sperm quantity and quality. It can also cause erectile dysfunction.

Prescription Painkiller Withdrawal

Withdrawing from prescription painkillers is not pleasant, but it is also not usually life threatening. However, a medically supervised inpatient detox program is recommended to ensure that you are safe and as comfortable as possible while you go through withdrawal.

Withdrawal symptoms may include:

• Sweating
• Chills
• Anxiety
• Agitation
• Abdominal cramping
• Nausea
• Vomiting
• Muscle aches
• Insomnia

Prescription Painkiller Addiction Treatment

Prescription painkiller addiction is not easy to overcome. It usually requires intensive treatment in an inpatient setting, particularly for severe addictions.

The first phase of treatment is a period of inpatient medically supervised detox. The goal is to keep you safe and comfortable, and to ease your withdrawal symptoms, sometimes with medications. These medications may also be used long term to prevent cravings and relapse.

Inpatient treatment also involves intensive therapy. Cognitive behavioral therapy is a common therapy used in painkiller addiction treatment. It involves teaching you how to recognize your “addict thinking” and to change those irrational thoughts into more reasonable ones.

For example, if you think “I can control my painkiller use”, you’ll learn to stop and examine that thought to come to a realistic conclusion based on what you’ve learned in therapy.

Cognitive behavioral therapy also teaches problem solving and coping skills so that you can better deal with life and its challenges without using drugs.

Group therapy is also critical in a painkiller addiction treatment program. It’s an opportunity for education, and for you to share thoughts, emotions, and strategies for preventing relapse with peers.  People in the groups also provide each other with support and develop relationships that may last even after treatment.

Group therapy also makes patients feel less isolated, knowing that they are not alone in their addiction struggles and the on road to recovery.

The next step in ongoing treatment may be a partial hospitalization program (PHP) followed by an intensive outpatient program (IOP).

In Closing

If you are struggling with prescription painkiller use, recognizing the signs that you have an addiction is the first step in recovery. The next step is to reach out for help. At Bridges of Hope we offer several addiction treatment options. We are committed to providing compassionate, comprehensive care to help you move on to a healthier life. Give us a call today to learn more.