7 Links for pain medication safety
With the ever-present “war on drugs,” too many people have been reluctant to take the pain medications that they need. This leads to unnecessary suffering and can actually do more harm than good.
If you have pain, be it severe acute pain from a surgery or you are living with chronic pain, your body is telling you there is something wrong. If you *don’t* take pain medications, chances are you will not be able to move around as much as you should, cough as you should after anesthetic, and generally get better. The pain medications are there to *help* you.
I have to say, from a nurse’s point of view, a group of patients that was the absolute most frustrating to nurse was the group of patients who would not take their pain meds, despite the need. The stoic, “I can handle this pain,” attitude didn’t help them heal. It often hindered them.
If you are in pain and you need medications, it is highly unlikely that you would become addicted to them, if you don’t have a previous history of addiction.
Don’t confuse tolerance with addiction. As we take pain medications for chronic pain, there is often a tolerance that the body builds up and then you need stronger or more frequent doses. This is not unusual and this is NOT addiction.
Here are 7 documents to help you learn more about pain medication safety:
Your Guide to Taking Oxycodone Safely (PDF)
Patient Instructions Handout: Safely Taking Oxycodone [in English and Spanish] (PDF)
Methadone Analgesia Safety Overview & Patient Instructions Handout (PDF)
Pain - Opioid Facts (PDF)
Opioid Pain Relievers: What To Be Aware Of
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POSTED IN: Acute pain, Chronic Pain, Medications, Pain Management, Prevention of Pain, Unmanaged pain
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