Painkiller Addiction

Do you know (or think) you have become addicted to your painkillers?

Are you worried about how you'll cope if you stop taking them?

Analgesics are a veritable godsend to millions of people whose lives would be immensely more difficult without them. We can all be deeply grateful for the research and development that has produced such wonderful medications and made them widely available.

But analgesic drugs have to be prescribed with care, because a range of problematic side-effects can accompany the welcome pain relief they bring. And in the case of some drugs - especially opium-like drugs known as 'opioids' - there is the additional danger of developing dependency. This means that, even if the condition they were prescribed for is cured, the user continues to 'need' them. They become addicted.

Painkiller addiction isn't anybody's 'goal'

Of course, nobody sets out to become addicted to their pain relievers. But when an excessive dose is taken over an extended period, the brain adjusts to the artificially high level of feel-good neurotransmitters. When this happens, you find you're no longer taking the drugs to feel 'better', but simply to feel 'normal'. You've just got to have them, regardless of any other ill effects you may experience when taking them.

Sound familiar?

It may feel like there's no way out. That sense of "I've just got to have it!" feels overwhelming. The thought of not having them can be scary. So you wouldn't be unusual if you've put off doing anything about it, if you've tried to deny to yourself (or others) that there's a problem, if you've found all sorts of convincing rationalizations for your behavior.

It's got to stop

But the fact that you're reading this shows you have already decided that this cannot continue. And the good news is that, just as your brain successfully adapted to the constant presence of the drug in your system, your brain is perfectly capable of adapting to being permanently free of that drug.

And here's how you can speed your liberation.