Pain Killer Addiction: Numbing Emotional Pain

Pain killers, especially opiate pain killers, are extremely addictive. It doesn't matter who you are: if you take opioid-based prescription medication like Norco, hydrocodone, Lortab, Fentanyl or morphine, you will build up a tolerance to the drug, requiring more and more to achieve the initial pain killing effects. This physical tolerance is one of the characteristics of opiate addiction and once it sets in, you will need a medical detox to break its hold.

More on Pain Killers - Numbing Emotional Pain

Many people fight physical and/or emotional pain with pain killers. For some, pain killers help them avoid feelings that they are not comfortable dealing with or are not ready to confront. Whether you take pain killers to numb physical pain or emotional pain, the end result is the same: opiate addiction requiring medical treatment.

At Meditox, we are staffed entirely by substance abuse treatment specialists. We know that there are many different reasons a person may come by opiate addiction. We're here to help you break that addiction, allowing you the freedom to find more healthy ways to deal with emotional pain and return to a drug-free life.

Emotional Reasons for Pain Killer Addiction

The emotional reasons that people turn to pain killer addiction are almost as many as the number of people who become addicts. Perhaps it was a childhood experience you can't let go of. A recent event or loss that you can't get over. Maybe you have psychological issues or a tendency toward depression and self-medicating seemed like the only way to feel better. Any number of bad feelings, if left alone to fester, can quickly become overwhelming. The emotional reasons we abuse pain killers can be broken down into four different categories:

Unable to handle pain
Feelings of unworthiness
Need for approval from others
Need for control

Emotional Pain Killer Addiction: Unable to Handle Pain

As a child, it is normal to feel overwhelmed by emotional pain, feelings like helplessness and loneliness. However, as an adult, it is possible to learn to manage these feelings in a healthy way rather than turning to drugs for assistance. Taking a pain killer doesn't make the feelings or the problem disappear. Instead, when the effects of the drug wears off, the original problem is still there and is now compounded by the issue of addiction.

Emotional Pain Killer Addiction: Feelings of Unworthiness

Feelings of unworthiness may come from not receiving the affection you needed as a child or the perception that you did not get what you needed from the adults in your life. A very small child may speculate on the cause of this and decide that he or she does not deserve to be loved. The essence of these feelings is shame. Sadly, these feelings can follow us into adulthood and hinder us even if we find a loving spouse and community. Taking pain killers may seem like the only way to feel better about ourselves. Unfortunately, the mechanism of opiate addiction is such that, over time, without the pills, we feel even worse than we did before we started.

Emotional Pain Killer Addiction: Needing the Approval of Others

Approval from other people is a core need for most individuals. While wanting and needing recognition is healthy overall, it can be debilitating if too much importance is placed upon the opinions of others. Again, pain killers may seem like the best way to combat obsessing over what other people think of us.

Emotional Pain Killer Addiction: Needing Control

The need for control is another reason that a person may turn to pain killers. The fact that life is uncontrollable is scary, but unfortunately, pain killer addiction can become dangerously out of control, too. You may be able to control your mood with the first pill, but the second and third and fourth will control you.

End Pain Killer Addiction at Meditox

Healing from painkiller addiction is not impossible. At Meditox, we know that facing the pain and discomfort can be an unimaginable thought, and we are here to help you every step of the way. At Meditox, we have the tools and resources you need to become healthy again, breaking your addiction to pain killers with an opiate pain killer detox that is personalized to suit your needs. Call Meditox today for more information.

If you feel that Meditox might be the right solution for you or your loved one, please call us for a toll-free and private consultation:

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“Today is week #5! I have my life back, this morning my husband told me he hadn't seen me like this in three years! My daughter told me "your back Mom"! My Fybromyalgia is down to 2 to 3 percent of what it was, I am fully able to live with the Joy and Love and Laughter which has always been my way.”

Mother, Real Estate Agent, 49
August 11, 2006

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