In the end, addictions are a choice. It’s a cop out to think otherwise. As far as illegal drugs, I couldn’t even tell you how/where to get the stuff.

I believe what the OP and others are saying, but to think that you are immune to drug addiction is a prescription for disaster.
Rod

I don't know why, but Ibuprofen seems to work like morphine on me. It completely erases any pain, and I could easily get "addicted" to it. I know this because I had a recent back injury. The doctors prescribed Hydrocodone, which I tried, and it always just makes me throw up and I don't notice any pain relief.
Naproxen, Aspirin, and Magnesium Salisylate all "worK, but with a mild effect. Ibuprofen works perfectly, After going through a couple of the economy-sized bottles from Costco I got worried that I would start having side effects, so I just went "cold turkey". Now I will take a couple if my back gets real bad, which is only about one a month or so.

quote:

Originally posted by bionic218:

quote:

I’ve got back issues and have hydrocodone (500mg) and Valium on hand at all times

quote:

after using these for about 10 years

quote:

Drugs do nothing for me

Take this for what it's worth, but if I had a condition that required narcotics be on hand at all times with a 10 year history of use, and backed that up with the statement 'drugs do nothing for me', then I'd either ask my doc why he keeps prescribing them or why we haven't done whatever surgery or rehab is necessary to prevent them.

To me, your post reads like that of the guy who always has beer in the fridge and scotch in the cabinet, who has a drink every night to 'take the edge off' but says he's not an alcoholic.

If you want to know for sure, purge them from your life. If you don't want to or can't bring yourself to, maybe that means something else?

Please don't take this as sarcasm.

Sorry, I posted from my phone so it’s hard to get all the details. To clarify, when I say I’m immune I don’t mean that literally but I think it would be unlikely for me to be addicted. The back issue I have is currently only had enough 1-2 days per year where I need some medication and rest. The pain is severe, I take meds for a couple days and I’m back to normal. Surgery is the only possibility of correcting the problem and that’s my last resort.
I’m not trying to trivialize addiction, like I said I’ve seen the reality first hand and it is devastating.

If you are a human, it just hasn't happened.
Y.E.T.
(You're Eligible Too.)
The history of America (and civilization) is littered with veritable proof of that statement. "Slaying The Dragon" by William White would be a good book to read, if you feel differently about it.

quote:

Originally posted by mrvmax:
I’ve got back issues and have hydrocodone (500mg) and Valium on hand at all times

500mg hydrocodone? PARTY time Maybe you mean 5 mg hydrocodone. 5mg/500mg is a typical hydrocodone/acetaminophen "Percocet"-type tablet.

In April 2016 I separated something in my shoulder. Doc gave me the 5 mg straight tablets, no acetaminophen. When I had a similar separation about 15 months later on the other side, along with a few dislocated ribs, I was glad to discover the pill bottle was not yet empty.

I do not remember consciously restricting usage or deliberately stopping the first time. Smoking has more pronounced triggers in my addiction process. I've gone as far as to eliminate alcohol to suppress symbiotic urges.

Human beings are the great adapters. We can get used to almost anything and soldier on. It's why we have survived so long. Getting mortar attacks daily, then hourly? It's awful, then irritating, then normal. Drive on.
Drugs, unfortunately, use the same adaptability against us. When we take them often, then daily, then hourly, they become "the new normal". Take them away, and the brain starts looking for them. Worse yet, they (opiods) act on the parts of the brain wherein we get our pleasure, so no drugs, no more joy, in anything. It's almost literally rewiring your brain.
That's what "drug depenency" looks like. Not to mention the physical sickness side effects when your body gets angry that you're not feeding it what it craves, anymore.

I have seen lots of people go through this. It's awful. The ones who beat it are very fortunate. The ones who never experience it are more fortunate.

Bruce

There is a genetic component to this as well

So some people ARE more immune to things. But more immune is not totally immune

I’m a disabled veteran, and chronic pain patient. As part of one of my injuries my brachial plexus was crushed. If you’ve ever hit your thumb with hammer, that’s what my entire left arm felt like. All the time. I’ve had several surgeries to fix that, and now it’s just my 4th and 5th fingers. Probably will always be that way. I’ve had 14 surgeries on my left leg below the knee to repair crush damage. For those that don’t know, after something has been crushed, things don’t come back correctly. I have issues, I guess is what I’m getting at


I used to throw away Vicodin prescriptions. Didn’t work for me. Shit, Motrin worked better. When they would try and make me super drowsy before surgery with Versed, I never felt a thing.

My current doctor does something called gene site testing. All of these drugs work in various receptors in your body. And you can test and see how those work genetically. I underwent the testing several years ago and sure enough it confirmed what I already knew. My body barely recognizes Vicodin exists. Same with most drugs unfortunately. It means I need more of the stuff to get the same effect than a normal person would. But I also eliminate it quicker too. It is, genetically, harder for me to get hooked on this stuff

But not impossible


Just harder


Know what else it showed? My receptors for booze are wide open. Such a surprise for an Irish catholic with a family history of alcoholism. As it turns out the stereotype that Indians and Irish are drunks does have some basis in science. Certain genetic factors shared by people with certain racial make up DOES predispose them to addiction and alcoholism. I’ve never been much of a drinker because of the alcoholism in my family. Now I really avoid the stuff


This is to say two things. 1). You may be more resilient or resistant than most because of your genetic makeup. You also may be more susceptible to it as well. But no one is immune. No one. 2). Talk to your doctor and figure out where you are. Most insurance will cover this kind of testing. I own a pediatric practice and we use it to help isolate in on which medications will help patients. You can tailor your treatment to be of more use to you, and to minimize risks

But remember


No one is immune.

I'm ignorant enough to think maybe I am, but intelligent enough to know I'm probably wrong.

After open heart, I was on morphine, I liked that stuff.

After that night they took it away and I was given a pain pill (I can't recall what name) I was 100 % aware of everything ( no so with morphine) but felt no pain. The surgeon paid me a visit, asked how I was doing, I said fine, I feel great, no pain. He told me that if I moved around and hurt myself, he would have to re-do everything & that it is ok to feel pain. I told him to take me off that pill, just give me aspirin, ibuprofen, Tylenol, anything but the pain pill I took. I was put on 900 mil of ibuprofen.

I think I could get addicted to morphine, I was out of my gord on that stuff! Pills, not so much.

Caffeine is a tough one for me. Alcohol I can take or leave and mostly leave since I started carrying. It isn’t worth being unarmed.

I was prescribed generic Vicodin after shoulder surgery but switched to Tylenol after a couple days so I could drive. Didn’t notice a difference. Ice worked better than any drug anyway.

Immune? Unlikely. But all through my life I've mostly avoided the "more dangerous" (YMMV) drugs, both recreational and prescribed.

That being said...

I was addicted to cigarettes, though I don't know as it was the nicotine as much as I just plain enjoyed the act of smoking. Same with coffee. I drink coffee because I enjoy the taste of coffee. It does not wake me up. It does not keep me awake. If I stop drinking it (and I have) I don't suffer caffeine withdrawal.

My father was an alcoholic. He allowed alcoholism to destroy his life. Knowing the tendency is passed-on, I'm always on the alert. Thus, when I twice, in the past, found myself drinking too much, too often: I cut myself off.

When, many, many years ago I realized smoking the devil weed was turning me into a zombie I simply stopped. Don't think I've touched it but a half-dozen times in the decades since then. If that. Can't remember when last.

Like the OP: Many pain relievers do little or nothing for me. Others have worked well. E.g.: I was prescribed Percocet following oral surgery. When the reason for taking it went away, after two-three days or so, I stopped taking it.

I used to use a mix of diazepam (Valium®) plus aspirin for certain kinds of pain relief. (Pulled muscles and the like. U.S. Army docs taught me that one.) Later found ibuprofen works better. Now I only use diazepam if I'm having trouble getting to sleep and I need to get to sleep. (Almost never since I retired.)

I like an occasional jot of spirits, but a fifth of <whatever> will last me months, if not years. I like a beer with dinner, and occasionally a beer "just because," but I've also abstained entirely when I wanted to accelerate fat loss.

I'm more addicted to chocolate than anything else. Not eating it, right now, because diet.

I know that, like fat loss, or just about anything else, some things are easier for some than others. I count myself lucky, or blessed, or whatever that I'm apparently not an addictive personality type. But, in the end, as member PowerSurge wrote: Addiction is a choice. As such: I have sympathy for victims of others' addictions. Not so much for addicts.

Just as I've little sympathy for those who complain they "can't lose weight."

I’ve had 7 surgeries in my life and have never been on pain killers more than 4 days after surgery (usually 2 days). I don’t like the side effects (eg opiate constipation) plus I watched my brother have DTs getting off vicidin after ACL surgery.

When I had hemorrhoid surgery, the surgeon gave me a vicidin script that would’ve allowed me to be on max dosage for 60 days Interestingly enough, he lost his medical license for exchanging opiate scripts for sexual favors with female patients. He was definitely an example of medical professionals contributing to the opiate crisis.

I don’t have an addictive personality. There’s nothing to date that I can’t just stop. If I never drank alcohol again it wouldn’t bother me. I go months without drinking. I’ve had surgeries before and usually after day 1 I never took the pain meds again or never even filled them. As a kid I smoked for a few months and then decided one day that it smelled like shit so I stopped. In college I played football and everyone dipped. I did that for about a year and a half then quit one day and never thought about it again. I haven’t had a cup of coffee in my entire adult life. No energy drinks or caffeine in general. Still have plenty of energy. I switch from day shift to night shift in the same week and never have an issue with sleep or energy. Guess I’m just weird like that.

The disease is cunning, baffling & powerful. It'll hide it's self. The ability to be truly honest will be lost. Not until it starts to obviously effect someone, something in one's life will others notice. The addict himself, in a way, will be the last to know.

"If you wonder if you suffer from the disease of addiction ....chances are, you do.

quote:

Originally posted by PowerSurge:
In the end, addictions are a choice. It’s a cop out to think otherwise. As far as illegal drugs, I couldn’t even tell you how/where to get the stuff.

You win the coveted "Most ignorant thing uttered on the internet today" award.

No one is immune. You may have a less addictive personality type so you might find it easier not to start down the path. Or you may have unpleasant reactions, so you don't want to take certain drugs. But make no mistake, some drugs - opiates, for example - are physically addictive. There is no two ways about it.

Crushed my lower right leg from a motorcycle crash. Morphine and a lot of other heavy duty pain meds with a fairly long recovery. Started out with big doses and then my ortho Doc started reducing dosages as time went by. I can see how people get hooked. In my case, I think my Doc was looking out for me and providing the right kind of long term care.
My guess is that kind of care has fallen by the wayside.

I didn't think I could be addicted to drugs until it happened. I'm addicted in the sense if I were to stop cold turkey, I would quickly go into withdrawal. Which has happened twice, the first time accidental, the second time intentionally.

I'm physically addicted, but not mentally. I actually can quit any time, because I have. I take opiates only for pain, nothing else. They don't make me high at all. Early on I experienced very brief periods of euphoria, only like 15 minutes. Honestly, I can take it or leave it. And now it doesn't happen at all anyway.

I am right now attempting quitting for the third time. Hopefully I can just taper without withdrawal. The problem in the past is that even if you successfully quit, the pain hasn't gone anywhere, and you have to go right back on. This time I am investigating alternate methods of pain management that weren't possible before. Hope the third time is the charm.

To the OP, you've been taking pain meds for 10 years, and you don't think you're physically addicted to them?