Pain medication addiction is a serious problem so if you think you might need treatment, you’re in the right place. If you’re already thinking about adjusting your pain pill intake then it’s likely you’ll need treatment from a painkiller addiction rehab.
Noticing your relationship with pain medication has got out of hand is a big part of the road to recovery, so here are some signs that you might have a pain medication addiction.
Using Pain Pills for the Wrong Reasons
If you’re using painkillers simply to get high and not to manage pain, then you need to speak to a pain medication addiction treatment center so you can start on the path to recovery. Pain pills are designed to treat pain for short periods of time so if you continue using them for any other reason, you’ll need to speak to a medical professional.
Self-Medicating Without the Right Prescription
If you have pain pills in the house from a previous prescription and start using them to manage other forms of pain, you may need treatment. This kind of medication should only be used when directly prescribed by a doctor. Using leftover pills, or ones from a family member’s prescription can be dangerous and could quickly lead to addiction.
Building a Tolerance
If you are self-medicating and find you need to up the dose to get the same effect, you could be building a tolerance. Whether you’re chasing the high of painkillers or genuinely trying to manage pain, becoming dependent means you have a pain medication addiction and should seek professional help.
Going Beyond Pills
Another clear sign of addiction is the use of pain medication in a non-standard form. Manipulating pills for injection or to be smoked is a sign of pain pill abuse. This behavior usually comes when simply taking a pill doesn’t get the required effect because you’ve built a tolerance through continued use.
Impacting Your Life
If your use of pain killers starts to impact your life then it could be time to find a pain medication addiction treatment center near you. Missing important work and family commitments, being too spaced-out to function in day-to-day life, and lying about the amount of medication you take could all be signs that you have a problem that needs to be treated.
Being Unable to Quit
Many people see their problems with pills and try to quit. It’s a sure sign that you have a pain medication addiction if you are unsuccessful and go back to them either for the high or to manage pain. If this happens, you need to get in touch with a pain medication addiction treatment center to help you get off the medication for good.
Trying to quit is an admirable thing to do but in some cases, the withdrawal symptoms can be too much to handle alone. Getting the right professional help, no matter what level you feel your addiction is at is key. Here are some programs to check out:
- Partial hospitalization program
- Intensive outpatient program
- Dual diagnosis treatment center
- Medication therapy management program
If you’d like some help on the road to recovery, give us a call on 866.262.0531. We’ll be able to help you take control of your pain medication addiction and stop letting it control your life painkiller addiction rehab.
Since 2016, Dr. Merle Williamson, a graduate of Oregon Health Sciences University, has been the Medical Director at Crestview Recovery, bringing a rich background in addiction medicine from his time at Hazelden Treatment Center. He oversees outpatient drug and alcohol treatments, providing medical care, setting policies, detox protocols, and quality assurance measures. Before specializing in addiction medicine, he spent 25 years in anesthesiology, serving as Chair of Hospital Pharmacy and Therapeutics Committee and Chief of Anesthesia at Kaiser Permanente. This experience gives him a unique perspective on treating prescription drug addiction.
