So, doctors are financially rewarded from the insurance and drug industries for prescribing medication. The drug regulatory officials are financially rewarded from the drug industry for passing favorable policy bills. It is a trifecta attack on our countries sick people. It is simply criminal market manipulation. This has created a culture where now patients expect to be medicated to solve their mental problems. Instead of therapeutic work, people have come to expect to be doped so they can forget their problems. Its sad that these doctors, insurance companies, and drug companies are more than happy to deal them these drugs.

That’s not a lot of time. And, unfortunately, any way that the time can be shortened is going to be seen as a blessing to a busy doctor.

So, a patient comes in and says, “Man, doc, since you put me on (fill in the blank here, Heaven knows there’s enough choices out there) I feel great! No more pain. But, let it start wearing off, and I go to hurting again.” What’s a pressed-for-time doctor most likely going to hear? “Feel great…works…no more pain till it wears off…”

“OK,” he or she might think, “this is easy. Give the patient another refill.” And, the first couple of times this happens, the doctor probably doesn’t think any more about it. But, then, about a month, maybe two, later, the patient is back, wanting more of the stuff. And, now the physician starts to get suspicious.

So, what exactly is the physician’s responsibility when it comes to prescription drug abuse? After all, the drug had to be prescribed, and only a doctor can prescribe a drug. So, does this put a doctor in a “Catch-22″ or “damned (pardon the language) if he does/damned (again, sorry) if he doesn’t” situation? Uh oh, did the lid just fall off the can of worms again?

Someone may have been suffering severe pain due to an injury or illness. And, at that time, he or she DID need the prescription drug that was prescribed. The problem began when the patient started feeling like the medicine was the only thing that could help. Instead of trying physical therapy or replacing the prescription with over-the-counter pain relievers as soon as possible, the patient decided that the prescription was necessary to make it through the day, not just to relieve the pain. And, those six refills came in handy, too.

Never mind that the doctor said not to get it refilled unless it was absolutely necessary, they were there. And, that may be how the abuse began. Or, maybe Cousin Roy’s little pill really helped the headache that was being suffered. In fact, it not only helped, it got right to the source of the problem. Sure, the prescription wasn’t meant for anyone but Cousin Roy, but, hey, it worked. And, if it worked once, it’ll work again, right?

Maybe, but then again, maybe it won’t. Maybe Cousin Roy’s headache was due to something else completely different. And, because of that, it is not being used for the reason it was prescribed. And, when someone continues to take medicine that is all wrong for the ailment, that’s another form of prescription drug abuse.

Prescription drugs, as we know, as those that must be prescribed by a doctor. They cannot be bought over the counter; the pharmacist must fill the prescription and give the drugs to the patient.

Prescription drugs are usually prescribed for a set amount of time, in a specific dosage. They are normally intended for short-term use.

Abuse happens when someone begins to feel that they must have the drug in order to function. This often happens with narcotic pain relievers.

Once a person is addicted to prescription drugs (and, yes, it is an addiction, just like an addiction to alcohol or street drugs), he or she may go to any lengths to get the drug, especially if they can no longer have the prescription refilled, or the doctor refuses to write another prescription.

When this happens, family members must be extremely careful to keep prescription drugs, especially those that are being abused, away from the abuser. If the drug is being properly prescribed for another family member, then precautions must be taken to ensure that that person’s prescription is kept secured so that it will be available only to the one who is supposed to be taking it.

When a drug for which there is a risk of abuse is prescribed, family members should watch to make sure that the person who is taking the drug is not becoming addicted, or taking more than the prescribed amount. It may be necessary for someone else to step in and tell the doctor if they feel this is the case. Hurt feelings will disappear quicker than drug problems will.

Guess what? Drug abuse is drug abuse, whether it’s street drugs or the pills that the doctor keeps writing prescriptions for even though he or she is fully aware that the patient does not need them, and has not needed them for a long time.

A person who is on Vicodin or Percocet or Dilaudid or whatever drug it may be is going to be put in the very same jail cell as the junkie standing on the corner if that person breaks the law while under the influence of that prescription drug. Likewise, if a person obtains his medication illegally, that person is going to go to jail, just like the person caught with a bag of marijuana or a rock of crack cocaine.

So, just because a person is on a “legal” drug; that is, he or she got it from the doctor, if the drug is being abused, that person is a drug abuser. And, that person needs help just as much as the junkie on the street or the wino in the gutter.

And, the sooner a prescription drug abuser realizes that he or she has a problem and gets help for the problem, the better off that person and everyone else who loves and knows that person will be. Don’t be fooled – prescription drug abuse is in fact still considered drug abuse.

Prescription Drug Use and Addiction differs from other forms of addiction. In many cases prescription drug use will begin with a legal prescription based on a medical need. Prescription drug use becomes prescription drug abuse when the medical need is no longer present and the addict continues to take or require the drug. Painkillers are a common prescription drug that is abused .

How Does Painkiller Abuse Differ From Drug Abuse?

Painkiller abuse differs from drug abuse in that the abuse develops very subtly. Individuals who abuse painkillers do not start out trying to get ‘high,’ they are simply trying to stop the pain. In addition, individuals who become addicted to painkillers would not define themselves as ‘addicts’ because they do not think that they have a problem. The also find safety in the legality or prescription status of thier painkiller.

The problem escalates gradually. An individual with chronic pain starts out by taking their prescription painkiller as prescribed. As the effect of the prescription painkiller medicine starts to fade, the user takes more pills than prescribed. Before they know it, these individuals may start taking their pain medication 5, 6, 7 + times a day. When this method doesn’t work, a person with chronic pain may try a combination of methods to increase the effect including Valium and/or alcohol to increase the effect of the drug. Before they know it, this prescription pain medication abuse has led to a dependency, which can be both physical and psychological.

Before they know it, their life begins to revolve around their medication. Instead of talking to their doctor about the decreased effect of their medication or their sudden increase of dosage, they begin to do what is called ‘physician shopping’ in an effort to obtain their medication. For example, an individual may call their OB-GYN to ask for a prescription by explaining that their regular family physician is out of town or they may schedule an appointment to see a new physician in order to get a prescription for the painkiller medication. They are finding ways to feed thier drug addiction.

‘Doctor shopping’ to obtain more medication can cause significant problems to the individual’s health. The chronic pain sufferer finds that their medications no longer produce the same effect, even when they increase the dosage amount. Soon, they find that their body will start to crave larger doses and the individual may develop a tolerance, which may also lead to physical and psychological withdrawal symptoms.

A person may also be dependent on painkiller medication if they find themselves taking a prescription medication that had been prescribed to someone else.

Withdrawal symptoms for painkiller abuse may include nausea, vomiting, cramping, insomnia and profound anxiety.

According to a newly released national study, today’s teens are at a very high risk for abusing a prescription painkiller or other prescription medication as a means of getting high. The 17th annual study on teen drug abuse found that in 2004, more teens had abused prescription pain medication such as Vicodin and OxyContin than cocaine, crack, Ecstasy or LSD. The most popular prescription drug abused by teens is Vicodin, with 18% or about 4.3 million youth reporting that they had used it to get high.

If you or someone you love is suffering from an addiction to a prescription painkiller, help is available. Prescription painkiller abuse is not something to be ashamed of, it is something that needs to be treated as soon as possible.

Additional Prescription Drug Articles

Dangers of Methadone

Anoretic

Amphetamines

Barbiturates

Benzodiazepines

Buprenorphine

Butorphanol

Codeine

Depressants

Rohypnol/GHB

OxyContin

No, not the “ChexÃ’ Mix” with pretzels, ChexÃ’ cereal, peanuts, etc. etc. This party features prescription AND non-prescription medicine that teenagers have lifted from the family medicine cabinet (or grandma’s purse, as is sometimes the unfortunate case). The purloined pills are then poured into a bowl, then everyone takes a handful and swallows them down, sometimes with alcohol.

Yeah, this is what is happening in some homes today. Kids tell their parents, “I’m going to a party It’s just gonna be a bunch of kids hanging out, listening to music, dancing, you know, the usual. Sure, her parents will be there.”

(And, they are, maybe. In the basement or in their bedroom or wherever in the house that the party isn’t. But, in an effort to keep things “cool”, they never show their faces the whole time.)

A few hours later, someone gets very, very sick. In an effort to keep things “on the down-low”, the sickee is loaded into a car and sneaked into his or her own little bed, and no one is the wiser. Until said sickee/sneakee winds up at the hospital because Mom and Dad couldn’t get him or her to wake up the next morning.

Yeah, that’s scary. The solution? Keep all medicines, especially those with abuse potential, out of reach of everyone BUT the person they’re intended for. And, parents, STOP BEING SO “COOL” AND BE PARENTS! Know your kids’ friends and their friends’ parents, and don’t be afraid to do some checking up on your own.