Whats an addict?

[Bjburnam]

I have chronic pain from fibromyalgia, and Rhematoid arthritus./backpain.  I have been on the duragesic patch for pain for 4 years.  I experience withdrawal if I try to "not" take it.  so I have been meticulous about the every 3 day change.  But I am scared.  My pain gets really bad sometimes, and I have to take a vicodin, sometimes 2 a dayl.  so... am I an addict to prescription drugs.  it certainly feels like it to me.  should I try to get off of it?  and if so what to do about the pain?  I am scared and confused.  My daughter says if I had cancer I would take the drus to help, so what is the difference?  Can someone tell me? bjburnam

[worried878]

FYI:  I was mis diagnosed with fibromyalgia....narcotics are not recommended for pain relief for true fibromyalgia as it actually worsens it in the long run...arthritis is best treated with anti-inflammatories and back pain is another bear that most of the usa has to face and deal with...my mom has RA and her fingers are malformed now..she does take something for sleep each night...she plays tennis to this day and takes anti-inflammatories with steroids as needed...never touches narctoics but we all have our own threshold...and out own decisions..pain can be manage without narcotics..actually better managed as we can think clearer and make better decisions sometimes

[worried878]

u may or probably are physically dependent on narcotics....and being a chronic pain patient these are choices u have to make...i am a chronic pain patient as well but i did "chase" the high..doesnt sound like u r doing that...yet anyway or maybe never..not all become addicted....mentally addicted.....ur quality of life without the meds would have to be considered and also if they really help the pain anymore...they did not help mine due to my tolerence and i became a pill machine than just needed more and more to keep the pain down and to function and go to work,,,i chose to shake the control they had over me...didnt like it as what if i ever ran out or my doctor stopped prescribing..worried myself into quitting...and my pain is no worse..the narcotics really dont eradicate pain they only interfere with the pain signals to the brain and made me not care as mush..the pain was still there...tough decision for a chronic pain patient and every pain patient has their own decision to make
a great pain forum here as well

[mtgoat911]

Am I an Addict?

Only you can answer this question.

This may not be an easy thing to do. All through our usage, we told ourselves, “I can handle it.” Even if this was true in the beginning, it is not so now. The drugs handled us. We lived to use and used to live. Very simply, an addict is a person whose life is controlled by drugs.

Perhaps you admit you have a problem with drugs, but you don’t consider yourself an addict. All of us have preconceived ideas about what an addict is. There is nothing shameful about being an addict once you begin to take positive action. If you can identify with our problems, you may be able to identify with our solution. The following questions were written by recovering addicts in Narcotics Anonymous. If you have doubts about whether or not you’re an addict, take a few moments to read the questions below and answer them as honestly as you can.

Do you ever use alone? [Yes] [ No]
Have you ever substituted one drug for another, thinking that one particular drug was the problem? [Yes] [ No]
Have you ever manipulated or lied to a doctor to obtain prescription drugs? [Yes] [ No]
Have you ever stolen drugs or stolen to obtain drugs? [Yes] [ No]
Do you regularly use a drug when you wake up or when you go to bed?
[Yes] [ No]
Have you ever taken one drug to overcome the effects of another? [Yes] [ No]
Do you avoid people or places that do not approve of you using drugs? [Yes] [ No]
Have you ever used a drug without knowing what it was or what it would do to you? [Yes] [ No]
Has your job or school performance ever suffered from the effects of your drug use? [Yes] [ No]
Have you ever been arrested as a result of using drugs? [Yes] [ No]
Have you ever lied about what or how much you use? [Yes] [ No]
Do you put the purchase of drugs ahead of your financial responsibilities?  [Yes] [ No]
Have you ever tried to stop or control your using? [Yes] [ No]
Have you ever been in a jail, hospital, or drug rehabilitation center because of your using? [Yes] [ No]
Does using interfere with your sleeping or eating? [Yes] [ No]
Does the thought of running out of drugs terrify you? [Yes] [ No]
Do you feel it is impossible for you to live without drugs? [Yes] [ No]
Do you ever question your own sanity? [Yes] [ No]
Is your drug use making life at home unhappy? [Yes] [ No]
Have you ever thought you couldn’t fit in or have a good time without drugs? [Yes] [ No]
Have you ever felt defensive, guilty, or ashamed about your using? [Yes] [ No]
Do you think a lot about drugs? [Yes] [ No]
Have you had irrational or indefinable fears? [Yes] [ No]
Has using affected your sexual relationships? [Yes] [ No]
Have you ever taken drugs you didn’t prefer? [Yes] [ No]
Have you ever used drugs because of emotional pain or stress? [Yes] [ No]
Have you ever overdosed on any drugs? [Yes] [ No]
Do you continue to use despite negative consequences? [Yes] [ No]
Do you think you might have a drug problem? [Yes] [ No]


“Am I an addict?” This is a question only you can answer. We found that we all answered different numbers of these questions “Yes.” The actual number of “Yes” responses wasn’t as important as how we felt inside and how addiction had affected our lives.

Some of these questions don’t even mention drugs. This is because addiction is an insidious disease that affects all areas of our lives—even those areas which seem at first to have little to do with drugs. The different drugs we used were not as important as why we used them and what they did to us.

When we first read these questions, it was frightening for us to think we might be addicts. Some of us tried to dismiss these thoughts by saying:

“Oh, those questions don’t make sense;”

Or,

“I’m different. I know I take drugs, but I’m not an addict. I have real emotional/family/job problems;”

Or,

“I’m just having a tough time getting it together right now;”

Or,

“I’ll be able to stop when I find the right person/get the right job, etc.”

[PntcBonneSSE]

I really do not think that you are an addict at all... I think since you have been taking them for so long that you are just physically dependant on them, which is a natural thing that will happen over long term use.  Also if you take a Vicodin or two once in a while, is not a bad thing either.  You are not abusing anything at all, I do not think that you are an addict.  Your body is just physically dependant upon it, which like I said will GAURENTEED happen after long term use.