By Rose White Young

With the correct help, support and treatment it is usually very possible to overcome drug addiction particularly to prescription drugs and pain killers. Doctors prescribe patients certain drugs (such as pain killers) for ailments such as chronic back pain that could have an addictive component and should only be taken according to prescribed dosages. Some people become addicted to these drugs and start to self medicate and over prescribe. They think that they could not function normally without the “help” of these drugs.

Many people who do this are experiencing underlying emotional problems such as depression. I came across one person who was continuously taking pain killers for pain. He did have pain probably arthritic pain in his joints but he also had underlying depression. Unfortunately he was not able to publicly acknowledge he was suffering from depression. He undoubtedly needed to explore his chronic pain and should have been referred to a consultant. Taking pain killers daily on a continuous basis developed into a certain type of dependence. There was an addictive component in the pain killer that he was unaware of.

According to researches, prescription drugs rank second as the most commonly abused kind of drugs. Examples of these drugs are narcotic painkillers, which are commonly used by addicts in a way that wasn’t prescribed by their physician. The continued use of these drugs could lead to altered thinking and altered brain functions. The effects on the major organs are also devastating, especially on the liver, which is the major organ that synthesizes medication. Read the rest of this entry »