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Prescriptions for all types of medications are handed out by physicians every day, to the tune of millions a day in the US alone.

Many of these prescriptions are in the form of pain killer medications, such as Darvocet, Percocet, Vicodin and other potent pain killing medications that are classified as narcotics which knock your pain out quickly and efficiently. But at what price?

I read one piece of literature on the web recently that literally made me gasp. It was a Q & A page on prescription (narcotic) pain medicines. The question asked was "Can I become addicted to my pain medicine?"

The answer, to my disbelief was "No." This is actually not true, as documented in multiple addiction facilities that will tell you otherwise.

Many have become addicted to prescription pain medications after they have had to use them for medical pain relief reasons, such as being in a car accident, having an invasive surgery, or in my case, having oral surgery.

You see, I believe I experienced a sort of addiction to the pain relief medication I took following an oral surgery. I was prescribed extra strength Vicodin, which was definitely needed, as the pain and discomfort would have been unbearable without it.

The pain medication had a pleasing effect on me. Probably too pleasing. I began to look forward to my dosages, not so much for the pain relief I knew they would bring, but for the brief period of euphoria I would experience, and the "buzzed" feeling of having a sudden burst of energy and an endless stream of thought and creativity.

Does this sort of "side effect" happen to everyone? Probably not, but in my case, as I'm sure in many other cases, I liked the drug because I liked the effects it had on my psyche, and I craved it for that, instead of craving it for its pain relieving abilities.

My story is one of withdrawal, because when I discontinued the medication, I did have extreme withdrawal symtpoms, in that I became extremely irritable and easily agitated.

Not only that, I had heart palpitations and a faster than usual heart beat which almost felt like a panic attack quite frequently, which I thought was surely related somehow. Does this happen to everyone?

Not necessarily, but it did happen to me, so now I understand why some people have a hard time recovering from substance abuse, whether that substance is legal or not. Other side effects of the many different kinds of prescription pain medications can include the following :

1.) Constipation
2.) Heart palpitations
3.) Lethargy
4.) Nausea
5.) Dry mouth
6.) Slowed breathing
7.) "Intoxication"
8.) Possible addiction
9.) Sleepiness
10.) Feeling of weakness

Copyright 2006 Danna Schneider