“How do you know you are addicted to your medication?”
I am a 26 year old male who was given pain medicine for my broken ankle. How do you know you are addicted to your medication?
2 Answers
If you are taking them for some other reason than physical pain, craving your meds, wanting to stop but unable to or if they are replacing the other things in life that you usually enjoy then that could be a problem. If the are causing bad things to happen in your life, that could be a problem.
I assume that by "pain medication" you mean an opioid ("painkiller") like Norco, Vicodin, hydrocodone, oxycodone, Percocet, etc. STOP THIS MEDICATION AS SOON AS POSSIBLE. Addiction is a real risk if you've taken it for more than three days. If you've been taking it for a week or more, you may need to taper it over a few days. Don't worry if you have opioid withdrawal symptoms like body aches, fatigue, runny nose, sweating, etc. That's uncomfortable, but won't hurt you at all. You need to do whatever's necessary to stop it.
