Risks and Rewards of Using Opioids for Chronic Pain Relief
Are opioids safe for treating chronic pain? The pain relief experts at Valley Medical and Wellness say yes, if used properly.
Call us today at 612-444-3000 to schedule an appointment!
Pain is one of those things that we can’t wait to get rid of. No matter where the pain is coming from, it interferes with everything good in life, limits our activities, and makes us feel ill. For severe pain that cannot be relieved by over-the-counter pain relievers, doctors may sometimes have to prescribe a stronger alternative in the form of narcotics or opioids.
Opioids are effective in treating severe, persistent, and chronic pain. Opioids are prescription drugs, which means that you cannot purchase them without presenting a prescription form signed by a licensed physician.
There was a remarkable increase in the prescription of opioids to treat chronic pain from 1999 to 2015. However, this surge came with the rise in the number of opioid misuse and overdose cases, prompting the Department of Health and Human Services to announce an opioid crisis in 2017.
Opioids work by attaching themselves to opioid receptors in the brain and other areas of the body, blocking the body’s pain signals from being sent to the brain. Since they mask pain, many patients find relief after taking the drug.
Doctors in Valley Medical Pain Clinic in Minneapolis agree that if opioids are taken in prescribed dose and as instructed, it can help patients who have been suffering from severe and chronic pain. When used for a long time to manage long-term pain, however, patients are at risk of developing an opioid addiction. This is why opioids are best taken only under the strict supervision of a doctor.
Opioids can be highly addictive and using them for a long time can have the following side effects:
According to experts in addiction treatment in Minneapolis, patients who cut off opioid use abruptly may also manifest withdrawal symptoms such as cravings, vomiting, tremors, insomnia, restlessness, anxiety, and abdominal pain. Before patients can stop taking opioids completely, they should taper down their intake first with the help of a doctor.
If your body has been reliant on opioids to block pain signals, it can develop a tolerance for the drug, so that the same dose will not be as effective as it was before. Patients would then need to take a higher dose of opioids to achieve the same anesthetic effect. This process can lead to opioid addiction.
Aside from opioids, there are other safer yet effective ways to manage chronic pain. Our experts in pain management use specialized methods to assess the source of your pain before devising a treatment plan suited to your needs.
If you've been dealing with the effects of opioid addiction or if you know someone who is struggling with this condition, it is best to consider a trusted provider of opioid addiction treatment in Minneapolis.
Our friendly and experienced addiction treatment experts will guide you on your road to recovery. We have clinics in five convenient locations to serve you better. Our clinics are located in Burnsville, Minneapolis, Woodbury, Rochester, and Bemidji. To learn more, call us at (612) 444-3000.
