There is a euphoria before you get to that point which people chase. The hardest part about coming off is trying to sleep. You wake up and your entire body feels like it has "restless leg". Nerve ending firing everywhere.

i see what you did there ;)

Correct!

When I've taken oxycodone, I've never understood why people take it recreationally. I don't get any of what you describe. Other than a slight spaceiness, it mostly makes it so I can't sleep (or shit). I try to avoid it, though it is one of the few things that will help with the killer headaches I get sometimes.

We the people... are heavily medicated.

Well over the majority of the population takes at least one rx drug, and I think I saw at least 40% of the US population is on 3 prescribed drugs. Big pharmaceutical is your suburban, middle class and up drug pusher. Not to discount their actual beneficial uses, it's just our society is lazy, overworked, or what not and taking a pill seems to be the preferred solution. Lack of access to therapy, and behavior modification due to insurance steep decline in coverage for mental health as well as state and federal funding for these programs has driven the use of prescription drugs way up since the 80's.

Plus, people like to use it recreationally.

Contrary to what has been posted here, doctors don't make any money handing these out. There are nerve conditions I deal with several times a year that don't respond to any treatment or therapy. I usually refer the patient to a "pain treatment center" for things like trigeminal neuralgia. Unfortunately, for some of these people, and others, with ailments like back injuries, surgery or physical therapy isn't effective. In those cases, yes, hydrocodone is often prescribed over and over.

It's really no different than any other med, say, cholesterol meds in a person with genetically high LDH and triglycerides. They have to take it or they will likely die.

I don't get any "kickback" as some of my buddies razz me about, from any drug companies. Once in a while I'll get a coffee mug, or some pens. thats about it.

"pretty much"...heh

My dad was a dentist, and he was very old school in that many of his patients had his home phone number and knew him personally.

Anyway, we'd get several calls a month of people with "horrible tooth aches" wanting him to write them a scrip. His solution was always to tell them to "come on out to the clinic right now, and I'll fix your tooth for you" (his clinic was right next to our house). That usually separated the people with real issues from the scrip hounds. Of course, he also ended up actually having to go next door and fix people's teeth on occasion at all hours of the night.

To tooge: You also receive Einstein bagels and Panera breads?

What's life without the occasional crack binge?

I'll be dancing with these ****ing things quite a bit over the next couple of months, I'm afraid. I have a meniscus tear in my left knee that's probably going to require surgery - initial consultation with the joint specialist is next week. I've already been prescribed codeine, but I only take them sparingly.

Oh, and so much for that Maine vacation I had planned for later in the month.

:cuss:

I have no way of knowing.

Weirdest thing......morphine does jack shit for me.

Nutup you pansy. A meniscal repair is nothing. Unless they are doing micro-fracture surgery you can walk on it after a couple of days.

You may want to put this in your prayer thread.