When you feel like someone is hammering your skull, the pain can distract you and completely kill your productivity. So you took Advil and before you knew it the pain was gone!
That’s the beauty of pain relievers. They stop the pain so you can go on with your day.
Unfortunately, pain relievers do not come without their fair share of risks. This article explains how pain relievers work and discusses the long-term effects they can have on the body.
HOW DO PAIN RELIEVERS WORK?
Let’s go back to the headache example. After removing the cap from your Advil bottle, pick up the pill and drink a glass of water. Then place the pill in the back of your mouth, take a sip of water, and swallow. We all know that Advil works for headaches, but do you know what Advil actually does to get rid of headaches?
All the reasons we feel pain are due to the way our bodies communicate with our brains. When we are in pain, the central nervous system sends signals to opiate receptors in the brain. These signals help us perceive discomfort.
But when a person takes painkillers, the medicine does two things next to him.
First, the central nervous system is suppressed, making it harder for pain signals to reach the brain. Second, it blocks pain signals from the body by binding to opiate receptors. Painkillers can also help you feel relaxed and euphoric, and prevent you from feeling the pain you felt before.
Potent pain relievers like OxyContin and illicit opioids like heroin do exactly the same thing, but in a much more potent way and can quickly lead to abuse and addiction.
LONG-TERM EFFECTS OF ABUSE OF PAINKILLERS ON THE BODY
Taking pain relievers like OxyContin for longer or more often than necessary can prevent your body from relieving pain on its own. These drugs trick your brain into needing a pain reliever to feel better and reduce the body’s ability to produce its own “feel good” chemicals and endorphins. The constant intake of this pain reliever also puts a lot of strain on the central nervous system. We’ve already mentioned that opioid pain relievers work by depressing the central nervous system to block pain, but too much can slow your breathing significantly, slow your physical reactions, and make you slurred.
The effects of pain relievers are not limited to the central nervous system or the body’s natural ability to relieve pain. In fact, addiction to painkillers can have ripple effects throughout the body.
Your liver
Your liver is what processes and breaks down the drugs you intake. When you abuse pain relievers, your liver stores toxins from those drugs, leading to dangerous and life-threatening liver damage.
Your heart
Some people crush or inject pain relievers directly into the body and feel the effects immediately. However, this allows the drug to enter the bloodstream directly, affecting the heart. Long-term abuse of pain relievers can lead to serious cardiovascular problems, heart attacks, and heart disease.
Your belly
After taking painkillers for a day or two, he may also develop stomach and bowel problems. Abuse of pain relievers can lead to constipation, bloating, bowel obstruction, and hemorrhoids.
Your veins
Injecting painkillers always carries a high risk, especially if needles are shared or not sterile. Injecting drugs, such as opioid pain relievers, can cause veins to collapse and can lead to blood-borne infections and illnesses.
Once addicted to painkillers, there is no escape without rehabilitation. Withdrawal symptoms don’t last forever, but they can include nausea, vomiting, insomnia, muscle pain, restlessness, and anxiety. Overdose is common when trying to relieve withdrawal symptoms. So, if you or a loved one is suffering from painkiller addiction, it’s important to get treatment right away.
If you are suffering from the negative effects of painkillers and are seeking quality treatment visit Specialty Care Clinics in Texas.