Living with an Ostomy

Perscription Drug Addiction. Good or Bad?

Living with Crohns, been in pain and hospital so long I ended up developing a prescription drug addiction. This kind of drug addiction is not necessarily a bad thing, having these drugs saved my life.

Lying in a hospital bed for an undetermined amount of time, with tubes out of every hole in your body, the only thing you can do is breath, knowing every 4 hours you get high is what keeps you going.

Having not taken any prescription pain medication before, my addiction to morphine was immediate and fierce. Morphine is such a intense drug that at first injection it creates sever abdomen pain, followed by the best high, that even today after so many years I get excited when I am in pain.

It is easy for outsiders to judge this addiction and many of my nurses did. Even though the patient was not the one to create the addiction, as for me I never asked for morphine I woke up with it in my line after surgery. 

How ever I was addicted to it. One day a few months into my morphine every 4 hours it did not come.  I rang the nurse and she came in and told me that I did not need it any more and that I was to have two Tylenol instead. Well this was quite a shock to my mind never mind my body. The next two days were the worst ever.

Here I was in the hospital now 4 months, a hole in my stomach, still in real pain and going through one of the strongest drug with draws out there.  Chills then sweats every few hours.  The foam on my bed was so soaked that when I went to the chills I had to physically move to one side, saving one side for chills and one side for sweats.  I swore I would never take it again because of the withdrawal.

Finally my Dr came in and I was given Demerol. This is the drug of choice as you still get high but not so extreme, with no initial pain, and the withdrawal is like a mild cold. 

It is important that we do have these drugs and I am one for allowing everyone to have as much as one needs, to physically and mentally deal with life after Ostomy surgery. It took me 10 years to wean my self off of the desire to need to get high, but I did it and if I did not have access to these drugs I don’t think I would have made it.

Remember to be honest with your self about what you are doing and what your goals are in talking back your life around addiction.  You can do it, if you think you might need help there are great programs, ask your ET nurse, she understands.

“We also have a place in our forum were you can ask and share stories inregards to Drugs.”

http://ostomy-medical-supplies.com/forum/viewforum.php?f=4

Love Love Sheri