At least 415,000 people received treatment and rehabilitation for pain killer abuse or addiction in the past year. Many of the chronic pain patients out there may be seriously under-treated as a result of many doctors who are trying to gain some control over pain killer addiction, it's reported. Opioids used in the way that the doctors have prescribed are not dangerous according to some well-established medical groups, but if that is true then why are so many people addicted to them?

Many people who are addicted to pain killers have assorted symptoms that they may not associate with the drug. Many other medications and hard drugs can interact with the opioids and cause a variety of symptoms and can even be fatal. If you think you might be addicted and want to get off pain killers or any other drugs, the best approach is to get detoxified as fast as you can. Then plan to go through some type of rehabilitation. It's important to have a professional support system and of course family support too.

When you're physically addicted to a drug, such as pain killers, the opioids or alcohol, etc., it's because you've suppressed your body's production of endorphins (endorphins are our natural opiate pain killers). And when this happens you start craving the drug that you replaced the endorphins with whether it's pain killers, opioids, alcohol or any other addicting drug that involves the endorphins.

Some people do exhibit compulsive behavior to satisfy cravings for a particular pain killer or pain medication even when there are negative consequences associated with taking it. The conventional treatment options for pain killer addiction can include medications, such as methadone and LAAM (levo-alpha-acetyl-methadol) along with behavioral counseling. The patient is almost always medically detoxified before any treatment is begun.

One kind of treatment - Ultra-Rapid Opioid Detoxification (UROD) or also called rapid detox or anesthesia detox is a relatively new treatment approach. Rapid detox, rapid opiate detox or anesthesia detox is used for addiction to heroin, prescription painkillers, Oxycontin, Methadone, Vicodin, Darvocet, Percocet, Hydrocodone, etc. The patient is detoxified under anesthesia. It's a fairly quick detox however complications can arise anytime anyone undergoes anesthesia plus there may be other complications from the anesthesia following the treatment. This is only a treatment and not rehabilitation, which must follow it.

After a patient, who is addicted to pain killing drugs, has completed detoxification, the health professional or doctor must work with the patient to determine the best course of treatment. There are a number of effective treatment options to consider to treat pain killer addiction to the prescription opioids and to help manage the possibly severe withdrawal symptoms that can happen when suddenly stopping the pain killers or drugs.

If you're addicted to pain killers or any drug or think you might be, at the very least you can start working to increase the body's production of endorphins naturally. Some of these ways include laughing, watching funny movies, watching the comedy channel, touching, hugging, massage, acupuncture, acupressure, jogging, power walking, hiking and anything that makes you feel really good that is natural. Not enough is known yet how this works for sure but it is well worth a try. Acupressure has been used successfully in England for alcohol and pain killer addiction and also addiction to other drugs however.

Addiction to pain killers is truly a seriously escalating problem today and especially the abuse of opioid pain killers. Patients can innocently start taking pain killers after a moderate or serious injury or because of a severe injury as the result of an automobile accident or fall. Also it can happen when used for post-surgical pain. It's important to note that an opioid-dependent pain patient has improved function while using the drug while an opioid-addicted patient doesn't have any improvement.

Many health insurance plans cover inpatient detox. So if you do have health insurance make sure to check your insurance plan. To get off pain killers you must plan to leave the daily responsibilities of your life for a week or so or suffer the bad health effects from the prolonged drug addiction. There are many pain killer addiction treatment centers and clinics located in the United States, Canada, England, Australia and many other countries.

If you're not covered by health insurance you may want to consider travel to another country for detox and rehabilitation at a much cheaper cost or lower cost than you would in the United States or your home country.

Following detox, taking more time to spend in a treatment center or treatment clinic is of the utmost priority. If for any reason you can't do rehabilitation on an in-patient basis, find out how you can get into out-patient rehab and get it covered by your health insurance plan. Check out your insurance policy carefully to see if it's covered. It's important to note that you may have to make a change in your lifestyle to prevent yourself from taking opiates, pain killers and or any other addicting drugs again.

A pain killer addiction is not a life sentence. Many people have detoxed and rehabilitated themselves successfully. Don't give up. It's important to start as soon as possible though to prevent any long term health consequences from pain killer addiction.