4 reasons to avoid opiate painkillers
Again, I am NOT a physician. This is my layman’s understanding. Do your own research and consult medical professionals before deciding on your approach to pain management.
From talking with many folks who have used opiate-based pain medications, I have identified a few key drawbacks. There are likely more.
- Because they depress the central nervous system, they depress breathing. Less breathing means less oxygen and slower healing. This also explains the unfortunate and not at all uncommon side effect of death. There are less-toxic opiates in the pipeline but none are available yet.
- Their list of side effects include nausea, vomiting, diarrhea and severe constipation. So you’d also be taking other medications to offset those effects. And guess what, those meds also have their own side effects. This concerns me just as much because post-surgery, your body needs to do some energy-intensive repair and rebuilding of tissues. If you have no appetite, how are you going to support that? This is not a theoretical drawback- everyone I talked using opiates experienced low appetite, while without opiates, you are more likely to experience strong hunger associated with all the tissue repair underway.
- Opiates have issues with increasing tolerance. And with the increased dosage, you may experience increased side effects.
- Quitting opiates can be difficult if you are still experiencing discomfort (either from your surgery or from your exercises). Opiates of course also have physically addictive properties.
Instead, you can take advantage of the most potent pharmacy on earth, the one between your ears. Use the Prepare for Surgery, Heal Faster CD to stimulate your immune system and reduce your pain from within.
That said, your pain needs to be managed. Period. If your pain is not managed (making it difficult to sit, lay or sleep), speak with your physician or nurse and discuss your options.