lower back pain and pain reliever usage

[anndelise]

Normally I avoid medications such as pain relievers, the only time i take ibuprofin is when i've got a headache that's so bad I can't even lift my head.

But currently I can't seem to handle the lower back pain anymore.
I've always had problems with my lower back...(since i was 18). But it's been especially aggravated as I've tried to reduce my weight, walk, simple exercises/stretches, etc. I'm frustrated because I'm trying to improve the muscles and such around my lower back, but I can't do even the simple ones due to the pain.

So my question is, what are the negatives of using say, one pill a day (mornings) of the Exedrin Back & Body for a couple of weeks while I work on strengthening and stretching that lower back (and reducing weight, obviously)?

[Mea]

Why does your lower back hurt? Have you seen a doctor or something? I mean... If it's that bad, shouldn't you get some professional advice or something?

[Blaze]

seems like ibuprofen works better for pain that is caused by inflammation in my experience. but hey i'm not a doctor, i'm a social worker, jim.

yoga helps back pain a lot if you ease into a restorative practice.

[tiny_dancer]

Yeah, I started going to a yoga studio and my back pain from sitting in a desk chair all day significantly improved. You'd have to go to a good studio, though. Iyengar as a variety is good b/c it uses supports and props to keep you from overextending yourself in the beginning, and it focuses on correct alignment so you don't inadvertently screw yourself up. But of course all that depends on how severe your problem is. Sounds like you'd need someone pretty experienced in a physical therapy sort of way. A good instructor would work with your ability level and keep you from killing yourself. Might be worth checking out...

[anndelise]

Why does your lower back hurt? Have you seen a doctor or something? I mean... If it's that bad, shouldn't you get some professional advice or something?

The initial cause: Back when i was a senior in highschool I was finishing school and had two jobs. School and one job was on one side of the city (opposite side of my apartment), second job was closer to my apartment. The only transportation I had was a small bicycle (a mongoose). After a number of months of riding this, my lower back began giving me problems. I did see a chiropractor who was concerned that I'd done as much damage as I'd done in such a short time...and at such a young age. I couldn't afford to continue seeing him, however. Nor could I afford to not finish high school, nor quit either of the jobs. (ok, i guess quitting one or both could have been an option...but in my mind, it wasn't an option at all, for various reasons) Towards the end of the school year, I was finally able to get a ride by someone who lived in the area and worked for a different school, but he was willing to do the extra few miles to get me to my school. I still had to ride my bike home, though. Anyways, after school ended, I didn't need the bike anymore, and so my back began to get better.

However, it does go through varying cycles of pinching nerves and such. At two points it had me on cruches because I couldn't move my legs if I was standing, but could move them if I was sitting. Hence how we know that it's pinching nerves. A couple of years later I worked for a chiropractor who worked on my back twice a week. He's the one who explained to me what was happening and that it would sort of be a cyclical thing.

Generally it's been livable, annoying, but not an all the time kind of thing.
Until this recent summer when I decided that it was finally time to reduce the weight and get healthy again. All I did exercise-wise was walking...trying to slowly get back into the habit of being active again. However, due to not only the one issue above, but also due to now weakened muscles from lack of exercise, and the excess weight providing pressure in unnatural ways, it's quite aggravated. Laying on my stomach while being on the computer as much as i was last year didn't help the posture any either, and contributed as well.

So really, I know why it's all there (well, mostly) and I've a good idea of how to help better parts of it (posture, strengthening, etc)...but in order to do that, I need to get past the pain. And it seems I've reached my limit of how much pain I'm willing to take.

As for why I don't see a dr about it, is cuz i don't like my dr one bit. And because of my insurance, it's near impossible to switch to a different dr. Another reason is because my father had back problems (well, still has, he's near wheel-chair bound now from it), but he never did anything to make it better. He did pop pills left and right, he used it as an excuse for all sorts of things, he did have surgery at least twice on it, which altered nothing pain-wise, he never tried to reduce his weight, never tried to strengthen it, etc. And I don't want to fall into that trap.

So I'm hoping that using an over the counter pill on an as needed basis while I work on making it better will work, but i'm only sorta aware of how the whole physical addiction thing works, and I don't know if there's other possible complications I should be aware of (like do these kinds of pills cause stomach ulcers or liver damage or whatever).

There's a couple of people on this forum who have either knowledge of pill side effects and what to watch out for, or due to their fitness focus may be able to offer alternatives I hadn't thought of.

[discojoe]

Chiropractic has been shown to be most helpful with lower back pain. Ask around if anyone you know knows of a good chiropractor. It's a good way to treat low back pain without taking medicine.

[Joy]

I like naproxen. And Lyrica. And acetaminophen. And icy hot.

This is the best though.

[anndelise]

yep, yoga's one of the things I've been looking into and considering
i admit to being scared because of a semi-related experience when i went to a martial arts class a few years back, we were doing the beginning stretches, and while I'm able to stand and bend over and touch the ground, sitting on the ground and reaching my toes was more difficult. So while I was stretching for my toes, and trying to relax my back muscles to allow me to go further, the instructor came up and actually sat on my back to get my stretch to go deeper. Needless to say, I never went back and refused to pay him despite the contract I had signed.

so while i know that these are two different disciplines, the fear is still there
I did pick up a couple of beginner yoga books that were aimed for absolute beginners (preparation and beginner stuff). Some of them I can do when the pain's not so much. My hope is that if I can get through the preparation stuff and some of the beginner stuff, then I'll be ready for an ongoing beginner's classs.

[Kristiina]

I do relate. Any full-body exercise seems better than specific exercise. Aerobics sucks, but it's good for my back.

[anndelise]

Chiropractic has been shown to be most helpful with lower back pain. Ask around if anyone you know knows of a good chiropractor. It's a good way to treat low back pain without taking medicine.

I'd love to see a chiropractor again, but I can in no way afford it...neither the chiropractor fees, nor the gas for the minimum 3x/week visits they keep insisting on.

(however, once richard and i marry, his insurance will cover it)

[Joy]

Chiropractic has been shown to be most helpful with lower back pain. Ask around if anyone you know knows of a good chiropractor. It's a good way to treat low back pain without taking medicine.

I'd love to see a chiropractor again, but I can in no way afford it...neither the chiropractor fees, nor the gas for the minimum 3x/week visits they keep insisting on.

(however, once richard and i marry, his insurance will cover it)

So marry him?

Why do they want to see you so often?

[anndelise]

I like naproxen. And Lyrica. And acetaminophen. And icy hot.

This is the best though.

i'll look up naproxen and lyrica (lol, but the names alone scare me)
acetaminophen i used to use for headaches but ibuprofen worked better for me
i've never taken anything specifically for the back before
and yes, icy hot at night!!!!

as for the symptom checker thing, if you go to the lowerback/buttock/upper leg section, and go to the Piriformis picture, and then look at where the top of her panties are covering, and follow it down to include the tail bone, that whole area is where it hurts all the time. It's not really covered in that site (i had checked there once before when you linked to it in another thread).

[anndelise]

Chiropractic has been shown to be most helpful with lower back pain. Ask around if anyone you know knows of a good chiropractor. It's a good way to treat low back pain without taking medicine.

I'd love to see a chiropractor again, but I can in no way afford it...neither the chiropractor fees, nor the gas for the minimum 3x/week visits they keep insisting on.

(however, once richard and i marry, his insurance will cover it)

So marry him?

Why do they want to see you so often?

because if they only saw me once a week, it would be like, adjust the back, then it's got a whole week to go back to it's previous hold. even twice a week wouldn't be able to prevent that return. (something about where/how the muscles are tightened/loosened, etc..and something else regarding the alignment) 5 of the one's i've checked out each suggest a minimum of 5 days a week minimum, initially. then after a few weeks it could be dropped to 3 times a week...etc.

(it'll be at least another year before Richard and I can marry, I'm not willing to wait that long before I can start reducing my weight and regaining some symblance of fitness)

[anndelise]

I do relate. Any full-body exercise seems better than specific exercise. Aerobics sucks, but it's good for my back.

imo, full-body exercises are the only way to go. currently i'm doing the mere basics: modified pushups (knees), planks (to develop the arm strength, wrist strength, and core control), modified pullups, not-full-squats, and a set of 3 ab exercises that are NOT sit-up related. I'm more focused on strength and flexibility than aerobics at this time. But aerobics are mostly walking with some dancing and hula-hooping thrown in. (can't get back into the hooping..nor dancing...*sigh*..nor walking..until i get the something done with the back....though i'm at least able to do the strength stuff). Flexibility is from prepatory stuff for taichi exercises. These have always been nice and felt good, I'm just piss-poor at maintaining....(I get distracted too easily...lol)

about the only specific stuff is the lower back stretches

What kinds of full-body exercises do you do? What type of aerobics?

[implied]

2nding all the yoga suggestions here (of course with the disclaimer that i am totally not a doctor.) it's a bit like having a full body massage minus the stranger putting their hands on you! i've forced myself to start doing it because computer jobs turn you into a total mess, esp wrt back pain and various office worker complaints. agree with folks who say to ease into it.

[Joy]

acetaminophen i used to use for headaches but ibuprofen worked better for me

me too, but you can't take ibuprofen with naproxin

Chiropractic has been shown to be most helpful with lower back pain. Ask around if anyone you know knows of a good chiropractor. It's a good way to treat low back pain without taking medicine.

I'd love to see a chiropractor again, but I can in no way afford it...neither the chiropractor fees, nor the gas for the minimum 3x/week visits they keep insisting on.

(however, once richard and i marry, his insurance will cover it)

So marry him?

Why do they want to see you so often?

because if they only saw me once a week, it would be like, adjust the back, then it's got a whole week to go back to it's previous hold. even twice a week wouldn't be able to prevent that return. (something about where/how the muscles are tightened/loosened, etc..and something else regarding the alignment) 5 of the one's i've checked out each suggest a minimum of 5 days a week minimum, initially. then after a few weeks it could be dropped to 3 times a week...etc.

(it'll be at least another year before Richard and I can marry, I'm not willing to wait that long before I can start reducing my weight and regaining some symblance of fitness)

A lot of chiropractors try to get people to come in as much as possible and keep coming in regularly. It sounds like your condition is pretty bad though. Did they tell you what the cause was? Or what type of condition is causing the pain?

[anndelise]

A lot of chiropractors try to get people to come in as much as possible and keep coming in regularly. It sounds like your condition is pretty bad though. Did they tell you what the cause was? Or what type of condition is causing the pain?

lol yeah, and some even do some really weird stuff
like one guy insisted on pretending to play doctor by having you put on one of those paper shirt thingies like they use in hospitals or when getting your breast exams...and then hooking you up to some vibrator/heat combo machine. (that was when I actually had an insurance that would cover a couple of visits) needless to say i never went back to THAT one either

the chiropractor i had worked for had insisted on seeing me for 6 days a week, actually, then after about 3 weeks we went down to four, stayed at 3 days a week for up until his wife (the office manager) and i had our tiff and i was no longer employed with them....but he was willing to work out some kind of drastically lowered payment plan so that i could continue seeing him. (for the cost of one normal visit, i got to see him for 3 visits a week...his wife was pissed...lol) (no, it had nothing to do with jealousy/fear...but all to do with money)

so when other chiropractor's i've looked into suggested 3-5 days a week initially, i don't blink an eye. if one was willing to lose money to help me, then i figure it's needed.

[UDP]

Yoga, and, get your significant other to learn how to do massages.

If you are a woman, and your significant other is a male, and he is very averse to giving you massages, then he is a horrible excuse for a man.

[XoX]

If you are a woman, and your significant other is a male, and he is very averse to giving you massages, then he is a horrible excuse for a man.

I hate giving massages. Except on strangers.

[tiny_dancer]

Yeah, have you considered seeing a massage therapist instead of a chiropractor? It sounds like your muscles are so tight they might be pulling everything out of whack. My ENTp friend got her doctor to send her to one of those b/c she had muscles in her back that were totally fused together, and she had back spasms that put her in bed for days. It sounded like the person she saw was a physical therapist specializing in massage. Had to have a prescription to see her. She's gone to several sessions, but I think things are improving for her.

[Wittmont]

Do the plank pose every day if you can. Great for the lower back muscles, and shouldn't pinch any nerves hopefully. The pain is there for a reason, you risk doing damage to your muscles if you don't feel when you are overstretching them. I don't think training while on painkillers is to be recommended.

[Animal]

This may sound odd, but I recommend Pilates. A lot of lower back pain is due to poor alignment/weakness in the abs so you end up compensating by thrusting the weight onto the lower back or collapsing/arching the spine. This sounds like what may have happened to you on the bicycle. There's a few good books out there on the subject, or you might just try a class or private session (they're relatively cheap now - at least more so than they used to be - but make sure to find a good teacher). My favorite exercises are the Hundred, the Roll-Up, and the Criss-cross. Really, any exercise that targets the core (all the ab muscles and the lower back) should help.

An alternative would be Alexander Technique which focuses on decompressing the joints and releasing the muscles.

[anndelise]

tiny_dancer: a massage therapist sounds awesome, I'll have to check if my insurance will cover that. I'm on disability (for other reasons) and thus am limited to state-aid and medicaid, which limits what is allowed for. There is supposed to be allowances for these kinds of things, however, the majority of chiropractors at least won't even consider accepting that insurance, And ones who do..it seems like the clients become guinea pigs (this is AFTER all the hoop jumping and paperwork and back and forth crap). I'll have to check into the massage thing though, maybe , just maybe. Meanwhile, I do remind myself to relax my muscles constantly throughout the day, lol.


Wittmont: I do do the plank pose, full arms, not bended arms (that one seems harder!!) the only other exercises I do are pushups from the knees (until I can develop some arm strength)..but this also works the core muscles similar to the plank, the modified pullups are from lying on the ground pulling myself up with a rope (so my arms, wrists, and shoulder can move into a good position), this requires me to keep my lower body and torso aligned as I'm pulling up..so builds the muscles like the plank does…only slightly different. And then the squats which I'm careful regarding back, hip, and knee alignments. Admittedly some of the flexibility stretches and the three ab exercises require standing and some bending. But I go slow and not willing to push on those.

But I do totally understand what you're saying regarding training while on painkillers. And, to show how much of a hypocrite I am, when I had first accidently seen a commercial video for the Exedrin thing, they showed a guy running along a trail, and running under water across a river, etc… doing a full heavy workout. I was in shock because that seems like the stupidest idea ever. I've always believed that the pain is there for a reason, as a reminder and a preventer. But somehow I've rationalized the idea of taking half a pill a day or so in order to do some gentle stuff that will help it in the long run…without sending me to bed in pain (because being bedridden doesn't help reduce weight nor get good posture nor stronger muscles). No, it's not recommended, but I admit to being desperate enough to be willfully stupid. Feel completely free to say "I told you so" down the road if I bitch and complain down the road.


Baby: I haven't yet found a decent Pilates book. Any recommendations?

[Animal]

Yeah, there are a few good ones:
Pilates by Rael Isacowitz is amazingly thorough - lots of pictures, and the introduction is probably the most informative and representative of Pilates' original system I've seen. The most popular seems to be The Pilates Body by Brooke Silver <- probably more user-friendly; it's a leaner book with more basic instructions. My favorite is actually The Complete Book of Pilates for Men by Daniel Lyons, because it has such awesome and helpful illustrations and it also modifies the exercises that usually require an apparatus (Pilates came up with some freaky-looking machines) so that they can be done with just a mat; it's aimed at men, but there's very little that can't be used by women in it. Of those three, I'd say the Silver book is probably your best bet, though.

As for yoga, here is a list of asanas that Yoga Journal recommends for back pain: http://www.yogajournal.com/poses/fin...us/t_back_pain <- my favorites are Setu Bandha Sarvangasana (The Bridge), Adho Mukha Svanasana (Downward Dog), and Balasana (Child Pose <- it's not listed on that page, but you can find it here). The last one, especially, is amazingly soothing. When I did it for the first time in a long while, I almost broke down crying because I could feel a year's worth of lower back tension decompressing (although you might want to begin with Bridge pose and then move into Child's to really feel the effect).

[Wittmont]

Cheers for the links Baby very interesting. I don't have vast experience of yoga but I found a variation of the child pose great for the lower back; you sit with your legs bent in front of you (I'm too stiff to sit in the lotus heh) and straighten your spine before you bend forward like in the child pose. I've had some lowerback/piriformis problems too and that one has been good for those. Have to try out the Child pose too.

Anndelise: Use a tennisball to get at those sore points in your lower back/hips. Simple but very effective. It is important that you get the blood flowing through the muscles for them to get better.

[XoX]

It is very hard to say anything about using pills without knowing your exact condition. Basically I say no to pills. Then again there are situations where they are useful e.g. muscle relaxants can be useful in cases where your muscles are unnaturally tense and affect your posture in a damaging way.

Generally walking is good as long as it doesn't hurt (too much). Body weight training is good. All kinds of little movements which stretch and train your middle body muscles are good (front, back, sides). Stretching is very important. Cut down carbs considerably and you lose weight. After couple of months you should see good improvement in your health. After a year you should be in good condition (assuming you manage to lose enough weight). It might take up to two years to reach your optimal level of health.

Oh and pay good attention to sitting. Don't sit in positions or chairs which are damaging. Actually don't sit at all if possible.

[discojoe]

What is this aversion people have to pills? If you're hurting, take some fucking pills.

[FDG]

What is this aversion people have to pills? If you're hurting, take some fucking pills.

Exactly. As long as you don't get addicted to painkillers, there is really nothing wrong with the usage of artificial pain relief, since it has always been a remedy.

[discojoe]

What is this aversion people have to pills? If you're hurting, take some fucking pills.

Exactly. As long as you don't get addicted to painkillers, there is really nothing wrong with the usage of artificial pain relief, since it has always been a remedy.

Yeah, people have been taking aspirin (willow bark) for hundreds of years.

EDIT: And by "hundreds" I mean "thousands".

[Khamelion]

TAKE DA PILLZ

[anndelise]

What is this aversion people have to pills? If you're hurting, take some fucking pills.

Exactly. As long as you don't get addicted to painkillers, there is really nothing wrong with the usage of artificial pain relief, since it has always been a remedy.

the problem with taking painkillers is that the more you take them, the more sensitized you become to pain, which means the more often you need painkillers and/or the more painful even a minor ache can feel. Not to mention the issues with side-effects.

I've seen people popping pills left and right for every little minor ache.
I've seen people having to take pills to cover up the damage those previous pills did.
And then yet more pills to cover up the damage/side effects of those other pills.
It can very easily turn into a never ending cycle.
Plus, it removes you from being in touch with your body's signals.
There IS a reason for the ache. There IS a reason for the swelling.
My opinion is pretty much that if you are going to take pills for ANYthing, whether physical or psychological, then don't do so with the intention of staying on the pills....do so with the intention of fixing/altering what forced you to take the pills in the first place. Use meds as a temporary aide....not as a permanent crutch.


An example, Richard purchased the exedrin painblockers for me. The recommended dosage is two pills every 6 hours. I took one pill. It began creating effects almost immediately, but not necessarily for the pain..that took a wee bit longer. The side effects were quite strong, and lasted quite a while. Enough so that I'll cut the next one in half and only take that half. Also, it's now been about 17 hours now, and I haven't felt the pain return yet. Well, little twinges, but nothing that's stopping me.

However, I found it interesting that instead of just all around pain, I could actually feel where my muscles were tightening and which movements seemed to be causing the most stiffness, etc. This is information I can use as I'm trying to fix my back as much as I can. Knowing where a twinge of pain starts and where it shoots to, etc, can help me as well. I'd not give up that information easily (unless I had other things I just had to focus on).

On the other hand, I'm going to have to keep these pills away from richard because he's the type to pop in 4 pills in his mouth at a time without a moment's thought....regardless of whether it's a minor ache or a serious pain.

[Animal]

Cheers for the links Baby very interesting. I don't have vast experience of yoga but I found a variation of the child pose great for the lower back; you sit with your legs bent in front of you (I'm too stiff to sit in the lotus heh) and straighten your spine before you bend forward like in the child pose. I've had some lowerback/piriformis problems too and that one has been good for those. Have to try out the Child pose too.

Anndelise: Use a tennisball to get at those sore points in your lower back/hips. Simple but very effective. It is important that you get the blood flowing through the muscles for them to get better.

You're welcome. Yeah, I can't actually do lotus either for more than three seconds without getting a cramp somewhere, . That tennisball idea sounds like it would feel great.

@ann: So long as you're avoiding painkillers, you could actually try boosting up the amount of anti-inflammatory foods in your diet and see if that makes a difference. A lot of the time, when I'm sick and have aches, I use ginger which seems to work in some odd way. Here's what the MAteljan people have to say: http://www.worldshealthiestfoods.org...eorge&dbid=163 <- So it looks like Omega-3s and other healthy fats and deep-colored fruits and vegetables. Also, they say to avoid refined starches, but we know that already.

(PS. I'm sorry for suddenly turning into an annoying Si-type.)

[discojoe]

Well, sometimes pain occurs without any clear cause, (I forget the medical term for a symptom without clear cause) and in this case it's fine to take aspirin, etc., without planning on a differential diagnosis. I agree, however, that chronic pain has a root cause that should be addressed by a doctor, but I still believe medicine which alleviates pain symptoms should be administered when pain reaches sufficient levels, as decided by the patient.

[XoX]

What is this aversion people have to pills? If you're hurting, take some fucking pills.

I'm mainly concerned about the side effects. Most notably the risk for serious stomach problems in long term use of many pain killers (also liver problems). Then pain killers can cause asthmatic symptoms and such for people with allergies. Pain killers can also react strongly with many other substances (like alcohol) increasing the side effect symptoms. Then of course you can do things which harm you because the level of pain you feel is lower than it should be.

Personally I take pain killers (mostly ibuprofen or paracetamol) very rarely but I do take them for occasional headaches as headaches are such killers that I can't stand them. I also use them for lowering body temperature when the temperature goes above a level which starts to be harmful to body (around 38.5 degrees celcius).

Edit:
Another scenario in which I would use painkillers is if the pain is such that it prevents me from sleeping. Sleep is important for staying healthy and thus it is worth taking pain killers in this scenario.

[implied]

What is this aversion people have to pills? If you're hurting, take some fucking pills.

Exactly. As long as you don't get addicted to painkillers, there is really nothing wrong with the usage of artificial pain relief, since it has always been a remedy.

the problem with taking painkillers is that the more you take them, the more sensitized you become to pain, which means the more often you need painkillers and/or the more painful even a minor ache can feel. Not to mention the issues with side-effects.

I've seen people popping pills left and right for every little minor ache.
I've seen people having to take pills to cover up the damage those previous pills did.
And then yet more pills to cover up the damage/side effects of those other pills.
It can very easily turn into a never ending cycle.
Plus, it removes you from being in touch with your body's signals.
There IS a reason for the ache. There IS a reason for the swelling.
My opinion is pretty much that if you are going to take pills for ANYthing, whether physical or psychological, then don't do so with the intention of staying on the pills....do so with the intention of fixing/altering what forced you to take the pills in the first place. Use meds as a temporary aide....not as a permanent crutch.


An example, Richard purchased the exedrin painblockers for me. The recommended dosage is two pills every 6 hours. I took one pill. It began creating effects almost immediately, but not necessarily for the pain..that took a wee bit longer. The side effects were quite strong, and lasted quite a while. Enough so that I'll cut the next one in half and only take that half. Also, it's now been about 17 hours now, and I haven't felt the pain return yet. Well, little twinges, but nothing that's stopping me.

However, I found it interesting that instead of just all around pain, I could actually feel where my muscles were tightening and which movements seemed to be causing the most stiffness, etc. This is information I can use as I'm trying to fix my back as much as I can. Knowing where a twinge of pain starts and where it shoots to, etc, can help me as well. I'd not give up that information easily (unless I had other things I just had to focus on).

On the other hand, I'm going to have to keep these pills away from richard because he's the type to pop in 4 pills in his mouth at a time without a moment's thought....regardless of whether it's a minor ache or a serious pain.

aaah, ann just took the words from my mouth. i was about to go off on a long rant about how my father sees people who have become basically completely desensitized to anything like ibuprofen due to going straight to the heavy duty pain pills as opposed to trying other therapies or trying to fix the source of the pain. granted i think i used to feel more like dj/fdg about the subject. i'm definitely not advocating being paranoid about taking pills when you need them, though. fdg, the whole "pain pills are okay" argument depends on how likely/unlikely the person is to getting addicted. some people can responsibly take prescribed medicine, some people have a really REALLY low threshold for this. the other issue is that some people develop tolerance to these pain pills very quickly. it's not cool if you're so accustomed to heavy duty pain pills that a novacaine shot at the dentist won't numb your mouth enough to get a filling.

[UDP]

People need to learn how to take care of themselves better.
What about a couple mini-training course on how to give each other massages?
Check it out.

My girl is getting as many massages as she wants

[FDG]

aaah, ann just took the words from my mouth. i was about to go off on a long rant about how my father sees people who have become basically completely desensitized to anything like ibuprofen due to going straight to the heavy duty pain pills as opposed to trying other therapies or trying to fix the source of the pain. granted i think i used to feel more like dj/fdg about the subject. i'm definitely not advocating being paranoid about taking pills when you need them, though. fdg, the whole "pain pills are okay" argument depends on how likely/unlikely the person is to getting addicted. some people can responsibly take prescribed medicine, some people have a really REALLY low threshold for this. the other issue is that some people develop tolerance to these pain pills very quickly. it's not cool if you're so accustomed to heavy duty pain pills that a novacaine shot at the dentist won't numb your mouth enough to get a filling.

Yes, yes, I agree with everything. To clarify, I meant to say: pills are okay if they are used to treat an acute phase of a disease which is bound to pass in 2-3 days. In this case, there is no reason to stand the pain.

However, if the problem stems from a chronic health issues, painkillers should be avoided because the root of the problem implies their long-term usage, which is not good.

What I have often found, is that women are at higher risk of developing those addictions mostly because of their monthly menstrual pain. So I understand perfectly how a male perspective might not be applicable to a woman.

[Slacker]

If I'm in pain, I'm taking a pill. Why on earth should I suffer?

Also, you can't get addicted to something by taking it once a month, so I don't think women's menstruation is making us addicts.

I get migraine headaches every month. I was taking Imitrex, which I love, but I'm trying (unsuccessfully) to get pregnant and you can't use Imitrex if you're trying to get pregnant. So the doctor gave me something safe for pregnancy but addictive. She said not to worry about it being addictive if I'm only taking it when I get headaches. She said, "If you generally just get headaches with PMS, then for the most part you're taking this once a month. You won't get addicted to something you take one time a month."

I've never been addicted to anything. Well, except maybe caffeine. I only half about a cup of coffee each day though so I don't consider that to be a serious addiction.