The recent news stories regarding Purdue Pharma misleading the public about the potential for OxyContin addiction has probably left tens of thousands of people wondering if they are addicted to OxyContin or in danger of becoming so. For some, the possibility might not be easy to face. Most of you are fine, upstanding people who wouldn't even consider taking drugs under non-medical circumstances, never mind actually get yourself into the position of having to worry about OxyContin addiction, or addiction to any other drug for that matter.
Nevertheless, if you've been taking OxyContin for a while, it is possible that you are addicted or, at least, physically dependent. And you may need outside help to resolve the problem. How do you know if you have a problem with OxyContin addiction or dependency?
Taking OxyContin changes the way the body works. Without going into detail, understand this - if you try to stop taking OxyContin and have any symptoms other than the pain you're taking the drug to relieve, you should look into the possibility of going through a medically-supervised OxyContin detox. While those symptoms are not necessarily an indication of addiction, they do mean you are probably physically dependent.
Determining whether or not you are addicted is a little more complex. However, if you have an urge to take the drug even when you're not in pain, or if you're fighting the urge to take it, or the idea of life without OxyContin is somewhat unbearable, there's a good possibility you have an addiction problem.
By the way, this is not an assessment you should make while you're taking the drug. When you're addicted to a drug, and you're currently taking it, frankly, just about anything looks possible. Just like smokers or drinkers who say they can quit anytime, the story changes when they've gone for a while without having a cigarette or a drink and the urge sets in.
If someone agrees that they shouldn't drink or smoke so much, and has said they can quit anytime, and then they give in to that urge even with logical excuses - "it's just one drink", "I don't need a drink, I just feel like having one", 'it won't hurt to have one drink while we're at dinner with friends for crying out loud" - they've got a problem.
Truthfully, it's sometimes hard to tell if you're addicted until you've actually gone through a drug detox and are no longer taking the drug.
If you have any doubts about whether or not you are suffering from OxyContin addiction or dependency, and you are delaying finding out about it, remember this: OxyContin is a dangerous drug. Some drug detox and rehab centers admit more people for OxyContin addiction than for all other drugs combined. And in just the first few years after it's release 30,000 people visited hospital emergency rooms because of OxyContin.
Don't take the risk of the situation getting out of hand. If, in the back of your mind, you're wondering if you have a problem with OxyContin addiction or physical dependency, contact a drug detox center that can answer your questions and help you through the problem if needed.
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