I think I'm developing an addiction

[Foggyghost]

I recently dislocated my knee when on a hike with my military buddies. The doctors suspect nerve damage and my knee still hasn't been reset. Needless to say I'm going to need surgery. The doctors prescribed me some hydrocodone and I've also been taking oxy. From only two weeks I have already increased my dosage from 1 pill dosage to three pills per dose. 1 pill= moderate pain, 3pills= no pain but altered mental status. I feel as if I'm already developing an addiction, however with out the medication for the first time in a long time I actually broke down and cried from the pain.

My questions to the reader are
1.is addiction development common after a serious long term injury?
2.will I be ok taking slightly more than the recommended 1000mg acetamenophen per dose?
And final question
3. How long does it usually take to recover from an addiction?
Thanks for the help ?

 

[MrRoot]

Hi and welcome aboard!

To answer your questions I'll have to use myself as an example. I did develop addiction and started abusing Oxycontin after the patrol car I drove was hit by IED in Afghanistan. I would say that atleast physical dependance is very common after an injury but psychological depends on the situation.

Getting addicted however depends on multiple factors. If you like the buzz you are getting from the drugs you will quite likely to be in danger of becoming addicted to them if you don't proceed carefully. Also if you have some other issues in life in general you will become addicted more likely.

For me using drugs was escape in a situation in which I couldn't be able to be in military anymore so instead of getting new goals in life I started using drugs. It is easy to end up using daily recreational doses instead of once or twice in a month. It really sneaks up to you if you aren't careful.

Max acetaminophen dose per day is 2500mg to 4000mg depending on officials. If you insist doing more then I suggest you to look up cold water extraction method to be safe but please just don't start doing more.

Recovering from an addiction may take anything from few weeks to years or even a whole lifetime depending how deep one were in the addiction.

Remember that you aren't alone in this and we are here to help you.

 

[Foggyghost]

Thank you so much for the insight. It makes me feel better to know that someone else in the military has faced the same challenge. At this moment I'm actually pretty depressed, I'm scared that I'm may get medically discharged. I also have a newborn and I'm still getting used to being a new dad.
I think I feel a little bit of relief, because now I know that I have a way to vent this issue without feeling embarrassed, or getting judged by my army buddies. I'm relieved to know that their were others in a similar predicament, I will try my best to cut back on my pills. Thank you [MENTION=189013]MrRoot[/MENTION]