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jps

On Wed, 28 Oct 2009 13:40:43 -0400, wrote:

On Wed, 28 Oct 2009 12:37:25 -0400, H the K
wrote:

Personally, as bad as speed is, I think the "pain pill" problem is
worse. My wife was in the construction industry and she believed
25-30% of the people working were walking around with a prescription
bottle full of pain pills (in their name) and close to that many who
were using them illegally.
I know the doctors push them because in my travels through the medical
establishment for my wrist problem, EVERY ONE OF THEM offered me
something. (Vicodin, Oxycotin or Oxycodone were the most popular).
I passed.
It does make me wonder what happens if you got stopped in a DUI
checkpoint and "****ed positive" for one of these narcotics.
Sure you have a prescription that allows you to own them and take them
but not to take them and DRIVE !
I bet you go to jail.

Unfortunately, injuries, strains, et cetera, are common in the
construction industry, and in this country we have a lousy system to
assist hourly workers if they are injured. So guys with back/leg
injuries come back to work too fast, and then re-injury themselves or
re-aggravate already existing weaknesses. Sometimes the pain pills are
the way they can work and then too many of them get hooked.

If we were in a more progressive country, we'd have better regulations
to take care of injured workers. But *this* is the failing bastion of
screw-you capitalism.

I think it is just that the doctors sell the pills to quickly. Guys
who should just take it easy for a few days take these pills and
continue re injuring themselves or they simply just get hooked on the
pills.

Workers Comp doesn't pay nearly as well as a job.

These things are about like heroin and it doesn't take many to create
the addiction in a person who has that kind of personality anyway.

I do not have an addictive nature and had a hell of a time getting off
of them after my shoulder surgery. They're great when you need pain
relief or going to bed so you can sleep but they're hell to get off
of... Took me three weeks of easing away.

Most of these guys are hooked on nicotine and alcohol too.

Personally I think pain is trying to tell you something and masking it
is just asking for worse injury.

When your muscles tense up to protect whatever's injured, the pain can
be unbearable. The meds can help muscles relax so the injured muscle
can actually heal -- as long as you're not continually stressing it.
I'm sure most guys use them to mask the pain so they can earn a
living.

I can understand it would be valuable for massive burns and perhaps
some end of life situations but if you are masking muscle or joint
pain and continue injuring them you are in a downward spiral that will
end in permanent damage.

Yup.

In my wrist problems the "cure" was physical therapy without
medication and that was also the cheapest person in the whole medical
community to visit. Once I got the exercises, it was all done at home
and in my daily life. ... for free.

Did the same but my injury wasn't one I could live with. Needed
surgery and rehab. The PT was incredible at getting me back to normal
and pain free.

I did spend about 10 bucks at Ace hardware getting some pulleys, rope
and miscellaneous hardware to make my own equipment duplicating the
things they had at the PT center. I had some free weights and
"squeezy" spring things already.

Well done. I brought the rubber bands home and had some light weights
to work with. I missed going and getting my sore shoulder rubbed out
but by the time I graduated, I was well on my way to pain free.