why??

I am now 1 month clean but now I notice all the people around me who are on pain medication. I am 25 years old and most of my friends are 20-30 this is supposed to be the prime of our lives. We should be in college, starting our family's and building our careers. Why in the society that we live in is it so easy to get vicodin and other narcotics? I was first prescribed morphine at the age of 15 without even being diagnosed with a reason to my pain. 10 years later I am an addict!! I feel like my youth was taken away from me! I was on morphine before I even had my first sip of beer!! No wonder I struggle now! I can't even count how many of my long time friends take pain medication. I don't know if any of them are addicts but I'm sure some are. I just don't understand why medication is handed out like candy. I know some people have a real reason for needing them but I know with me it went from having a real reason and taking them to then feeling pain in other places of my body and taking them to then finally needing them mentally to get through the day. I really just want to know why.

[dominosarah]

I wish i had an answer to your questions but i dont.  All i do know is you are 1 month clean and that is great!!  You will notice now all the people that are on meds, some legit, others not.  I see this alot and it makes me even more grateful that i am no longer living that life of insanity.  Take care of you as that is what is important~~sara

[lulu747]

Congratulations on your month!  I ask myself the same questions every day and especially now as I suffer through detox.  When I got really sick at 28 the docs put me on 9 different meds (opiates, benzos, steroids, sleeping pills etc) I was so sick I didn't even research or question it.  Fast forward five years later and I no longer know what are the symptoms of my illness and what are the side effects of the pills.  Hence day six of detox.  Keep going darlin'-you can do it(:

[mommy0729]

That's how I was. At first I knew it was abdominal pain then all of a sudden I had back pain, leg pain, headaches and then every part of my body hurt all at one time. At 15 I didn't question my doctors. I was in pain, sick and scared. Now addiction is something I will live with forever. I don't feel normal because other people can have a toothache go get a week supply of pain meds and will be fine, me I panic when something hurts for fear of getting pain medication and relapsing.