concerned

[Rich620]

i am trying to get clean myself, but i am also worried about another memer of my family. how do you know if someone is addicted to pills or if they are just using to manage pain. well my instinct tells me that since she is no longer getting them from her doctor and has no intention of slowing down that she is addicted. she complains that i take alot of pills but she  gets them at the same time i do and sometimes she gets more than me. she says "im not " and she "has leg, foot, and back pain from standing in one place at work all day". har habbits mirror mine but i am now trying to get clean. she takes hydrocodone, codeine, on occasion oxycontin, and sometimes drinks heavily. if i try to tell her something about it she gets defensive and mad. she says "you just take them cuz you want to i take them for work" but she takes them on her days off too. she is addicted right? i am mostly concerned about mixing so much acetaminophen with alcohol. advice?

[Rich620]

Thank you for posting. i am aware of the dangers of taking acetaminophen on its own right, as well as the alcohol. family and friends have died from alcohol. i may have worded my post wrong. she was not getting them from her doctor for regular pain. to my knowledge she has not even talked to her primary physician about regular pain. she was only prescribed codiene at 30 tablets every month from her gynecologist for severe menstrual cramps. only when he asked her why they were gone when she had 30 for about 5 days of cramping, did she tell him she was using them for her leg pain as well. the hydrocodone and oxycodone were purchased off the street. so what i mean is, if she is suffering from so pain then she should tell her doctor about it. and she has seen him a few times in the last year. i really dont want her to develop medical problems from the medication and i dont want her to feel like i do right now going through withdrawals. but she ran out of meds and i can see her goin through it. i am tryin to go all the way through it but i cant force her to do the same. i believe she is going to buy more, she doesnt seem to have an interest in stopping.

[Faith7543]

the types of pain killers she is taking are highly addictive but just because she takes them on her day off doesnt necessarily mean she is an addict. There are some really bad withdrawls with this type of medicine and more than likely the dr.s rx request she take them daily to keep the pain under control. also taking to much acetaminophen even by its self is and will be very hard on the liver and kidneys, which i have personally experienced. By no means are you supposed to drink any type of alcohol with the type of pain killers she is on due to the interaction of alcohol and opiates can make the reaction even stronger. There should be warnings on her medicine bottles. in order for her to get this type of medication from a pharmacy you must have a prescription from a doctor and the oxycontin is a class II drug that requires the paper rx be present at the time its filled. If you have concerns you can speak with her physician. I wish you luck and hope all turns out well.
Laura