Is it really just because of the fentanyl situation? I know there is a huge disagreement with how the strict rules for prescribing opioids are so tight even for chronic pain patients like myself who can’t participate in life without em struggle to find a provider who is willing to prescribe us them.
opioids were over prescribed for years and years with no thought to the consequences - mainly because the person writing the scrip was compensated for it by the drug manufacturers.
this led to tens of thousands of people who became addicted to opioids and lacked the willpower to fight being dope sick to get clean. even once you’re clean, relapse is common. the reality is that many people are weak willed - but no one wants to discuss that.
now cheap synthetic opioids are easily mass manufactured in China and Mexico and they are widely available & flood the streets. examples: https://www.youtube.com/@talesfromthestreets/videos & https://www.youtube.com/@examiningportland/videos (there are others but those are the ones I’ve seen recently).
Because it’s low hanging fruit. Politicians can be “tough” on chronic pain patients and frame it as furthering the battle against the “opioid epidemic” without having to address the actual kraken in the bathtub, which is shady, Chinese bootleg fentanyl flooding the US through our leaky International mail system. The opioid crisis and epidemic of overdoses isn’t fueled by Grandma selling off her “extra” 5mg percosets, its coming from illegally smuggled fentanyl being sold illegally on the streets. Chronic pain patients are just a convenient sock puppet for the constant campaign mode our politicians are in, and they don’t care who they hurt to get elected or stay in power. Imho.
I agree with everything you said here, but just came by to say, “Kraken in the bathtub” is one of my favorite new idioms.
Because 1% of a few million people is still thousands of them.
Also, I’m not sure if the 1% figure is really that accurate, as it should become much higher when people are on them long term. The problem is that most opioids were prescribed to be safe for long-term use, which wasn’t true.
In this case it’s more that 1% of hundreds of millions is still millions. Opiates get prescribed to basically everyone at some point in their lives, so it’s basically just 1% of the population
It may be low, but it’s still thousands. I had knee surgery last year and didn’t take opiates because I’m at higher risk for addiction.
How exactly do they count addictions when someone has an ongoing prescription?
Good question. I’d be interested in seeing an answer
It’s fentanyl
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Do the patients say they help? I can see them being reluctant if it does help. But there is always the question of if the patients are lying or not if they are still in pain.
I’d also imagine at least part of it is the same as how normal people seem to think ADHD people with amphetamine prescriptions are just constantly high.
They don’t realize that whatever good feelings they’re getting from taking 100mg of amphetamines at once don’t apply at all to people chronically on small extended doses.