# Well, I just took a Hydrocodone and I don't see what the big fuss is about. **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [May 16, 2018, 4:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/well-i-just-took-a-hydrocodone-and-i-dont-see-what-the-big-fuss-is-about/814292 "2018-05-16T16:56:33Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![RitterSport](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rittersport/32/6326_2.png) [@RitterSport](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RitterSport)\ **Post date:** [May 17, 2018, 10:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/well-i-just-took-a-hydrocodone-and-i-dont-see-what-the-big-fuss-is-about/814292/41 "2018-05-17T22:28:11Z")
> [@x-ray\_vision](#): > > I don’t know. If one is making sure there kid is only getting them as prescribed, I don’t see the outrage even if she does worry about addiction in her family. Vicodin is commonly prescribed for wisdom tooth extraction for a reason- because it works much better than Advil alone. Yeah, but if Advil alone is sufficient to struggle through (it’s only a few days), and you’re worried about a paper-thin difference between addict and non-addict, I think my kid would be in some discomfort for a day or two. > [@](#): > > Again, I think it’s because she knows herself by now. Addiction runs in my family too, and I worry about the younger ones in my family, but I know myself. I don’t know how people can drink so much and do it again. Same with drugs. I hate the feeling of not being sober or in control. I’m not afraid of pain killers even though I’m concerned about others in my family. Everyone who becomes an addict thinks they know themselves. I’ve had broken bones and surgery without opioids. My kids have had their wisdom teeth out (and infected) without them. Some amount of pain is OK to have, and not worth taking powerful opioids for. I’ve never had cancer, and the resultant pain, or other long-term excruciating conditions. I worry that casual use of opioids leads to more addicts leads to more deaths leads to more difficulty for people really in need of powerful painkillers. This, of course, is better for another thread, so I’ll stop there. OP, the one time I took a pill, it gave me really strange dreams which I found unpleasant, so I didn’t take any more. RS ---
**Author:** ![MindsEye\_Watering](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mindseye_watering/32/3619_2.png) [@MindsEye\_Watering](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MindsEye_Watering)\ **Post date:** [May 17, 2018, 10:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/well-i-just-took-a-hydrocodone-and-i-dont-see-what-the-big-fuss-is-about/814292/42 "2018-05-17T22:29:14Z")
For me, hydrocodone is okay, but oxycodone (with or without acetaminophen) is much better. 10 mg will take away any pain, and also give me a nice little feeling of well-being. Not euphoria exactly but just a “feelin’ good” sort of feeling. More than 10 mg might get me into euphoria territory, but this stuff scares me a bit. I can see why people can get addicted to it. Too bad the effects only last a few hours. Oh, and no sleeping for me when under the influence of oxycodone. That surprised me, first time I took it. I figured it would knock me out. Nope. ---
**Author:** ![Jophiel](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jophiel/32/66_2.png) [@Jophiel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jophiel)\ **Post date:** [May 17, 2018, 10:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/well-i-just-took-a-hydrocodone-and-i-dont-see-what-the-big-fuss-is-about/814292/43 "2018-05-17T22:35:21Z")
> [@pool](#): > > Yes people that are getting torn up on opiates aren’t taking 1-2 pills as prescribed, they are taking 5, 10, 20 and up and up and on as tolerance grows in the user. The OP is like saying I drank one beer what’s the big deal about alcohol? I rarely drink so I do get buzzed on a single beer. Enough to immediately feel it. Vicodin does nothing for me. I used to have a dentist who prescribed them like candy and I’d always get it filled since it was just a few bucks anyway with insurance and what if I had huge pain, etc? But I’d take the first one, feel nothing from it and invariably forget about the rest of them. It’s not a question of tolerance since it’s years between pills. ---
**Author:** ![DrForrester](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/8edcca/32.png) [@DrForrester](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrForrester)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2018, 12:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/well-i-just-took-a-hydrocodone-and-i-dont-see-what-the-big-fuss-is-about/814292/44 "2018-05-18T00:54:20Z")
As someone who had a minor role in the creation of Oxycontin, let me just say: I’m sorry about the trouble. When in hospital for a minor problem, the nurse announced that she was going to give me some Demerol. I told her to “give me a lot of it”. She did. I was up all night watching Gilligan’s Island. At least, it seemed like all night. It might’ve just been 15 minutes. I was essentially incoherent for the better part of a day. My thought process was genuinely interrupted. Pot seems to not effect my thought process at all. It separates my mind from my body… So, I can want to get up & get a drink, but I just can’t get my body to obey. It’s incredibly frustrating. I don’t understand how people can enjoy that sensation. It’s as though I have been awake for 2 days. And - people PAY for this sensation… Very strange. ---
**Author:** ![Beckdawrek](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/beckdawrek/32/3647_2.png) [@Beckdawrek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Beckdawrek)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2018, 2:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/well-i-just-took-a-hydrocodone-and-i-dont-see-what-the-big-fuss-is-about/814292/45 "2018-05-18T02:22:24Z")
> [@RitterSport](#): > > How do you square that with this post? > > I’m just curious. These two posts seem completely at odds. I have 3 kids 2 are daughters. My middle daughters surgery wasn’t as bad but she ended with a dry socket. Now that was painful. The lil’wrekkers surgery was all kinds of horrific. She’s a big cry baby too. So she _needed_ more pain relief. I was skeptical. Even after we went back and they found a shard left in her gum and removed, the first thing she said after, to the surgeon, was “give me more pills.” She worries me.ETA, sorry for the confusion. ---
**Author:** ![Tamerlane](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tamerlane/32/7602_2.png) [@Tamerlane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tamerlane)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2018, 2:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/well-i-just-took-a-hydrocodone-and-i-dont-see-what-the-big-fuss-is-about/814292/46 "2018-05-18T02:30:21Z")
> [@RitterSport](#): > > I’ve had broken bones and surgery without opioids. My kids have had their wisdom teeth out (and infected) without them. Some amount of pain is OK to have, and not worth taking powerful opioids for. It is important to note that sensitivity to pain appears to vary _very widely_ among individuals and seems to be at least partly heritable. So what might be perfectly tolerable for you and your kids might feel like sticking your arm in a wheat thresher to someone else. It’s probably not a good idea to generalize about what other people should be able to tolerate. ---
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2018, 2:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/well-i-just-took-a-hydrocodone-and-i-dont-see-what-the-big-fuss-is-about/814292/47 "2018-05-18T02:31:27Z")
> [@pool](#): > > Yes people that are getting torn up on opiates aren’t taking 1-2 pills as prescribed, they are taking 5, 10, 20 and up and up and on as tolerance grows in the user. The OP is like saying I drank one beer what’s the big deal about alcohol? Yes, but, presumably that’s how the addiction builds for some people, isn’t it? They take one or two, kind of like the euphoria of it, and get hooked, no, needing more and more as the tolerance builds? I mean, with alcohol, if I take a long break from alcohol, a beer will get me right buzzed, so I’m not sure I buy that analogy. It’s not like most people who get hooked on Vicodin or Oxycontin start by just downing 5 at a time, is it? Anyway, for me, when I got the pills (Vicodin) after a wisdom tooth was pulled out, I was a little looking forward to a bit of a buzz, but I didn’t get anything from it. I maybe had four or five pills from the prescription and threw the rest out, as it didn’t seem to do much for me. ---
**Author:** ![Chefguy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chefguy/32/138_2.png) [@Chefguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chefguy)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2018, 2:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/well-i-just-took-a-hydrocodone-and-i-dont-see-what-the-big-fuss-is-about/814292/48 "2018-05-18T02:39:22Z")
> [@Skara\_Brae](#): > > Hydrocodone has never affected me in any way. Oxycodone (I.e. Percocet) zonks me out something awful. Maybe you’re the same way? Yeah, I don’t like oxycodone; makes me dizzy and hung over. On the couple of times it’s been prescribed, I’ve just dealt with the pain and taken Aleve. ---
**Author:** ![Beckdawrek](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/beckdawrek/32/3647_2.png) [@Beckdawrek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Beckdawrek)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2018, 3:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/well-i-just-took-a-hydrocodone-and-i-dont-see-what-the-big-fuss-is-about/814292/49 "2018-05-18T03:02:22Z")
> [@RitterSport](#): > > It’s that her family has many alcoholics and other addicts, she’s worried about her daughter being a flimsy piece of paper away from being an addict, and yet she insisted on getting opioids from the doctor for her. Having your wisdom teeth out hurts, but three Advils would help a lot, and you’re not risking a lifelong addiction. And then, she got opioids for herself for a dog bite, which doesn’t seem like someone deathly afraid of addiction in the family. There is one reason I am different from my family and not an alcoholic or drug addict. I am a diabetic since early childhood. I am very careful with any med that I am prescribed. Pain meds are not something I sought when the dog bit me. But my doc prescribed them and I did take a couple. I kept a close watch on my sugar while I had them on board. I am deathly afraid of addiction or just general drinking. I have spent a bunch of years being the only sober person at the family reunion or get together. I have watched kids and cousins as their parents proceeded to party hardy. It is not pleasant cleaning up vomit and blood a couple of times. Grabbing keys to keep people off the highway. I don’t like being the sober idiot who has to do all this, but it seems it’s my lot in life. And do not want my kids to suffer the trial of being a drunk or substance abusers. And as long as I breathe I will bug them about it. They take it and roll their eyes. My older kids have gotten into full adulthood. They have jobs, have children, own homes and take care of themselves without falling into a pattern I have seen so often. Thank the stars up above, for this. My baby I worry about, she’s different than her sibs. She is spoiled and whiny. I know, I know, I created this little sweet monster. I am terrified she is prone to instant gratification so much that she’s the type of person where substances just do it for her in ways I can only imagine. So, I worry, I preach, I talk, and worry some more. Rant over. ---
**Author:** ![pool](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pool/32/4152_2.png) [@pool](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pool)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2018, 3:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/well-i-just-took-a-hydrocodone-and-i-dont-see-what-the-big-fuss-is-about/814292/50 "2018-05-18T03:16:19Z")
I think as far as an innocent prescription leading to addiction goes it also, beyond whether the person has an addictive personality, depends on factors like age, weight, gender, pain level, etc. For instance I could see a 80 pound juvenile girl with a pulled muscle reacting different to one, 5mg Vicodin than a 28 year old, 250 pound man, taking that same amount for a broken femur reacting quite differently to the drug and whether they have the genetics of addiction might not even enter the equation, it could simply be body mass and level of pain at time taking the drug. ---
**Author:** ![BigT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bigt/32/12044_2.png) [@BigT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BigT)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2018, 4:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/well-i-just-took-a-hydrocodone-and-i-dont-see-what-the-big-fuss-is-about/814292/51 "2018-05-18T04:53:51Z")
> [@RitterSport](#): > > Yeah, but if Advil alone is sufficient to struggle through (it’s only a few days), and you’re worried about a paper-thin difference between addict and non-addict, I think my kid would be in some discomfort for a day or two. You absolutely do not know this! The way different people experience pain varies considerably. So does the response to pain medications. Some people can get by on very little, while other people are resistant. You’ve made it very clear in the past that you are in the latter category. You did not think a broken bone was all that much pain, when doctors will say it is one of the worst pains a person can be in. You have also made it clear that you are going entirely by your own personal feelings, and not any particular knowledge about how addicts actually act. You’re talking entirely from your own experience of higher pain tolerance, which is generally genetic. This is not an informed position. I’m not an expert by any means, either, but I have read up enough on the signs of addiction (out of my own paranoid fears, if you care). I know several people who are like **Beckdawrek** and specifically fight for pain medication. None of them are addicted, because none seek the drugs when they aren’t in pain, nor do they keep increasing their dosage. And, frankly, there is little more offensive to someone who has worked their hardest to avoid addiction for some stranger who doesn’t even know them to start accusing them of being an addict. What’s worse, even if you were somehow right, no one quits being an addict because someone treated them badly enough. People who are mean are just more of a reason to shy away from people and retreat into the substance. We live in a society where we’ve shifted too far into assuming everyone is an addict. This attitude doesn’t help make sure the people get medication. It gets people who are in actual pain who try to get relief labeled as addicts. ---
**Author:** ![RitterSport](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rittersport/32/6326_2.png) [@RitterSport](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RitterSport)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2018, 12:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/well-i-just-took-a-hydrocodone-and-i-dont-see-what-the-big-fuss-is-about/814292/52 "2018-05-18T12:31:46Z")
I think you’ve mischaracterized my position, but that’s OK. I have more to say on the subject, but this is neither the thread nor the forum (would probably get into GD or at least IMHO territory). Anyway, I’ve read all the responses to my posts and I agree with some, disagree with others, but I don’t want to continue the hijack. I think this subject is interesting, and am further interested in the roots of the current crisis, but this thread is about experiences with these drugs. Thanks for the back and forth. RS ---
**Author:** ![Dinsdale](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/97f17d/32.png) [@Dinsdale](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dinsdale)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2018, 12:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/well-i-just-took-a-hydrocodone-and-i-dont-see-what-the-big-fuss-is-about/814292/53 "2018-05-18T12:41:02Z")
Personally, never had much use for downers. As an adult, I’ve used few painkillers, other than the day following surgeries. But as I recall from my distant past, mixing downers with ETOH will greatly magnify the effect of either alone. ---
**Author:** ![DSeid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dseid/32/20194_2.png) [@DSeid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DSeid)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2018, 12:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/well-i-just-took-a-hydrocodone-and-i-dont-see-what-the-big-fuss-is-about/814292/54 "2018-05-18T12:54:55Z")
> [@Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](#): > > My own experience with opioids was not like what you describe at all. … In your opinion and expertise do most/many experience it as you did? My understanding, perhaps out of ignorance, has been that euphoria, buzz, or even the feeling of finding what was missing was not required. Just taking some, often for an appropriate indication, and then when supposed to stop feeling that one needs some more, not for pain relief but out of a sense of need. Which gets stronger the longer one continues. I didn’t think one was addicted because of something pleasurable in any way but because not having becomes extremely uncomfortable. ---
**Author:** ![Nava](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/da6949/32.png) [@Nava](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nava)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2018, 12:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/well-i-just-took-a-hydrocodone-and-i-dont-see-what-the-big-fuss-is-about/814292/55 "2018-05-18T12:55:31Z")
> [@pool](#): > > I think you can obviously abuse something at times and not necessarily be an addict, is it only if you continue your use as your life is imploding around you? If you’re in the prescribed amount but start throwing things at people when the doctor says he’s going to lower the dosis, that counts as addiction. My mother got addicted to painkillers which were actually not doing anything for the pain. They made her incoherent and shattered her social filters, but didn’t take the pain away much less bring her to any kind of happy place. ---
**Author:** ![Beckdawrek](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/beckdawrek/32/3647_2.png) [@Beckdawrek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Beckdawrek)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2018, 4:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/well-i-just-took-a-hydrocodone-and-i-dont-see-what-the-big-fuss-is-about/814292/56 "2018-05-18T16:57:35Z")
I think we all can agree that opiates or opioids can be dangerous for some people with the first dose. Others not so much. I don’t know the answer to the problem, but I do know we must try to find one. ---
**Author:** ![Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/qadgop_the_mercotan/32/83_2.png) [@Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Qadgop_the_Mercotan)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2018, 5:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/well-i-just-took-a-hydrocodone-and-i-dont-see-what-the-big-fuss-is-about/814292/57 "2018-05-18T17:50:28Z")
> [@DSeid](#): > > In your opinion and expertise do most/many experience it as you did? > > My understanding, perhaps out of ignorance, has been that euphoria, buzz, or even the feeling of finding what was missing was not required. > > Just taking some, often for an appropriate indication, and then when supposed to stop feeling that one needs some more, not for pain relief but out of a sense of need. Which gets stronger the longer one continues. > > I didn’t think one was addicted because of something pleasurable in any way but because not having becomes extremely uncomfortable. There are at least 100,000 facets to addiction. And I can speak only for myself. But many other addicts identify with the sorts of things I’ve shared. And many things said by other addicts resonate strongly with me. So, yes, all of the above may apply. I started down that path by identifying something that I hadn’t realized was missing up until then. Later, it became all about the avoidance of pain. Then the reduction of pain. My current state of recovery from that addiction is all about supplying that missing piece of my life with healthy things like meaningful work, friends, family, hobbies, and growth. I hope that’s not too mystical/touchy/feely. I could (and did previously) expound here on SDMB in great length and depth about the clinical/scientific aspects of addiction and its treatment, my case and other people’s. I’ve studied the disease in great depth, accumulated hundreds of hours of AODA CME, and have had thousands of patients with active addiction problems. I’ve prescribed or recommended mutual support groups, CBT, buprenorphine, naltrexone, psychiatric intervention, and more for my patients. But honestly it all comes down to replacing unhealthy behavior with healthy behavior. Simple, but not easy. Especially in the face of multiple co-morbidities. But going back to your original question . . . Oh yeah, there are at least 100,000 facets to addiction. Whoops, damn, I’m stuck in a loop. Never mind! 😉 ---
**Author:** ![Beckdawrek](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/beckdawrek/32/3647_2.png) [@Beckdawrek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Beckdawrek)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2018, 6:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/well-i-just-took-a-hydrocodone-and-i-dont-see-what-the-big-fuss-is-about/814292/58 "2018-05-18T18:48:21Z")
100,000? Wow that is amazing. No wonder addiction is so hard to beat. ---
**Author:** ![DSeid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dseid/32/20194_2.png) [@DSeid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DSeid)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2018, 11:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/well-i-just-took-a-hydrocodone-and-i-dont-see-what-the-big-fuss-is-about/814292/59 "2018-05-18T23:30:15Z")
> [@Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](#): > > There are at least 100,000 facets to addiction. And I can speak only for myself. But many other addicts identify with the sorts of things I’ve shared. And many things said by other addicts resonate strongly with me. So, yes, all of the above may apply. > > I started down that path by identifying something that I hadn’t realized was missing up until then. Later, it became all about the avoidance of pain. Then the reduction of pain. > > My current state of recovery from that addiction is all about supplying that missing piece of my life with healthy things like meaningful work, friends, family, hobbies, and growth. > > I hope that’s not too mystical/touchy/feely. I could (and did previously) expound here on SDMB in great length and depth about the clinical/scientific aspects of addiction and its treatment, my case and other people’s. I’ve studied the disease in great depth, accumulated hundreds of hours of AODA CME, and have had thousands of patients with active addiction problems. I’ve prescribed or recommended mutual support groups, CBT, buprenorphine, naltrexone, psychiatric intervention, and more for my patients. > > But honestly it all comes down to replacing unhealthy behavior with healthy behavior. Simple, but not easy. Especially in the face of multiple co-morbidities. > > But going back to your original question . . . Oh yeah, there are at least 100,000 facets to addiction. Whoops, damn, I’m stuck in a loop. Never mind! 😉 Thanks. I’d have thought you’d have _taught_ hundreds of hours of AODA CME! ---
**Author:** ![Ambivalid](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/a5b964/32.png) [@Ambivalid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ambivalid)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2018, 11:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/well-i-just-took-a-hydrocodone-and-i-dont-see-what-the-big-fuss-is-about/814292/60 "2018-05-18T23:45:44Z")
> [@Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](#): > > There are at least 100,000 facets to addiction. And I can speak only for myself. But many other addicts identify with the sorts of things I’ve shared. And many things said by other addicts resonate strongly with me. So, yes, all of the above may apply. > > I started down that path by identifying something that I hadn’t realized was missing up until then. Later, it became all about the avoidance of pain. Then the reduction of pain. > > My current state of recovery from that addiction is all about supplying that missing piece of my life with healthy things like meaningful work, friends, family, hobbies, and growth. What was your drug of choice, if you don’t mind me asking? [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/well-i-just-took-a-hydrocodone-and-i-dont-see-what-the-big-fuss-is-about/814292.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/well-i-just-took-a-hydrocodone-and-i-dont-see-what-the-big-fuss-is-about/814292.md?page=4)