Here, you’ll find answers to best help you and your family practice Rx safety and make decisions about managing pain effectively and safely. Knowing how to prevent opioid misuse, as well as manage and safeguard your prescription medications, is important for everyone’s well-being.
There is also a nationwide surge in counterfeit pain medications. These fake pills look nearly identical to those you get at a legitimate pharmacy, but many are laced with fentanyl – a powerful and often deadly painkiller. This means it’s more important than ever to get any prescription pain medications from a legitimate pharmacy, and it’s essential that you find a safe solution to address pain.
We want you to understand the questions to ask your provider concerning the many non-addictive solutions available and how to reduce the risks if you have to take an opioid pain medication. While many people use opioid medications safely, they pose a greater risk of addiction and overdose, which are preventable with many other pain management options available.
Partnership to End Addiction has been a lifeline for families impacted by addiction for more than a decade, and many of our resources are written with families in mind. However, our resources can be helpful to anyone interested in addiction prevention, treatment and recovery.
When seeking help to manage pain, it’s best to consult your health care provider or a pain management specialist. They can talk to you about the kind of pain you are experiencing, its impact on your life and your pain management goals.
If you are experiencing acute pain, you may wish to ask your healthcare provider about a test called AvertD. Recently approved by the FDA, this test can assess your risk of developing opioid use disorder (OUD). It’s available by prescription only for people who are 18 years and older and has to be used before any oral opioid pain medications are taken. In addition to a complete evaluation, AvertD may help people with acute pain make better informed decisions when it comes to pain management.
There are many solutions to consider, and while there are possible side effects with all of them, there is a lower risk of dependence and addiction with non-opioid pain medications.
Sometimes prescription opioids are necessary and cannot be avoided. If this is the case, it’s important to take the smallest dose for the shortest period of time to reduce the risks of misuse, dependence, addiction and overdose. Once the pain is under control or tolerable, you may wish to switch to a non-opioid alternative. Learn more about what to consider if opioid pain relievers are prescribed for you or your family members, and make sure you have naloxone, a medication to reverse an opioid overdose, on hand.
Special precautions are needed for opioid pain pills if you or a loved one are at risk of developing substance use problems or have a history of addiction and are in recovery. Under these circumstances, it’s best to use only non-opioid pain solutions, if possible.
If you or a loved one has been prescribed a prescription pain reliever, one of your first concerns may be about safety. What are the risks, and how do I use them safely? And, how do I safely get rid of pills once I’m done with them?
We’ve gathered essential articles and videos to help answer your questions about preventing misuse and safeguarding your medications. Learn how to talk with your kids, in particular about the dangers of counterfeit pills, the health risks of misusing medications, how to dispose of them safely and more.