Stopping painkiller addiction with hypnosis

A paracetamol, ibuprofen 600, Advil or other painkillers are sometimes just a necessity. Sometimes even for long periods of time, but if you don't actually need a painkiller or take much more than the maximum dose, you can suffer from an addiction to painkillers. You would think that this is not dangerous, since you can just get these drugs at the drugstore and pharmacy, but if you take too much of them, it is dangerous.

Therefore, in this article, I discuss addiction to painkillers and what you can do about it.

Why can painkillers be addictive?

No one who takes painkillers does so thinking they might be addictive. After all, you can buy them right at the drugstore. If you happen to have a headache or cramps, it’s easy to just quickly take a painkiller instead of looking into alternative treatments. A glass of water can often work wonders, too.

Sometimes it’s also harder to manage pain through alternative methods than through the prescribed methods recommended by a doctor, which makes it easy to obtain painkillers. Yet hypnosis, for example, is also effective in reducing pain .

Often, after surgery , you’ll be prescribed painkillers for a while—such as Ibuprofen 600 after having a tooth extracted. That painkiller can make you feel a bit drowsy, and you might find that sensation pleasant, leading you to finish the entire box even though you don’t really need that much.

That drowsy feeling also causes you to think less, which actually suppresses emotional problems. As a result, painkillers can be mentally addictive. When you’re feeling stress and anxiety, you might take a painkiller because you’ve come to believe it will make you feel better, but you might as well take a placebo.

Painkillers also help you relax. For example, a paracetamol helps relax your blood vessels which you also notice in your muscles. If you are mentally tense you often have tense muscles as well which exacerbates this feeling.

Or, if someone has been to the dentist , years of poor posture can lead to chronic neck pain that requires painkillers. I once heard a story about a retired dentist who was struggling with this problem and who repeatedly pressured his doctor to prescribe him more or a stronger painkiller. Until he became addicted to morphine, which you normally only get in a hospital. Eventually, he went to a rehab clinic to learn how to cope with the chronic pain in a different way.

The downside is that if you have chronic pain and always need painkillers for it, you’ll have to find an alternative. If you take painkillers for a long time, you’ll need more and more over time, as the dentist’s example clearly illustrates. As a result, one acetaminophen tablet is no longer enough; you’ll have to take the whole strip to get the same effect.

Fortunately, most painkillers are not physically addictive, as alcohol is. For a mental addiction, you must already have problems you want to suppress. So in general, it doesn't hurt to take painkillers for a month, or several if the doctor prescribes it.

What are the effects of too many painkillers?

Like most medications, painkillers have side effects. The more painkillers you take the greater the likelihood of these side effects.

If you only look at a paracetamol you will see that too many tablets can cause liver damage. If you eat many tablets at one time, such as an entire strip, it is important to contact your doctor.

After taking acetaminophen for years, you may also experience side effects, such as damage to the kidneys and liver. This can be recognized by yellowish skin, yellowing of the eyes, frequent urination, a sore throat, and a feeling of fatigue.

In addition, combinations of paracetamol with other medications can be dangerous. In the news now, for example, much is being made of the fact that the artist Prince took a lot of paracetamol in combination with oxycodone and that an overdose of this probably killed him. And this even though this medication was simply prescribed.

Taking ibuprofen for an extended period of time (years) can also be harmful to your body, especially your stomach. You can suffer stomach perforations and stomach ulcers from taking ibuprofen for years. These can even be fatal.

Tips against painkiller addiction

To avoid becoming addicted to painkillers and to get rid of an addiction, I have some tips for you.

Tip #1: Read the package insert

The package insert contains information about the maximum number of painkillers you can take per day and what side effects you can get from the medication. Just assume that if you go over that maximum dose you will suffer the side effects anyway, and stick to the maximum dosage to minimize the chance of addiction.

Tip 2: Challenge yourself to stop

If you don't stop taking painkillers because you're afraid you might get hurt somewhere, that's an idea that's getting in your way. By challenging yourself to quit it you can find that your fear of pain was not necessary for anything, and you can also find that it was your thought process that kept you addicted and not your body. After all, it's not a drink.

Caution! If you need to withdraw from heavier painkillers, such as morphine, you may well experience withdrawal symptoms such as temporary memory loss, which is why you should stop taking these medications under supervision. These tips are really for ibuprofen and paracetamol addicts.

Tip 3: Relax

In most cases, addiction to painkillers is psychological. If you don’t have a condition that causes chronic pain, you can assume this is the case. Stress and anxiety can lead you to reach for a painkiller. By relaxing, you reduce feelings of stress and can also reduce your anxiety . Self-hypnosis is a good way to relax and de-stress. Lie down or sit in a comfortable spot and take a few deep breaths in and out. Try to relax your muscles as well.

This allows you to shift the urge to take that pill for a while so it goes away.

Treatment for painkiller addiction

Hypnosis is an effective way to overcome an addiction to ecstasy, cocaine, or Ritalin. That’s why I also believe it’s the right approach for you to overcome a painkiller addiction. In addition, hypnosis itself can be used to treat chronic pain, which makes it particularly beneficial for someone with a painkiller addiction. It’s always better for your body to be “addicted” to hypnosis—which has no side effects—than to be addicted to a pill that does have side effects.

Because an addiction to painkillers—which you can easily pick up at a drugstore or pharmacy—is primarily psychological, a hypnotherapist will work with you to explore your beliefs about pain. After all, your beliefs have the greatest influence on your behavior.

Next, your triggers are also explored. At what times do you reach for your pain medication? Is it a ritual that now comes with brushing your teeth in the morning or evening? Or does something always happen that makes you feel like you have to take a painkiller because otherwise you won't be okay?

If it appears that taking a painkiller has become a routine or ritual, hypnotherapy can help you break that routine so you don't take unnecessary painkillers.

If it turns out that taking a painkiller is happening to reduce stress or anxiety, the hypnotherapist can give you tools to deal with that stress or anxiety in a different way so that you no longer need a painkiller for it.

These two modes of intervention can be changed with techniques from cognitive behavioral therapy and neuro linguistic programming while under hypnosis.

In addition, you may not be able to find a logical reason for your use of painkillers. In that case, regression therapy can be a good way to uncover the cause. During regression therapy, you can recall memories that have influenced your development and may have disrupted it, making you more susceptible to an addiction to painkillers now. During such a session, you can view that moment more objectively and see how it shaped your current beliefs. You can also “rewrite” your reaction to that moment during the regression so that you are less troubled by the feelings that have contributed to the addictive element in your life.

Would you like to learn more about what hypnosis can do for you and those around you? Then check out the seminars and training programs offered by the Hypnosis Institute of the Netherlands.