To be a bit concerned about what the lady at the pharmacy said

[Lalalalas]

So My friend recommended co-codamol for period pains, since have had my coil put in, my periods have become so much more painful. I asked the lady behind the counter if they were good and she said "I don't know, I wouldn't take them if you paid me". What was the reason for this? now I dont know if I should take them.

I had 30/500 co-codamol after an operation, if I took two before bed I had such horrendous, hallucinatory nightmares that I stopped taking them as soon as possible. Really, really disturbed me.

Now the IV morphine in hospital was another thing altogether. That was like floating on a cloud of calmness - rather spoilt by medical staff insisting on talking to me and expecting me to answer them, and all the bright lights everywhere.

It's fine for period pains and taking short term

I took some once and forgot I was cooking dinner. They’re pretty strong. I could feel them in the back of my eyes!

OTC cocodamol is very very low dose. Pre ription codeine is a significantly higher dose, additionally, There are so many other painkillers between cocodamol and morphine (and beyond). Don't scaremonger

Addiction is fairly individual.

An addiction may develop much sooner than some individuals than others. There really is no definitive answer anyone can give you.

Btw, how bad are these period pains? Yes, a coil may worsen period pain. But going from mostly pain-free to very painful periods is worrying.

And pain management for a regular "condition" really isn´t something I´d want to DIY. I would strongly encourage you to talk about this with your gyno or regular care physician.

What?

Sure that wasn’t the Peapod burgundy?

I received fentanyl and morphine (via IV) last autumn. Being painfree was definitely wonderful. But apart from that? not my cup of tea. I was a little woozy and felt quite warm but that was it.

Definitely no clouds of calm or floating. That honestly sounds rather nice...

I was just incredibly stressed about this unknown something causing me terrible pain and making it impossible to walk... Maybe my stresslevels were just so high that not even the opioids managed to calm me down? 😅

Because they can be effective pain killers but there is a massive problem with misuse ( the paracetamol is far more dangerous than the small amount of codeine)

Maybe the pharmacy assistant's comment was nothing to do with addiction whatsoever. Had that occurred to you OP? I would never take any opiate type painkiller because they make me throw up. It has a horrendous effect on me, even in tiny doses. Maybe that's all she meant.

in a medical setting, your dose will have been carefully titrated.

Also when one is in pain, it’s different.

Illegal heroin isn’t pure ( 1990’s) but the addicts said it was dreamier than prescribed morphine ( even IV)
Probably as taken in far higher doses.

It’s supposedly very dreamy and visual when one closes one’s eyes. ( Illegal Heroin)

But nowadays it’s filled with other man made chems ( according to drugs workers)

My ex husband is like this- he was prescribed codeine linctus for a cough and even a teaspoonful made him so dizzy he had to go to bed.
He looked pale and wan til it wore off
He never took another spoonful.

Other people get a euphoric feel - I think it’s partly to do with individual biochemistry and chemical receptors.
Alcohol makes me feel dizzy and dysphoric.
Even half a lager shandy on a hot day.

I've been taking OTC co-codamol on and off for years (endometriosis) and have had no problems with it, either addiction or constipation. As others have said, the amount of codeine in OTC co-codamol is quite low. I find it a pretty effective painkiller, and useful as i can't take ibuprofen etc

The person in the pharmacy shouldn't have said that, it's highly unprofessional.

I take co-codamol on occasion for period pains and they are wonderful. When I have got them in the past, the person in the pharmacy did make a point to tell me they can be addictive. But I think as with most things, as long as you're sensible, you'll be fine.

If one had the patient controlled IV morphine the nurses do keep waking one in the night
probably to check one is alert.

I too found that frustrating- but they are doing it for our own good.

They take it away after a short time too -I’d not even finished mine and they took it off me 😫

My old dentist said she was really depressed when hers was taken away in hospital.

She said “ I had no sympathy for addicts beforehand, but this made me realise a little of how they felt “

She believed Morphine was ‘ Demonic’ as it pulled her in - Sounds like she was susceptible to it’s physical effects.

Severe endometrioses here, have the Mirena coil aswell - take Solpadine nearly every month - only one or two. Its the only thing that works for pain. Can't take Neurofin as kills my stomach. A box can last ages, get the Spanish inquisition when buy them, buts that what they do, what your pharmacist said was wrong. Your an adult, you can be sensible with your descsions

meh i take it every single month for bad period pain! I get 1 or possibly 2 bad days - and at most take 6 tablets over the 2 days - then i put them away until next time!! sometimes a single dose of 2 tablets is enough to sort out the pain for me!

It really is the only thing that helps me

good to be aware that it's an opioid though and that it can be addictive!

I've been taking prescription strength co-codamol (30mg in each tablet) for endometriosis and the odd sciatica flare up for 13 years. They're the best painkillers and I probably only take 6-8 per month so it depends how you use them. They are good painkillers. They can be addictive like many things.

I used to be able to take Co codomol but I can't now. They make me all woozy...

My friend had an operation and was prescribed opiates for a few months.
He stopped them and felt terrible- but he didn’t equate this to withdrawal symptoms ( irritability, lack of energy, aching legs, teary eyes and running nose , yawning 🥱 -
It was me who said “ You are physically withdrawing “
He had no good effects from opiates at all - he took them purely for pain.

His GP prescribed him reducing doses over a few months - and he was fine.

People who take opiates because of an emotional boost or because they like the effects are in far more danger ⚠️ of addiction ( I think anyway) .

You won’t get addicted taking them a few days here and there. I’ve taken full strength codeine (2x 30mg) for 12 years almost daily and I’ve not taken more than prescribed and would quickly drop them if the pain stopped. I’ve never wanted the ‘high’, only the pain control. There are some withdrawal affects if used longer term but nothing if it’s just a day or three. It’s worth a try but equally ask the GP as it may not help.

I’ve taken stronger opiates long term and come off them all. Addiction is more related to genetics & upbringing etc. I find junk food far more addictive.

I think the thing that was annoying me was I'd already told somebody everything before the morphine, and was being asked the same questions again, and a combination of the dreamy floaty feeling plus exhaustion from the pain - and the stress of not knowing the reason for the pain - made me very sleepy.

They were quite rude really - DH thought they thought I was drug seeking and didn't really have anything wrong with me. 5cm dermoid cyst causing a probable ovarian torsion (that thankfully resolved itself so I escaped emergency surgery) said otherwise though.

Could of been something as simple as that the codeine in it can cause constipation......

I thought that but it’s not true. I know someone (very well), who never kicked the nicotine habit and now vapes but has tried it. Twice. Then never again.

You seem to have ignored posts telling you addiction with the odd pill for a finite time eg 3 days (as instructed on the box) in such low doses is extremely unlikely to cause addiction.

As can many substances such as coffee etc I can only take cocodomal aspirants n paracetamol r like eating smarties it up to the individual really but it works for me