Injured But Unable to Take Pain Meds.

I hurt my back last week after foolishly attempting to lift a piece of way too heavy furniture by myself and am unable to take effective pain medication (vicodin, etc) because of my addiction.  It's just another seemingly normal event that is ruled by this horrible affliction.  tylenol doesn't work so i'm just suffering. 

Pain meds are a slippery slope as it pertains to recovering addicts and alcoholics. You are not alone in this. The reality is the medications available for injuries often lead to full blown relapse. When I had my wisdom teeth extracted I was given a drug Halcion before the procedure in order to anesthetize me. Later that night I found myself restless and weired out. I hung in there and shared about the experience and my desire to get more pain meds at a meeting the following morning. I never got those pain meds and the support I got in the meeting helped me tremendously. There is nothing wrong with taking prescribed medicine as directed... only we can know our true motives.

I'm sorry you are in pain. Talk to a doctor about non-narcotic pain meds or explain that you are a recovering addict (ask him not to write that down of course) and see what your options are. Share about it at meetings and talk to your sponsor too. Good Luck.