[Kiwi Girl]

Six years ago I spent 2 months in hospital on morphine and got dependant. I did ask at the time if Morphine was addictive and was told by the doctor in hospital ( I kid you not) 'If your pain is genuine it will absorb the morphine and you will not get dependent'. By the time I got my operation to fix the problem I was on 250 mg per day. After trying to cut me straight off (I climbed the walls) they finally gave me a nightmarish 'cut down program' decreasing 10 mg every three days. I may have to go in for another operation but I am sooooo paranoid about withdrawals and drugs now that I recently endured a colonoscopy without morphine (only a sedative)which was very unsuccessful! Such is my fear! My question is this - Could I still take morphine for pain in an emergency situation? What would be the effects? Would I become instantly dependent or would it take time again. Thanks in advance for your help.

[Miles]

I think that is your choice Kiwi Girl. See my comments at the "Ultracet" Board. Good luck!

[Kiwi Girl]

Thanks for you reply Miles. I read your comments at the Ultracet Board. I tend to agree with your statement that 'Addiction is a form of behaviour'. However when trying to come off drugs the need to relieve the withdrawal symptoms is so great that it seems irrelevant whether I say my behaviour was 'caused' or 'it has reasons' or 'was influenced by' the drug or my dependency on the drug. The fact is that by becoming dependent (by that I mean that I would have 'physical withdrawals' trying to stop taking it) my behaviour was 'affected'.

I 'made the choice' to come off (I was offered the methadon prgram) however I doubt I would have had the will power to quit on my own. (My husband controlled the pills for me). Not everyone takes drugs for a 'high' and when I accepted the morphine for pain I did not realise that I would become 'dependent' on it. I don't believe I displayed 'addictive' behaviour prior to taking the morphine. Did I have a choice to take the morphine - yes. Was I informed of what would happend when I made that decision? No. Did I want to be on it? No I most definately did not want to be taking it but I did want to relieve the pain. Even during withdrawals I wanted to be off it and yet I had to assign someone else to ensure that my decision to stop became reality.

Your comments 'influenced me' (hehe) to stop and think (thanks) and in doing so I would have to conclude that there is a difference between 'Addiction'and 'Dependency' (I always thought they were one and the same).

I will never choose to receive morphine again and my question was prompted solely by the fear that I may not have the choice in an emergency situation to say 'no' and I wanted to be informed of the consequences should that choice be made for me.

Cheers

[Miles]

I don't usually give advice Kiwigirl, but you might want to consider methadone to wean you off morphine if you have another surgery. Methadone is a weak opiate that does not induce drug euphoria. When properly used, it reduces or eliminates the craving for opiates and reduces the symptoms of opiate withdrawal. Your physician(s) should be strung up by his/her stethoscope for not telling you about the physical affects of morphine. I wish you well.