It’s an all-too-common scenario these days: a person is prescribed an opioid pain medication following an injury, dental procedure or surgery. The person becomes addicted to those pain pills and then turns to using heroin when the pain pills are no longer available. Sadly, stories like this are becoming all too familiar for parents of teens and young adults in the Roanoke Valley. According to the National Institute on Drug Abuse, opioids are drugs that relieve pain by reducing how pain is felt in the brain. Because of how opioids affect the brain, they can also cause a person to feel a “high.”
A 2013 study by the United States Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) shows that 80% of heroin users switched to heroin after abusing narcotic painkillers, many of which were initially prescribed to address medical issues.
No parent wants to see their child in pain. As a parent, you should feel comfortable asking doctors about the medications they prescribe. Here are some talking points for discussing pain management with your child’s physician:
Ask if there are any non-drug options for relieving the pain. If medication is necessary, ask if there are any non-opioid medications your child can use. (This is especially important if there is a family history of addiction.)
If opioids are necessary to manage the pain, request a prescription for as few pills as possible, without refills, in order to decrease the amount of pills that are leftover.
A recent study discovered that the amount of pain medication prescribed for children is usually greater than the amount actually used.
Ask how often you should give your child the opioid medication, when you should cut down on how often it is given and about any possible side effects of the medication.
Things you can do at home to protect your child from over-using their medication:
• Place the medication in a locked container and control access to it.
• Give the medication only when it is needed.
• Do not allow the youth to have access to their medication without supervision.
• Properly dispose of any unused medication by taking it to a drug take-back or to a pharmacy that accepts unused medication. In Roanoke, drop boxes for free and safe disposal of unused medication can be found at Downtown Drug and the Roanoke County Sheriff’s office.
Even if your teen is independent enough to know when and how to take their medication, it is extremely important that opioid medication be taken with adult supervision. A 2013 study found that 83% of teens were able to access their medication without adult supervision.1- Because prescription drugs are often thought of as “safe” and not as dangerous as street drugs, it is more likely that a youth will take more medication than is prescribed or use it to get high. 2- Limiting your teen’s access to prescription medication, even if you think he or she will never abuse it, will cut down on the risk of them becoming addicted.
