Risk of Taking Prescription Drugs
Doctors often give out prescription medications, and as patients, we are conditioned to believe that they are 100% safe because they are medicine. The truth is that even with sound medical advice, and even if you follow your doctor’s directions to the tee, every person’s body is different. There may be the risk of allergic reactions, or you may experience an unwanted side effect by taking vitamins and supplements that are contraindicated (should not be used) with your prescription. Sometimes they just react strangely in your system.
Drug interactions can sometimes be avoided using a pill identifier or an online interaction check. Still, it is best to defer to those in the healthcare industry, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), pharmacists, and those with a medical education who will be able to help you take medicines safely.
20 Scary Drug Side Effects You Should Know
Some scary side effects of prescription drugs include:
- Hallucinations
- Heart failure
- Cardiac arrest
- Memory loss
- Low blood pressure
- High blood pressure
- Dry mouth
- Numbness or tingling
- Loss of smell
- Blood clots
- Priapism
- Birth defects in babies
- Stevens-Johnson Syndrome (hypersensitivity reaction in the skin that causes blisters and necrosis)
- Compulsive behaviors
- Nightmares and vivid dreams
- Onycholysis (nails falling off)
- Breast cancer
- Allergic reactions
- Akathisia (feelings of restlessness and unease)
- Suicidal thoughts
Risk factors increase when you add alcohol or begin using medications not as intended, which often happens with commonly abused pain medicines, sedatives or sleeping pills, amphetamine drugs, and other stimulants.
Using certain dietary supplements, eating certain foods, and combining different pills from your medicine cabinet with other drugs and alcohol means increasing the risk of a potentially deadly adverse event. To reduce the risk of having to experience side effects like this, talk with your doctor or pharmacists, and look up additional information on the drug fact sheets to ensure you stay safe while taking your meds.
Learn about the process of Ambien withdrawal here:
Need Zolpidem for Z’s? How to Quit Ambien and Avoid Ambien Withdrawal
Signs of Prescription Drug Addiction
There are several common signs of prescription drug addiction, including:
- Having more than one doctor or visiting more than one pharmacy to get more of the prescription
- Taking the medications in ways not intended by your doctor
- Losing interest in your hobbies, loved ones, and everyday activities in favor of taking drugs
- Experiencing withdrawal symptoms when you stop taking the medications
Muse Prescription Drug Rehab in Los Angeles
At Muse Treatment, along with alcoholism and drug abuse treatment, we also provide a holistic program that can help you if you have developed a physical or psychological addiction to taking medicines that are not yours or misusing your own prescriptions so you do not have to worry about any unwanted side effect or potentially deadly adverse event taking place.
This includes a safe medical detox program to reduce the risk of severe withdrawal symptoms and help your body remove the toxins and start fresh without experiencing pain, distress, cravings, and other discomforts. We also have a medication-assisted treatment plan that can help with longer-term withdrawal symptoms, a common occurrence with opioid drug abuse and other commonly abused prescription medicines like benzodiazepine drugs.
This is followed by inpatient and outpatient rehab, using integrated treatments like:
- Individual therapy
- Group therapy
- Behavioral therapy
- Relapse prevention education
- Counseling
- Art therapy
- Recreational therapy
- Educational lectures
- Complementary and alternative healing methods
Because prescription drugs often cause long-term Post-Acute Withdrawal Symptoms (PAWS), in which withdrawal symptoms may return for up to 24 months after detoxing, our caring and dedicated team will work hard to help you deal with the underlying reasons for addiction. We will work through mental health issues in dual diagnosis treatment, build a strong foundation of relapse prevention strategies, and create a supportive sober community around you.
Through our customized prescription drug treatment plans, you can stop taking and abusing prescription medications, heal your mind, body, and spirit, and regain control over your life. Call us today at (800) 426-1818 for additional information on drug interactions, alcoholism, and drug abuse, or to learn more about our detox plans, rehab, and how we can help you quit abusing prescription medicines safely. We are here for you.
