When you suffer from moderate to severe pain, there is a chance that your doctor prescribed you oxycodone. Oxycodone is an opioid and a powerful painkiller. When taken as prescribed, it does offer pain relief to patients. The problem with oxycodone is that there is also a high rate of abuse. Those who struggle with opioid abuse often begin with oxycodone. Generally, it begins with a prescription.
What Are the Effects of Oxycodone?
The purpose of oxycodone is to kill your pain, help you relax, and to sedate you while you heal. Even if you use oxycodone correctly, however, you could still suffer from several different side effects. These side effects can include dizziness, headaches, seizures, blurred vision, sweating, weakness, mood changes, and more.
If you abuse oxycodone over a long period, you may experience other complications from the drug. Longer-term side effects include:
- Insomnia
- Heart failure
- Aches
- Cramps
- Coma
- Swelling
Oxycodone can affect your physical and mental health. You may also experience depression due to the drug. If you use oxycodone for a long period or take too high of a dose, the result could be fatal.
When you take oxycodone, you can develop a tolerance. You may have to increase your dosage as time goes on and it’s possible that you won’t recognize that you’re dependent on the drug until it’s too late. You must pay attention to whether you feel like you need more than recommended.
What Are the Dangers of Oxycodone?
Oxycodone can cause people to feel something akin to euphoria. This is the feeling that often leads to dependence or recreational use. It is similar to the effect of morphine and heroin, and almost just as addictive. One of the biggest dangers of oxycodone is from an overdose.
Oxycodone decreases blood pressure and can cause seizures, cardiac arrest, and could even put a person into a coma. When taken with other depressants, such as alcohol, the effects can be even worse. To have a prescription for oxycodone is not necessarily a bad thing. This is an extremely useful tool for pain management. However, if your use of oxycodone led to dependence or physical addiction, you may need help. If you are currently facing drug charges due to a substance abuse problem involving oxycodone or any other Schedule II drugs, contact a lawyer, like a drug crime lawyer from May Law, LLP, today. It always helps to have an advocate on your side.