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We can enjoy life as it is, follow our usual ways, develop our creativity and skills endlessly with only one condition - we are not in pain! Think for youself! Can you think of yummy dishes when your have a toothache? Can you dance your night away with your ankle sprained? Can you fulfill any routine task with delight when your brain is clouded with pain? The answer is certain - no, you cannot! Pain is the ordeal we all have to suffer from time to time. We hate pain and try to avoid it but we seldom think that pain is the best friend we have, too. Surprised to hear that? Well, don’t be, because pain is what makes all living beings fight for life and take good care of their health!

As the antagonist of Hugh Laurie’s novel “The gun seller” stated, “pain is something you cause to yourself”. It is really so, when something is wrong with our organism, either inside or outside, our mind generates strong throbbing impulses that we perceive as pain or chronic ache. This way our body cries for help and pleads us to handle the trouble as soon as possible.

When patients develop serious chronic illnesses pain can torture them twenty-four hours a day, turning their lives into a horrible torture. No doubt, the main task of contemporary medicine is to help those patients get rid of the pain and lead usual lives. Today narcotic pills, both synthetic and natural, are the most efficient pain relievers available.

Vicodin belongs to the class of synthetic opioid analgesics, too. Consisting of Hydrocodone (synthetic opiate) and Acetaminophen (Paracetamol or Tylenol), Vicodin causes double pain decreasing action bringing you instant relief. This successful combination of two pain killers is know by many brand names depending on the concentrations of Hydrocodone and Acetaminophen in them. So:

- Vicodin has 500 mg Paracetamol and 5 mg Hydrocodone;
- Vicodin HP is 750 mg Paracetamol and 7.5 mg Hydrocodone;
- Vicodin ES consists of 660 mg Paracetamol and 10 mg Hydrocodone;
- Anexsia is 500 mg Paracetamol and 5 mg Hydrocodone or 650 mg Paracetamol and 7.5 mg Hydrocodone;
- Dolorex Forte; Hycet; Liquicet; Lorcet has 500 mg Paracetamol and 5 mg Hydrocodone; 650 Paracetamol mg / 10 mg Hydrocodone; or 650 mg Paracetamol and 7.5 mg Hydrocodone;
- Lortab consists of 500 mg Paracetamol and 2.5, 5, 7.5 or 10 mg Hydrocodone;
- Maxidone consists of 750 mg Paracetamol and 10 mg Hydrocodone;
- Norco is 325 mg Paracetamol and 5, 7.5, or 10 mg Hydrocodone;
- Polygesic is made up of 500 mg Paracetamol and 5 mg Hydrocodone;
- Stagesic consists of 500 mg Paracetamol and 5 mg Hydrocodone;
- Xodol comprises 300 mg Paracetamol and 5, 7.5, or 10 mg Hydrocodone;
- Zamicet; Zydone has 400 mg Paracetamol and 5, 7.5, or 10 mg Hydrocodone.

Other non-active ingredients included in each pill of Vicodin are: colloidal silicon dioxide, starch, croscarmellose sodium, dibasic calcium phosphate, magnesium stearate, microcrystalline cellulose, povidone and stearic acid. If you are allergic to any main or non-active components of the med, please, call your MD before you order discount Vicodin and start taking it.

Vicodin, like any other opioid analgesic, is prescribed to to cope with moderate to moderately severe pain. This med is most usually used for acute, chronic and/or post-operative conditions. Sometimes it can also be prescribed to stop severe cough.

Semi-synthetic narcotic analgesic Vicodin is available in different medical forms: tablets, capsules and liquid solutions. The usual dose for adults is 1-2 tablets of Vicodin with every meal 4 times a day. In fact you can take this medicine with or without food but the majority of healthcare providers underline that full stomach protects gastrointestinal tract. So, if you suffer from nausea after taking Vicodin, it may help you to take this medication with food. Likewise, if you follow Vicodin therapy, drinking plenty of water during a day can help in avoiding constipation typical for Vicodin takers.

Please, do not forget that each sort of brand or generic pill contains various amounts of Vicodin. That is why you should be very careful how many tablets you take. The maximum safe amount of Acetaminophen for grownups is only 1 gram (1000 mg) per dose or 4 grams (4000 mg) per day. If you take Vicodin, 1-2 tablets each time is needed, the max number of tablets a day is 8 tablets. If you take Vicodin ES, 1 tablet each time is needed, i.e. max 5 tablets a day. If you take Vicodin HP, 1 tablet each time is needed, i.e. max 6 tablets a day. Pain relieving capsules can contain 2.5 to 10 mg Hydrocodone and 300 to 750 mg Acetaminophen. You should take Vicodin every 4 to 6 hours or 15 ml of liquid solution every 4 to 6 hours as needed. If possible, take minimal dosage of Vicodin and keep to the time span of 6 hours to avoid numerous side effects and addiction to this medicine.

If you miss a regular dose of Vicodin, take it as soon as you remember the fact. If it is almost time for your next dose, take only that dose skipping the previous one. Never take double or extra doses to avoid dangerous ovedose! The awful matter is that
Vicodin overdose can be ultimate.

Talking about Vicodin side effects, remember that this medication can make you feel dizzy or drowsy. That is why you should be careful participating in activities demanding alertness and quick reaction (driving, using complicated machinery ect).

Keep off alcoholic beverages because they increase the risk of Vicodin side effects. Remember that Vicodin contains Acetaminophen in it, and this substance is able of causing liver damage. If in addition to it you consume alcohol every day, it interacts with Acetaminophen and increases the risk of bad liver damage.

Just as all synthetic narcotic meds Vicodin can cause serious side effects, which are rather seldom. If you face a serious sign seek medical help immediately! Severe Vicodin side effects include:

- bad drowsiness,
- bad abdominal pain and constipation,
- slow heart rate,
- hyperventilation, troubled or slow breathing,
- hallucinations and altered mental status,
- confusion, anxiety or fear,
- unusual fatigue,
- hearing loss,
- decreased urination,
- cold and clammy skin,
- bluish tinge on the skin,
- blood disorders,
- low blood pressure,
- seizures,
- kidney and liver problems including failure.

Liver failure produces jaundice and a number of symptoms like pain in the upper right side of the abdomen, yellowing of the skin and the whites of the eyes and dark urine.

What is more, people allergic to Vicodin can have bad allergic reaction:

- itching, skin rash or hives,
- unusual swelling of the mouth, tongue and throat, wheezing and breathing difficulty.

If you follow the course of Vicodin therapy and feel uncomfortable when you have to get up or go to bed you can minimize dizziness and lightheadedness doing it slowly.

If you are elderly great caution is required when taking this drug - you may be more sensitive to the adverse reactions of the med, especially decreased breathing and drowsiness. It is forbidden to prescribe Vicodin to men and women under 18! Children should never be given Vicodin, as its safety and effectiveness in children has not been investigated till now.

If you have to undergo any type of surgery, tell your surgeon that you are using Vicodin ahead of time. This medication weakens the action of anaesthesia that is why you may need to stop using Vicodin for a short time.

The topic of Vicodin, pregnancy and lactation is significant, too. The action of Vicodin during pregnancy and breastfeeding are not properly investigated. To be on the safe side, avoid taking Vicodin if you are pregnant to keep your unborn baby safe. Discuss with your healthcare provider all pros and cons before getting discount Vicodin without a prescription and taking it. Although some medical reports state that this drug is safe for pregnant women, you should take it only if obvious positive effects outweigh the possible risks. Bear in mind that if Vicodin is regularly taken in the time before delivery, it may cause respiratory depression and withdrawal symptoms in the newborn baby because the fetus becomes Vicodin dependant within the mother’s womb! Nursing mothers should not use Vicodin because Paracetamol and Hydrocodone easily gets into breast milk effecting your baby.

Vicodin is occasionally applied in veterinary for dogs if they are allergic to Carprofen (Rimadyl Rx) or Etodolac (Etogesic Rx). But frankly speaking it is not the best choice of a pain reliever. The point is that although Hydrocodone that diminishes pain is well tolerated but Paracetamol is toxic to dogs and it causes numerous liver problems. All the same, Vicodin is sometimes the only option for chronic arthritis problems in older dogs.

Present-day medicine is rather careless about Vicodin addiction now - addiction to illicit street drugs and/or alcohol is considered to be a far more dangerous condition. Frankly speaking, Vicodin is not really viewed as a drug able of causing the same horrid problems as other drugs! No wonder that this attitude of professionals often leads Vicodin addicts and their nearest and dearest to the idea that everything is under control and they do not need the withdrawal treatment. What a shame!

If you feel any withdrawal symptoms after you stop taking Vicodin, seek drug abuse treatment immediately! Males and females who have a problem with drugs or alcohol must be particularly careful and visit their practitioner regularly. If you have to undergo Vicodin addictin treatment, be ready for the initial phase - the detoxification process. It cleanses the physical body of a person and prepares him or her for further treatment.

Why is Vicodin so addictive? The matter is that the regular use of Hydrocodone causes certain changes you brain - in the way it handles narcotics. The longer you take Vicodine and the higher is the dosage you apply daily, the sooner you develop an opiate tolerance. Consequently you need increasingly greater doses of the medicine to reach the same pain decreasing effects.

If an opiate-tolerant individual tries to stop taking Vicodine, he or she will experience strong opiate withdrawal symptoms. Vicodin dependent persons experience the first withdrawal symptoms within 6-24 hours following their last dose. They feel:

- runny nose, muscle aches and other flu-like symptoms;
- nausea;
- diarrhea;
- anxiety;
- depression;
- insomnia;
- irritability;
- chills;
- drug cravings;
- increased pain of the health disorder that forced them to take Vicodin.

Secondary Vicodin withdrawal symptoms that can last for months with varying degrees of intensity are:

- insomnia,
- lethargy,
- depression.

The withdrawal peak is located within 72 hours of the last Vicodin dose and it lasts for 4-5 days. Pain persons who are taking Vicodin for its analgesic effects develop increased sensitivity to pain during the withdrawal period.

Probably the best and the most realistic illustration of severe Vicodin withdrawal torture is the episode from the “House M.D” serial where the main character Greg House survives the most devastating Vicodin withdrawal symptoms. The best way to avert Vicodin addiction is taking 1 tablet of Vicodin 3 times a day after meals and never prolonging the period of Vicodin therapy, then you will get back to normal painless life and will be able to enjoy every delightful moment of it with the people you love and care for.