Opioids help people manage chronic pain — and that’s a good thing. What went wrong?

The opioid and fentanyl epidemics have touched every one of our lives.

There are so many companies and doctors claiming they can help ease your pain. But what options have the least harmful side effects? 

Before reaching for pharmacy tablets, consider NVNS for fast-acting pain relief for a variety of symptoms.

Why has opiate addiction taken such a devastating turn?

With today's opioid crisis, it's important to understand you have safer options for treating chronic pain.

Chronic pain can bring your life to a grinding halt, and that is why many people turn to powerful painkillers. 

While those products temporarily mask your pain, they shouldn’t be used for long periods of time. If you are struggling with chronic pain, you need to come up with a comprehensive treatment plan that addresses the root causes of your discomfort. 

Here are some of the right and wrong ways to handle chronic pain.

Twenty years into the opioid epidemic, only one in five of the 2.4 million Americans with opioid use disorder (OUD) receive treatment.

Author Nicholas Bush shares how he's healed from the losses in his own life.

Twenty years into the opioid epidemic, only one in five of the 2.4 million Americans with opioid use disorder (OUD) receive treatment.

Why has opiate addiction taken such a devastating turn?

When you’re in extreme pain, you’ll do anything to make it stop. A doctor tells you that one pill can temporarily put an end to your pain, and it seems like a no-brainer. 

Prescription painkillers seem harmless enough. After all, most of us have taken them at one point or another. 

However, there are some dangers that come with taking prescription painkillers with addiction being at the top of the list.

Many painkillers fall into the opioid category, which means they are narcotics.

Americans consume more pain medication than any other nation. Why?

An opioid epidemic sweeps the nation affecting tens of thousands of young males, those with their whole lives ahead of them. Policy makers feel impelled to do something, anything to curb the tide, and so they act.

The year was 1914. The primary policy was the Harrison Act. As a result of this act, physicians who prescribed more opioid than what was deemed reasonable faced loss of license and criminal prosecution. 

The patient in pain became someone to be feared and avoided at all costs. Out of a sense of self-preservation, physicians chose to view chronic pain as merely a character flaw, something not worthy of attention. 

But, there was more… 

Because of this act and subsequent interpretations by the Supreme Court, those addicted to opioids and other drugs became criminals.

Millions of people have been harmed by this act, unnecessarily, and are still being harmed.

Why has opiate addiction taken such a devastating turn?

About 100 million Americans, one in three people, suffer from ongoing pain that impacts their daily lives. Chronic pain has fueled a pain treatment crisis resulting in the over-prescribing of risky opioids. 

The tragic deaths of celebrities such as Prince have brought the issue to public awareness in a way that statistics can’t. 

The CDC recently recommended prescribers drastically limit opioids for pain; even for pain after surgery. This is a dire situation for patients who desperately need ways to relieve their short- and long-term pain without dangerous medications. 

The most frequently overlooked pathway to pain relief is the patient.

There are powerful cognitive behavioral skills that the everyday patient can begin putting to immediate use for personal pain relief. Calming your nervous system is the key to reduction of pain, distress, and suffering. 

Keep reading to learn practical tips for using your brain to calm pain work over time to reduce pain naturally.

Opioid withdrawal is highly unpleasant, and for some people it feels intolerable.

Innocently starting with frequent use of OTC painkillers can be a slippery slope to addiction.

Dr. Sanjay Gupta discusses the issue of opioid addiction in connection with last week’s CNN Town Hall on the subject, as well as the new FDA regulations on e-cigarettes.

CNN Chief Health Correspondent Dr. Sanjay Gupta is back on Sharecare Radio to share his take on breaking health news.

All painkillers, both prescription and over-the-counter, have potentially serious consequences.

Can an opioid emergency still occur even if opioids are taken as directed?

More than 45 million Americans regularly suffer from headaches. Will the pain last forever?

There's a new approach to overcoming addiction... using nutrition to help bolster the recovery process.

How can you harness the power of your mind, and the mind/body connection, to help ease the pain in your body?

Curcumin, the active compound in turmeric, has been shown to prevent cancer, treat depression, and ease pain.

Almost everyone will experience severe back pain at some point, whether it's just a "thrown back" one weekend or a constant, everyday agony.

Could something as simple as a prescription medication lead to deadly heroin use?

How can YOU help stop the growing epidemic of prescription drug abuse?

More and more women are dying from overdose due to prescription painkillers. Could you be at risk?

You too can live with out pain. Learn about holistic approaches to pain management and how you can use them at home.

Millions of Americans use prescription pain pills without developing into addiction. What determines who becomes addicted?