 Re: Prince?!
Well, we know that Prince MAY have been addicted to opiates, as he suffered a recent overdose. It is also quite possible that he was just trying to get pain relief. I'm sure we will find out more about it since there is a lot of interest in his death.
I know something about opiates as I have to take them every day. And that scares me. But no matter how bad my condition gets, I have NEVER taken more than prescribed. And I never take them when I am not in pain. I try to use them as sparingly as possible.
PLEASE, if you need these drugs, use the minimum possible dosage for pain relief. While it IS true that these drugs can make you feel good, that lasts only a very short time and each time it is shorter and shorter. It is NOT worth your life! There is no such thing as "oh, I just took a couple of extras" with these pills.
And I am not saying this only because I care about others, although I certainly DO care. But I also have a selfish reason for saying this. Every time someone else dies of an opiate overdose, it makes it that much harder for people who actually NEED these drugs to get them. Not a day goes by when some new piece of legislation restricting these drugs is not being proposed somewhere in the US. And the fact is, they have NOTHING that can take their place for many people. For whatever reason, whenever they try to take the "addictive" parts of these drugs out, they end up removing the pain relieving part of it as well. I know the drug manufacturers are working on this, but nothing they have so far has been successful.
If you get a tooth pulled, or sprain your ankle, think twice before taking them. If you NEED IT, by all means, take it. But if you don't, then leave these drugs alone. You will be doing yourself a big favor. Because for most people, they WILL need them at some point. And if you have built up a resistance to these drugs, then you won't get the pain relief you are seeking when you need them.
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Prince?! 
