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We can enjoy life as it is, follow our habitual ways, develop our creativity and skills endlessly with only one condition - we are not in pain! Consider it closely! Can you think of yummy foods when your have a toothache? Can you party hearty with your ankle sprained? Can you fulfill any routine task with positive attitude when your brain is clouded with pain? The answer is definit - no, you cannot! Pain is the torture we all have to stand from time to time. We are afraid of pain and try to avoid it but we seldom think that pain is the best friend we have, too. Stunned 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 main character of Hugh Laurie’s novel “The gun seller” stated, “pain is something you cause to yourself”. It is true, when something is wrong with our body, either inside or outside, our mind creates strong throbbing impulses that we decipher as pain or chronic ache. This way our organism cries for help and pleads us to handle the trouble as soon as possible.

When individuals develop severe chronic health issues pain can exhaust them 24/7, turning their lives into a distressing nightmare. Of course, the major task of modern medicine is to help those patients control the pain and lead usual lives. Today opioid medicines, both synthetic and natural, are the most trusted pain killers available.

Vicodin belongs to the class of synthetic narcotic analgesics, too. Containing Hydrocodone (synthetic opiate) and Acetaminophen (Paracetamol or Tylenol), Vicodin causes double pain relieving action bringing you swift relief. This successful compound of two pain relievers is know by numerous brand names depending on the concentrations of Hydrocodone and Acetaminophen in them. So:

- Vicodin has 500 mg Paracetamol and 5 mg Hydrocodone;
- Vicodin HP comprises 750 mg Paracetamol and 7.5 mg Hydrocodone;
- Vicodin ES comprises 660 mg Paracetamol and 10 mg Hydrocodone;
- Anexsia comprises 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 has 500 mg Paracetamol and 2.5, 5, 7.5 or 10 mg Hydrocodone;
- Maxidone is made up of 750 mg Paracetamol and 10 mg Hydrocodone;
- Norco has 325 mg Paracetamol and 5, 7.5, or 10 mg Hydrocodone;
- Polygesic has 500 mg Paracetamol and 5 mg Hydrocodone;
- Stagesic comprises 500 mg Paracetamol and 5 mg Hydrocodone;
- Xodol is 300 mg Paracetamol and 5, 7.5, or 10 mg Hydrocodone;
- Zamicet; Zydone comprises 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 ingredients of the med, please, call your medical man before you get cheapest Vicodin and start taking it.

Vicodin, like any other opioid analgesic, is used to treat moderate to moderately severe pain. This medicine is most commonly used for acute, chronic and/or post-operative conditions. Sometimes it can also be used to treat severe cough.

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

Please, note that each type of brand or generic pill contains various amounts of Vicodin. That is why you should be very cautious how many tablets you take. The maximum safe quantity 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 killing 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 adverse effects and addiction to this medication.

If you miss a scheduled 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. Do not take double or extra doses to avoid ruinous ovedose! The terrible matter is that
Vicodin overdose can be lethal.

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

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

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

- severe drowsiness,
- severe 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 causes 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, patients allergic to Vicodin can experience severe 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 rise from a seated or lying position you can minimize dizziness and lightheadedness doing it slowly.

If you are rather old great caution is advised when using this med - you may be more sensitive to the side effects of the medicine, especially decreased breathing and drowsiness. It is forbidden to prescribe Vicodin to individuals under 18! Children should never be prescribed 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 beforehand. This drug weakens the action of narcosis that is why you may need to stop using Vicodin for a short time.

The topic of Vicodin, pregnancy and lactation is essential, too. The effects of Vicodin during pregnancy and lactation are not properly investigated. To be on the safe side, avoid taking Vicodin if you are pregnant to keep your fetus safe. Discuss with your practitioner all pros and cons before getting Vicodin online without prescription and starting it. Although some medical reports state that this medicine is safe for pregnant women, you should start 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 addicted 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 sometimes prescribed 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 gets rid of 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 troubles in older dogs.

Modern medicine is rather careless about Vicodin addiction these days - addiction to illicit street drugs and/or alcohol is considered to be a far more dangerous condition. To tell you the truth, Vicodin is not really viewed as a drug able of causing the same horrible 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 OK and they do not require the withdrawal treatment. What a shame!

If you feel any withdrawal symptoms after you stop taking Vicodin, seek drug abuse treatment immediately! Men and women 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 personality 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 opiates. The longer you stay with 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 drug to reach the same pain controlling effects.

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

- runny nose, muscle aches and other flu-like symptoms;
- nausea;
- diarrhea;
- anxiety;
- depression;
- insomnia;
- irritability;
- chills;
- drug cravings;
- increased pain of the disease 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 humans who are using 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 ordeal is the episode from the “House M.D” serial where the main character Greg House survives the most terrible 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.