Painkillers Don’t Exist

Safer Long-term Pain Management

Painkillers can be helpful for short bursts of acute pain, but long-term pain medicines don’t remove the cause of chronic pain – they can mask it and, over time, prolonged use can cause harm, including dependency/addiction.

It’s estimated that 7.1 million adults in England take prescribed opioid or gabapentinoid pain medication, and opioid prescribing increased from over 14 million prescriptions (2008) to 23 million (2018).

Why we’re sharing this

Painkillers Don’t Exist is an NHS campaign designed to raise awareness of pain-medication dependency and support people with alternative ways to manage long-term pain. It has previously been associated with reductions in opioid prescribing in some areas (alongside wider system work).

What you can do if you’re taking pain medication long-term

1) Ask for a medication review

If you’ve been taking prescribed pain medication for 3 months or more, it’s worth arranging a review with a GP or practice pharmacist to check:

• whether it’s still helping

• whether the dose/length of use is still appropriate

• whether a gradual reduction plan is needed (if appropriate)

2) Don’t stop suddenly

If you and a clinician decide to reduce a medicine, it’s usually done slowly with a clear plan, and you should know what to do if you get withdrawal symptoms or side effects.

3) Consider “intermittent” use (if advised)

Some pain medicines may be used intermittently to manage acute flare-ups rather than continuously (only do this based on clinical advice for your situation).

4) Use a “whole-plan” approach to pain

Because there isn’t a single painkiller that fixes chronic pain, most people do best with a combination of approaches (for example movement/physio, pacing, sleep support, wellbeing approaches, and other tailored options).

Possible signs of dependency (when to get help)

The campaign highlights possible indicators such as: drowsiness, poor coordination, shallow/slow breathing, nausea/vomiting, agitation, poor decision-making, and mood/behaviour changes like irritability, anxiety attacks, euphoria (“feeling high”), slurred speech, or changes in sleep and motivation. If you’re worried about any of these, please book a review.

When to seek urgent help

If someone is extremely drowsy, hard to wake, or has slow/shallow breathing, call 999 (this can be a medical emergency). (If you’re unsure, err on the side of calling.)

Useful resources

• Find out more about the campaign and support: Painkillers Don’t Exist

How to book a review at our practice

We use a total triage system to make sure patients are directed to the most appropriate care.