In what ways do pain pills change someone's personality?
 

I know they do... But is it a durastic change? And what kind of changes are they?

i have no idea...Are you the one who has been useing them?

Perhaps a bit more info will allow members to
post their ideas/expereinces and be able to give you assistance.

What do you mean? When I took pills they made me loopy, dreamy, calm, happy, etc. To get pills I would lie and steal. As for personality changes...not sure what you mean by that. I have been clean for 47 days and my personality is my "normal" personality.

I went back and read your past posts. I am guessing you are asking this bc you are still feeling depressed and sad? I think those are totally normal feelings to have when you are coming clean. You have covered your emotions up for so long and now they are all rushing back. I have had quite a few major crying upset spells in the past 47 days, but it is getting better and I feel like I have more of a handle on things now. You will too. Give it time. ((hugs))

For me, pain pills made me very emotionally dishonest. I would like things that, being now clean almost three months, I can't imagine ever having liked. I would also commit to social commitments constantly, and I appeared to be more outgoing socially when I knew that wasn't my true self.

Thanks everyone... It's just really confusing. Some days i'm sad and feel as if I can't do a thing. Other days i'm singing and dancing as if I was still on them. I don't know what the normal me is. It's been so long since i've been without it. I'd love to know what I'll be like when everything levels out, so i'll know when i'm better. This experience is like the craziest rollercoaster ride i've ever been on. There are good days, but then I have those days that I just want to die! That makes me forget about the good times and then it just doesn't seem worth it. But i'm hanging in there! No worries :)

Keep hanging in there! It is a roller coaster ride...makes every day like a trip to an adventure park :)

I am going on 7 weeks clean and my moods seem to be evening out a little. Some days I want a pill like crazy, but at this point I know I am capable of living clean!!

Is being quiet one of the symptoms of paws?

I wouldn't think so. Maybe you are just so used to feeling outgoing on the pills. I know at certain times on vicodin I would be so talkative I couldn't shut up. My natural personality tends towards being more quiet and that is ok.

I know when I was your age I hated that I was quiet. I thought the obnoxious drunk me would get people to notice me more. They did, but not in a good way! I have learned that it is ok to be more introverted. Doesn't make me any less of a person.

You're on the right track!

Okay lol :)... I just hope i'm not always down in the dumps! Because that WILL make people not wanna be around me. But I'm confident i'll climb out of this and become what God intended for me to be. Not something fake.

YOU WILL!! You are young, and intelligent, and strong! I am so proud of you for taking this seriously and knowing at your age that this isn't how you were meant to live.

YES! Being quiet was definitely one of my symptoms. When I was high on opiates I would talk a mile and minute and be sooooo outgoing, especially with aquaintances. For a while I was more quiet, but my personality balanced back out in a couple of months.

Blessings, Lily

Awesome :).... That's comforting to hear. I did much better today. I joked around with my family, laughed, and had a lot of fun! I know that can change quickly, but I believe I'm more prepared. Thanks :)

As a long term pain pill abuser and now clear for 18 months, I find that the biggest change is the return of laughter. I laughed lightly while using, but the belly aching, strong laughter only came back to me after about 4 months clean. Thus, I think my personality was affected, as I find humor now in some of the simpliest things. It is great!

That's wonderful :)... I'm excited for that to come!

While using: Didn't care about anything but getting high or waiting on my dealer to refill his script.

Day 1-1 month: Kept to myself, mostly due to social anxiety issues. Was unfamiliar with how to deal with life situations without pills. I had about 1 day a week where I felt "normal".

1 month - 3 months: Good days started outweighing the bad. Lost count of days sober. Anxiety began to subside. I had about one day a week where I didn't feel "normal".

3 months-11 months and change(today): Normal behavior. Look back on myself when I was a junkie and laugh at what an idiot I was.

Hope this helps and keep your head up! It gets better!

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Thanks so much. I had another anxious day...sometimes I feel like people act weird around me (the ones that know i'm coming off) which obviously makes me act weird too. I hate that they do that.

Another day down though! You're still probably not in the one day at a time deal, I know I am taking it hour by hour right now. then we graduate to days, weeks, months and then years. I had a year and I promise it's great.


As for personality, I am far less outgoing when I am not using. When I was, I always had girlfriends, always talked to girls wherever we were, most of my friends hated that I had such confidence, little do they know, it really wasn't me. Without I am pretty quiet, really shy and just kinda like you described, feel pretty awkward in most situations. But as everyone here will tell you, it all gets better. just keep on going!

I am an alcoholic. But I think pills are probably the same as far as addiction. When an alcoholic wants their drink, they become agitated until they get it. I imagine the person with pills also does. That's probably the main problem. Restless, anxious and irritable.

I had PAWS. A little bit I still have anxiety but it's usually not a problem. I had a "flat affect" for awhile. That is when a response is called for and you just don't respond. You don't feel the need to respond. I was quite often too. Although I do tend to be quieter than most. I was quiet for me. Now I am more outgoing. I tend to voice my opinion in real time. And I know what I mean exactly. I love this "realtime" posts. Pretty quick responses that keep my interest. I am past 2 years sober. That is when the experts say the PAWS subsides. I believe it. Sobriety rocks!