Hydrocodone is a medical drug used to treat pain. It is often prescribed for the treatment of chronic pain, acute pain, and severe pain. Hydrocodone is also used to treat coughs and colds.
It’s very important that you only take this medication as prescribed by your doctor. If you don’t take it as directed, you may get too much of the drug and experience negative side effects.
While hydrocodone does have a number of positive effects, it does have some negative side effects as well. Here are some of the most common ones:
Positive Effects of Hydrocodone
- Hydrocodone has been shown to be highly effective at relieving pain—in fact, studies show that it’s the most effective non-narcotic option available for treating moderate to severe pain.
- It also has been shown to reduce anxiety in patients who are suffering from chronic pain.
- Hydrocodone can also help relieve coughs and colds by suppressing coughing and helping you breathe more easily.
- It can also help manage other symptoms related to chronic conditions such as asthma or diabetes by reducing inflammation in your lungs or blood sugar levels respectively.
- Hydrocodone helps relieve pain by changing how your body senses and responds to it. This means that it can be used to treat a number of different conditions such as arthritis or injury-related pain.
- Hydrocodone can be used orally or as a suppository (a medication that goes into your rectum). The oral form has a faster effect than the suppository form. Hydrocodone relieves moderate to severe pain for up to six hours and has been shown to be effective for treating acute pain, chronic cancer pain and post-surgical pain.
Negative Effects of Hydrocodone
- Hydrocodone can cause excessive drowsiness or sedation, which may lead to dizziness or impaired coordination. This can increase your risk for falling or injuries if you’re driving or doing other activities that require focus or coordination (such as cooking). You should avoid driving while taking this medication.
- Taking too much hydrocodone can lead to addiction which can result in serious health problems like organ damage or death.
- You should never mix hydrocodone with alcohol because doing so can increase your risk for overdose.
- The withdrawal symptoms can be very severe, including agitation, sweating, restlessness, muscle aches and cramps, insomnia or difficulty sleeping, diarrhea or vomiting (sometimes with blood), nausea or vomiting (sometimes with blood), runny nose or sneezing – especially during the first week of detoxification from hydrocodone; chills or goose bumps; heavy breathing; fever; weakness; loss of appetite; weight loss (or weight gain); stomach pains or diarrhea; dizziness upon standing up suddenly after sitting or lying down for an extended period of time.
- Some people who misuse hydrocodone will crush it to inhale as smoke through a straw or snort it through their nose (snorting). This increases the risk of overdose because these methods speed up absorption into your bloodstream—which can lead to an overdose if you take too much of the drug at once (NIDA).