"As needed" medication vs. scheduled dosing
The variety of opioid medications available and the lack of a ceiling on their dosage removes any reason to withhold them when they can bring needed relief. There is also no reason to treat the pain only when it reaches a certain level, or worse, to wait until it becomes intolerable. In fact, it has been shown that giving regular, round-the-clock doses is the best way to keep pain under control – before it becomes a serious problem.
Side effects
Opioids commonly cause such side effects as constipation, nausea and vomiting, sedation, and confusion, as well as respiratory depression in a number of cases. But these side effects are almost always treatable. Some, like sleepiness or nausea, usually last only a few days as the body becomes adjusted to the medication; and this adjustment occurs without reducing the medication's pain-relieving effect. It is also possible to use other treatments, including additional medications, to relieve certain side effects. Additionally, a change in dosage may eliminate side effects while maintaining a medication's effectiveness against pain. And when side effects persist, using a different opioid or another type of medication for pain may address the problem.
Inevitability of pain
One big myth that health professionals need to knock down at once – whether in their own minds or in the minds of their patients – is the idea that uncontrollable pain is a necessary component of serious illness. Cancer and other serious diseases do not always cause pain. And when pain does result from illness, medications and other therapies are available to bring relief in the great majority of cases.