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Opioids for Breakthrough Pain

Short-acting opioids, sometimes called breakthrough pain medications, are medicines that you take as needed when you feel pain. They are absorbed quickly into your body, providing relief in that moment. Although they work quickly, they wear off in about 3-4 hours. Examples are oxycodone, morphine, and hydromorphone (Dilaudid). Go to your Medicine Cabinet to see your short-acting opioid.

What are short-acting opioids?

When to expect relief

It usually takes about 15-30 minutes to start feeling better, and 1 ½ hours to get the most relief.

How long they last

  • All or Nothing Thinking
    Am I too extreme in my thinking? Are there other ways of looking at it?
  • Should Statements
    Is this a rule that applies to everyone else? If not, maybe this is a preference rather than a rule.
  • Extreme Negative Thinking
    Am I 100% sure of these awful consequences? Am I jumping to conclusions too quickly? Do I know for certain that this will happen? What other possible outcomes are there? What is the most realistic outcome? What is the likelihood that _______ will happen? What is the worst that could happen? How bad is that and could I cope with that?
  • Overgeneralization
    Does ___ have to equal or lead to________ ? Have I ever had situations in my life when___ did not lead to____? Am I being too extreme in my thinking? Am I jumping to conclusions too quickly?
  • Jumping to Conclusions
    Do I know for certain what the other person is thinking? Do I have telepathic powers? Even if s/he were to think this about me, does __________ 's opinion reflect everyone else's?
  • Emotional Reasoning
    Is my emotional experience necessarily reflective of the situation? Am I reading too much into my emotions? What do I know to be true? Has my emotional interpretation ever led me to the wrong conclusion? Could my emotions or how my body feels be coloring my appraisal of the situation? Will I come up with the same conclusion if I wait 30 minutes?
  • Forgetting the Positive
    Am I being too critical of myself? Am I being fair to myself? Would I believe this person if s/he were to tell me something bad?
  • Mental Filter
    Am I being partial to what I pay attention to? Am I disqualifying the positive? Am I looking at the whole picture? Am I focusing on a negative detail? Would I be this tough on a friend?
  • Fortune-telling
    Do I know for certain that this will happen? Do I have a crystal ball? Could there be any other explanation? Do I have special powers to look into the future? Have I ever been wrong? How accurate have I been when I have foretold the future?
  • Magnification/Minimization
    Am I being too hard on myself? Would I be this tough on my friend? Am I being fair to myself?
  • Labeling/Mislabeling
    What is the definition of ________? Am I being fair to myself by labeling myself? How useful is it to be labeling myself? Is this the only thing that defines me? What more is there about me?
  • Personalization
    Am I reading too much into this? Am I really that powerful? Are there any other reasons unrelated to me why things turned out this way? Could something else be going on?

Short-acting opioids wear off in about 3-4 hours. So don’t be surprised if you feel your pain creeping back, and need to take another dose.

How to use short-acting opioids

Want to learn more?
Check out these resources:
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