If I was prescribed any addictive drug, I would delay taking it for as long as I could, until the pain got worse then I could tolerate, but talk to your doctor. He is better able to answer that question.

A pcp once told me to take them for 3 weeks as prescribed and then take a week off and I wouldn't get addicted. Looking back, I wished I would have listened to her.
Good luck

Do not wait until the pain is severe. Pain medication does not work as well once the pain is severe. If you do not think you need it when a dose is scheduled. Wait until you feel like you need it.

I agree with ItsJustMe, always take pain medications before your pain increases; you want to stay ahead of your pain! Pain meds are much more effective at preventing pain than trying to catchup. The downside is that you may be taking more pain medication than needed. So it becomes a balancing game. If you know that doing "X" is going to cause pain, then take your pain med 30 minutes before starting that activity. Otherwise you can try moving towards a more PRN type of situation. It all depends on you and what your doctor intended when the pain med was prescribed. Many times a doctor will prescribe "every 6 hours" (in this case) to make sure that you will have enough until your next visit. Usually every 6 hours is just to fill the 24 hour clock, not necessarily because the doctor thinks that you need it 24x7.

Bottom line, take as prescribed if needed and certainly before a known pain causing event. If you do not need it every 6 hours around the clock then adjust according. BTW - - Keep track of the total acetaminophen taken each day from all medications Rx & OTC to make sure that you do not exceed 4 grams per 24 hours, or even safer, 3 grams per day when taken daily.

Here is what medical professionals say. Do not allow your pain med to wear off. Take your pain meds on a timed schedule. What happens is we start to chase the pain. We allow our pain meds to wear off and then we have the massive pain and we finally take the med and then it takes a few hours to subside. Some people are told how to "layer" pain meds that are over the counter with their prescribed pain med. But you need to ask your doctor about this if you need it.

You are right that narcotics do tend to get less effective for some people. They are addictive. A theory is the pain relieving part of the narcotic lasts only so long and then it is the euphoria aspect left. So it no longer relieves the pain but we chase the euphoria aspect which can be the start of the addiction. For some people, this waning effect never happens but for others, it happens fairly quickly after a matter of a few weeks from what I have read.

I would suggest you take as little as possible but on a schedule with an assessment of your daily pain. If your pain is minimal, take an OTC pain reliever. Take any pain reliever with water so you swallow it fully down into the stomach and with food to minimize stomach upset. If you need the narcotics, then take it. If your pain is minimal see if other things do the trick. People with chronic pain issues often need to take their necessary dose on a schedule every day. People with an injury may need more at first and then taper down after a few days or a week to using OTC pain relievers or icing or heat, or pain patches OTC, etc.

Thank you so very much for your helpful replies!

Hi there spunkye i say never wait til the pain gets worst i did and my body froze up, and i had a panic attack a uncontrollable fear that almost cost my body to shut down. I could not move for 2 hours, if it had not been for my sister who is a doctor and my god daughter i would have been in trouble. I agree with urbangarden never wait for the med to wear off, I`ll never do that again believe me. Do as your doc says.

If you are planning to take the medication short term, then yes - don’t wait.
If this is something you will be on for more than 2 months - avoid taking it for as long as possible. If you take pain meds on a set schedule, you are more likely to develop tolerance and dependence quicker. With long term narcotic use the goal is to prevent upping the doses for as long as possible.