I live with chronic pain. (ankylosing spondylitis) I take prescription NSAIDs and other drugs for a long time. Also a lot of acetaminophen per day. (Which I

I live with chronic pain. (ankylosing spondylitis) I take prescription NSAIDs and other drugs for a long time. Also a lot of acetaminophen per day. (Which I carefully monitor.) I also take, occasionally, narcotic pain killers (hydrocodone). Next January (2019) will be ten years since I added hydrocodone to the drugs I use for this. But it is a tool. Nothing more. I take it only when I need it. I don't have any predictable usage pattern. It is for occasional use only. I have a very healthy fear of taking it at all, but if I'm in enough pain, I'll overcome that and take some. I have a good life and don't want to screw it up with narcotic pain killers. I have never had any resistance when asking for a refill. Neither my primary doctor nor arthritis specialist are worried that I'm taking too much. If anything, I've noticed that in the last couple years, I've slowed down my usage a little bit. (Measured by time between refills.) I think in pain management, the first thing is "learn to live with it", and then, "there are good drugs for days when it is really bad". (just IMO) I'm always looking for the lowest dose I can take that will be effective for any particular episode. I don't want to build up a tolerance. And I suppose I must not have built up a tolerance in ten years of occasional use. I haven't become addicted. But I also don't drink alcohol. Or smoke. Or use very much caffeine. Maybe that is related, or maybe not. I would say that hydrocodone has improved my quality of life. I get out and do things I sometimes wouldn't otherwise do. Last year I was in Colorado and tried some, .... uh, ... products. First, I thought they were pretty pricey compared to hydrocodone, which costs me only $5 for a bottle of 30. Second, while they did help some, I didn't think they were nearly as effective. The hydrocodone is more like a nuclear weapon for pain.