When you’re in pain, whether it’s from a headache, backache, or any other part of the body that’s causing you to hurt, painkillers can provide the relief you need. Over-the-counter drugs and pain management prescriptions from local pharmacies come in many forms, including those that relieve the discomfort by reducing inflammation. Below, learn how pain relievers affect the body and review some of the most common painkiller types.

How Do Painkillers Relieve Pain Symptoms?

Your body has nerve endings that feel a variety of sensations, including pain. Whether your pain comes from a tension headache, leg ache, or something else, it’s easy to think the pain reliever travels to the point of discomfort. Most pain relievers work by affecting your central and peripheral nervous system, and subsequently, your brain. Bodily cells and nerve endings react to the medication, shielding your nervous system and brain from the pain.

Pain relievers typically keep the nervous system and brain from recognizing pain by affecting prostaglandin, one of many bodily chemicals. Prostaglandin gets released when you become injured, telling nerve endings to send pain messages to the brain. Pain relievers stop this chemical release so that you don’t feel discomfort.

What Are the Different Kinds of Pain-Relieving Drugs?

Despite the many brand names, over-the-counter and pain management prescriptions fall into a few broad categories. Non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, or NSAIDs, such as ibuprofen, inhibit prostaglandin production to reduce inflammation and pain. They come in pain management prescriptions and over-the-counter forms, as do non-opioid painkillers such as paracetamols. Like NSAIDs, paracetamols and similar drugs prevent pain messages from reaching the brain.

Other pain-relieving drugs include compound and opioid painkillers that require a prescription. Compound painkillers combine two types of drugs, such as paracetamols and NSAIDS, to provide stronger pain relief. Opioids such as codeine and morphine adhere to the opioid receptors in the central nervous system to relieve pain. They are typically used for cancer treatment, among other severe illnesses and conditions. They are by prescription not only because of their strength but because they can become addictive when used incorrectly. 

You can purchase over-the-counter or pain management prescriptions at Anderson Pharmacy in Denver, PA, the local pharmacy serving the Lancaster and Berks counties since 1994. These professionals also sell diabetes management medication and pediatric health aids. Call (717) 484-2649 with prescription refill questions or learn more about pain management online.