The reasons for it are many. The barriers come from health care professionals not receiving education or not having the time to really explore an adequate pain history. There's an equal barrier present in the public, and because of their concepts of opioids and our awareness of drugs in this country. Often people think that using pain medicine is like taking drugs, and the connotation there is not a positive one. And so many are unwilling to take these very safe and very effective medications because of irrational or uneducated fears.
People are afraid of addiction.
But that's a myth. People confuse addiction with physical dependency. The appropriate utilization of pain medicine does not cause addiction. The fear of pain or loss of dignity can sometimes lead people to contemplate suicide. People have fears of dying.