Morgans writes:

Prescribed narcotics for pain control are just as addictive, and difficult
to withdraw from, and euphoria is not a sensation that is present, or
desired.

Prescription narcotics are incompatible with flying and driving if they impair
the pilot/driver. However, opioids are generally less impairing than alcohol,
so it makes little sense to worry about prescription painkillers unless
alcohol is completely excluded first.

Antihistamines are fairly harmless overall but they can cause considerable
impairment in the form of drowsiness, a good example of an innocuous drug that
is nevertheless incompatible with operation of a vehicle.

There are very real physical sensations that make ordinary living quite
impossible, if the withdrawal of the narcotic is too sudden. It is quite
incapacitating.

Opioid withdrawal is less debilitating than alcohol withdrawal. And neither
is impossible; if they were impossible, nobody would ever be able to stop
taking these drugs, and yet people manage to do so every day.

The primary barrier is psychological, particularly in people who are
predisposed to addictive behaviors. If they aren't hooked on booze, they are
hooked on pot, or something else.

That being said, the use of the narcotic is the only thing that makes life
possible, for some people in some situations. Without them, I suspect that
there would be many suicides, because the pain of the subject is so severe,
that any escape from the pain would be considered, including the taking of
one's life.

There is no reason to skimp on the use of painkillers just because of taboos
over their use. Morphine and the other opioids are still the gold standard
for pain relief, and when used legitimately for pain relief there isn't any
reason to be nervous about them. Most people who take opioids only for pain
relief do not become addicted, even though they develop a dependence on the
drugs in time. And even if they did become addicted, that would still be
preferable to a life of severe pain.