Why do some pills, for example pills for headaches, taken in high frequency (like twice a week) lose their effects on the body gradually?

Question

I think I understand the basic of this:
Your body gets used to the medicine and requires higher quantities to feel the same effect.
So if you have an headache, at first you may need 1 pill, but after taking pills a lot, and for a while, you may need 2 pills to feel the same effect.

But why is that? And is there a way to make it so that 1 pill will work everytime? That way you could take headache pills for example without worrying your headaches worsening or requiring more medicine in the future

In: Biology

Answer 1

Certain pain medications work by blocking signal molecules between nerves, either by disabling the molecule or blocking the receptor. As your body gets used to the effect, it will make more of the signal or more receptors to compensate.

That’s why withdrawal can be so bad. If you suddenly take away that cushioning effect, your body is super sensitive to everything.