Well, "also a risk" and the level of risk from combining alcohol and Tylenol is probably the issue, one is worse than the other, which is why they developed the drugs in the first place. Better living through chemicals If you need a stronger painkiller, get that. It may be unlikely, but in some cases doctors may not be willing to prescribe what is appropriate for the pain unless you ask. They are too scared of the prescription medicine crackdown or other stuff that doesn't have much to do with simply doing their job of caring for patients. It doesn't mean that you are abusing the system, but some people are bigger and might require a bigger dose, something might have been different in the surgery and caused more pain that might be "normal", etc. Best thing to do is ask. If drugs get you back to feeling well (because it allowed your body to heal) in a decent amount of time, then well done. The army didn't give me any lip about asking for a refill of my codine, and I didn't end up addicted to drugs!