A fusion is a major invasive surgery. I was in the hospital for 3 days when I had mine and even morphine was barely enough for the pain. I was out of work for at least two months. It is a difficult recovery, and I took narcotic pain meds for 6 weeks or more. But there was a plan associated with my medication strategy. You start out high and take meds early to stay ahead of the pain, but then you begin to taper off as your recovery progresses. In today's opioid crisis environment, your access to pain meds will be limited to what you need. Narcotic pain meds can be habit forming, but unless you are dealing with a substance abuse problem already, they are not necessarily going to lead to an opioid addiction.