Fuck. Shit sucks. I myself have dealt with long lasting (> 1 month) pain and it's horrific. Your whole perspective changes, you think life will never be the same. I can't imagine what it's like when these issues stretch into the years.
You're right, perspective does change permanently. There weren't "seeing the light" moments but I certainly know now who my friends are. I have an interesting view of life now. The residual pain is a reminder that I don't have time for nonsense anymore. A pain in the arm is enough, I don't need a pain in the ass also.
I'm also viciously dismissive now of any legislation or practices that limit controlled substances. I'm not an addict and I shouldn't be punished for other peoples acts.
I find myself agreeing with this. Opiate overuse and addiction is certainly a problem, but I also question some of the negativity I see regarding their use (from a UK perspective). I was on tramadol (200mg/day) for about six months, and was told, by my consultant, that coming off them "will be worse than quitting heroin". I just stopped taking them, and saw no ill effects. I've twice been on codeine (240mg/day) for around 8-12 months, and was given similar, albeit less severe, warnings about withdrawal. In both cases, there were no side effects upon stopping. I have to wonder if such warnings make withdrawal symptoms more likely through the nocebo effect[1].
They certainly have been misused in many ways, but they also have their place and make long-term pain much easier to deal with.
My anecdote was I once asked for a prescription for 1 Percocet per month for the one time a month I need serious pain relief and was referred to physio therapy after having already done 2 years of it. I even had my previous prescription from the surgery with 40 out of the 60 pills remaining to offer as proof of my none addiction. I often wonder how many live with chronic pain because of similar circumstances.