The Young and the Restless character Nick Newman could be headed for a painkiller addiction storyline

The Young and the Restless may have laid the groundwork for a painkiller storyline today with Nick Newman. We saw something that made us think that if Nick isn't careful, he's going to develop an addiction to the pills that are meant to help him recover from surgery.

The Young and the Restless, the dolls

Nick's in pain on The Young and the Restless | Image: CBS

Nick (Joshua Morrow) paid the price for trying to handle Matt Clark (Roger Howarth) on his own after Matt managed to make Nick crash his car on The Young and the Restless. He underwent surgery for a broken leg. Against orders, he vacated Genoa City Memorial early so that he could deal with some family issues, including confronting Phyllis (Michelle Stafford), his ex-wife, over her role in the AI takeover of Newman.

We saw Nick wincing in pain from the surgery. His decision to get back to the Newman family drama could be setting up his next storyline. After Nick returned to the Newman ranch, frustrated over his encounter with Phyllis, Nick popped up another pain pill. He examined the bottle, lamenting that he was going to need another refill soon.

A refill!? Nick had just gotten out of the hospital. Was he going off a short sample that the hospital gave him, or has he already polished off nearly a full bottle that was meant to last him a good amount of time? If it's the latter, Nick's popping pain pills like they're Pez candy.

Kicking the habit

Nick will soon be down to his last pill on The Young and the Restless | Image: CBS

Nick is already displaying one characteristic of someone who's an addict. He lied to his daughter, Summer (Allison Lanier), that he was fine when he called her in Italy. Nick is not fine. He doesn't want to worry his daughter (beyond possibly telling her about Phyllis's role in the AI takedown of Newman), but Nick likely doesn't want his daughter to know that he was in a car wreck and is dealing with a broken limb.

Soaps have addressed painkiller addiction storylines before. The Bold and the Beautiful's Steffy, played by Jacqueline MacInnes Wood, had a habit she needed to kick. On Y&R, Jack (Peter Bergman), Nick's former stepdad, battled an addiction to pain pills.