Saturday, 30 April 2016

Heroin Addiction and Detox Clinics Are Not All The Same

Heroin Addiction and Detox Clinics are not Mutually Exclusive

Many people who do not suffer the affliction of addiction assume that drug addicts or abusers or immoral, weak, dirty, and criminal. These people believe that to stop doing drugs one only needs to abstain from them. Just make the choice to no longer take drugs. Simple. These people would be wrong, if you need to speak with a adviser that specializes in heroin detox and treatment call 1-888-325-2454

The Reality of Heroin Addiction

Heroin is an opioid drug and is derived from morphine. It can be a powder, (brown or white) or it can be in the form of a black sticky tar like substance known as “black tar heroin. The National Institute on Drug Abuse states that 4.2 Americans over age 12 had used heroin at least once and about 23 percent of people who use heroin become addicted to it.

Heroin addicts are not the thin, pasty people with sunken black eyes like in the movies. In reality, it is unlikely you would spot a person addicted to heroin if you passed them on the street. People suffer from many illnesses with overlapping symptoms and many heroin addicts are actually overweight with a bloated appearance. Some addicts may look and act “normal” with no signs of drug use and be capable of functioning in everyday life. Your reality is not their reality. For them every minute is another minute to figure out how to get their next fix before the receptors in their brain run out of the drug.

Heroin changes the brain and those receptors. Once heroin enters into the brain, it is converted back to morphine and attaches to the brain receptors associated with pleasure. Receptors are also in the brain stem and affect processes such as blood pressure, respiration (breathing) and arousal.

The brain is not the only part of the body that is affected by heroin. Chronic heroin use can lead to permanent damage or failure of vital organs such as lungs, kidneys, and liver. (National Institute on Drug Abuse: DrugFacts: Heroin. Oct 2014.)

The Pain of Heroin Addiction

With the habitual use of heroin comes physical dependence. The body has become used to the drug’s presence and abruptly stopping the drug will result in severe withdrawal symptoms.

These symptoms can begin within a few hours of the last dose and include,

  • Muscle and bone pain
  • Restlessness
  • Insomnia
  • Cold flashes with goose bumps
  • Vomiting
  • Diarrhea
  • Craving for the drug

This last symptom is one of the main reasons that continued use or relapse occurs. Combined with the physical pain of withdrawal, heroin is an extremely difficult addiction to overcome. Especially when another dose is all that is necessary to stop the painful withdrawal symptoms.

An individual addicted to heroin needs to detox in a facility capable of easing the withdrawal symptoms with support from professionals who understand addiction.

Medical Detox; Easing the Pain

Heroin is one of the most dangerous and addictive drugs on the street. It is also one of the hardest addictions to overcome.  Detoxing without professional assistance is dangerous and seldom successful. Medical detoxification for heroin eases the symptoms of withdrawal as the brain recovers from the dependence of the drug. The purpose of detoxification is treat the physical symptoms of withdrawal and remove the toxins left behind in the body.

  • Medical Detoxification – Medical detoxification allows individuals to withdraw from heroin safely. Generally, the process is medically supervised in a hospital or other treatment center that has a unit for detoxification which allows the patient to be monitored closely throughout the process. Medication is given to prevent the withdrawal symptoms from becoming severe. The medication is usually a related drug type that is gradually tapered over a period of days.
  • Rapid Detoxification – This type of detoxification happens while the patient sleeps under general anesthesia. Opiate blocker injections are given to the patient which will prevent the action of the heroin. Other medications that aid in reducing physical symptoms are also given by injection. The process of rapid detox allows for the rapid withdrawal from the effects of heroin within 4 to 8 hours. This procedure occurs in an intensive care unit in a hospital and patients are generally discharged within two days. (The Online Addiction Recovery Guide.)
  • Stepped Rapid Detoxification – This is an alternative to the rapid detoxification by which a patient receives small doses of Naloxone which is injected under the skin as well as Naltrexone about every hour. This method allows the patient to withdraw at a slower more controlled pace. It also allows for the medical professional to treat any withdrawal symptoms quickly and thus there is less need for withdrawal medications. Naltrexone Maintenance Therapy can stabilize the patient and aid in the long term goal of recovery. While a person is on Naltrexone they would feel no effect were they to take any type of opiate.
  • Ultra Rapid Detoxification – This method also requires the patient to be under general anesthesia. The patient is then given the drug Naltrexone which will block the endorphin receptors and put them into complete detoxification within a 30 minute period.
  • Outpatient Detoxification – For patients with less severe withdrawal symptoms this method is usually both safe and effective. A physician has a variety of medications at his/her disposal and outpatient detox takes anywhere from 7 to 14 days.
  • Methadone – This is the most common form of opiate detox and largely unsuccessful. The patient is given methadone and is then tapered from it over the next 21 days. This method still causes withdrawal to be uncomfortable and often the patients will use drugs during this withdrawal period.

Detoxification can either be in an outpatient setting such as a mental health center or addiction clinic, or in an inpatient setting like a hospital or residential treatment center.

Whether a patient utilizes inpatient or outpatient treatment will be determined by factors such as, amount and history of heroin abuse, patient’s age, and any co-existing physical or mental health issues.

If you have questions concerning heroin or any addiction treatment, call us at 1-888-325-2454. We are here to help 24/7 to answer any questions about treatment you might have.

It is never too late to reclaim the life you deserve and experience relieve from heroin addiction. You owe it to yourself and the people in your life to be free from heroin addiction. The best way to get sober from heroin is to call us at 1-888-325-2454 and begin a treatment plan.



from
http://www.heroindetoxclinics.com/heroin-addiction-and-detox-clinics-are-not-all-the-same/

Thursday, 21 April 2016

What They Dont Tell You About Heroin

What They Don’t Tell You About Heroin

The start of an addiction isn’t just as black and white as people often believe. You would be surprised to learn that you don’t exactly get hooked after just one single experience. Nobody kicks their new habit off by shooting the drug through a needle, which is a horrific introduction to anything. No one would try it if the only way were through a needle. Most are introduced through a pill, or they smoke it. It can lull one into a false sense of security, making it seem as though they can continue to keep using without dealing with the downside of withdrawals or cravings. However, there comes a point where it just becomes a major issue without the person even realizing it until it’s far too late – they’re hooked. Most will start using with needles after the early signs of withdrawal, or “junk sick” as users refer to it. If you are searched in Google, heroin detox near me and are looking for treatment please contact us at (888) 325-2454.

The Deeper Danger to Heroin Addiction

While it may seem like a good scare tactic to tell people that trying heroin once ends in an instant addiction, there is a serious danger that that tactic covers up without meaning to. Heroin users didn’t inadvertently get addicted, such as falling onto a needle loaded with junk. They are tricked by the impression their first time gives them. You feel like you escape for a while, from all of your physical problems. You may feel like you’re floating on a cloud at first. That’s the way heroin works its way into your brain. It relies on the comfort it brings, helping you forget your problems and causing no problems when you wake up in the morning. Until, suddenly, you feel sick if you don’t have any, and the withdrawals are a living hell.

detox for heroin

Long-Term Effects of Heroin

The movies may show certain aspects of heroin as horrifying, and scary. Users are prone to developing an infection, or an abscess. It happens constantly, and there are far worse long-term consequences. Frequent heroin users can begin to damage their veins, which can cause them to completely collapse. Collapsed veins can cause your heart and blood vessels to become infected, and may even cause Tuberculosis. Heroin users may develop arthritis as a result of on-going injections. Users may share needles among one another, and it can spread AIDS, as well as other diseases and infections. According to DrugFreeWorld, the US sees an 35,000 increase in liver disease and 70 percent of those people are from needle-related drugs.

These above long-term effects can be harsh on the body, and the mind. However, those problems are nearly getting off easy compared to how easy it is to inadvertently overdose on the drug. It is scarily hard to tell if it is pure or not, since whether it’s 10 percent or 90 percent, they look the same. The user that shoots the lower grade junk ends up getting that “good good” from their dealer, and even a tiny test shot can be four times the dosage of what their body is used to.

Consider it this way: heroin is not dangerous because of infections, or getting hooked the first time you try it. It’s dangerous for a far worse reason, and it’s one that people need to begin pointing out. Heroin is the kind of drug that, every time someone takes it, they are tempting their own fate.

Quitting Heroin Won’t Kill You; Methadone Can

Surprisingly enough, methadone is almost worse for quitting heroin than simply working through the agonizing withdrawals. Methadone is a legal option that users may try when they are trying to wean themselves from the drug. It is actually an opiate that is one of the few opiates that can cause death from withdrawals. When you start weaning from heroin to methadone, you are simply trading one addiction for another. Methadone withdrawals can last for months on end, and take the users life at any point during.

Methadone is poorly regulated, and not very well monitored. Methadone clinics don’t care, they will gladly keep selling the stuff to people who “need” it to kick the junk. Studies have found that patients who are trying to wean from heroin should gradually reduce their usage. It is more effective, less expensive, reduces the cost on society (such as crime), and improves the patients’ quality of life. If you would like to learn more about Heroin addiction treatment and would like to speak with a counselor to discuss your options, please contact us at (888) 325-2454

Source

http://visual.ly/heroin-addiction-cycle

http://www.drugfreeworld.org/drugfacts/heroin/long-term-effects.html

http://www.cracked.com/personal-experiences-1306-5-unexpected-things-i-learned-from-being-heroin-addict.html



from
http://www.heroindetoxclinics.com/what-they-dont-tell-you-about-heroin/