Detoxing from Opiates

About Detoxing from Opiates

According to US National Library of Medicine and National Institutes of Health, when an individual stops taking opiates, their body will need time to recover and return to its normal functioning; because of this, withdrawal symptoms will occur. Opiate withdrawal symptoms will occur whenever any chronic use of opiates is reduced or discontinued.

Going through an opiate detox will include uncomfortable withdrawal symptoms and may require medical attention.

Opiate addiction consumes the lives of millions of Americans every year. When a person is addicted to opiates they will continually think about the drug and use the drug. However, the more a person uses the drug the more their body will become used to the drug in its system. This can evolve to the point where a person will become sick and feel extremely depressed and unwell when the drug is not in their body; this is known as dependency.

In addition to dependency, a person who is abusing opiates frequently will also build a tolerance to the drug, which means that they will need to keep increasing their dosages of the drug in order to receive the feelings they want and to avoid going into withdrawal. Opiate addiction, dependency, and tolerance, are a vicious cycle that will continue until a person gets help.

When a person who is dependent on opiates stops taking the drug, whether by choice or by force, they will begin to go through withdrawal symptoms. The physical withdrawal symptoms of opiates can be painful and hard for a person to deal with. Common physical withdrawal symptoms include nausea, vomiting, stomach cramping, muscle aches, excessive sweating, runny nose, increased tearing, Goosebumps and uncontrollable shaking or twitching.

Furthermore, a person will also have to deal with psychological withdrawals, which typically include insomnia, anxiety, depression and mood swings. If a person has begun to build a tolerance to opiates they can experience withdrawal symptoms even if the drug is in their body, but just not at the higher dosage that their body now needs.

Getting Help

There are thousands of rehabs and treatment programs available to people to help them overcome their opiate addiction. Opiate addiction can destroy a person’s life causing them to lose their friends, jobs, money, significant others and their self-respect.

Opiate rehab programs will provide a person with the help, guidance, and resources they need to have a safe detox and heal from their addiction. Stopping the use of opiates may be a difficult task to accomplish but it can be done, and with the help of a treatment program a person will have all of the treatments for their addiction that they need in one place, and with a little time they can learn to regain control of their life again.