How To Approach & Deal With Opiate Addiction Treatment

By Janet Reynolds


The number of individuals abusing pain medications is at a record high. For years now, it has become quite the health disaster, and it keeps on claiming many lives on a daily basis. As it stands, it is estimated that a total of well over 12 million individuals in the U. S alone are addicted to using one or more painkillers and opiate-derived drugs. The problem has been exacerbated ten-fold owing to the ease of access to the substances. They are readily available, and this gives the authorities a real headache when it comes to controlling their flow and distribution and when dealing with opiate addiction treatment.

The situation has become so dire in some states that painkillers addictions now qualify for a classification as a state disaster and emergency. The concerned authorities have gone the extra mile to request all the help and assistance they can get from the government. Support, in the form of finances and laws and regulations aimed at combating the out-of-control addiction. According to medical records released by the leading researchers, there are now an estimated 12 million prescription drugs addicts in North America alone.

The nature of this drugs is such that they tend to leave you wanting more and more. Every time you take them they change and alter the body systems in such a way that they leave you with a craving. In time, the users develop an insatiable appetite for the high they derive from the substances, and they progress and move on to higher dosage drugs. No wonder they are referred to as gateway drugs.

Once the chemicals get etched into the system, it becomes the hardest thing for you to reverse their after-effects. Any attempt to leave the drugs now becomes problematic since you will now have to come face to face with the withdrawal demons.

Withdrawal symptoms experienced by most of the users vary and differ from one individual to the next. Typically, though, they include excessive night sweats, insomnia, anxiety and paranoia, muscle aches and fatigue, runny nose and watery eyes, nausea and vomiting, diarrhea and even increased heartbeats.

A majority of the treatments available today are still in their experimental and research states. They make use of a combination of regimens to attempt to help the addicts flush out the drugs from their systems. Medications commonly used are methadone, naltrexone, and buprenorphine. The treatment drugs make it difficult for the permanent bonding of the chemical substances to the vital receptors in our brains, and consequently, they prevent addiction from taking over our bodies.

Medications always work hand in hand with other treatment options. For assured recoveries, experts request patients to mix the drugs with the guidance and counseling. Talking to people always helps to work wonders with the rebound process. Developing a support network is great for the patients since it makes sure they keep on the right path and avoid the triggers which might cause them to slip and slide back to addiction.

Even with all the therapies and the counseling, an individual will only be able to succeed and come out clean and get over using the painkillers if they have a strong, ruthless will power. Yes, it takes a whole deal of mental effort and resilience to be finally able to avoid abusing the substances.




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