5 Ways People Enable Their Addicted Loved One

Posted on October 23, 2017 by dr-admin

Far too often, family members of addicted individuals become enablers, that is their actions actually make it easier for a substance-abusing lifestyle to continue. Examples include being in denial, making excuses for a person or covering up for them, taking on extra responsibilities, certain types of financial assistance, and using or providing the substance.

Watching A Family Member Go Through Addiction Can Upend Your Life

When addiction overtook your family member’s life, your world suddenly turned upside down. You may be experiencing an array of confusing and intense emotions, ranging from betrayal, blame, shame, resentment, fear, anger, and sadness. But despite this, you still love them deeply and find that you want to help them.

Within all of this, you might question your role, both before and during the addiction. These emotions and thoughts are understandable and experienced by many within these situations. It’s how you handle them which makes the difference, both within your life and your family member’s.

5 Ways People Enable Their Addicted Loved One

It’s our nature to love and seek love. We do this by words and actions of affirmation and by offering support when someone is in need. But when a person is addicted to drugs or alcohol, the line between helpful and healthy and damaging and enabling becomes easily blurred. So what is enabling?

When you enable a drug abuser you’re preventing them from experiencing the full effect of their addiction and making it easier to keep using. By doing so, it becomes difficult for them to see why they need to change and also prevents them from developing the acceptance and motivation to do so.

Below are five ways people end up enabling a loved one.

1. Feeding Denial

While denial can be a natural part of accepting a person’s substance abuse, when it continues past a reasonable point, it can become profoundly enabling. Looking the other way only serves to harm both them and you.

Examples include:

Blaming it on yourself. Convincing yourself that something you did drove them to drink or use in the first place and continues to do so. This can be part of a larger problem, but it’s often intertwined with denial.
Ignoring family and friends when they implore you to recognize the addiction.
Ignoring signs of addictive behavior and the damage it’s doing to a person’s life (finding hidden bottles and leaving them there or throwing them out without saying a word).
Lying to yourself (when a person’s sick or volatile from the substance, saying it’s the flu or a bad day).
Believing them when they say they can beat it on their own. Addicted people have the highest chance of success with comprehensive treatment.
Suppressing your emotions. Not allowing yourself to feel the toll of the addiction is a form of denial.

Being aware and proactive about your loved one’s addiction can help you to help them get treatment faster and make it more obvious to them that they need help.

2. Making Excuses And/Or Covering Up For A Person

This often stems from denial, codependency, or even just exhaustion and frustration.

Examples include:

Calling in sick to work for them if they’re drunk, high, hungover, or sick from using.
Covering up for them so they don’t get in trouble at school or with the law.
Covering up their actions to avoid a fight or other loved ones finding out/getting angry at them.
Making excuses for their substance abuse (they’re stressed out, school or their job is tough, etc.).

It can wear you out to watch a loved one fall into the depths of addiction, and sometimes it just feels easier to do things yourself. But know that in the long run these, and other actions like them, are only serving to perpetuate the vicious cycle that is the addictive lifestyle.

3. Picking Up The Slack

When a person is addicted, responsibilities at home or at work often become ignored. This can place a lot of extra stress on you, both mentally, emotionally, and even financially.

Examples include:

Doing extra chores around or outside of the house.
Taking over their responsibilities with children or elderly parents.
Working extra hours so they can cut back on their job responsibilities (or even quit).

While it’s important that you support them, don’t do things for them that they should do on their own. Doing so not only gives them more time to use, but this form of enabling takes away a major incentive for change as a person’s insulated from seeing and feeling the adverse effects of their drug-seeking and using.

4. Financially

We don’t ever want our loved ones to suffer, and when you see your family member losing the battle to addiction, it can be easy to lend a helping hand without realizing the full impact.

Examples include

Giving them money for food, bills, or utilities. They can use this money for drugs. Or, even if they use it for these things, it still gives them more resources to purchase drugs.

If you want to help out financially, consider pitching in for treatment costs, should you be able to afford it.

5. Using With Them Or Providing The Substance

Now this may be alcohol, a legal and highly social drug; marijuana, which is legal in limited places; or an illicit drug. Just because a drug is legal or socially acceptable doesn’t mean it’s not harmful or that it’s okay to do with an addicted person.

Examples include:

Using the substance with them even when you know they have a problem, because you want to have a “fun time” with them.
Buying the substance for them (beer, wine, marijuana, etc.) because you figure they’ll do it anyways and at least you know what/how much they’re using.

Keep in mind, using around a person can be bad too. Some people in recovery can tolerate this, but many cannot. For these people, seeing and smelling a substance can be an intense trigger for relapse. And any time you’re using a drug (even alcohol) you’re exposing yourself to risks too.

If you recognize any of these enabling patterns in yourself it’s time to take a step back and reevaluate how you interact with your family member.

Ways To Overcome Enabling And Give Them The Help They Need

If you’re caught up in unhealthy patterns of enabling, or if you’re concerned you might fall into them, here’s some ways you can offer healthy support. Being mindful of your thoughts, emotions and behaviors, and the ways by which they affect you and your loved one, can help to protect you both.

Be Patient, But Not Lenient: Addiction makes it difficult to think clearly and prioritize healthy behaviors. Try and understand this as you encounter your loved one, but don’t let them take advantage of your understanding, or use it as an excuse.

Be Proactive Instead Of Reactive: When faced with a situation where you could resort to enabling, stop and think. Rather than reacting in an emotional way, take time to think about your actions. Ask yourself: “If I do this, am I really helping them? Or am I making it easier for them to continue using?” In these moments, think of ways you could support them so that they find inner strength or have access to tools to take control over these situations themselves.

Be Real With Them: It’s easy to think we need to sanitize our emotions and reactions in tough situations. But if they see the adverse effects of their addiction on you, it might help them to recognize that they have a problem and that they need help.

Do Healthy Things Together: During treatment this may mean taking part in a counseling session or recreational activity. And after, it could be as simple as taking a walk after dinner, going to a movie, or working on a do-it-yourself project together.

Don’t Offer A Solution, Build One: Instead of creating the solution, help your loved one learn how to take more positive steps to find one on their own. For instance, instead of giving them money when they ask, sit down with them and help them prepare a resume, look for a job, and/or create a budget.

Get Support: Consider joining a support group. If you take steps to help yourself, you’re providing inspiration and a proactive example for change to your loved one. This might help them become more ambitious to do the same. Counseling can be immensely beneficial as well.

Practice Tough Love: In these situations, while saying “no” can be the hardest thing, it’s the best thing. Forced to deal with the repercussions of their addiction, a person will be more apt to take strides to seek help and start changing.

Research Treatment Options: The best way to support your loved one in living a drug-free life is to help them get the treatment they need. With our help, you can research their drug of abuse, find the best treatment options, and even examine ways to cover the cost of treatment.

Take Charge And Stop The Cycle Of Enabling Today

Fortunately, it’s never too late to help, or to learn more healthy ways to look out for your loved one. If your family member is addicted, they need your love and support now more than ever. Let DrugRehab.org help you with these things. Contact us today.

For More Information Related to “5 Ways People Enable Their Addicted Loved One” Be Sure To Check Out These Additional Resources From DrugRehab.org:

The Dangers of Mixing Alcohol with Valium (Diazepam)

Posted on September 22, 2017 by dr-admin

Some people mix Valium with alcohol to intensify the calming effects of each drug unaware of the dangers they present. Mixing alcohol with Valium can increase the chances of overdose, liver problems, cardiovascular problems, and memory problems.

Why Is My Loved One Abusing Alcohol And Valium?

Many people drink alcohol to help them relax or unwind, and mixing it with Valium can actually intensify those effects—in a negative way. That’s because alcohol is considered a depressant and so is Valium.

Valium is the most common brand name of diazepam, which belongs to a drug class called benzodiazepines. These depressant are most commonly used to treat anxiety, insomnia, panic disorders, and muscle spasms. When dosage is being supervised by a physician, Valium can be also be a safe way to manage some of the symptoms of alcohol withdrawal.

Alcohol and Valium reduce the activity in a person’s central nervous system, which is why when someone drinks they often feel drowsy, sleepy, or lightheaded. Mixing the two can be dangerous, because each drug, no matter how potent, is intensified by the other.

Not everyone mixes alcohol with Valium to intensify the effects of each drug—sometimes it happens by accident. If it is on purpose, it might be easier to understand why they did it, if you know more about their background. That’s because addiction can have genetic, psychological, physiological and social factors that contribute to each individual’s illness and symptoms.

The fact is, it isn’t always easy to tell if someone you love is abusing drugs or alcohol. They may get defensive when confronted, change the subject, or seem distant. Here are some of the other things to tell if a loved one is abusing drugs or alcohol, they might:

spend a lot of time alone
lose interest in their favorite things
get messy—for instance, not bathe, change clothes, or brush their teeth
be really tired and sad
be very energetic, talk fast, or say things that don’t make sense
be nervous or cranky (in a bad mood)
quickly change between feeling bad and feeling good
sleep at strange hours
miss important appointments
have problems at work
eat a lot more or a lot less than usual

National Institute on Drug Abuse

Addiction is an illness characterized by a person’s inability to stop using drugs. That’s why some people are able leave substances alone, while others are not. A lot of people require an individualized treatment based on their needs, in order to stop using drugs.

Understanding An Addiction To Depressants

Addiction to benzodiazepines can result from past trauma, undertreated anxiety disorders, and also from excessive use of the drug. A lot of people start using depressants like Valium or alcohol to feel normal. But normal may be a term used for feeling relaxed, getting enough sleep, and so on. Using a drug to feel normal is a type of unhealthy coping, and it can be extremely dangerous. This type of coping has potential to lead to dependence, tolerance, lack of control, and co-occurring disorders.

As time goes on, a people might become unable to handle reality without a drug. They might take the drug so much, that they start building up a tolerance, which means that they need more of the drug than when they first started using it. After a person develops a tolerance to depressants, they become more likely to also develop a dependence.

When a lot of people become physically dependent upon drugs, they also begin having intense cravings, and may not be able to control of the amount they’re using, or when they’ll stop. Alcohol dependence is also referred to as alcoholism. Valium may have originally been used to treat a legitimate medical purpose, but when it’s abused, it can become a vice, and a person may not be able to find balance without it.

The same goes for alcohol—when a person drinks moderately, they may not have an issue with alcohol abuse or alcoholism, but as they continue binge drinking, or drinking too much, they may find that they’re unable to stop once they pick up the first drink.

What Happens When You Mix Valium With Alcohol?

An overdose is caused when a person takes too much of a drug and their body is unable to metabolize it fast enough. Mixing alcohol and Valium can increase the risk of overdose. It often leads to unintended, and unpredictable symptoms; an overdose can be fatal.

According to the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism not only does mixing depressants increase the chance of overdose, it can:

slow down heart rate
slowed or difficulty breathing
impaired motor control
unusual behavior
memory problems

As previously mentioned, some people mix Valium with alcohol without understanding the danger. Many will develop an addiction to both of these drugs. This is known as polysubstance addiction or polysubstance use disorder.

Polysubstance refers more than one drug, and is outlined by the Australian Government Department of Health as when “people who are trying to cut down their use of one drug find that they start to use more of another drug to help manage withdrawal symptoms. It’s important to be careful in these situations because the person might find they develop a problem with two drugs rather than one.”

Mixing alcohol with Valium also damages the liver, which is essentially the body’s filter. Liver damage can end with other, sometimes fatal, conditions such as cirrhosis, or hepatitis. When Valium is being prescribed to treat symptoms of alcohol withdrawal, be sure that your loved one is leaving enough time in between the two substances to avoid danger.

How Long After Taking Valium Is It Safe To Drink Alcohol?

The half-life of Valium is fairly long, and can be anywhere from 20 to 80 hours. Let’s say someone is fairly healthy in most respects, and the half-life of Valium in their body is 24 hours. This means that after 24 hours, half of the drug is still in their system. After 24 more hours, there will be a quarter of the drug left in their system. And so on…

On average, for a healthy person, there will have been up to 150 hours passed by the time Valium is completely out of their system—that’s just over six days. Mixing alcohol into that time frame can be extremely dangerous. A lot of people don’t realize this, but alcohol with Valium in the system can be fatal.

It’s different taking Valium after alcohol, because alcohol is out of the system at a relatively fast rate. Generally, it takes your body about 1 hour to process 1 standard alcoholic drink. For someone with a slower metabolism, alcohol might be in their system longer. The previously mentioned time frame of alcohol metabolism can also vary based on a person’s weight, age, amount consumed, and height.

Keep in mind that no matter what, it isn’t safe to mix substances, and if you’re having a hard time stopping, there’s help. In fact, there are people who make it their life’s work to help others recover from addiction. If you’re unsure about what to do to stop abusing drugs or alcohol, sometimes the safest thing to do is ask.

What To Do If You Can’t Stop Using Drugs

In 2009, 23.5 million persons aged 12 or older needed treatment for an illicit drug or alcohol abuse problem. Of these, only 2.6 million received it at a specialty facility.

It’s true, not everybody gets help for an addiction, even though it might be risky to continue living with one. It’s especially hard to lose a loved one to drugs or alcohol, if you didn’t know that they had an issue in the first place. If you think someone you love is suffering from a drug addiction, don’t give up hope, and don’t ignore the problem.

“About 570,000 people die annually in the U.S. due to drug use,” (NIDA for Teens). The fact is that there are too many good people lost to drug addiction, and the United States is currently in the middle of a drug epidemic.

One of the best ways to ensure your safety is to take an active approach towards recovery. There are a lot of different addiction treatments that help people overcome the mental and physical addictions caused by Valium and alcohol.

The first part of treatment is known as detoxification. This is essentially the removal of unwanted chemicals and substances, as well as management of withdrawal symptoms. The withdrawal symptoms of alcohol and benzodiazepines can be painful and uncomfortable—they also have potential to increase the chance of relapse. Once a medical detox is complete, the mental healing can begin.

Oftentimes, a mental addiction can be treated at an inpatient or outpatient rehab, with one of the following behavioral therapies:

Medication Assisted Therapy
Cognitive Behavioral Therapy
Dialectical Behavior Therapy
Mindfulness and Stress Management
Motivational Interviewing
Group and Individual Therapy

Find The Best Treatment To Help You Stop Using Drugs

If you’re ready to overcome addiction, but don’t know where to begin, contact a treatment specialist at DrugRehab.org. We want to help you or your loved one find treatment, figure out how to fund it, and where to go for it. Call today to learn more.

For More Information Related to “The Dangers of Mixing Alcohol with Valium (Diazepam)” Be Sure To Check Out These Additional Resources From DrugRehab.org:

Sources

Australian Government Department of Health – Polydrug Use
National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism – Mixing Alcohol with Medicines
National Institute on Drug Abuse – Signs of Drug Use and Addiction
Treatment Statistics
NIDA for Teens – Drug Facts Chat Day: Drug Use

The Dangers of Smoking Heroin

Posted on September 19, 2017September 20, 2017 by dr-admin

Heroin is a potent opioid drug derived from the opium poppy. It comes in several forms, including as a powder or sticky, tar-like substance called “black tar” heroin. Either of these forms can be smoked. Drug abusers smoke heroin out of pipes or inhale the vapors off of foil through a straw (“chasing the dragon”). Smoking heroin is extremely addictive and can lead to overdose and drug-induced illness and disease.

What Is Heroin?

Heroin is a derivative from morphine, another potent and addictive opioid extracted from the opium poppy. Like all opioids, heroin creates a sense of euphoria and relaxation. Also like other drugs within this class, heroin causes central nervous system depression, which is why this drug poses such a threat of overdose.

Why Do People Abuse Heroin?

Every user has their own reasons for abusing a drug, though the two most common are for self-medication and recreational use. In situations of the former, a person may be going through a tough spot in their life, or be struggling with a mental health problem, and desire to escape. Recreational users take heroin to create the intense, pleasurable states the drug produces, as well as to promote a sense of extreme relaxation.

How Do People Smoke Heroin?

Heroin is smoked in ways similar to other drugs. Some people may use a crack or meth pipe, which is most typically made from glass. Other individuals sprinkle the drug on top of tobacco or marijuana before smoking it in a bowl or joint.

Many people consider vaporizing heroin a form of smoking. Because of this, we will also discuss how people vaporize the drug. One of the most well known and pervasive is “chasing the dragon.” During this practice the user places the heroin on tin foil which is heated from below by a lighter.

As the heroin runs down the foil, and as the smoke rolls off of it, the smoke is said to resemble a dragon. To inhale it, a person may just breathe it in, but many people use straws or hollowed out pens.

Heroin drug abusers can be very inventive in their desperation. The drug may be:

Heated on top of a pop or beer can.
Heated and inhaled off the tip of a paper clip (in the case of black tar).
Smoked in a foil “tooter” (rolled up piece of foil).
Smoked from the glass that comes with a “love rose” sold at gas stations.
Vaporized in a light bulb turned vaporizer.

As you can see, many of these implements are items found around the house. Heroin is stored and transported in small plastic baggies, balloons, or tiny foil squares. Being aware of the paraphernalia used during drug abuse can make it much easier to spot an addiction.

When heroin is heated up, it will leave a resin behind. If you see a substance resembling this in odd places, such as on pop cans, paperclips, or lightbulbs, you need to be concerned.

Do not touch drug paraphernalia with your bare hands, or if at all if you can help it. Heroin is becoming increasingly cut with other drugs, some of which can be fatal if they come into contact with your skin.

Why Do People Smoke Heroin?

Heroin abuse is becoming more popular (and dangerous) than ever. Experts witness rising trends in heroin abuse in certain demographics which did not previously abuse the drug so extensively. One reason is because of heroin’s relatively cheap cost in comparison to prescription painkillers. A growing number of Americans have painkiller addictions, and when these drugs become too costly or hard to find, their habits frequently shift to heroin.

Injection drug use holds an intense stigma for some drug users, which leads many of these individuals to use heroin in other ways like smoking. These people may convince themselves that smoking the drug isn’t as harmful, or as serious of drug use. Both of these perspectives are dangerously wrong.

Does Smoking Make A Drug More Or Less Addictive?

While the delivery of a drug can change how quickly and intensely a person feels the high or “rush” associated with heroin, it does not protect you from the drug’s addictive potential. To compare, when heroin is injected directly into the vein (intravenously) these sensations peak at seven to eight seconds, whereas smoking elicits a euphoric state around ten to fifteen minutes, according to the Center for Substance Abuse Research.

Some people think that if they smoke the drug they’re protecting themselves from heroin’s addictive nature. No matter how you choose to administer a drug, whether it be by injection, snorting it, or smoking it, the cold truth is that heroin is highly addictive and deadly.

But the route of delivery does matter somewhat, according to the National Institute on Drug Abuse. “Heroin is extremely addictive no matter how it is administered, although routes of administration that allow it to reach the brain the fastest (i.e., injection and smoking) increase the risk of addiction.”

What Are The Dangers Of Heroin Abuse?

Smoking heroin carries all the general risks which are associated with heroin abuse. These include a high potential for tolerance, addiction, severe withdrawal, and overdose. More and more, authorities are finding heroin cut with fentanyl, carfentanil, and other deadly opioid drugs. If you smoke a drug laced with any of these, you could die virtually instantly.

Heroin can also cause:

Antisocial personality disorder
Brain damage
Depression
Miscarriage
Nausea and vomiting
Respiratory depression
Sexual dysfunction
Unplanned pregnancies

A heroin addiction can happen quickly. When this occurs finding and using the drug will take precedence over any other task or responsibility in a person’s life. Here, a person’s physical and mental health, relationships, job, schooling, and social responsibilities all become endangered.

What Are The Risks Of Smoking Heroin?

People who smoke heroin may think that they don’t face the risk of infectious disease like HIV/AIDS and hepatitis B and C, since they’re not injecting the drug. Heroin changes the way your brain functions. This impairs your judgement, reduces your inhibitions, and increases risky behaviors. Cumulatively, these things lead many people to engage in unsafe sexual practices and/or to share equipment, which can still expose them to these diseases.

Since you’re smoking the drug, the organs and tissues exposed to the substance can be harmed, which can cause lung problems. Smoking heroin can cause an extreme cough and asthma, to the point a person may need a nebulizer, as cautioned by Livestrong. They continue, noting that a hoarse voice and coughing up blood may also accompany this dangerous practice.

When heroin is heated, it produces a vapor called pyrolysate. When drug users inhale this, they may be exposing themselves to leukoencephalopathy, a debilitating disease of the brain. Though rare, for over 30 years, scientists have been aware of the link between it and “chasing the dragon.”

The pleasure found in heroin abuse fleeting. Using this drug isn’t worth the risk of losing your health and life.

Don’t Let Your Heroin Addiction Consume Your Life

If smoking heroin is a problem in your life, we can help. We can help you to find treatment options and support through our confidential assessment. Call DrugRehab.org today.

For More Information Related to “The Dangers of Smoking Heroin” Be Sure To Check Out These Additional Resources From DrugRehab.org:

Sources

Livestrong — Signs of Smoking Heroin
US National Library of Medicine — Chasing the dragon – characterizing cases of leukoencephalopathy associated with heroin inhalation in British Columbia

National Recovery Month

Posted on September 7, 2017September 7, 2017 by dr-admin

In an effort to raise awareness surrounding addiction and recovery, the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) has made September National Recovery Month. Every September, SAMSHA assigns a theme to the campaign and promotes their mission in communities across the country in an attempt to bring more understanding and erase the stigma surrounding addiction.

National Recovery Month 2017

This year’s theme is “Join the Voices for Recovery: Strengthen Families and Communities”. The basis around this theme is uniting families and communities together to fight addiction and support recovery. SAMSHA has chosen to focus on uniting families and communities in the wake of the opioid epidemic that has been sweeping across the nation in previous years.

With the opioid epidemic beginning largely with prescription opioids, SAMSHA is urging parents to talk to their kids about the dangers of medications, including prescription opioids, and educate families on keeping their prescription medications locked up and out of reach to children. For more information on this year’s National Recovery Month theme, visit https://www.recoverymonth.gov/.

What’s New This Year?

While drug addiction is not a new ailment to our country, we have seen some recent changes in trends across the United States. With a growing number of individuals affected by the opioid epidemic, experts have noticed increasing trends in addiction among rural and non-city residents. This is a newer trend that makes it more difficult to detect and track the distribution and sale of the drug. Many rural areas have far fewer people per square mile than cities do, leaving miles of un-patrolled roads and communities open for trafficking.

Previously, anti-drug campaigns were centered around inner-city schools, community centers, churches, and other city-wide organizations. However with the increase in addiction rates in rural communities, National Recovery Month is urging communities to work together in fighting the opioid epidemic, among other addictions, as it potentially creeps into their communities and schools.

Education is one of the best methods for fighting opioid addiction. Beginning drug education with kids, even at a young age, can be key to helping them make the right decisions down the road. However, kids are not the only ones who can benefit from drug education. Many grown adults are unaware of the dangers that some unsuspecting drugs, such as prescription medications, can carry with them. When communities are educated on drug addiction, they are better equipped to handle situations like the opioid epidemic.

Be Socially Inclusive

SAMSHA is fighting hard to remove the stigma associated with drug addiction and abuse. For this year’s National Recovery Month, SAMSHA challenges communities to be socially inclusive in their efforts to educate residents on the dangers of drug use, as well as celebrate those who have made it to recovery.

SAMSHA takes the time to highlight individuals who may suffer from mental illness, urging communities to involve them in their fight against drug addiction. Providing support and education to individuals suffering from mental illness could help prevent them from reaching for drugs in the future, or encourage them to reach out if they already struggle with a drug addiction. Did you know: One study done by the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) found that over 50% of individuals suffering from a mental illness also struggle with a substance abuse problem?

Being socially inclusive also includes supporting individuals who are currently struggling with a substance abuse issue, and celebrating with those who are in recovery. Instead of shielding children from the facts and faces of drug abuse, it is important to include everyone in educational efforts throughout the community. Even allowing an individual who has previously struggled with drug addiction to be a part of the education process can be immensely beneficial, both for that individual and for the community they are educating.

Getting Everyone Involved

It is important to put a face to addiction, especially in communities that think “that never happens here”. Often times residents are shocked to learn that it does happen here, and it happens to people just like you and I. Removing the stigma associated with drug addiction can help bring people forward to tell their stories share in their recovery success.

Community organizations can help too. Schools are a great place for drug education to begin, but it doesn’t have to stay there. Fire departments, police departments, local churches, food banks, homeless shelters, and even book clubs and country clubs can join in on the mission. Addiction affects everyone, not just the shadowy figures depicted in movies. Supporting drug education in your area means you are supporting the entire community, not just a select group of people. Everyone has a chance to get involved and make a difference!

Get Help Today

Have you suffered from an addiction in your past? Do you have a loved one that is suffering from addiction? We are here to support you, your loved ones, and your community, and want to answer any questions you may have about addiction or treatment. Our goal is to get clients set up with the professional help and support they need to treat their addiction.

Our addiction treatment specialists are specifically trained to help you find treatment that fits your needs or the needs of your loved one and their addiction. Our addiction treatment specialists are available around the clock, and your call is always confidential. Give us a call today and let us help you.

For More Information On “National Recovery Month” Be Sure To Check Out These Additional Resources From DrugRehab.org:

Sources

American Psychiatric Association – Implementing Dual Diagnosis Services for Clients With Severe Mental Illness

The Dangers Of Mixing Alcohol With Hydrocodone (Vicodin)

Posted on September 5, 2017 by dr-admin

Vicodin is a prescription medication used to treat moderate to severe pain which contains both the opioid hydrocodone and paracetamol (acetaminophen). Combining alcohol with an opioid such as hydrocodone can lead to devastating consequences. Both drugs are central nervous system (CNS) depressants. Combining them magnifies these effects in a way which can lead to respiratory depression, brain damage, coma, and death. Used together they can also cause kidney damage and acute liver failure.

What Is Vicodin?

Vicodin is a combination medication, that is, it actually consists of two drugs, hydrocodone and acetaminophen, both of which are painkillers. Vicodin is used to treat moderate to severe pain, either for the purpose of temporary relief or for ongoing chronic pain management.

When the drug is used properly, as prescribed, it is for most extents and purposes safe. But this safety is fleeting if Vicodin is taken in a way other than prescribed and/or with another drug.

While the acetaminophen is meant to somewhat act as an abuse deterrent, some individuals still choose to misuse their prescription or use Vicodin recreationally. Doing so can lead to dependence, tolerance, withdrawal, addiction, and overdose. Even individuals who misuse their own prescription to self-medicate can stumble onto this treacherous path.

Is It Dangerous To Combine Alcohol And Vicodin?

Alcohol causes the sedative qualities of opioid drugs to intensify. This can create an intoxicated state much faster than a person anticipates. Even using a small amount of alcohol with opioids can do this. This is why it’s dangerous to drink alcohol if you’ve been prescribed Vicodin or if you use it illicitly.

In these states a person will become uncoordinated with poor balance, which leads to a higher risk of falls and injuries. Memory loss will occur and a person will become too impaired to drive a vehicle.

Alcohol And Vicodin Have A High Potential For Overdose

As depressants, Alcohol and Vicodin both change the way your brain and CNS regulate your heart, breathing, blood pressure, and temperature rates, causing them to slow down. When you drink alcohol with Vicodin (even in small amounts), these life-sustaining functions can become seriously compromised and in certain cases begin shutting down.

If a person uses one or both drugs to excess, they face an even greater peril of progressing to a fatal overdose. When this happens your organs and life-support systems begin to shut down. This is just from the effects of the alcohol and hydrocodone.

The acetaminophen in the Vicodin can also cause overdose if a person consumes too much. MedLine Plus cautions that any amount reaching or surpassing 7,000 mg can initiate acute overdose.

What Are The Signs Of An Alcohol And Vicodin Overdose?

If your loved one is taking both alcohol and Vicodin, understanding the signs of overdose could help to save their life.

Signs of overdose include:

Cold skin
Decreased cognitive functions
Excessive dizziness
Extreme confusion
Irregular and falling heart rate
Irregular, slowed, or stopped breathing
Nausea and vomiting
Passing out
Seizures
Stupor
Weak pulse

One of the most dangerous side effects of overdose is respiratory depression. As a person’s breathing continues to plummet their brain is deprived of oxygen. When this happens, other organ systems follow suit and begin to shut down. The lack of oxygen can also lead to brain damage. During overdose a person can completely stop breathing, fall into a coma, and/or die.

Overdose is not something you can afford to take your time on. When a person is overdosing there’s a good chance they could lose their life unless they get prompt medical attention.

If you at all suspect that yourself or a person near to you is overdosing, or in jeopardy of doing so, contact emergency medical services immediately.

Using Vicodin And Alcohol Together Can Harm Your Organs

Both alcohol and Vicodin can, when abused separately, be harmful to your liver. When these drugs are used together the damage to your liver is compounded. Chronic drinkers should try to abstain from using any acetaminophen-containing product for these reasons.

Your liver is responsible for metabolizing alcohol. When you drink too much, such as within patterns of binge drinking or chronic use, this organ cannot keep up. This causes an immense strain on your liver, one, which over time, can lead to liver damage.

Vicodin abuse can also damage your liver. “Taking too much acetaminophen…is the most common cause of acute liver failure in the United States,” warns Mayo Clinic. Acute liver failure can, according to DailyMed, lead to liver transplant and death.

Using acetaminophen can lead to acute liver failure by one of two ways, either by taking:

A single dose of the drug which is too high
Doses higher than the daily recommendation for several consecutive days

For individuals who abuse Vicodin, this is a very real concern. Drug abusers use Vicodin in both of these patterns.

One scientific survey determined that this drug interaction can harm your kidneys too. It found that “Respondents who reported taking both acetaminophen and drinking lightly or moderately had a more than two-fold higher risk for kidney dysfunction.”

How Much Vicodin Is Too Much?

The FDA established that the maximum amount of acetaminophen per day is 4,000 mg. To put this in perspective, Harvard Medical reports that liver damage can begin occurring just beyond this, at 5,000 mg. This equates to just over 16 Vicodin a day (containing 300 mg of acetaminophen each). While this may seem like a lot, surpassing this amount can come quite easily to individuals who abuse this drug on a regular basis, especially for those who have a tolerance.

Tolerant individuals need higher doses of the drug to create the high or pain-relieving effects they seek. This, in turn, means they’re far more likely to take these toxic amounts of Vicodin. The range of Vicodin an addicted individual takes per day can vary, but some people may take 40 or more tablets a day. When the alcohol is added to the mix, it takes far less Vicodin to create these devastating effects.

Even light to moderate use of alcohol paired with prescribed dosages of Vicodin can begin to damage your organs and create an intoxicated state. The risk of overdose escalates when you increase your consumption of either drug. The bottom line is that combining these drugs in any quantity is harmful to your health.

How Do I Get Help For My Addiction?

If you’re addicted to one or both of these drugs you need to get help as quickly as possible in order to protect your body and brain. Fortunately, there are inpatient drug rehab programs all across the country which can help you with these needs.

Alcohol and Vicodin addictions often require a medical detox to treat the physical addiction. After you’ve progressed through detoxification it’s best to proceed directly to treatment. The most comprehensive programs offer both of these services under one roof.

During your program, medication-assisted treatments, behavioral therapies, counseling, and a wide-range of other modalities will be implemented to help you reach a sober state. Aftercare programs typically follow, which will help you to stay strong in your commitment to sobriety.

Don’t Let Your Addiction Go Any Further

If you’re concerned that someone you care about is mixing alcohol and Vicodin in a way which could harm their health, reach out to us at DrugRehab.org today. Our confidential assessment will get you started on the path to a healthier, drug-free life.

For More Information Related to “The Dangers Of Mixing Alcohol With Hydrocodone (Vicodin)” Be Sure To Check Out These Additional Resources From DrugRehab.org:

Sources

DailyMed — LABEL: Vicodin HP
Harvard Health Publications — Overdosing Acetaminophen
MedLine Plus — Acetaminophen overdose
MedLine Plus — Hydrocodone Combination Products

Is Marijuana Addictive?

Posted on July 6, 2017July 14, 2017 by dr-admin

A 2016 Gallup poll found that current marijuana use nearly doubled between 2013 and 2016. Based on these findings, roughly one in eight Americans presently use this drug. With statistics this high, it’s important to understand the reality surrounding marijuana use and abuse. Many Americans grow up hearing that marijuana, or weed, is not addictive. Not only is this perspective untrue, but it’s also harmful to a person’s health. Like other drugs, cannabis use can lead to adverse health effects, abuse, and in the most serious cases, addiction.

Can Marijuana Use Become Addictive?

The National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) asserts “that 30 percent of those who use marijuana may have some degree of marijuana use disorder.” They continue, reporting that “people who begin using marijuana before the age of 18 are four to seven times more likely to develop a marijuana use disorder than adults.” For those who start in their teens, approximately one in six will develop an addiction, whereas one in nine adult-onset users will.

Keep in mind, even if you’ve been using marijuana daily for some time without becoming addicted, there’s still a possibility it could happen. In fact, according to research presented by the University of Washington’s Alcohol & Drug Abuse Institute, of those who:

Try the drug one or more times within their life, one in ten will become dependent.
Abuse the drug on a daily basis, half will become dependent.

The most easily witnessed proof that marijuana is addictive is that it can lead to cravings, tolerance, and withdrawal. These states are all primary hallmarks of addiction.

Why Is Marijuana Addictive?

Like any addiction, this is complicated and relies on numerous factors, many of which scientists are still learning. However, some researchers theorize that the rising potency of THC in marijuana is partly responsible. The primary compound in marijuana which is responsible for creating the high is THC.

Also, as consistent with other drugs of abuse, research has identified the possibility that marijuana can alter dopamine. Within rat subjects, NIDA writes that “early exposure…decreases the reactivity of brain dopamine reward centers later in adulthood.” Due to its role in regulating reward and pleasure, dopamine is heavily linked to addiction. Even more impactful is research published by JAMA Psychiatry in May of 2016. These findings actually identified certain genes which are linked to cannabis dependence.

Regardless of how or why marijuana is addictive, the important truth is that if you use marijuana, you are exposing yourself to this and other risks.

What Are The Signs Of A Marijuana Addiction?

Like all drugs of abuse, marijuana abuse and addiction changes the way a person thinks, acts, and behaves. If you’re concerned that your loved one is abusing or addicted to marijuana, they may exhibit certain signs, such as a(n):

Altered perception of time
Dry mouth “cotton mouth”
Enhanced sensory experiences
Increased appetite “the munchies”
Intense pleasure (euphoria)
Laughter
Red, dry eyes
State of relaxation

Marijuana can also cause:

Anxiety
Distrust
Fear
Panic
Paranoia

In severe cases, when used to excess, a user may experience acute psychosis, including delusions and hallucinations.

What Is The Criteria Of A Cannabis Use Disorder?

A cannabis use disorder (CUD) encompasses a spectrum of both abuse and dependence. As cited by Medscape, an individual with a CUD must meet at least two of the following 11 criteria during the period of one year:

A person(’s):

Uses marijuana in amounts or for a time greater than they planned on.
Cannot decrease their use even if they want or attempt to do so.
Expends large amounts of time finding, using, or recuperating from using the drug.
Is overcome with an intense need to use the drug (craving).
Ability to carry out important responsibilities at home, school, or work is impaired by the continued use of the drug.
Keeps abusing the drug even when it causes harm to them within relationships or social obligations.
Withdraws or completely stops engaging in pleasurable, social, or vocational events due to marijuana.
Uses the drug on a regular basis even when it exposes them to physical risk.
Doesn’t stop using the drug even when they know it’s causing or worsening a physical or mental health problem.
Doesn’t experience the same effect at the previous dose of the drug and/or needs more of the drug to create pleasurable feelings (tolerance).
Experiences withdrawal should they suddenly stop using the drug. Or, if this occurs, they use the drug to avoid these symptoms.
Withdrawal from marijuana can last up to 14 days. It may include cravings, irritability, physical malaise, restlessness, a suppressed appetite, and various changes to their mood and sleep.

Are There Other Risks Of Marijuana Abuse?

Despite its popularity and widespread use as a recreational drug, marijuana use is not without risks. Marijuana abuse and addiction carry some pretty serious risks which may surprise you, including:

Amotivational Syndrome

It’s theorized that marijuana is associated with amotivational syndrome, a chronic psychiatric disorder which closely resembles depression and causes:

Apathy
Blunted emotional responses
Decreased activity
Impaired memory
Incoherent state
Lack of motivation
Poor concentration
Withdrawn behavior

Cognitive Changes

Research is ongoing, however, marijuana use and abuse has been linked to memory impairment, decreased cognitive abilities, and even changes to the brain’s structural components.

As detailed by NIDA, regular exposure is particularly worrisome to adolescents. This abuse may impair “executive functions such as memory, learning, and impulse control compared to people who do not use.” Also:

“A large longitudinal study in New Zealand found that persistent marijuana use disorder with frequent use starting in adolescence was associated with a loss of an average of 6 or up to 8 IQ points measured in mid-adulthood. Significantly, in that study, those who used marijuana heavily as teenagers and quit using as adults did not recover the lost IQ points.”

Co-Occurring Disorders

Time reports that “90% of people with marijuana addictions also suffer from another psychiatric condition or addiction.” The JAMA study illuminates the seriousness of this comorbidity. These findings link certain cannabis dependence genes to genetic risk factors for major depression and schizophrenia.

Links To Other Forms of Drug Abuse

The theory that marijuana is a gateway drug isn’t without merit after all. Though most who use this drug will not develop other forms of drug abuse, research has found a connection. A second JAMA Psychiatry publication found that “cannabis use is associated with an increased risk for several substance use disorders.”

Are You Or A Loved One Addicted To Marijuana?

Even though marijuana isn’t as addictive or dangerous as other drugs, it can still disrupt and damage a person’s life in many serious ways. And like other substance use disorders, marijuana addiction can require support and treatment. We can help you with these things. DrugRehab.org can support you as you learn more about marijuana abuse, addiction, and treatment. Contact us now.

For More Information Related to “Is Marijuana Addictive?” Be Sure To Check Out These Additional Resources From DrugRehab.org:

Sources

Gallup — One in Eight U.S. Adults Say They Smoke Marijuana
JAMA Psychiatry — Cannabis Use and Risk of Psychiatric DisordersProspective Evidence From a US National Longitudinal Study
US National Library of Medicine — A Motivational Syndrome In Organic Solvent Abusers

Long-Term Effects Of Taking Methadone

Posted on June 30, 2017 by dr-admin

Methadone is a prescription opioid medication used to manage opioid drug withdrawal and cravings or as a maintenance medication during recovery. It also has a lesser known use to treat pain. Due to methadone’s potency as an opioid, some individuals choose to abuse this drug. Prescribed and recreational use may lead to a variety of long-term adverse health effects, including tolerance, dependence, withdrawal, addiction, and overdose. Physical effects include constipation, sexual dysfunction, sleep disruption, respiratory problems, and more.

Why Do People Use Methadone?

As an analgesic, methadone is used as an alternative to morphine and other opioid painkillers for the treatment of chronic and severe pain. In these instances, it’s often used for people who haven’t had a good response to other opioid medications. It is also used to treat pain around the clock.

As a pharmacotherapy, or medication to treat drug abuse, methadone is used as part of medication-assisted treatment (MAT). As explained by the National Institute on Drug Abuse, this approach entails the use of various behavioral therapies, ensuring for a “whole patient” approach.

Within these programs, it can be used during detox to treat withdrawal and cravings, or for long-term use as a maintenance medication. In the latter case, methadone blocks illicit opioids from creating their pleasurable effects and “allows people to recover from their addiction and to reclaim active and meaningful lives,” as explained by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration. As a maintenance drug, it can only be prescribed by a physician in a heavily-monitored program.

Unfortunately, as an opioid, there is still potential for abuse and addiction. Methadone’s opioid effects are such that if misused at a higher dose or frequency, user’s can create a high or pleasurable effect. Despite the fact that this is a prescribed medication, this misuse is considered abuse and could lead to addiction and numerous adverse health effects.

How Long Do People Typically Take Methadone For?

The duration of methadone use varies and is dependent on why the drug is being used.

Detox: Within detox, methadone is used for the short-term, with use gradually being decreased through a taper. This may take up to several weeks or even months.

Maintenance: According to NIDA “for methadone maintenance, 12 months is considered the minimum, and some opioid-addicted individuals continue to benefit from methadone maintenance for many years.”

Pain relief: When used as an analgesic, duration of use varies dependent on the individual’s specific needs. Some people may be prescribed methadone for a matter of months or years, while others report taking it for a decade.

Recreational use: The length of time a recreational drug user abuses methadone for varies. However, as methadone is extremely addictive, frequent use could quickly lead to an addiction. As with any drug addiction, the longer a person uses for, the greater the dangers and severity of adverse side effects. Without treatment, a person’s addiction could continue for years.

As you can see, the latter three categories could place a user within long-term patterns of use.

Can Long-Term Use Be Beneficial?

Drug addiction and recovery can be rocky and confusing times. For many users, the concept of using an opioid drug to treat an opioid addiction may seem only as if you’re trading one addiction for another. This is not true.

When used properly as prescribed, methadone can be part of an effective treatment and recovery program. Also, as noted by the director of NIDA, when used this way it does not cause a person to become sedated, intoxicated, or “high,” effects associated with drug abuse and addiction. An archived NIDA resource comments on this, asserting that “methadone is medically safe even when used continuously for 10 years or more.”

Long-term methadone use can positively impact a person’s life by reducing cravings and blocking the euphoric effects of opioids, thereby reducing or stopping illicit opioid drug use. Further, methadone has been shown to increase treatment retention rates and decrease both relapses and addiction-related deaths.

As individuals begin building a more solid foundation from these positive impacts, their overall health, well-being, and social functioning begin to improve. Self-care, nutrition, relationships, and a general sense of life fulfillment are all reported to become more enhanced, as individuals begin to become more invested within their lives.

From this, as explained by a Western Journal of Medicine article “There is increasing evidence that long-term methadone use in patients who are dependent on opiates has substantial societal benefits, including diminishing illicit opiate use, reducing the transmission of HIV and hepatitis, and decreasing criminal activity and healthcare costs in this population.” Not only does it reduce criminal activity overall, but NIDA also reports that it decreases the number of individuals who return back to criminal enterprises as well.

Lastly, treatment outcomes are better for the babies of opioid-addicted women who are treated with methadone. Specifically, when used within MAT, the time within the hospital is shorter and neonatal abstinence syndrome becomes less severe.

But, like any medication, methadone does carry certain side effects which could affect a user within long-term, prescribed use.

What Are The Side Effects Of Long-Term Methadone Use?

From prolonged periods of use, individuals taking methadone for prescribed purposes may experience certain side effects. These could include:

Dry mouth
Cognitive changes
Constipation
Decreased levels of certain vitamins
Dependency
Disruption to menstrual cycle
Fatigue
Fluctuating weight
Harmful drug interactions
Opioid-induced hyperalgesia
Sleep troubles
Respiratory and lung complications
Reduced libido
Sexual dysfunction
Tolerance
Withdrawal

Also, the Center for Substance Abuse Research also notes that there could be “pregnancy complications if users reduce dosage levels during pregnancy.”

Addicted individuals will likely face many of these side effects in addition to those which accompany opioid addiction in general. A person’s executive functions could decline, impacting their memory, cognitive functioning, and attention. Rates of methadone-related overdose climb as well, including coma, brain damage, and death. Users also face greater risks of methadone-related illness and disease, such as infectious disease and organ damage.

Discover Your Treatment Options

If you’d like to learn more about methadone as a treatment option for an opioid addiction, contact us now. Your call is confidential, and DrugRehab.org’s compassionate advisors can direct you to the best treatment today for your or your loved one.

For More Information Related to “Long-Term Effects Of Taking Methadone” Be Sure To Check Out These Additional Resources From DrugRehab.org:

Sources

National Institute on Drug Abuse — Effective Treatments for Opioid Addiction
PLOS ONE — Long-Term Effects of Methadone Maintenance Treatment with Different Psychosocial Intervention Models

Signs and Symptoms of ICE Use and Abuse

Posted on June 28, 2017 by dr-admin

Ice is a purified crystalline form of methamphetamine that is also known as crystal meth. It can be manufactured using cold medicine and chemicals like battery acid, antifreeze, or drain cleaner. Ice is a central nervous system stimulant that can rapidly lead to dependence and addiction. Among the most common signs that someone is using ice are irritability, problems sleeping, tooth decay, and weight loss. A few of the symptoms of ice abuse are kidney damage, heart attacks, depression, anxiety, and intense cravings.

It can be difficult to determine if someone is using ice if you don’t know what to look for. Commonly referred to as crystal, crank, shards, glass, Tina, or crystal meth, ice has become a serious problem across the globe. Ice abuse can lead to psychological issues, co-occurring disorders, and other problems in a person’s life.

A lot of people using ice don’t know who to turn to when they want to stop, or where to go for help for that matter. If you suspect someone is using crystal meth or ice, or if you yourself are using crystal meth—don’t give up hope. There are a lot of people who want to help.

What Is Ice?

Ice first showed up in the 1980s and has since become popular in the United States, Europe, Mexico, and other countries throughout the world. Ice is a central nervous system stimulant that can be smoked, diluted and intravenously injected, or ground into a powder and snorted. Ice is a purified crystalline form of methamphetamine and looks like a fragment of glass. The color of the drug can be clear, gray, brown, yellow, orange, or pink; depending on the ingredients.

How Is Ice Made?

Crystal meth is characteristic of large cities, but drug trafficking brings it to rural areas as well. Make no mistake, ice isn’t only manufactured in cities or other heavily populated regions; it can be produced in what are known as meth labs. These labs can be anything from a shed, van, or even a tent in the woods. To make ice, a person cooks up ingredients like pseudoephedrine (cold medicine), battery acid, antifreeze, or drain cleaner.

Unfortunately, those preparing the drugs are often using them as well, so this can rapidly become a dangerous situation. Not only to society but also to the environment. Meth labs create a lot of toxic waste which isn’t likely disposed of in an environmentally friendly manner. Not only that, the accidental explosions meth labs can cause are often detrimental to anyone nearby.

Understanding Ice Abuse

Methamphetamine is similar to amphetamine, which is used in medicine to and treat attention deficit hyperactivity disorder by stimulating the part of the brain and nerves that control impulsive behaviors. The Drug Enforcement Administration has categorized methamphetamine as a Schedule II drug because of its high potential for abuse. Ice is among the most potent and addictive drugs on in the world. Abusing it can lead to serious psychological addiction and fast; it can have a person hooked after just one use.

It’s true, crystal meth is a dangerous, addictive, and often deadly. Those who become addicted to meth might not be able to control the amount of the drug they’re using, because so frequently an addiction starts with an obsession and leads to compulsive use of a drug. So why do people use the drug? “Methamphetamine increases the amount of dopamine in the brain, which is involved in body movement, motivation, pleasure, and reward” (National Institute on Drug Abuse).

No matter how you look at it, it’s important to remember that the people suffering from addiction weren’t always that way—they’re still our neighbors, brothers, mothers, teachers, friends, and citizens who happen to suffer from a chronic disease. They’re people who need as much love and support as they can get.

Signs Someone Is Using Ice

Some people abusing ice may wind up in a binge and have hallucinations, become extremely antisocial, or even seem like there’s no hope for a cure. Even though addiction is a defined as a chronic disease, there’s always hope for recovery. If you aren’t sure if someone is abusing ice, here are some of the signs to look for:

Weight loss as a result of decreased appetite
Decaying teeth or Meth Mouth
Irritability and violent behavior
Problems sleeping
Trouble remembering
Serious emotional issues
Hyperactivity
Psychotic episodes
Paranoia
Confusion
Hallucinations
Meth Mites or belief that there are microscopic parasites under the skin

Long-Term Effects And Symptoms Of Ice Abuse

If use of crystal meth persists, the drug can cause symptoms beyond the signs and short-term effects; some of which aren’t treatable. Ice abuse can lead to:

Intense Cravings
Fatigue
Anxiety
Depression
Stroke
Kidney Damage
Psychotic Behavior
Psychosis
Faster Breathing
Increased Blood Pressure
Irregular Heart Rate
Heart Attack
Withdrawal Symptoms
Overdose
Death

When a person becomes physically dependent on crystal meth, they’re likely to experience withdrawals when they stop using, or run out of the drug. These symptoms are both mentally and physically draining and can be quite painful. Some of the withdrawals embody the long-term effects of crystal meth, and “can include anxiety, fatigue, severe depression, psychosis, and intense drug cravings” (NIDA).

Is There Treatment For Ice Addiction And Dependence?

There a lot people who are addicted to crystal meth, and some of them never make it to treatment. That doesn’t mean they wouldn’t try if given the chance. It’s possible that some of them (or a lot of them) never ask for help due to fear of rejection, or because of the guilt and shame they feel. And there’s a huge scope of crystal meth abuse in the United States.

According to NIDA, in 2012 “approximately 1.2 million people reported using methamphetamine in the past year.” Not all of these people ever overdosed or developed an addiction, for that matter. Some of them didn’t need rehab to quit, but a lot of them did—sometimes it’s just a safer route to go.

With the right inpatient treatment there’s hope for a full recovery and drug-free life. Choosing to go to rehab can save your life, or the life of a person you care about; and there’s a treatment program that suits nearly everybody.

Behavioral Therapies For Substance Use Disorders

Behavioral therapies are some of the most effective methods for treating an addiction to ice. Furthermore, people come from all kinds of different backgrounds, so an individualized treatment tends to be the most effective—and there really isn’t a one size fits all method for treating addiction. The most commonly employed methods for treating a crystal meth addiction are cognitive behavioral therapy, dialectical behavioral therapy, and contingency management.

Cognitive behavioral therapy can prevent relapse by helping a patient to recognize unhealthy behavior patterns, and situations that would normally evoke a desire to use drugs. Dialectical behavior therapy helps a patient learn to change behaviors by teaching acceptance skills through mindfulness and distress management, and change skills through emotion regulation and interpersonal effectiveness. Contingency-management uses a system of rewards and motivational incentives to teach a person healthy behaviors for a substance free life.

Is There A Rehab Center That’s Right For Me?

If you would like to learn more about an ice addiction, Contact DrugRehab.org at 1-833-473-4227 to confidentially speak to someone who understands crystal meth addiction, and can help find a treatment that meets your needs.

For More Information Related to “Signs and Symptoms of ICE Use and Abuse” Be Sure To Check Out These Additional Resources From DrugRehab.org:

Sources

National Institute on Drug Abuse – What is the scope of Methamphetamine abuse in the United States?

Understanding The Combat Methamphetamine Act

Posted on June 15, 2017July 14, 2017 by dr-admin

What is the Combat Methamphetamine Epidemic Act (CMEA) of 2005? In short, it’s an act that was implemented by our nation’s government to do just what the name implies: combat abuse of methamphetamine and meth derivatives.

The Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) explains that the Act was intended to regulate “retail, over-the-counter sales of ephedrine, pseudoephedrine, phenylpropanolamine products.” These three drugs, among others, are ones that have either methamphetamine chemical structures, or structures similar to it.

Each is used to treat conditions like asthma, congestion, narcolepsy, and cold symptoms. In higher doses, these medications can be used as stimulants for increased alertness. Because of this, these types of medication are often targets for abuse.

In response to high numbers of abuse, the CMEA is supposed to impose limitations to daily sales, monthly purchases, limits to customer access, and more strict enforcement of customer ID practices, sales logs, staff training, and regular certification for sellers.

Why Is The CMEA Important?

According to the DEA, ephedrine, pseudoephedrine, and phenylpropanolamine are all “precursor” products used in the illicit manufacture and sale of methamphetamine. In other words, theses drugs are bought, processed to extract methamphetamine, and abused.

Methamphetamine is a highly addictive drug that comes with a whole range of side effects and can lead to a number of consequences, including high risk of overdose. People abuse meth by smoking it (crystal meth) or by crushing and snorting the tablet forms, or by dissolving it with liquid and taking the oral solution.

Meth affects the body by releasing extremely high levels of dopamine, a chemical that naturally occurs in the brain. When meth releases larger doses of dopamine than the brain is used to, you feel a rush of pleasure—the brain’s response to this feeling of reward. However, the brain also changes its chemistry to this new experience; it makes you crave this feeling again and again.

Because of this, people fall easily into abuse of meth, and shortly into addiction. Side effects of meth abuse can cause a number of health issues and personal consequences, some of the most dangerous of which can be fatal overdose or coma.

The U.S. government implemented the CMEA to help regulate sales of products containing meth in hopes of decreasing numbers of abuse in the nation. While meth abuse may not be gone, regulating sales and use of prescription drugs is always an effective way to fight addiction.

For those who are already struggling with methamphetamine abuse or addiction, treatment can help them before it’s too late. At DrugRehab.org, our experts can help you find a rehab center that best suits your needs, and design a treatment plan that addresses all aspects of your health.

How Does The CMEA Work?

As previously mentioned, the CMEA regulates sale and purchase limitations for drugs that contain methamphetamine chemical properties. How does it do this?

As the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) explains, sellers of these medications must:

Limit the amount of these medications sold daily and monthly to any one person
Require to see photo ID for each medication purchased
Keep personal information records for people who buy these products for minimum two years after purchase
Make sure customers don’t have direct access to these medications (i.e. keep them behind the counter and only sell after first going through all proper ID, personal information, and sales logs procedures)
Keep a detailed sales log for these products, including: product name, amount sold, name and address of person who bought it, date and time of sale

Essentially, the CMEA made the medications containing ephedrine, pseudoephedrine, and phenylpropanolamine “behind-the-counter” products. This means the medications are kept out of direct customer access, whether behind a pharmacy or sale counter, or in another part of the building.

Those who sell these products must also submit proof of certification to the Attorney General to sell these products. The Act does not change the requirements for these medications; you still don’t need a prescription to buy them, but sale and use of them are regulated.

Who Is Affected By Methamphetamine Abuse?

The National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) states that approximately 1.2 million people in 2012 reported use of methamphetamine in the past year. Of that number, 440,000 had used it in the past month, and 133,000 of those who reported abuse were aged 12 and above.

Meth abuse is increasing among youth and young adults, ages 12 to 20, and is seen most among white (non-hispanic) males. According to the National Survey on Drug Use and Health, meth abuse has decreased since first being added to the survey in 2004. This means meth abuse has decreased since the CMEA was enacted.

But the NIDA also explains that while the number of emergency room visits associated with meth have gone down, meth is still quite popular as a drug of abuse, and abuse rates are still high. This is especially true in western and Midwestern parts of the nation, and increasingly in rural areas.

Effects Of Meth Abuse

What happens when you abuse meth? The immediate effects produce the rush that many people seek when they abuse it, but some of the side effects, even after a short time, can range from uncomfortable to extreme or even dangerous.

Though some of the short-term effects may seem harmless, when you begin taking meth frequently and taking larger doses due to tolerance, you enhance the short-term effects which can contribute to risk of overdose.

The following are possible short-term effects of meth abuse:

Decrease in appetite
High blood pressure and body temperature
Increase in alertness and activity
Rapid breathing
Rapid or irregular heartbeat

In addition to increased risk of overdose which can be fatal, prolonged methamphetamine abuse can lead to a number of damaging effects to your health. These are just some of the possible effects meth can have on your health, mood, and behavior:

Anxiety
Confusion
Dental problems: “meth mouth” or severe mouth sores and tooth decay
Extreme itching problems, leading to severe scratching, sores, lesions, and infections
Paranoia, or extreme issues with trust of others and fear of certain situations
Hallucinations, or hearing or seeing things that aren’t happening

Consequences Of Meth Abuse

Aside from all the possible health effects, meth abuse can and does infect many aspects of your life. When you become addicted, no part of your life goes untouched. To start, abuse of meth not only hurts your health, it can also cause alterations to your brain that are permanent.

The NIDA explains, “continued methamphetamine use causes changes in the brain’s dopamine system that are associated with reduced coordination and impaired verbal learning.” It can also alter the parts of the brain responsible for emotion and memory.

Some changes to the brain may be reversed after quitting use of meth, with treatment, but others may be permanent. Prolonged meth abuse may also contribute to development of Parkinson’s disease.

Addiction to meth brings consequences of its own. Having an addiction can take a toll on finances. Even if making meth is cheap in the beginning, abusing it can alter the way your brain works, make your life change to seek meth, which could result in troubles at work or loss of job.

When you start abusing meth, your family and others close to you may not understand. This can strain your personal relationships, or cause you to lose touch with those you love. Addiction can make you do things you normally wouldn’t, like risking your reputation or doing something illegal to get the drug.

There are so many adverse consequences possible when you abuse meth, and it really isn’t worth the risk of trying the drug. But if you’re suffering with meth addiction, then you know how hard it can be to stop. We can help you put meth abuse behind you, and move forward to a new phase of life with substance abuse treatment.

How To Treat Methamphetamine Abuse

How do you treat abuse of a drug that is so potent? You treat it with a multidisciplinary method, integrating several types of treatment modalities to ensure holistic healing.

Our rehab centers offer healing in a supportive, welcoming environment far from the triggers of abuse. We also provide licensed and trained professional staff, who have experience treating abuse of substances, including meth. For those coming to us with more than one substance abuse problem, or who also struggle with mental health issues, we’ve got you covered with excellent dual diagnosis care.

Meth addiction can result in some severe withdrawal symptoms, but medication assisted treatment (MAT) can ease these symptoms. With MAT, you receive medication to help you manage withdrawal symptoms, taper off use of drugs, and are monitored closely to ensure safe levels of withdrawal.

Addiction also affects mood and behavior, which is why behavioral therapy and counseling are important components to any addiction treatment program. We offer both at our rehab centers, including Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT), Dialectical Behavioral Therapy, and counseling at the family, group, and individual level.

These are just some of the research-supported methods we utilize at our rehab centers. We also work closely with you to design a treatment plan that addresses all your needs and aspects of your health. Comprehensive healing is necessary with meth abuse and addiction—they affect much more than just your physical being, and we work to ensure overall wellness.

Combat Methamphetamine Abuse: Find Treatment Today

Our government has implemented measures to combat meth abuse and addiction. While this helps the fight, it isn’t enough to stop meth abuse. The only real way to stop meth abuse and addiction is to treat the cause of addiction, and help you find a way to deal with triggers as they come.

We’d like to help you get out of meth addiction, and heal today. Contact us today at DrugRehab.org to speak with a specialist and learn more about treatment, our rehab centers, and more.

For More Information Related to “Understanding The Combat Methamphetamine Act” Be Sure To Check Out These Additional Resources From DrugRehab.org:

Sources

National Institute On Drug Abuse—DrugFacts: Methamphetamine
U.S. National Library Of Medicine—Methamphetamine

What is the Difference Between Cocaine and Crack?

Posted on June 1, 2017June 1, 2017 by dr-admin

Where Do Cocaine And Crack Come From?

The coca-bush (erythroxylum coca) is natural stimulant that’s native to South America. Its leaves are believed to have been used in ceremonies by the Incas over 4,000 years ago to speed up their heart rates and better sustain survival in high elevations. Fast forward a few thousand years, and in the 1500s, Peruvians chewed on the leaves for the natural euphoric and numbing effect they produced—this was eventually put to a halt by Spanish conquerors.

Since then the coca plant has grown in popularity among the rest of the world, especially since cocaine was first developed in 1859 by German chemist Albert Niemann. Years later, in the 1880s the coca-bush and cocaine made a name in medicine as an anesthetic, and ingredient in popular soft-drinks like Coca-Cola (Note: it’s no longer used in the beverage).

Nearly 100 years after the first appearance of cocaine, appeared crack. It was an experimental drug at first, that was born out of the 1970s and gained most of its popularity in the 1980s. Though both cocaine and crack are derivatives of the coca-bush, and widely popular in the world of drug abuse, they became popular in very different times of human existence.

What Is Cocaine And How Is It Produced?

Cocaine is a highly addictive stimulant that can be snorted, injected into the bloodstream, or it can be freebased. Cocaine is usually a fine white substance and generally comes in powder form. The chemical, cocaine-chloride comes directly from the coca-bush, but when drug dealers get their hands on it they can cut or lace with other non-psychoactive substances such as “cornstarch, talcum powder, flour, or baking soda to increase their profits. They may also adulterate cocaine with other drugs like procaine (a chemically related local anesthetic) or amphetamine” (National Institute on Drug Abuse – NIDA).

What Is Crack And How Is It Produced?

Crack is a smokeable, less expensive, and more profitable version of cocaine. Crack comes further down the line from cocaine, and after it’s mixed with a legal non-euphoric substance like ammonia or baking soda it’s cooked down to remove the hydrochloride and produce a smokeable product—typically in the form of an off-white or yellow looking rock. A crack rock, unlike cocaine powder, is water insoluble. “The term crack… refers to the crackling sound heard when the mixture is smoked” (NIDA).

What Schedule Drugs Are Cocaine And Crack?

Cocaine and crack are labeled as Schedule II drugs by the DEA, because of their “high potential for abuse, with use potentially leading to severe psychological or physical dependence. These drugs are also considered dangerous.”

Can You Smoke Cocaine Or Snort Crack?

Cocaine can be mixed with marijuana; a combination referred to in some circles as a one-fifty-oner but by itself, cocaine isn’t normally smoked. Similarly, since crack comes in the form of a rock, it would be unfit to snort up one’s nose. These drugs are dangerous enough on their own as it is, and the preferred methods of use seem to be working—and no matter how a person uses the drug (unless in medicine) it’s illegal.

How Many People Are In Prison For Cocaine Or Crack?

“Over three-quarters of DWI offenders in jail reported using drugs in the past. Among jail inmates held for DWI, marijuana (73%) and cocaine-based drugs including crack (41%) were the most commonly used drugs. Thirty percent of those in jail reported drug use in the month prior to arrest” (Bureau of Justice Statistics). This source will go on to say that in 2002, 11% of U.S. prison inmates were high on cocaine or crack at the time of their arrest—a number that was down from 16% in 1996.

Is Crack More Dangerous Than Cocaine?

Both cocaine and crack are considered dangerous and can be fatal. There were approximately 7,000 cocaine fatalities from 2002 to 20015, and about 60% of those involved an opioid such as heroin (NIDA). Because most of these results were found during an autopsy, it’s inconclusive as to whether the drug being used was crack or cocaine.

Cocaine And Crack Can Be Laced With Other Drugs

Cocaine and crack are regularly laced with other drugs such as meth, marijuana, and opioids. Some people will mix cocaine or crack with heroin which makes for a less intense come-down from the heroin. This mixture of stimulant and depressant is known as a speedball and it can be a fatal combination. What tends to happen when a user mixes an upper with a downer is the drugs cancel each other out—the cocaine reduces the effects of the heroin, so users will continue using heroin to get the high their brain and addiction is seeking.

The serious issue and danger occurs when the cocaine wears off well before the heroin. After that, a user is left with an intense, and often deadly heroin high. Because of the mind blowing euphoria that comes with speedballing; addiction and overdose are much more likely to happen.

Euphoria from Cocaine and Crack

In an interview with ATTN:, clinical pharmacist Jenni Stein described the euphoria produced by cocaine and crack. “A high from snorted cocaine will hit you in about 1-5 minutes, be at its peak within 20-30 minutes, and last 1-2 hours. A high from inhaled or injected cocaine will hit you in less than a minute, be at its peak within 3-5 minutes, and last 30 minutes to an hour.”

Stein went on to describe crack; “the onset and peak occur much faster with inhaled [if smoked] and injected cocaine, and the user experiences the effects of the drug ‘all at once’—so the user will get higher than if the same amount of cocaine were snorted.”

What Are The Short And Long-Term Effects Of Cocaine And Crack?

As defined by NIDA, “cocaine prevents dopamine from recycling, causing excessive amounts to build up between nerve cells. This flood of dopamine ultimately disrupts normal brain communication and causes cocaine’s high.”

Some of the short-term effects of cocaine are:

extreme happiness and energy
mental alertness
hypersensitivity to sight, sound, and touch
irritability
paranoia—extreme and unreasonable distrust of others

Some of the long-term effects of cocaine, as described by NIDA, are:

constricted blood vessels
dilated pupils
nausea
raised body temperature and blood pressure
faster heartbeat
tremors and muscle twitches

Cocaine Versus Crack Withdrawals

Both cocaine and crack can have similar withdrawals, however one difference is that because the high from crack is an intensified version to that of cocaine, it’s over faster and adverse symptoms occur sooner. Some of the most common withdrawal symptoms of both crack and cocaine are increased appetite, anxiety, depression, nightmares, insomnia, general discomfort, and restlessness.

Do Crack And Cocaine Have Different Effects On The Health?

No matter how you use it, cocaine is a powerful drug and can lead to serious health risks whether it’s snorted, smoked, or injected. After prolonged use of cocaine or crack, it begin to take a serious toll on a person’s health. From NIDA, few of those risks include:

Snorting: loss of sense of smell, nosebleeds, frequent runny nose, and problems with swallowing.
Consuming by Mouth: severe bowel decay from reduced blood flow.
Intravenous Injection: higher risk for contracting HIV, hepatitis C, and other blood-borne diseases. However, even people involved with non-needle cocaine use place themselves at a risk for HIV because cocaine impairs judgment, which can lead to risky sexual behavior with infected partners

How To Treat An Addiction With Rehab

Finding the right kind of treatment can be the best way to live a healthy, happy, drug free life, Contact us today at 1-833-473-4227 to speak to one of our addiction specialist if you or a loved one is struggling with cocaine today.

For More Information Related to “What is the Difference Between Cocaine and Crack?” Be Sure To Check Out These Additional Resources From DrugRehab.org:

Sources

National Institute on Drug Abuse – Cocaine
National Institute on Drug Abuse – What is Cocaine?

Commonly Abused Benzodiazepines

Posted on May 25, 2017July 17, 2017 by dr-admin

Like a lot of drugs, there is room for abuse of benzodiazepines—which is commonly referred to as “benzos.” With drug seeking behavior often comes raiding the medicine cabinet or doctor shopping for drugs, because what treats one person’s condition can often give another person the euphoric feeling of ease and comfort. Next to opioids, benzodiazepine has become one of the most highly sought after prescription pills for abuse.

Definition Of Drug Abuse

As mentioned before, benzodiazepines are used in medicine to help treat anxiety and panic disorder by essentially slowing down brain activity. This drug can be helpful for someone who can’t stop feeling anxious or dismiss the feeling of impending doom, but some can people abuse benzos. Drug abuse is broadly defined as, “when people use illegal drugs or use legal drugs inappropriately…

This includes the repeated use of drugs to produce pleasure, alleviate stress, and/or alter or avoid reality. It also includes using prescription drugs in ways other than prescribed or using someone else’s prescription” (National Institute on Drug Abuse – NIDA).

List Of Most Commonly Abused Benzodiazepines

There are more than 25 different benzodiazepines on the market, but not all of them are as widely abused or even known about. Some are more potent than others, and therefore most likely to be abused. When a person starts abusing benzodiazepines, they might only use it a few times here and there. Over time they can build up a tolerance to the drug, and start seeking a more potent dosage. They can potentially experience withdrawal symptoms when they stop using the drug.

Maybe they’re self-medicating for a self-diagnosed panic disorder—which certainly could require medication, but self-medicating can be extremely dangerous and is illegal. Some of the most commonly abused benzodiazepines are Xanax, Klonopin, Valium, Ativan, and Restoril.

Withdrawal Symptoms Of Benzodiazepines

Abusing benzodiazepines can often lead to dependence accompanied by serious withdrawal symptoms when a person tries to stop abusing them. Some of the most common withdrawal symptoms related to benzodiazepine abuse and dependence are:

Sleep Disturbance and Insomnia
Irritability
Increased Tension and Anxiety
Panic Attacks
Hand Tremor
Sweating
Difficulty Concentrating
Dry Heaving and Nausea
Weight Loss
Palpitations
Headache
Muscular Pain and Stiffness
Perceptual Changes

Can I Overdose On Benzodiazepines?

Yes, especially when the drug is mixed with other substances like alcohol or opioids. From the Food and Drug Administration, overdose symptoms “include somnolence, confusion, impaired coordination, diminished reflexes and coma. Death has been reported in association with overdoses of alprazolam by itself, as it has with other benzodiazepines. In addition, fatalities have been reported in patients who have overdosed with a combination of a single benzodiazepine.”

Xanax Abuse

Abusing Xanax can be more than just buying it on the street, crushing it up and snorting it. Prescription drug abuse can be anything from using someone else’s prescription to continuing use of your own prescription after a doctor advises you to stop—which can be a result of dependence or addiction.

According to the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), “withdrawal symptoms similar in character to those noted with sedative/hypnotics and alcohol have occurred following discontinuance of benzodiazepines, including Xanax. The symptoms can range from mild dysphoria and insomnia to a major syndrome that may include abdominal and muscle cramps, vomiting, sweating, tremors and convulsions.”

Klonopin Abuse

From the drug’s description by the FDA, Klonopin can pass into breast milk and cause dependence. Dependence to Klonopin can end in withdrawals and further cravings, and furthermore “stopping Klonopin suddenly can cause seizures that do not stop, hearing or seeing things that are not there (hallucinations), shaking, and stomach and muscle cramps.”

Valium Abuse

Valium is considered a schedule IV drug by the Drug Enforcement Administration, because of it’s lower potential abuse; however when mixed with opioids it can lead to sedation, respiratory depression, coma, and death. From the FDA’s description of Valium, “abuse and dependence of benzodiazepines (Valium) have been reported. Addiction-prone individuals should be under careful surveillance when receiving diazepam or other psychotropic agents because of the predisposition of such patients to habituation and dependence.”

Valium can be used to help treat acute alcoholism withdrawal symptoms, but on the other hand can lead to withdrawals of its own when dosage is increased or when the drug is abused.

Ativan Abuse

Like other benzodiazepines, Ativan can lead to dependence but it can also lead to worsening conditions of depression for someone who was previously diagnosed with a depression disorder; therefore it is highly discouraged to use Ativan if you suffer from depression or psychosis. Also similar to other benzodiazepines, “the risk of dependence increases with higher doses and longer term use and is further increased in patients with a history of alcoholism or drug abuse or in patients with significant personality disorders. The dependence potential is reduced when lorazepam (Ativan) is used at the appropriate dose for short-term treatment” (FDA).

Even in the realm of drug abuse, Ativan should be slowly tapered off of. According to the FDA, “withdrawal symptoms can appear following cessation of recommended doses after as little as one week of therapy. Abrupt discontinuation of product should be avoided and a gradual dosage-tapering schedule followed after extended therapy.”

Restoril Abuse

From Xanax to Restoril, benzodiazepines have a common theme, do not mix with opioids or alcohol—it’s dangerous and can lead to overdose and death. Some of the best ways to avoid these risks is to avoid mixing drugs; however avoiding the negative consequences of benzodiazepines can work on both sides of the pharmacy window, and from a professional aspect doctors must:

Reserve concomitant prescribing of these drugs for use in patients for whom alternative treatment options are inadequate.
Limit dosages and durations to the minimum required.
Follow patients for signs and symptoms of respiratory depression and sedation.
(FDA)

More About Benzodiazepine Dependence

As is true with most mood altering drugs, dependence to benzodiazepines is possible but not certain. From the Drug Enforcement Administration, “there is the potential for dependence on and abuse of benzodiazepines particularly by individuals with a history of multi-substance abuse.” So what exactly is the relationship between abuse, dependence, tolerance, and addiction?

The FDA sums it up perfectly, “abuse is characterized by misuse of the drug for nonmedical purposes, often in combination with other psychoactive substances. Physical dependence is a state of adaptation that is manifested by a specific withdrawal syndrome that can be produced by abrupt cessation, rapid dose reduction, decreasing blood level of the drug and/or administration of an antagonist…Tolerance is a state of adaptation in which exposure to a drug induces changes that result in a diminution of one or more of the drug’s effects over time.”

“Addiction is a primary, chronic, neurobiological disease with genetic, psychosocial, and environmental factors influencing its development and manifestations.” It can be hard to stop using drugs once you’ve become dependent or addicted, and sometimes the best way to start recovery is to ask for help.

How To Find Treatment For Addiction And Substance Abuse

Benzodiazepine abuse isn’t always a death sentence, but there is no guarantee for a good life either. “More than 22,000 people die every year from prescription drug abuse, more than heroin and cocaine combined” (NIDA). If you are suffering with an addiction to prescription drugs, getting into treatment today can be one of the best things you can do for yourself. With a detoxification, behavioral therapy, peer and family support and more you will be back on your feet and on the road to recovery in no time.

Contact us today to speak to one of our addiction specialists about getting the treatment you deserve. Recovery starts with addiction treatment, and we can find it for you.

For More Information Related to “Commonly Abused Benzodiazepines” Be Sure To Check Out These Additional Resources From DrugRehab.org:

Sources

Drug Enforcement Administration – Benzodiazepines
Food and Drug Administration – Ativan
Food and Drug Administration – Klonopin
Food and Drug Administration – Restoral
Food and Drug Administration – Valium
Food and Drug Administration – Xanax

What Is Pseudoaddiction?

Posted on May 11, 2017 by dr-admin

The opioid epidemic has reached crisis proportions within our nation. The misuse of prescription opioid painkillers is in large part responsible for this devastation. In 2015, ScienceDaily reported that 100 million Americans live with chronic pain.

At the heart of these two trends lies an unfortunate truth—while necessary and effective, these drugs hold a massive potential for abuse and addiction. Commonly prescribed (and abused) prescription opioid drugs include fentanyl (Duragesic), hydromorphone (Dilaudid), and oxycodone (OxyContin, Percocet). Because of this dual dynamic, many medical practitioners are hesitant to prescribe these drugs.

What Are The Signs And Symptoms Of Pseudoaddiction?

If you’ve lived with chronic pain or love someone who has, then you likely understand how it can change most every aspect of your life. Inadequately treated chronic pain may cause certain emotions or behaviors to surface. Many of these closely resemble characteristics of addiction. These include:

Isolation
Hopelessness
Depression
Anxiety
Mood instability
Fear or panic
Anger or frustration
Nervousness or irritability
Low energy or fatigue
Trouble sleeping

In addition, a person may also:

Experience relationship troubles
Withdraw from social activities
Lose interest in activities they previously enjoyed
Have thoughts of suicide

As the physical, mental, and emotional side effects of this mismanaged pain increase, a person’s behaviors begin to shift.

A person with pseudoaddiction may:

Ask for increased dosages of pain medication.
Request a different or stronger pain medication.
Worry about when they’re able to refill their prescription.
Be preoccupied with thoughts of the next dose.
Become anxious if there’s any uncertainty regarding their medication supply or dosage.
Expend great time and energy towards finding and/or maintaining access to pain medication.
Excessively think or talk about the medication or its effects.
Make sure they always have their medication on hand even if they don’t expect to need it.

To the outside observer, an individual with signs of pseudoaddiction could appear to be addicted. This incorrect diagnosis can make this already unbearable situation even more stressful and painful.

What Is The Difference Between Pseudoaddiction And Addiction?

It can be very confusing to separate the characteristics of these two concerns. Both medically prescribed use and addiction can create opioid dependence, tolerance, and withdrawal. So what makes these things different?

The main thing that separates pseudoaddiction from addiction is the motive behind the drug seeking. In the former, an individual seeks out more pain medication for self-care. Contrasting this, an addicted individual is consumed by a harmful and compulsive desire to obtain these drugs to create a feel-good effect.

In theory, you can also tell pseudoaddiction apart from addiction by observing if the drug-seeking behaviors change over time. When someone suffering from pseudoaddiction finally gets adequate pain management, drug-seeking subsides.

Why Is It Important To Recognize Pseudoaddiction?

As the opioid epidemic rises, it is important to identify these differences. Critics of the pseudoaddiction theory caution that a patient’s own feedback may not be the most accurate indication of pain. Additionally, some individuals may pretend to be in pain so that they can obtain more painkillers for illicit purposes.

Recognizing the difference between these two scenarios is key to protecting either type of patient. Understanding these distinctions can help you to advocate for a higher quality of care. Recent reports suggest that effective pain management could even save your life. Lack of access to proper pain medications has been anecdotally linked to suicide.

For those with untreated concerns of pain, treatment should be adjusted so that they can have a better quality of life. If pseudoaddiction is properly treated a person should be less inclined to misuse these drugs. By stopping this illicit use, the risk of painkiller abuse and addiction significantly declines.

On the other hand, it is important to stay alert and recognize recreational drug-seeking behaviors. This provides an opportunity to get these individuals help. If a person is feigning pseudoaddiction to get more drugs, funneling more painkillers into them will only serve to drive them deeper into addiction.

How Is Pseudoaddiction Treated?

As pseudoaddiction is not addiction, it alone does not require drug addiction treatment. Doctor-supervised treatment can help you to regain functionality within your life through better pain management. However, in certain cases, pseudoaddiction could develop into patterns of drug abuse or addiction.

Are you worried that your drug-seeking and using are becoming compulsive? Are the reasons you want pain medication less about pain management and more about creating a sense of pleasure? If any of this sounds familiar, it’s a good idea to get help right away before your drug use spirals further out of control.

Can Pseudoaddiction Turn Into Addiction?

Yes. Even prescribed medical use of opioid medications can lead to addiction. Addiction may develop because a person:

Misuses their own prescription: Pseudoaddiction can be a long and overwhelming road. This can exhaust a person. Some people who no longer needs pain management may use their leftover medication to feel good and escape. Just because the drugs were prescribed to you doesn’t mean it is safe to use them in this way.

Turns to illicit painkillers: If pseudoaddiction is not properly recognized or treated, a person may try to obtain painkillers illicitly. Without professional medical guidance, a person may begin to use too many pills too often. Painkillers purchased off the street have no regulation. These pills may not even be the drug you think they are. They could even contain other dangerous and more addictive drugs such as fentanyl. These fake prescription drugs could even cause overdose and death.

Self-medicates with other drugs: The risk of addiction isn’t only to opioids. If a person with pseudoaddiction fails to receive proper and compassionate treatment, they may turn to other types of drugs or alcohol to cope or dull the pain. They may also use these substances to mask any emotional or mental struggles.

Struggles with mental illness: Current Addiction Reports warns of this connection, writing that:

“Mental illness comorbidity is high among chronic pain patients, where psychiatric illness is a risk factor for chronic pain, analgesic abuse, and drug addiction in general…putting those who are depressed, and more likely to seek chronic pain treatment, at especially high risk for analgesic abuse.”

Regardless of how addiction develops, you or your loved one will be exposed to countless risks. Opioid painkillers can be intensely addictive. Because of this, painkiller addictions may be best treated by both a medically supervised detox and an inpatient drug rehab program. If you’re addicted and still facing concerns of pain, certain programs can help you to manage both concerns.

We Can Help You Heal From Addiction

Have prescription painkillers taken over your life? Or are you worried that they might be? Whether you’re suffering from opioid abuse or addiction, the opportunity for a better life exists. DrugRehab.org can help you to create sobriety goals, treatment plans, and the desire for a better life. Contact us now.

For More Information Related to “What Is Pseudoaddiction?” Be Sure To Check Out These Additional Resources From DrugRehab.org:

Sources

The American Academy of Pain Medicine — AAPM Facts and Figures on Pain
American Society of Addiction Medicine — Definitions Related to the Use of Opioids for the Treatment of Pain: Consensus Statement of the American Academy of Pain Medicine, the American Pain Society, and the American Society of Addiction Medicine
Medscape — “On the Meaning of “Drug Seeking”

Consequences Of Injecting OxyContin (Oxycodone)

Posted on May 1, 2017October 19, 2017 by dr-admin

What Happens When You Inject OxyContin?

There are many ways to abuse drugs.When you’ve fallen victim to addiction, the fastest way to attain a high is usually the one you seek. Injecting is one of the quickest ways to get high. Administering drugs through injection into the muscle or directly to the bloodstream ensures quick results—the “rush” feeling.

Many prescription drugs like OxyContin (oxycodone) are designed for a slow release of effects. Injecting OxyContin allows you to skip the waiting period, producing an immediate rush. Unfortunately, abusing the drug in this way also comes with consequences.

As the Center for Substance Abuse Research (CESAR) explains, when abusing OxyContin, “the risk of an overdose increases dramatically since the drug is not intended to be used in this manner.” Also, many who abuse it may pair it with abuse of other substances like alcohol, which can be a dangerous combination.

But these negative outcomes aren’t the only adverse effects. Injection of any drugs can cause you health risks, and addiction to prescription drugs like OxyContin can affect your health and other aspects of your life.

What Are The Risks?

Some risks of abuse by injection include:

Bacteria on the cardiac valves
Cardiovascular infections
Damage to veins: collapsed or inflamed veins
Puncture marks or track lines at the injection sites
Infections of the skin, such as abscesses or cellulitis
Swelling in feet, legs, and/or arms due to poor blood flow

What Are The Signs Of Addiction?

OxyContin is the brand for Oxycodone, which is a prescription opioid. Opioid prescriptions are used to treat moderate to severe pain, and many of these drugs are highly addictive. OxyContin is no exception. In fact, like other opioids, it is typically prescribed only for a short time to help avoid abuse.

However, even if you take the drug for only a short period of time, you can develop addiction to it. Here are some signs to look for if you suspect you may be falling into addiction:

You take the drug more often than prescribed
You change the method of administration to get quicker results (such as crushing the tablets and injecting instead of taking orally)
You experience strong cravings for the drug
You can’t get the same effects from one dosage, and start taking more (tolerance)
You experience physical side effects when you aren’t taking the drug (withdrawal)

While addiction may be avoided if taking a prescription drug exactly as prescribed, the possibility of becoming addicted to the effects of opioids is high. It’s important that we all take part in fighting prescription drug abuse: following directions for prescriptions, not sharing our medications, making sure we know the risks associated with our medications, and more.

For those who need help with addiction, treatment for opioid abuse is available, and has proven to be effective. Treatment is the single best way to safeguard against continued drug abuse and the effects it can have on your life.

Where Do People Get OxyContin?

OxyContin is a prescription pain reliever; in short it has to be prescribed. This is where many of us can become susceptible to the dangers of addictive prescriptions. We don’t always realize the risks of medications because we assume they are intended to help us get better.

Many medications can be helpful. Opioids can be the only relief for people experiencing severe pain and ailments. But they can also be harmful when abused, and if you aren’t aware of the dangers it can be all too easy to fall into abuse.

Prescription Opioid Abuse

Prescription opioid abuse is a problem that has expanded in recent years. The National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) reports that over 2 million people abuse prescription opioids in the United States. Globally, abuse of opioids (the larger group of opiates which includes prescription opioids and illicit drugs like heroin) affects anywhere from 24 to 36 million.

Opioids affect the brain by attaching to opioid receptors and changing the way our brains respond to pain. The brain adapts to this new way of responding to pain, and begins seeking these results again and again through cravings.

Once you have become addicted, you may find you experience withdrawal symptoms when not taking the drug. Some withdrawal symptoms are moderate, but others may be severe enough that you don’t want to be without the drug. Withdrawal is what keeps many addicted, along with tolerance.

Tolerance happens when your brain no longer responds to the drug like it used to. While your brain may not feel the effects, your body can only process so much of the drug at a time. It’s in this way that you risk overdose. Forcing too much of a drug on your body or forcing the drug to work more quickly or differently than it should is dangerous, and can be fatal.

Who Is Affected?

Perhaps it seems like we should have prescription opioid abuse under control, but the truth is we simply don’t. The NIDA explains that in 2012 more than five percent of the population ages 12 and above reported non-medical use of prescription opioids.

Teens may be at increased risk simply because they can easily gain access to prescriptions through family members or friends. Women also are more likely to have chronic pain, get prescriptions for pain relievers, and subsequently abuse or develop addiction to those medications.

What Can We Do About Prescription Opioid Abuse?

There are a few measures we can all take to prevent prescription opioid abuse, both for ourselves and others. First, always take medications only as prescribed, never increasing dosage or method of administration without talking with a doctor.

We can also keep medications in a secure place, and keep track of the dosage to be sure no one else is using them. Lastly, we can work to inform teens and children of the dangers of prescription drug abuse, opening conversations to share information and discuss safe medication practices.

If you or someone close to you is struggling with prescription opioid abuse, you can find the help you need in treatment. We at DrugRehab.org are here to assist you on this journey, and make the transition to healing as easy as possible.

Treatment Options

There are many different methods of treatment at your disposal when you are ready to take that first step and enter a rehabilitation center. Opioid addiction treatment first requires detoxification, which allows your body to dispose of the chemicals acquired during abuse.

Our rehab centers offer medically supervised detoxification to help you succeed in this process. They may also implement medication assisted therapy to help ease the symptoms of withdrawal. After detox, you can begin therapy, counseling, and any combination of methods that are right for your individual needs.

Our rehab centers will work with you, designing treatment goals that meet your specific needs. Just a few of the evidence-based methods we offer include:

Treatment for men’s unique needs
Treatment for women’s unique needs
Cognitive Behavioral Therapy
Dialectical Behavioral Therapy
Medication Assisted Therapy
Counseling—individual, family, group
Fitness and nutrition help
Assistance with aftercare

Find The Help You Need

If you have been struggling with injecting OxyContin, then you already know it can be hard to stop abuse. We want to help you put this difficult time behind you, and begin a new part of your life. Contact us today at DrugRehab.org to learn more about prescription opioid abuse, our renowned rehab centers, and the best treatment options for you.

For More Information Related to “Consequences Of Injecting OxyContin (Oxycodone)” Be Sure To Check Out These Additional Resources From DrugRehab.org:

Sources

Drug Free World—OxyContin The “Hillbilly Heroin”
Mayo Clinic—Oxycodone (Oral Route): Side Effects
U.S. Food And Drug Administration—OxyContin Questions And Answers

Understanding A Heroin Use Disorder

Posted on April 28, 2017July 18, 2017 by dr-admin

Because heroin is an opioid, individuals that abuse the drug have an opioid use disorder (OUD). This disorder was previously termed opioid dependence and abuse. A heroin-related OUD causes impairment and distress to the user within a period of one year. A heroin use disorder (HUD) includes patterns and behaviors which many commonly refer to as abuse and addiction.

Heroin is highly addictive and may cause coma, brain damage, and death. Heroin use and heroin-related overdose deaths are on the rise among most U.S. demographics. Fortunately, treatment exists which can help you or your loved one achieve a sober and more balanced life.

What Is Heroin?

Heroin is one of the most addictive illicit drugs known to man. Heroin is derived from morphine, a naturally occurring drug synthesized from the opium poppy. It is found in one of two ways, either as a white or slightly brown powder or in black tar form. When a person uses heroin, the drug causes an excess of dopamine to build up in the brain. The overabundance of this chemical causes the pleasurable rush and euphoric state that heroin abusers seek.

Users may abuse the drug in the following ways: intravenously (injecting), insufflation (snorting), or by smoking it. Typically, the more pure, powdered forms are snorted or smoked whereas impure heroin (black tar) can only be injected. No matter how an individual chooses to abuse this drug, you still face risks of addiction, disease, and death.

What Is The Criteria Of A Heroin Use Disorder?

The American Psychological Association (APA) defines an OUD as “a problematic pattern of opioid use leading to clinically significant impairment or distress, as manifested by at least two of the following, occurring within a 12-month period.” These criteria, as outlined by the APA include that an individual:

Takes a greater dose of heroin or continues to use for a period of time that lasts beyond what they intended.
Is not able to decrease their heroin use despite a desire or an attempt to do so.
Spends increasing amounts of time seeking or using the drug and/or recovering from ill effects associated with heroin abuse.
Experiences cravings or an intense urge to use heroin.
Persists at using heroin even though it is creating or worsening relationships or other social obligations.
Decreases or completely stops taking part in job-related, social, or recreational obligations or events due to their heroin use.
Consistently uses heroin in a way which exposes them to physical dangers.
Does not stop using the drug even though they know it is causing or worsening a physical or psychological condition.
Experiences a tolerance. Specifically, the amount of drug they previously used does not create the same effects, leading them to use more to gain the pleasurable feelings they seek.
Experiences heroin withdrawal if they suddenly stop using. A person may continue to take the drug in an attempt to avoid withdrawal symptoms.

Withdrawal symptoms may include muscle and bone aches, uncontrollable leg movements, goosebumps and chills, nausea and vomiting, insomnia, nervousness or anxiety, intense cravings, and more.

What Are Other Signs And Symptoms Of A Heroin Use Disorder?

Are you concerned that your loved one is experimenting with heroin or suffering from an HUD? Being on the look out for the following signs and symptoms can help you to identify if you loved one may be at risk for an HUD. If a person is using heroin, they may:

Have a decreased sense of pain.
Have warm and flushed skin.
Complain of a dry mouth.
Become very itchy.
Have small (pinprick) pupils.
Feel like their limbs are very heavy.
Seem to move very slowly.
Become nauseous and even vomit.
Alternate between drowsiness and wakefulness.
Have slowed thinking.
Decreased heart and breathing rates.
Have track marks on their arms from injecting the drug.
Wear long sleeves in warm weather to cover up these marks.
Steal money or objects to pay for their habit.
Withdraw from their loved ones.
Lose interest in hobbies, friends, or things they previously enjoyed.
Begin struggling at work or school or even quit or get fired/kicked out.
Become evasive or lie if you try to talk to them about the drug or their behaviors.

Heroin use requires certain equipment. Knowing what to look for can help you to spot a problem. These items may include straws or hollowed out pens (for snorting), syringes, lengths of tube or belts (to tie off with prior to injection), and/or a metal or glass pipe. Many people may keep these supplies in a kit or bag.

What Are The Risks And Dangers Of Heroin?

Addiction is one of the biggest dangers of heroin use. The American Society of Addiction Medicine estimates that of those who try heroin, 23 percent will develop an OUD. An HUD may also cause:

Financial and legal problems
Loss of job
Marriage problems
Child custody battles
Infectious diseases (HIV/AIDS, hepatitis B and C)
Scarring and infection at the injection site
Collapsed veins
Miscarriage
Irregular menstrual cycles for women
Sexual dysfunction for men
Mental health disorders (depression and antisocial personality disorder)
Heart trouble
Other organ complications and damage
Withdrawal

Other severe risks include coma, overdose, and death. Overdose can occur even on the first use. According to the CDC, since 2010 deaths related to heroin have quadrupled. To further avoid these risks, it is urgent that you or your loved one get treatment. While an HUD is a pattern over a year, some individuals might get addicted much sooner. Don’t wait, start exploring your treatment options today.

How Do You Treat A Heroin Use Disorder?

Due to the intensely addictive properties of this drug, we highly recommend medically supervised detox and inpatient drug rehab. Detoxing from heroin can be very unpleasant, painful, and even dangerous. This is why you should never attempt to do this on your own.

Certain medications or pharmacotherapies may be used during detox and/or treatment. The following medications are supported by the National Institute on Drug Abuse as evidence-based practices.

Buprenorphine
Methadone
Naltrexone

These drugs treat symptoms of withdrawal and cravings and may also be used as maintenance medications. Other medications may be used to treat any co-occurring disorders.

These medications are best supported by certain behavioral therapies as part of medication-assisted treatment (MAT). This integrative method addresses a person’s physical, mental, and emotional needs in one comprehensive approach.

An individualized rehab program for an HUD may use a variety of treatment modalities, including cognitive behavioral therapy, dialectical behavioral therapy, and motivational interviewing. A thorough program should also offer individual and/or group therapy, family therapy and support, relapse prevention, and aftercare support. Every treatment program is different. Some may also offer holistic therapies, men’s or women’s only treatment programs, adventure therapy, equine therapy, art therapy, and more.

Don’t Let Heroin Rule Your Life Any Longer

While a heroin use disorder is a serious problem, it is not un- treatable. DrugRehab.org wants you or your loved one to succeed and find a fulfilling, drug-free life. Our treatment specialists can help you find the right program that fits your individual needs. Take the first step into living a life free from heroin—contact us today.

For More Information Related to “Understanding A Heroin Use Disorder” Be Sure To Check Out These Additional Resources From DrugRehab.org:

Using Naltrexone To Treat Opioid Addiction

What is Heroin Cut With?

Utilizing Equine Therapy In Addiction Treatment

Is Buprenorphine An Opiate?

What is Methadone?

What Are The Side Effects Of Heroin Use?

The Dangers of Snorting Oxycontin (Oxycodone)

How To Detox From Heroin

Sources

The National Institute on Drug Abuse — Heroin: Research Report Series

The Dangers Of Snorting Vicodin (Hydrocodone)

Posted on April 25, 2017July 18, 2017 by dr-admin

Vicodin is a pain reliever which combines the opioid narcotic hydrocodone and pain reliever acetaminophen to produce fast relief of symptoms. Sometimes, people abuse Vicodin, including crushing the tablet and snorting the powder.

Snorting any substance tends to produce a quicker high—it’s the reason snorting appeals to the addicted individual. But snorting Vicodin can also cause some dangerous consequences, including the following:

Fast, unpredictable “rush”: while this may appeal to someone seeking that high, it’s dangerous because you can’t control it. Essentially, the high is more intense when snorting, and that increases your chance of intensified side effects and overdose.
Increased risk of addiction: if you are just snorting recreationally, and haven’t struggled with addiction yet, you increase your risk of addiction by snorting. Addiction results from the changes in the brain when you abuse a substance.
Breathing and sinus issues: these can include everything from sores and sinus infections to nose bleeds and choking.
Enhanced side effects: snorting any substances enhances the side effects you’ll experience, which increases risks associated with abuse.

Prolonged abuse by snorting can lead to other physical troubles, like severe congestions that can keep you up at night, lung infections, pneumonia, voice changes, and sleep apnea.

What Are The Side Effects?

In addition to the immediate rush, here are some side effects you may experience with Vicodin abuse:

Drowsiness
Confusion
Constipation
Fainting
Nausea
Slowed breathing
In extreme cases, coma

Side effects experienced depend on the person abusing the drug, duration of abuse, and amount of the drug abused. Prolonged abuse can lead to tolerance, which means you may start taking more of the drug to get the same effects.

After a while, your body becomes dependent on the effects of the drug. When not taking it, you may undergo withdrawal symptoms. Withdrawal for opioids isn’t always severe, but it can be enough to keep you from stopping abuse.

Addiction takes its toll on your health and in your life. One of the biggest concerns that comes with addiction to opioids like Vicodin is the risk of overdose.

Overdose—What’s The Risk?

Overdose is a medical emergency. If you or someone you know experiences Vicodin overdose symptoms, you should seek help right away. These include the following, according to Mayo Clinic:

Blood in or cloudy appearance to urine
Chest pain
Cold, clammy skin
Confusion
Extreme drowsiness
Increased sweating
Irregular heartbeat
Lack of breathing
Lack of muscle movement
Lack of response
Loss of consciousness
No pulse
Stopped heartbeat

How To Get Help For Vicodin Abuse

If you have been abusing Vicodin, then you know how easy it is to get addicted, and how fast it happens. Withdrawal only keeps you from wanting to quit—the cravings alone may seem unbearable at times.

But stopping abuse and breaking the addiction cycle is important. By making that change, you can live without the risk of overdose, without the adverse effects to your health and life, and with a new set of life goals. In treatment, you can get help implementing these changes. At DrugRehab.org, we have access to some of the best rehabilitation centers in the nation, and contacting us is a phone call or click away.

What Happens In Treatment?

With opioid addiction treatment, you first undergo a detoxification period. During opioid abuse, your body is exposed to a lot of toxins, and this process allows you to rid yourself of them. After detoxification comes healing.

Healing works differently for everybody. That’s because we each have unique treatment needs, just as we are unique individuals. Our rehab centers work to design a plan that meets your specific treatment needs. For instance, if you are a woman seeking treatment for opioid abuse and mental health issues, your needs might be different from a man seeking treatment for alcohol abuse.

Many of our facilities offer a variety of treatment modalities based on the array of people who seek services. Methods may be used in combination with other types of treatment to ensure a comprehensive healing plan.

There are aspects of treatment which focus on healing your mind and behavioral habits. Much of recovering from addiction includes reversing the way the brain has learned to function during substance abuse. That’s why we offer behavioral therapy, such as Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, which teaches you to build positive lifestyle habits you will continue after completing your rehab stay.

You’ll also work on healing your body, engaging in adventure therapy or wilderness therapy which pairs activity and the benefits of nature with motivation, skill-building, and capabilities. The result of this is rejuvenation of the body and spirit, and an increase in self-confidence and sense of fulfillment.

To ease the process of withdrawal during detoxification, you may be offered medication, known as medication assisted therapy. With careful monitoring and medical supervision, you can withdraw from opioid abuse safely and effectively, with as little pain as possible.

These are just some of the methods offered at our rehab centers. To build a plan that is right for you, we take into account your unique needs and help you work daily toward your end goals.

Don’t Delay Recovery

Falling into addiction is easy, it’s overcoming it that can be difficult. Don’t let that stop you from seeking the help you need and deserve. We’re here to make the entire process of recovery as easy as possible so you can get back to focusing on what matters most: your life.

Contact us today at DrugRehab.org to find more information about Vicodin abuse and addiction and where to find treatment.

For More Information Related to “The Dangers Of Snorting Vicodin (Hydrocodone)” Be Sure To Check Out These Additional Resources From RehabCenter.net:

Sources

Mayo Clinic—Hydrocodone And Acetaminophen (Oral Route)
U.S. National Library Of Medicine—Hydrocodone
WebMD—Vicodin