Opioids and How They Affect You

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Opioids, What are They?

Opioids are drugs that are manufactured often for medicinal purpose. Opioids include Opiates. Opiates are drugs extracted from the Opium plant. Opium was widely used for medicine during Ancient times. But opium had other unwanted effects that modern medicine is studying to control. Today, opioid drugs are used to treat various ailments. However, some abuse the drugs for other effects than its intended purpose. Opioid drugs, or opiates, that are commonly abused are morphine and heroin. Abusing opiates can have more damaging effects on the health.

What are the Different Types of Opiates?

Codeine

Codeine is fast acting and also stops its effects quickly. It’s a Schedule 3 drug which means that it has a moderate risk for abuse. Codeine is also the most affordable drug among its kind.

Hydrocodone

This drug is used to treat joint injuries and muscle infractions. Hydrocodone is a prescription drug that is sometimes mixed with other pain-relieving medications like ibuprofen. It’s a Schedule 3 drug which makes it have a low potential for addiction.

Morphine

Morphine is the most common opiate drug. It is also a common opiate that is abused by many. Due to its addictiveness, it is categorized as a Schedule 2 drug by the Drug Enforcement Agency. Under legal use, morphine is used by physicians to treat patients undergoing surgery or cancer treatments.

Oxycodone

This drug is prescribed for acute pain. They are classified as a Schedule 2 drug, which means that it has the potential for abuse. Due to its classification, it must be obtained per prescription.

Heroin

Heroin is one of the most abused drugs in the world. Currently, it is classified as a Schedule 1 drug by the Drug Enforcement Agency. Heroin’s effects are strong but don't last long. This is the reason why people would tend to abuse it and become dependent on it. With its powerful effects, it also has strong withdrawal symptoms.

How do Opiates Work?

Opiates work by being able to pass through the “blood-brain-barrier.” This barrier is what protects the brain from other chemicals or toxins. Whatever the body believes would be bad for the brain would not be able to directly affect it. Opiates, however, have a way to pass through. This is because the compounds of opiates mimic those of neurotransmitters. Neurotransmitters are the natural chemicals that the body creates to stimulate the brain. Neurotransmitters trigger emotions, adrenaline, pain, hunger, and many others. Because opiates mimic neurotransmitter, the body thinks it is one, therefore lets it be absorbed by the brain.

What do Opioids Treat?

Opioids have many effects, but its intended purpose if for medicinal treatments. Here is the list of medicinal effects that opioids have:

Pain Relief

Opioids were used to treat pain for many generations. Today, morphine and fentanyl are used to treat pain instantly. Both formulas are quick to treat pain and even reduce anxiety. These kinds of opioids are preferred for treating muscle pain and first-aid treatments for patients with injuries. Other kinds of opioids, such as codeine and hydrocodone have a slower release than morphine and fentanyl. These drugs are used for chronic pain due to major illnesses or to give relief for patients undergoing serious and painful treatments. Patients recovering from major surgeries or undergoing chemotherapy can be treated with these drugs under their physician’s supervision.

Sedation

Along with its pain-relieving effect, opioids are proven to have a calming effect. This effect is useful in treating chronic anxiety and sleeping disorders. Opioids lessen neural activity, which causes the calming effect. Unlike other sedatives, opioids won’t cause unconsciousness. Instead, it promotes sleep by calming our brain by releasing dopamine, a chemical in the body that produces pleasure and a sense of well-being.

Relief from Cough

Cough relief is a side effect of opioids. Though many formulations don’t have cough relief as their intended effect, they are still effective. Codeine, a form of opioid, is included in many early formulations of cough syrups. However, people have abused this formulation and extracted the opioid from simple cough syrups. This had researchers develop a new ingredient to suppress a cough. This new ingredient is called Dextromethorphan. Unlike codeine, dextromethorphan doesn’t affect the brain, thus it doesn’t cause any addictive psychoactive effects.

Treatment for Diarrhea

Opioids can reduce activity in the intestine and bowels. This would cause constipation. On a different perspective, opioids can also reduce diarrhea. With this fact, researchers developed what is now the most common anti-motility drug in the market, Loperamide. Loperamide had been formulated to prevent the euphoric effects of opioids. This would prevent addiction to the drug.

Treatment for Addiction

Opioids are addictive. Treating addiction has many inconvenient side effects including withdrawal symptoms. However, some opioids are formulated to help mitigate these symptoms. An example is a methadone. Methadone is formulated to be similar to morphine, but with significantly less addictive psychoactive effects. Methadone is meant to trick the brain into thinking that it has taken morphine, thus reducing any withdrawal effects. By reducing the withdrawal effects of avoiding the drug, recovering from drug addiction will be more bearable and comfortable. By tapering off the drugs with methadone, it can lead to a safer recovery.

What are the Side Effects of Opioids?

Like many medication drugs, opioids have side effects that are often unintended. While the side effects that were mentioned above can be used for treating other illnesses, other effects can affect our health negatively. Here are some of the side effects of opioids:

Drowsiness

Opioids have a calming effect. It releases dopamine to calm the nerves while it reduces neurological activity. While this can be useful to treat anxiety and sleep disorders, in any other cases, this would be highly inconvenient. In extreme cases or opiate abuse, opiates can cause chronic fatigue or lethargy.

Addiction

A common side effect of opioids is that it’s highly addictive. The reason it’s addictive is due to its effects on the brain. Opioids relieve us from pain and give us a euphoric and pleasurable sensation. Our brain remembers what gives us pain and what gives us pleasure. It remembers to avoid what brings pain but it would want to repeat what brings pleasure. This is what makes opioids addictive. Its addictive effect may be considered its riskiest effect. Being addicted to opioids can lead to opiate abuse. Opiate abuse can lead to further and even more dangerous health conditions. Opioid addiction opens the possibility for more health concerns.

Behavioral Effects

Opiate abuse can cause behavioral changes such as anxiety and paranoia. Opioids affect the brain’s activity. Our moods and behavior are triggered by chemicals in the brain called neurotransmitters. Opioids replicate the effects of neurotransmitters, which forces the brain to produce less of them or stop producing them altogether. Its effects on the brain can change our behavior. It can cause mental conditions like anxiety, paranoia or depression. Addiction to opiates also warps the victim’s sense of right and wrong. This can affect their relationships with people around them.

Gastroparesis

Opioids cause our intestines and stomach to slow down. By slowing down their activity, opioids can help suppress diarrhea. But opiate abuse can cause gastroparesis, a disorder that causes delayed gastric emptying. This can stop food from moving from the stomach to the small intestine. This can lead to pain, bloating, heartburn, and weight loss.

Respiratory Depression

Opiates can cause respiratory depression. Respiratory depression is when our breathing is reduced to something that is more similar to sighing than breathing. With reduced breathing, it can cause the person to constantly feel tired.

Opiate Resistance

Like many drugs, using opiates too much can lead to resistance from its intended purpose. Opiates are pain relievers and taking too much would cause its pain-relieving effects to be null. During opiate addiction, its pain relieving and euphoric effects will diminish. This would convince the victim to increase the dosage to feel the same effect.

CNS Depressants

Opioids are known to directly affect the brain. The brain is the main part of the Central Nervous System or CNS. If abused, opiates can damage the central nervous system. Opiates are central nervous system depressants. This allows the drug to reduce functions such as pain sensations and even respiration. With the central nervous system controlling the majority of our body’s functions, opioids’ effect on our central nervous system can be dangerous. By dulling the central nervous system, it affects our organs such as our lungs, stomach, and intestines. This could also cause brain damage.

Cleaning Opiates from the Body

Taking opiates doesn’t necessarily cause addiction. If taken under the physician’s instructions, addiction can be prevented. But in case of addiction, it’s advisable to treat addiction as soon as possible. Addiction can be treated by rehabilitation or therapy. There are other remedies that can be done at the comforts of your own home. Detoxing from opiates can be done by simple methods. But before trying to do home remedies, it’s best to seek medical advice. Treating addiction can have withdrawal symptoms, which might affect your health and can be dangerous. [vc_row][vc_column][vc_cta h2="Don't Wait Help Is Only A Phone Call Away" txt_align="center" shape="round" style="flat" color="vista-blue" el_width="sm" use_custom_fonts_h2="true" use_custom_fonts_h4="true"]Call Now 855-227-9535[/vc_cta][/vc_column][/vc_row]

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How Addiction Affects Your Life and Everyone Around You

[vc_row][vc_column][vc_cta h2="Help Is Only A Phone Call Away" txt_align="center" shape="round" style="flat" color="vista-blue" el_width="sm" use_custom_fonts_h2="true" use_custom_fonts_h4="true"]Call Now 855-227-9535[/vc_cta] Addiction is now classified as a chronic disease. First, people thought of it as the result of bad choices and access to narcotics, but as research went deeper, they found that addiction is a behavioral disease, brought upon by repeated habits, stressors, and triggers. Then it went further beyond that. It’s not anymore a physical and mental disease, it’s also become a social disease, as addicts tend to affect everyone around them. Sadly, it’s not as simple as social disgust. It gets deeper and harsher.

How Drug Addiction Affects Relationships

The first factor that is affected by addiction is attention. It doesn't necessarily mean the person has drugs on his or her mind 24/7, instead, it becomes the top priority. They have to get their dose first, which means they focus on where to get it, how to get it without interruption, and how to make sure the supply is constant. This means addicts won't prioritize their jobs, you or the family's welfare. In order for them to become functional, they have to get their dose first before they become functional. For people with constant supply, the gravity of this effect is not felt as much. It's when they don't have a supply that things turn bad. On the matter of securing supplies, addicts are often aware of the opposition against their habit. This can make them take the substance in secret, which starts a string of lies and secrets they'd rather not let you know. It goes further when an addict starts to prioritize their addiction and begins to do actions that would undermine your well-being and quality of life. For example, addicts would spend their savings (or the family's,) to get their substance, or sell items such as jewelry in secret, to get what they need. As the priority of the drug goes deeper, the addict's own emotional processes get warped. Since nothing else matters, they start to feel fewer emotions about other things. They become either preoccupied, irritable or numb about other things and that includes affection. If your attention and affection cannot make the addict happier than the drug, they won't have the initiative to care about you. It gets worse when they are confronted. Others are passive and will make up any lie to get out of it. There some that unfortunately, become aggressive. They will do what they can to protect their habit, either by stopping you using what means they can muster, including violence, or avoiding you and becoming more secretive of their actions. Either way, they want you out of their business. That is just one scenario. In some cases, an addict will manipulate you into supporting their habit. This likely happens with people who enable them. Enabling means covering for them, or taking responsibilities from their actions, such as bailing them out of jail, talking or lying to their employers. If you do this to them, they will do what they can to make sure you do it again and again.

Can Marriages Survive Drug Addiction? Or is This an Inevitable Divorce?

It's a fact that marriages that have on of the parties with addiction, often lead to divorce or separation of some sort. This is mainly because the addiction was either addressed the wrong way or was allowed to exist, placing it as the priority over everything else. It gets to a point where the affected party doesn't know the person they married anymore. How can this be avoided? Or at the very least how can it be minimized? Stop enabling the addiction. This is easier said than done. Even caring for your partner during the times when they're unable to function, is already enabling. The smallest things such as cleaning after their own messes is already an act of enabling. The key thing to remember is to make sure your partner not only understands but also experience the consequences of their addiction. This involves keeping them from manipulating you or using anything that can help their addiction. Make sure they don't have access to money you don't want to be spent on drugs, (Or just keep money out period) and make sure they are the ones who explain themselves to anyone they undermine. It may seem cruel and unloving, but it's the best way. Consider it tough love. Care for yourself. One factor that can make marriages crumble is if the affected party curbs into the stress and takes it out on the addict. An addict cannot be reasoned with, or at least they can, but they are difficult to change in one sitting. Find a healthy way to release the tension and stress and keep yourself nourished. You're going to need all that patience and endurance to survive the first parts of the recovery process. Learn everything you can about the addiction. Educate yourself on how addiction works, what to expect during confrontations, and who addicts protect their habit. Understanding how it works can help you find patience with an addict's behavior. Seek professional help. This is especially needed for couples with deep issues, where the drivers of the addiction stem from the dynamics of your relationship. Seek a counselor and find out how you can get rehabilitative help. There are two things to fix here: the addiction and what the addiction has caused between you and your partner. If you can handle this on your own, good, but there's no shame in seeking help from people who know exactly what to do.

How Do Drug Addiction Affect Families?

The effects vary depending on the severity of the addiction. There are families that are indirectly affected, unable to see the problem until the veil is removed and things start to crash. Other times, the effect is more direct and destructive, leaving families no choice but to hide the damage and shame, doping whatever they can to remain functional. There are millions of cases where families are dissolved to the core because of one person’s addiction.

Effects of the addiction when a parent is an addict:

The drug remains a priority. Getting a constant supply of it, and a stable environment to enjoy it will be the priority. This means the children's education or the family savings come second: If spending the college fund will help them get a stable supply for a month, they may not hesitate to spend it. Why would an addict go to such lengths? It's due to a common, self-feeding pattern that happens between a family's dynamic. Something drives the addict to take their substance, either due to stresses in work, debt, or personal emotions like shame from the family's disappointment. This driver sets the addict to take in more of their substance to feel that sense of good well-being, they become functional for a while. When the feeling of well-being is not enough to counteract the stressors, the addict loses the feeling and the brain urges it to "go back to normal." This makes the addict take the substance and the cycle continues. Soon, nothing else will matter. For them, life without the substance is bleak and worthless. There's also a possibility of abusing the children, either physically or emotionally. One such case is when the addiction is visibly harming the family and one party opposes the addiction harshly. The addict cannot do anything about it and bottles this anger, only to be released on the children, often projecting their own weakness and guilt onto them. Another more vivid effect is the financial toll, both to sustain the addiction and the complications that come with it. When an addict's liver begins to fail due to high intakes of alcohol, or when a cocaine addict's heart starts to beat out of rhythm, things could get worse, very fast.

Effect on the Children

Apart from the worse case scenarios, there are smaller, more subtle effects on the children. One of the children may answer the call to action, and attempt to solve the issue by themselves. You can see this in children who throw themselves between parents who are fighting each other, or they would surrender their own studies and aspirations to put themselves into use in order to help the family, or at the very least reduce the tension in it. Admirable as it may seem, they are suffering from the inside as they take more responsibility for the ever-increasing problems. It’s only a matter of time before they cave in. On the other hand, one of the children may become the family's emotional punching bag. The family focuses more on the child's problems, often inflating them so the tension from the addiction is instead, passed to their hands. Each mistake and shortcomings is put into the spotlight, crippling the child's self-confidence and spark rebellious behavior. They could also succumb to addiction, seeing that the world feels like a better place with the substance.

Support For Families

As addiction continues to affect families, so does the fervor of people who want to help those affected. There are plenty of organizations that can provide counsel and support for families torn or being torn apart by addiction. Some may be expensive, as they have supplies and profession to effectively counter the problem, while others are free, utilizing time-tested traditional processes such as the 12-step programs.   [vc_row][vc_column][vc_cta h2="Don't Wait Help Is Only A Phone Call Away" txt_align="center" shape="round" style="flat" color="vista-blue" el_width="sm" use_custom_fonts_h2="true" use_custom_fonts_h4="true"]Call Now 855-227-9535[/vc_cta][/vc_column][/vc_row]

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Acupuncture: Does it Work Against Addiction?

[vc_row][vc_column][vc_cta h2="Help Is Only A Phone Call Away" txt_align="center" shape="round" style="flat" color="vista-blue" el_width="sm" use_custom_fonts_h2="true" use_custom_fonts_h4="true"]Call Now 855-227-9535[/vc_cta] Addiction itself has turned into a disease that affects a person's entirety. It affects their mental, physical, social, and economic standing. There are studies made to figure out what medications and therapies can work effectively against addiction, but what about alternative medicine? One such question is if acupuncture works. Acupuncture is a process where needles are inserted into strategic parts of a person. The process stimulates a person’s “Qi”, the life energy that flows naturally inside us. Physically, it’s been seen to stimulate nerves and other cells, creating a unique effect on the body. This alternative style of medicine originated in ancient China and has grown popular across the world.

Can Acupuncture Help with Drug Addiction?

Acupuncture allows stimulation of nerves, so in effect, it could stimulate the regulation of our brain chemicals, known as neurotransmitters. There are several kinds, but of the most affected ones is the chemical called Dopamine. Dopamine can be called the “reward chemical,” because it provides a sense of pleasure and satisfaction after doing a certain task. The chemical also provides that mental state of good well-being, something that drug users feel when they are under the influence. Without Dopamine, life feels bleak and horrible. Several studies narrowed that acupuncture can stimulate the release of neurotransmitters such as Dopamine. When used on a patient that's suffering from withdrawal, it can return the sense of well-being to that person due to the influence of dopamine. The effect is minuscule compared to the drug itself, but for patients whose brains have stopped producing dopamine completely, stimulating the natural release of dopamine helped them cope. Helping patients endure the psychological effects of withdrawal gave them a crutch to stand on. Apart from stimulating Dopamine release, it helped patients reduce their anxiety and stimulated areas of the body responsible for detoxification such as the liver and kidneys.

Does Acupuncture Work with Ongoing Drug Addiction?

Acupuncture has a therapeutic effect that helps people recover from addiction. However, it's only for people who have started their process. How about the people who still have trouble quitting, and have ongoing addictions? Can acupuncture help them quit? Yes. Addiction is due to the dependence of the drug, but it’s just physical dependence. Addicts often have unresolved personal issues that drive them to seek the drug. Strategic Acupuncture can help relieve the tension, anxiety, insomnia, and aggression caused by these personal problems. It also helps by stimulating specific organs to do their jobs better. By helping the body function better and rid of toxins faster, a person would feel healthier, which can impact their perspective about taking their substance. One thing has to be understood though, acupuncture's effect doesn't happen overnight. Like an addiction, it develops over time, stacking little by little until it's large enough to be noticed. Basically, acupuncture can remove some of the reasons or drivers for a person to take drugs. It's a form of holistic care, addressing not just the physical but the mental aspects. This is why acupuncture is effective because it's a procedure that affects you as a whole, against a disease that affects you as a whole.   [vc_row][vc_column][vc_cta h2="Don't Wait Help Is Only A Phone Call Away" txt_align="center" shape="round" style="flat" color="vista-blue" el_width="sm" use_custom_fonts_h2="true" use_custom_fonts_h4="true"]Call Now 855-227-9535[/vc_cta][/vc_column][/vc_row]

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The Differences Between Opiates and Opioids

[vc_row][vc_column][vc_cta h2="Help Is Only A Phone Call Away" txt_align="center" shape="round" style="flat" color="vista-blue" el_width="sm" use_custom_fonts_h2="true" use_custom_fonts_h4="true"]Call Now 855-227-9535[/vc_cta] Opium has been discovered since the times of ancient civilizations. It's been recognized for its ability to relieve pain. It's been used to ease in early times to ease people's pain when they sustained terminal injuries. It's also been used for recreation, as it magnifies the pleasure people feel, so much that ancient civilizations used it for their rituals as some formulation can induce hallucinations. Opium comes from the sap of an unripe poppy seed pod, particularly, the seed pod of the papaver somniferum species. They make a small slice on the pod to allow the sap to ooze out. The oozed out sap is then collected and dried. This is the very basic way they harvested them since ancient times and is still being used now. Owning poppy plants is illegal in nearly everywhere in the world, except in places where the government legalizes it for the production of medicinal opium, such as for production of medical morphine. It’s legal to buy poppy seeds, as they are an ingredient in some pastries, but growing papaver somniferum is illegal. Since the last century, development of the drug was focused more on the medicinal uses of Opium, refining them to maximize the effects and minimize the impurities. One such substance is morphine, the refined version of opium, classified as an Opiate.

What are Opioids and Opiates

Opiates, according to the language, means it’s derived from Opium. The term often refers to the substances that are processed from organic Opium, such as morphine. Opiates are the first kind of drugs officially used for medicinal purposes, used largely on soldiers who suffered from battle injuries. Field medics would often have morphine included in their combat gear to help soldiers when the pain they experience is keeping them from moving.

These are the types of Opiates.

• Opium. Technically, the original substance is also an opiate, because it went through a process to become usable. You can say that the true original version is the plant itself. In ancient times, the extracted resin is referred to as “Milk of the Poppy”
• Morphine. The first refined version of Opium. Our brain naturally creates morphine in the form of Endorphins, short for “Endogenous Morphine.” Endorphin keeps neurons from firing or being triggered to fire, notably for pain and excitement, producing a calm, serene, and sedative effect.
• Codeine. Technically, Codeine is semisynthetic, but it’s still derived from Morphine, making it an opiate. It’s among the weaker derivatives of morphine and commonly prescribed to people suffering from mild chronic pain. Such as post surgery, injuries to muscles and bones, and pain related to spinal issues like a slipped disc.
• Heroin. Heroin’s creation had a more compassionate purpose before it became criminalized. It was first created to help soldiers and other patients suffered from morphine dependence and withdrawal, aptly named “Soldier’s Disease.” Heroin was advertised as a non-addictive version of Morphine, allowing patients to recover from the dependence.

The company went to lengths to distribute the product, even sending a free sample to addresses of people with a confirmed diagnosis of morphine dependence. Unfortunately, it backfired. Not only was Heroin more addictive, it didn't have the same potency as Morphine, creating more opportunities for abuse. Surprisingly, it wasn't first restricted due to its wrongly advertised effect, but because the production plants have an unprofitable diversion of workers, which angered unions. The ban for its actual effects followed a few years after. Opioids are technically the same as Opiates in terms of effects, administration and sometimes, composition. What sets them apart is that Opioids are synthetic. The suffix “oid” means “resemblance,” often denoting that the object is not perfectly the same, such as the word “humanoid” which we immediately think of something that looks human, but is not human. Opioids are of the same manner. They are created to be as close to Opium but isn't made from natural Opium. These substances are created from base chemicals, which go through a process to create compounds that are structurally the same as Opiates.

These are the types of Opioid currently used:

• Methadone. This synthetic version is used to help people suffering from heroin or morphine addiction. It replaces Heroin entirely and is tapered off until the person is rehabilitated. Methadone makes the brain believe that it has Heroin in its system, but minuscule effects. Users may still feel that slight sensation of wellbeing, reducing anxiety, which is useful in their treatment programs

• Hydrocodone. Commonly sold under the name “Vicodin” and the go-to drug of a certain pill-popping diagnostician in the medical show “House.” The pills are designed to have a slow release, allowing doctors to treat chronic pain, whilst minimizing the euphoric effects.

• Oxycodone. Nearly identical to Hydrocodone except for the oxygen component. It's chemically similar to codeine and shares the same effect as hydrocodone. The difference between them is that Hydrocodone is less used in the US compared to Oxycodone.
• Fentanyl. A powerful type of Opioid, arguably more potent than morphine, but with a much shorter half-life. It was made for instant relief from pain in situations that demand it, such as heavy injuries. Recently, Fentanyl was created in patch form, allowing a quick and easy application, with a slow release for longer effect duration.

Presently, Opioids became a blanket term that both cover opiates and opioids. In terms of classification, you can separate them as synthesized or extracted/refined but the effects they have are all the same, with only the formulations that vary.   [vc_row][vc_column][vc_cta h2="Don't Wait Help Is Only A Phone Call Away" txt_align="center" shape="round" style="flat" color="vista-blue" el_width="sm" use_custom_fonts_h2="true" use_custom_fonts_h4="true"]Call Now 855-227-9535[/vc_cta][/vc_column][/vc_row]

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How Opioids Affect The Brain

[vc_row][vc_column][vc_cta h2="Help Is Only A Phone Call Away" txt_align="center" shape="round" style="flat" color="vista-blue" el_width="sm" use_custom_fonts_h2="true" use_custom_fonts_h4="true"]Call Now 855-227-9535[/vc_cta] Opioid is a word used to classify all substances derived from Opium. This covers the Opiates; substances extracted from Opium, such as Morphine and Heroin. It also covers synthesized drugs that structurally resemble Morphine and it's derivatives. The drug's primary effect is an analgesic or a painkiller, but it has secondary effects that researchers are taking advantage of for medicinal purposes.

What are Opioids Used For?

They have many uses, despite their natural purpose. Here's the list of all the ways the drugs are utilized.

• Treatment for Chronic Pain. Opioids like codeine and hydrocodone have formulations that allow slow release of the drug. This is used to treat conditions with pain that’s both moderate and constant, like muscle infractions.

• Treatment for Acute Pain. Certain formulations like Fentanyl and Morphine are better suited for reducing pain instantly. This is ideal in cases such as broken bones and moderate muscle damage. These formulations are fast acting, allowing relief and reduction of anxiety, easing the first-aid and treatment process for both the patient and the physician/medic/nurse.

• Used as a Sedative. Opioids have a powerful calming effect. They can be used to manage heavy anxiety or as sleeping pills. The drug itself won't cause unconsciousness like Barbiturates or Ether, but instead, facilitate sleep by reducing neural firing. Ever had a night where your mind zigs zags all around the place and you can't sleep? That's what sleeping pills are designed to reduce.
• Suppression of Diarrhea. Opioids have a side effect that causes constipation. This is due to its effect of reducing the movement of your intestines and bowels. Researchers have taken advantage of this side-effect and created Loperamide, one of the most common antimotility medications available over the counter.

Loperamide has been specifically formulated not to cause any euphoric effects, so taking a lot of Loperamide only leads you to liver and kidney damage, along with a trip to the ICU.

• Suppression of Cough. Another side effect of opioids, which is why early formulations of cough syrups have a small amount of Codeine them. Abuse and extraction of the drug from the formulation have led researchers to develop a new derivative called Dextromethorphan. The new ingredient still suppresses coughing, but like Loperamide does not reach the brain, preventing any psychoactive effects. (But the joy of not coughing when you have a dry cough is)
• Treatment of Morphine/Heroin Addiction. The formulation called Methadone is basically neutered Morphine. It makes the brain think that it has heroin or morphine in its system, but with significantly less psychoactive effects.

How does it work in helping addicts? The demon all heavy users avoid is withdrawal. It causes significant discomfort in both the mind and body. People experience aggression, anxiety, and restlessness, followed by near-crippling headaches, vomiting, muscle aches, and diarrhea. It’s perhaps the total opposite of the high and sense of well being they experience. Methadone works by tricking the brain that it has taken a dose of the drug, which either stops or dramatically reduce withdrawal effects. Methadone is then slowly tapered off, meaning patients will take less and less of it as the weeks go by. Using this method, they can virtually avoid withdrawal while safely recovering from their addiction.

How Opioids Affect the Brain

It has three effects in total. One is physical, the other is mental, and the last one is behavioral. Our brain uses certain chemicals to relay messages to our body. These chemicals are known as neurotransmitters. They govern pain, pleasure, sleeping cycles, muscle movements, and much more. One such neurotransmitter, among the many ones our brains use, is called “Endorphin.” It literally means “Endogenic Morphine” or “Morphine created inside our body.” Endorphin is responsible for keeping neurons from sending and receiving messages, especially for pain. Endorphin is responsible for keeping our moods in check, so when you are suddenly excited because your favorite actor is making a guest appearance in a comic-con, the one that calms you down and keeps you from bouncing off the walls is Endorphin. Morphine is chemically similar to Endorphins, so when they are injected into the body, they are quickly distributed into the bloodstream, affecting all your nerves and your spinal cord, producing the painkilling effect. When it reaches the brain, the chemicals pass through the blood-brain barrier, goes into the brain and causes a euphoric effect, all because it also affects another neurotransmitter called Dopamine, aka the reward chemical. Dopamine is responsible for feelings of satisfaction, especially when you fulfill a bodily need such as eating when you're hungry or drinking while you're thirsty. It's what pilots our desires to ensure that we only take what's good for us. When Morphine reaches the brain, not only does it block the neurotransmitters responsible for pain, it also encourages the production and absorption of Dopamine, giving your body a “rewarding” feeling. This is one of the addictive qualities of this drug. The behavioral effect applies if someone has constant stressors and troubles, and gets a dose of this product, they'll feel a sense of escape, away from the stress and the troubles. As soon as the drug's effect wears off, all the negativity will come pouring back, bit by bit. This gives the person the option to take this again, (provided they have a steady supply.) The brain sees this as "good" for the body due to the dopamine release and the overall emotional satisfaction, so it basically influences itself to take more of the drug. This is how morphine, heroin and any other substances cause addiction.

Can Opioids Cause Depression?

Depression is short for Major Depressive Disorder, is not like someone hearing bad news and felt sad all day. It's also not something people just "snap" out of. Depression is a change in the brain's chemistry, leading to a behavioral change. Not all depression is caused by psychological conditions or stress, some of them can be caused by physiological conditions such as thyroid abnormalities. Since opioids cause changes in the brain chemistry, can it possibly cause depression? Unlikely right? Since Opioids like Morphine causes the opposite: feelings of euphoria, contentment, and good well-being. Opioids can cause Depression. Not during the high, but when the substance leaves the body. This is because taking in Opioids can raise the brain's perception of what "normal and happy" is. As continuous intake of opioids alters the person's idea of what feels good, the brain raises and raises the ceiling until the opioid effect is "normal and happy." When the brain's standard is high enough, everything else, even the most excitable things to normal people, will not trigger happiness. This makes everything dull and unstimulating, leading to depression. A deadly loop is formed when the person realizes that the cure for this depression is to take more drugs. This also has to do with the way the brain adapts. The brain has two rules among many, one of them is "If you don't use it, lose it," and the other is homeostasis, meaning everything must be balanced. If you have too much of something, like Endorphin and Dopamine, the brain stops producing more and creates ways to remove the excess. When a person continually takes in Opioids, the brain stops producing the neurotransmitters that overwhelm your brain via the Homeostasis rule. Soon enough, the brain will realize that it doesn't need the parts that create dopamine since it has a steady supply already. Following the "If you don't use it, lose it," rule the brain shuts dopamine creation down, for good. What does this mean for the poor addict? It means nothing will ever make the person happy except the drugs. Satisfying the primary needs such as hunger and thirst won’t matter, even sex won’t be rewarding. Thankfully, there’s a ray of hope as there are procedures and therapies that may reverse the condition, but success is not guaranteed.

Can Opioids Cause Pain?

Opioids are meant to relieve a person of pain. Even the most grievous of pain sensations, such as those that can cause a heart attack, can be removed, or at least extremely diminished by Opioids. Yet, there are cases where Opioids can cause pain, and increase pain.

• Tolerance

The more of the same toxin that enters the body, the more countermeasures it will do. It will create special enzymes and antibodies to make itself resistant to the toxin. The same rule applies with bacteria and viruses; if you're infected once and you survive, the same bacteria/virus will have fewer chances of infecting you or make you downright immune to it, like measles and chickenpox. The more opioids you take the more enzymes and proteins the body makes to negate it. This means the effect will be shorter than before. If you’re taking it for pain, in comparison, feeling less of the painkilling effect leads to feeling more pain.

• Nerve and Brain Diseases

Certain infections in the brain can cause the nerves to malfunction. One such effect is the negation of certain neurotransmitters, such as endorphin and dopamine. If the brain cannot process them, then taking opioids will have no effect, and sometimes, may even produce the opposite effect. These conditions are rare and far between, but a possibility.

• Hyperalgesia

Continuous exposure to Opioids can cause a paradoxical effect on the nerves. This will result in the nerves becoming more “excitable” to pain response, making affected people highly sensitive to certain pain stimuli. This was found common in patients who have used low-potency opioids like codeine for more than a year. Opioids will rarely cause direct pain unless it's due to specific cases. However, it can make you more sensitive to pain, and less sensitive to the drug, if taken long enough.   [vc_row][vc_column][vc_cta h2="Don't Wait Help Is Only A Phone Call Away" txt_align="center" shape="round" style="flat" color="vista-blue" el_width="sm" use_custom_fonts_h2="true" use_custom_fonts_h4="true"]Call Now 855-227-9535[/vc_cta][/vc_column][/vc_row]

The above blog post How Opioids Affect The Brain was originally published to www.rehabnear.me

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Opioids: The Whats and Hows of this Painkilling Drug

[vc_row][vc_column][vc_cta h2="Help Is Only A Phone Call Away" txt_align="center" shape="round" style="flat" color="vista-blue" el_width="sm" use_custom_fonts_h2="true" use_custom_fonts_h4="true"]Call Now 855-227-9535[/vc_cta] In terms of survival, there's one thing that keeps us away from the things that damage us: Pain. It makes us avoid things that hurt us, and force us to nurse ourselves, helping us recover. One such example is sore muscles. We tend to massage them to ease the pain out, and by doing so, helps stimulate muscle cells to work faster, and smoothening the inflammatory process, allowing a quicker recovery. The same idea can be applied to nearly everything that damages us. Thanks to pain, we know something is wrong with us and we need to nurse it or protect it. Pain is not something your muscles actually feel. The brain is responsible for creating this sensation by the use of its chemical messengers known as Neurotransmitters. When there’s an abundance of them on a certain part of your body, you feel pain there. Identification of these neurotransmitters is what allowed researchers to make advances in painkilling medication. This, in turn, helped created refined drugs called Opioids that effectively manipulate the nerves and brain, bringing about a sense of pleasure and the elimination of pain.

What Are Opioids?

Opioids are compounds that look like neurotransmitters and act like neurotransmitters, whose single message is to take the pain away. They are classified as narcotic medication and the realms of medicine, utilized by doctors for people suffering from chronic pain. The History of Opioids The very first use of Opioids goes as far back as 3400 BC. The white poppy plant or opium poppy plant was recognized for its painkilling and joy-giving qualities, so much that it was harvested and used to treat people who were suffering from various ailments. It's joy-giving qualities also made it a popular recreational plant, used by the Assyrians. Eventually, they passed the practices to the Egyptians, who utilized the plant in a similar manner. Even Hippocrates, known today as the Father of Modern Medicine, acknowledged it's used as a narcotic and used it widely in epidemics. The usefulness of the plant as both for medicine and recreation continued on with the Arabs, Greeks, and Romans. Its uses as an effective sedative were further acknowledged when it was first used by a Chinese surgeon around 220 AD to help patients undergoing major surgery, such as amputations, which were common during those times. In the 1800's, Friedrich Wilhelm Adam Sertürner, a German chemist, managed to isolate an alkaloid from the poppy plant mixture. This compound was known as morphine, named after Morpheus, the god of dreams. Aptly done because of Morphine's powerful sedative abilities. The more powerful opiate was then used for various ailments that involved pain and anxiety. It found a lot of use in the military, where the substance was used to help injured soldiers cope with the pain of their injuries. Unfortunately, this led them to become addicted to Morphine. The addiction and subsequent withdrawal effects were known back then as “Soldier’s Disease.” The hypodermic needle was invented in 1853, giving an opportunity to use morphine more effectively during surgery, marking the proper medicalization of the substance, but with higher effectivity came more opportunities for abuse, so they sought for an alternative. In 1898, Heroin was synthesized, advertised as a cough suppressant. It was also advertised to be a non-addictive derivative of morphine for medical use. They used Heroin to treat morphine addiction, which ironically, made the patient addicted to Heroin instead. The addiction spread like an epidemic and soon, in 1909, Congress made moves to restrict morphine use, along with its derivatives. In the same vein, the University of Frankfurt created Oxycodone, another morphine derivative, intended to keep the same painkilling effect, with dramatically fewer dependence issues compared to morphine and heroin. Despite their efforts, oxycodone abuse became a problem. Morphine, Heroin and Oxycodone abuse still affected the country. This went on, with pharmaceutical companies creating more derivatives in the attempt to keep as much effect as they can. This lead to the development of morphine derivatives that release the substance at a much slower rate. This allowed the painkilling effects to be active for a longer period of time and minimizing the pleasurable effects which may lead to addiction. Formulations like Fentanyl, Hydromorphone, and Methadone were synthesized to this effect. To this day, addiction and dependence to Opioids still go on, albeit a bit quieter than before thanks to the advances made by the government and law enforcement.

How do Opioids Work?

The opioids extracted from the poppy plant or synthesized from raw chemicals. These chemicals are nearly the same as the neurotransmitters that our brain naturally has, so when it's injected or introduced into the body, it goes through the blood, eventually reaches the brain and attaches to the nerves and brain cells. This causes the cells block any other neurotransmitters that may send signals of distress or pain, subsequently causing a feeling of utter goodness, pleasure and well being. The chemicals in Opioids are not actual neurotransmitters but are structurally the same. They are also small enough to pass through the blood-brain barrier. This barrier is a layer of densely packed cells that only allow very select molecules to pass. Even some of the smallest bacteria can't pass through it. Commonly, fat-soluble chemicals such as caffeine and alcohol can pass, and that includes all forms of opiates and opioids. The effect is a bit similar to ibuprofen. The over-the-counter painkiller blocks prostaglandin, a chemical responsible for pain transmission and inflammation in cells. Except, opioids block every kind of pain transmitter in the body, which often causes a slight feeling of lethargy. Apart from the brain, it can also affect the limbic system, which governs how the body expresses emotions, the brainstem which controls a majority of our involuntary actions, notably breathing, and the spinal chord, the first organ to receive the pain message.

What Drugs are Classified as Opioids?

There are many kinds of formulations, made for all manner of ailment relief, pain, diarrhea, to cough relief. These are the known formulations of Opioids used widely in medicine, especially in pain management.

• Morphine
• Methadone
• Buprenorphine
• Hydrocodone
• Oxycodone
• Codeine
• Fentanyl

Then we have a few opioids used to control other minor ailments, all of which are over the counter:

• Loperamide. Used to stop bowel movements by relaxing the intestines. The formulation doesn't pass the blood-brain barrier and only majorly affects the bowels. This does not cause an opiate effect, and the only pleasure you'll feel is the care nurses will give in the ICU.

• Cough Medications. They contain a trace amount of codeine that helps relax the throat. Recent reformulations have removed codeine entirely with DMX, known as Dextromethorphan, a non-addictive derivative.
• Doxylamine. Known as sleeping pills. They used to contain codeine to help you relax, but now they are a specially formulated antihistamine, whose secondary effect is to knock you out gently.

Presently, none of these will get you high, and taking them in large doses will only give you grief both from the damage you'll cause your liver, and the medical bills that will come afterward. There's nothing like the low of heavy debt. Then we have Heroin. It was supposedly made as a version of Morphine without the addictive effects, but it failed. Heroin turns into morphine as soon as it enters the body, and the effect is not as strong as morphine and not as long. It had no more place in the medicinal world but somehow found a place in illegal drug trade.

What are Opioids Used For?

They are widely used for pain, but for what kind of pain? Opioids also have secondary effects that doctors and pharmaceutical companies take advantage of.

• Pain Relief

The intended use. Since Opioids block the neurotransmitters responsible for sending pain signals, it helps nurses, doctors, and surgeons properly deal with the matter at hand, without causing the patient extreme discomfort. Increased amounts of pain can cause blood pressure spikes, trouble breathing, muscle spasms, and psychological trauma. All of these can endanger a patient's life or livelihood. It also has a more compassionate use, to help relieve terminally ill patients of the pain and discomfort they feel, so that what limited time they have is not spent writhing in pain.  

• Anesthesia

Anesthesia is a combination of Analgesia, no pain; Amnesia, no memory; and Sedation; no consciousness. These three are key, because the body may still register the damage being done to you during surgery, causing latent trauma. Oxymorphone, Fentanyl, Hydromorphone, and Morphine are the commonly used opioids for Anesthesia, and the fastest method is usually through the olfactory mucous membrane, aka breathing it in.

• Antitussive

Also known as cough suppression. It's actually a side effect of most opioids, perfect for persistent dry cough. A majority of the medicinal opioids such as codeine and hydrocodone are used for cough syrups before, but now they use dextromethorphan. It's still technically an opioid, but it has none of the side effects and is not addictive.

• Antimotility

Opioids have constipation as one of their other side effects. This means it can be used to suppress diarrhea. One thing worth remembering is that it's incredibly hazardous to use suppress diarrhea caused by infection. Your body has a good reason to get them off your stomach, so let it do so. Opioids are better used for issues such as irritable bowel syndrome and other non-infective issues.

• Rehabilitation Aid

Methadone is one example of an opioid that’s used to help people suffering from opiate/opioid addiction. Think of Methadone as an opioid that the brain sees as such, but doesn’t affect it. At low doses, this can help patients reduce withdrawal symptoms dramatically. The side effect though, is that they have to go through withdrawal from Methadone afterwards, which isn’t as bad, thankfully.

Are Opioids and Opiates The Same?

In terms of effect, yes, they are practically the same. Opiates are drugs derived from Opium, this means opium is farmed and harvested, extracted and the compounds are mixed or refined into their intended forms, like Morphine. Opioid has the suffix, “oid” that means “resembling but with imperfection” much like humanoid means, humanlike and android means, “man-like.” Opioids were once the name of synthesized opium, meaning they made it out of base compounds using an intricate process. Presently, the term Opiate and Opioid are used interchangeably. But recent trends now gravitate to using the word Opioid as the general term for all natural, semisynthetic, and synthetic opium.

How Do Opioids Affect the Brain? How Does it Lead to Addiction?

Addiction has two arms, so to speak. The first one is the psychological effect of the drug in question. It can be opioids, alcohol, or cocaine. As long as it has an effect that helps rid the person of their stresses, it will work. Caffeine is one of the most popular “functional” addictions, as many people would not have a good day without a cup of joe. Thankfully, coffee is healthy for you when taken moderately. If a person has enough stresses and experiences how the drug can take those stress away, they would want more of the drug, either to escape the stress or to be functional in the presence of it. Since opioids provide feelings of joy and well-being, it's an instant hit to those who want an escape. If the stressors remain, the drug's purpose continues. This is why some people label opioids as the drug you’ll get addicted to, as soon as you take one. This is not true, of course, but the idea is correct in a lot of cases outside medicinal use. The second arm is the body’s tolerance of the drug. Our body has a way of adapting to toxins and other chemicals that invade our body.  In the case of drugs, the body produces more enzymes, antibodies, or chemicals that counteract the drug, cleaning it out of the body faster. This means the high felt by the drug becomes less and less, getting to a point where the person must take more of the drug to feel the same high. Combine the constant stressors, with the tolerance, and way to get a supply of the drug, and you have yourself an addict.   [vc_row][vc_column][vc_cta h2="Don't Wait Help Is Only A Phone Call Away" txt_align="center" shape="round" style="flat" color="vista-blue" el_width="sm" use_custom_fonts_h2="true" use_custom_fonts_h4="true"]Call Now 855-227-9535[/vc_cta][/vc_column][/vc_row]

Opioids: The Whats and Hows of this Painkilling Drug was originally seen on Rehab Near Me

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How to Get off Opioids

[vc_row][vc_column][vc_cta h2="Help Is Only A Phone Call Away" txt_align="center" shape="round" style="flat" color="vista-blue" el_width="sm" use_custom_fonts_h2="true" use_custom_fonts_h4="true"]Call Now 855-227-9535[/vc_cta] Some of us out there have chronic pain conditions, whether it be from injury or sickness. In some cases, the surgery or procedure to cure the problem is so expensive that in order to remain functional, we have to resort to taking painkillers. The problem is that the painkillers used by people suffering from chronic pain aren't the usual over-the-counter medicine that just takes the edge off. They involve the use of opioids such as morphine, codeine, hydrocodone, and other formulations. These drugs are extremely effective in reducing, or downright eliminating the pain sensations, but using them long enough will lead to dangerous complications.

Effects of Continued Opioid Use

• Tolerance

Our body is designed to keep the balance between every chemical the body naturally creates. It also adapts to exposure of toxins and other unwanted substances by creating more countermeasures, such as how our immune system works. This also affects opioid intake. The more we take painkillers, the more enzymes and antibodies the body creates to counter it. This leads to lesser effects and shorter durations. In order to get the same effect, we need to increase the dosage, increasing the risks.

• Hyperalgesia

Taking too many painkillers can make you more sensitive to pain. Consider it as your brain "forgetting" how to tolerate pain. This makes your pain receptors more excitable, so when the drug's effects are not present, pain sensations will fire faster, stronger, leading to higher pain sensation.

• Liver and Kidney Toxicity

Blood from your intestines flows through your liver, allowing it to detect toxins and release chemicals to turn it into harmless compounds. If your liver gets exposed enough, it can be susceptible to scarring, damage and other conditions such as cancer, but it's rare. Same can be said about the kidneys, as their job is to filter toxins out of your blood. Continuous exposure can cause eventual damage. Though it may take longer for the organs to sustain damage, the danger is that the damage can be permanent.

• Addiction

The most common effect of continued exposure to painkillers. Since opioids also provide a feeling of pleasure and good well-being, it can become either an escape mechanism or a functional requirement. The absence of the drug will cause anxiety, followed by withdrawal effects, that further push a person into taking more drugs. So, to avoid all these effects from happening, how do you safely quit opioid use? What if you need it to manage your pain? There are several ways to quit painkiller dependence, catering to a variety of living conditions.

Planning Stage

Before you stop, you need to ensure that you’ll have a system to follow. This is especially important to those already addicted to the painkillers. Expect the quitting process to be challenging, as your body’s own detoxification process can cause symptoms such as diarrhea, headaches, and heavy anxiety. Here are the things you need to prepare first, beforehand.

• Learn about the Drug and Withdrawal

Like what you’re doing right now. Learning more about the drug you're taking and the withdrawal associated will help you manage your does once you start quitting. The basics you have to learn is that withdrawal starts as early as 6 hours after the drug’s effect has passed. If your painkiller is designed to work for 8 hours, 14 hours after you take the pill, you’ll start feeling the effects.

The possible immediate symptoms are as follows:

• Anxiety and agitation
• Irritability and aggression
• Sweats and hot flashes
• Hypertension
• Headaches
• Muscle aches
• Increased pain sensations due to hyperalgesia
• Increased heart rate
• Cravings

After a day or two, you might experience the following symptoms, in combination with the immediate ones.

• Stomach Aches
• Diarrhea
• Nausea and vomiting
• Insomnia
• Depression and stronger bouts of anger
• Flu-like symptoms
• Overall “weak” feeling.
• Extreme cravings

Learning about withdrawal and knowing what to expect can drastically reduce your anxiety levels when undergoing withdrawal. If your symptoms get worse, or you experience significantly different symptoms, consult your physician.

• Quantify your pain and painkillers

Write down how you take your painkiller, how much and how frequent. Examples are that you take one 30 mg codeine pill, during noon, after a meal and after dinner, before you sleep. Then take note of the side-effects you feel like increased drowsiness in the afternoon, headaches in the morning, or constipation. Then, you write a scale of how much pain you feel during the entire day: like 8/10 when you wake up, 0/10 after you take the first drug, 2/10 in the afternoon, 0/10 when you take the second dose, 1/10 before you sleep. Finally, take note of common activities that cause pain, and relieves pain. For example, when you stand too long you experience pain, and you tend to feel better after watching an episode or two of David Attenborough's calming documentaries. This is essentially a journal of how you manage your pain. This is so you are aware how much substance you’re taking per day, and when you need to take the product the most. This is especially useful for doctors and addict specialists when devising new ways to alter your dosage.

• Consult your physician

Unless you know what you’re doing, don’t try to quit without professional help. This applies even to people who took opioids for recreation and found themselves becoming dependent. There are cases where a user might experience severe withdrawal, even just after a week of taking the drugs. Others might experience seizures, especially when they quit cold turkey. Your physician might order some test firsts, to ensure that you won’t have any complications. A small infection can bloat into something troublesome when you undergo withdrawal.

• Plan your system

Once you are aware of your drug’s effects, what to expect from withdrawal, and your physician’s advice, you’re ready to make your program. There are many methods, but the important is you prepare the following:

• Medication and methods to alleviate your withdrawal symptoms
• Someone to supervise you and to control your dosage. Unless you can do it yourself
• A plan on when to take the medications, and how to keep you from taking more than what’s needed.
• Emergency contacts and procedures in case something happens to you
• Arranged a leave from your work, as the process will leave you nonfunctional for a week or two.
• Arranged your home or environment be as stress-free as possible. This includes cleaning up clutter and fixing annoyances like leaky faucets.
• Arranged your diet for the week. Depending on your physician's advice, they may ask you to eat more of something or avoid eating something. A high nutrient and mineral diet is always good.
• Support from the people close to you. Moral support can significantly increase chances of successful recovery
• Activities that will help you get your mind off drugs. At least one physical activity is recommended, like a certain sport or working out.

How to Detox From Opioids at Home

Once you’ve done your preparations, you can proceed with picking out what method to take. For now, we’ll provide the effective procedures of quitting, in the comforts of your home. This has a key advantage of placing you where you’re most comfortable, reducing anxiety. Though this is not advised for addicts whose stressors and triggers happen within the home, as it will reduce the chances of success. In those cases, consider doing the detox somewhere away, like in a relative’s place.

• Cold Turkey

This involves straight out dropping the drug use. This is not the most effective method and could be considered the riskiest. This, however, is what some people have to go through when they run out of supply and have no choice but to drop the habit. During this stage, you’ll experience the full brunt of withdrawal, but as long as you have made your preparations and have a system to stick to, you should come out of it relatively unharmed. Watch yourself and if you feel any symptoms that are out of place, call your physician ASAP.

• Tapering

Perhaps the best way to quit your addiction or dependence at home. This involves gradually reducing your drug use over time. For example, you take 50 ml of the drug per day. You reduce the amount to 40 ml for a week or two, then 30 ml for a week or two, and so on. You keep doing this until you don’t take the drug anymore. This method dramatically reduces withdrawal symptoms, even to a point where it’s non-existent. The key is to allow the body to adapt to the lower dosage. One key to maintaining this method is dosage control. If you have the willpower to control your own dosage, then all is well. In case you don't trust yourself, (which is perfectly natural) find someone who can consistently provide the dosage, and won't budge no matter how hard you beg. Those are the two methods for quitting. They may seem simple but they are effective. You can complement these procedures by taking natural detoxifying supplements. Your physician may also prescribe valium and antidepressants to make sure you're evened out during the process, as psychological conditions are often harder to endure than physical ones. Once your body has properly flushed all the toxins out of your body and achieved normal homeostasis, your withdrawal symptoms will fade.   [vc_row][vc_column][vc_cta h2="Don't Wait Help Is Only A Phone Call Away" txt_align="center" shape="round" style="flat" color="vista-blue" el_width="sm" use_custom_fonts_h2="true" use_custom_fonts_h4="true"]Call Now 855-227-9535[/vc_cta][/vc_column][/vc_row]

How to Get off Opioids is courtesy of www.rehabnear.me

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