Opiate Detox
According to a United Nations survey from 2008 the use of opiates in the United States by the general population has remained steady over the past several years. Approximately 0.6% of Americans regularly use opiates like heroin, vicodin and oxycontin. This ranks 17th in the World where Iran has the highest usage at 2.8%. This is not regular usage, but usage of people dependent on opiates detox. Another piece of data from a study on opiate addiction found that usage among people without jobs is 20 times that of people that hold down full-time, or even part-time, jobs. Apparently some people in the United States can down jobs and use opiates recreationally, but these people make up just over 1% of the employed population while amongst the unemployed, opiates usage is more than 3%.
Ingestion of opiates can occur in a variety of ways, depending on the type of drug and the preference of the user. Heroin for instance can be snorted, injected or smoked while many other opiates come in pill form-like the most popular forms oxycontin and vicodin. Even when it is produced in pill form, however, addicts still can snort it, smoke it, or inject it to speed up the entry into the bloodstream and maximize the euphoric effects. To inject or snort the drug it must first be crushed into powder form. From there it can be “cooked” with water and transferred to a needle for injection.
The euphoric effects of opiate usage arise soon after the drug gets into your bloodstream and will disappear after only a couple of hours. If it is injected, the addict feels a rush followed by a warm flushing of the skin, dry mouth, and heavy limbs. After this the drug user goes into an alternating state of alertness and drowsiness (called the nod). Because the central nervous system is depressed by the drug, mental acuity is lessened, speech becomes slurred, lethargy sets in, eyelids droop, vomiting can occur, and oftentimes constipation.
Longer term effects of opiate usage can include pulmonary complications due to infection of the heart valves and lining, collapsed veins if injection is the usual form of delivery, and various types of pneumonia due to the general poor lifestyle of the heavy user. In addition to the effects of the drug itself, many forms of opiate acquired on the street (like heroin) will have additional substances added to increase the volume of the product available for sale thereby increasing the profits of the dealer. These additives may not always be dissolved once the opiate is introduced into the bloodstream resulting in clogging of the blood vessels that lead to vital organs. This can result is necrosis (death of cells).
If you or a loved one has developed an addiction to opiates and is wishing to get help, the first step in the recovery process would be going through a drug opiates detox treatment process where the opiates are given a chance to leave the tissues of the body. Because the withdrawal symptoms can be difficult and include nausea, body aches, cravings, cold sweats, and insomnia it is generally best if you seek professional help. A good quality opiates detox treatment program will last about 10 days and include prescription medications to help ease the pain of withdrawals and get you on the right track to recovering from your opiate addiction and leading a productive, sober life. Call Pathways Recovery today at (916)235-9259 to learn more about our detox treatment program as well as the other options we have for inpatient and outpatient drug and alcohol treatment.
According to a United Nations survey from 2008 the use of opiates in the United States by the general population has remained steady over the past several years. Approximately 0.6% of Americans regularly use opiates like heroin, vicodin and oxycontin. This ranks 17th in the World where Iran has the highest usage at 2.8%. This is not regular usage, but usage of people dependent on opiates detox. Another piece of data from a study on opiate addiction found that usage among people without jobs is 20 times that of people that hold down full-time, or even part-time, jobs. Apparently some people in the United States can down jobs and use opiates recreationally, but these people make up just over 1% of the employed population while amongst the unemployed, opiates usage is more than 3%.
Ingestion of opiates can occur in a variety of ways, depending on the type of drug and the preference of the user. Heroin for instance can be snorted, injected or smoked while many other opiates come in pill form-like the most popular forms oxycontin and vicodin. Even when it is produced in pill form, however, addicts still can snort it, smoke it, or inject it to speed up the entry into the bloodstream and maximize the euphoric effects. To inject or snort the drug it must first be crushed into powder form. From there it can be “cooked” with water and transferred to a needle for injection.
The euphoric effects of opiate usage arise soon after the drug gets into your bloodstream and will disappear after only a couple of hours. If it is injected, the addict feels a rush followed by a warm flushing of the skin, dry mouth, and heavy limbs. After this the drug user goes into an alternating state of alertness and drowsiness (called the nod). Because the central nervous system is depressed by the drug, mental acuity is lessened, speech becomes slurred, lethargy sets in, eyelids droop, vomiting can occur, and oftentimes constipation.
Longer term effects of opiate usage can include pulmonary complications due to infection of the heart valves and lining, collapsed veins if injection is the usual form of delivery, and various types of pneumonia due to the general poor lifestyle of the heavy user. In addition to the effects of the drug itself, many forms of opiate acquired on the street (like heroin) will have additional substances added to increase the volume of the product available for sale thereby increasing the profits of the dealer. These additives may not always be dissolved once the opiate is introduced into the bloodstream resulting in clogging of the blood vessels that lead to vital organs. This can result is necrosis (death of cells).
If you or a loved one has developed an addiction to opiates and is wishing to get help, the first step in the recovery process would be going through a drug opiates detox treatment process where the opiates are given a chance to leave the tissues of the body. Because the withdrawal symptoms can be difficult and include nausea, body aches, cravings, cold sweats, and insomnia it is generally best if you seek professional help. A good quality opiates detox treatment program will last about 10 days and include prescription medications to help ease the pain of withdrawals and get you on the right track to recovering from your opiate addiction and leading a productive, sober life. Call Pathways Recovery today at (916)235-9259 to learn more about our detox treatment program as well as the other options we have for inpatient and outpatient drug and alcohol treatment.
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