Methadone Overdose and Its Dangers: Worth the Risk?

Some are of the opinion that methadone as a treatment is as bad for the individual as the the opiate drug they are trying to stop. Methadone, while legal when used to treat opiate addictions or chronic pain such as for terminal illness or some cancers, is becoming more of a problem than a solution. Methadone itself is being abused.

When used correctly, the use of street drugs will not produce that "high, euphoric" feeling while the patient is under methadone treatment, thus the drugs are less desirable. Methadone is a synthetic, man made drug that has no drug-like side effects when used as prescribed. It is intended only to prevent the horrible and often painful withdraw symptoms of heroin or another opiate. However, it has become more and more common a cause of overdose and death when used illegally or without proper medical guidance. Although methadone is a synthetic drug, it is still an opiate which means a high chance of dependency. The effects of methadone can last for up to 36 hours and leaves the body very slowly when compared to other drugs, making the chance of an accidental overdose much more likely.

Methadone comes on forms of tablet, liquid and injectable. Many users claim it is much harder to kick a methadone habit than heroin. The use of methadone lowers respiratory and heart rates which alone makes it potentially dangerous. When mixed with other drugs like Valium, Xanax or alcohol, methadone can be especially harmful or even deadly. Such mixing of depressant drugs have lead to many deaths. In ways it is more dangerous than heroine or other street drugs, as there are no warning signs of an overdose. The victim's breathing and heart rate simply continuously slow until it completely stops. Without the classic overdose signs the patient likely has no idea what is going on until it is too late. Also it likely will only take a few short hours.

Methadone is now being prescribed much more frequently for chronic pain and not just for opiate addictions. There is concern that doctors are prescribing the drug without proper background and or knowledge. This is believed to be the main reason for the rise in methadone related deaths and overdose. Methadone patients are said to potentially develop a dependency on the drug but not an addiction but the end result of misuse can be just as devastating as any hard street drug. If one's doctor wants to prescribe methadone they need to make sure that doctor is qualified to do so. Methadone is not all bad of course, when used with knowledgeable professionals it can be a great pain reliever and it can save lives and families that might otherwise go down the crapper with their heroin addictions.

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