Overcoming Opiate Addiction

Opiates, and more broadly, narcotic pain killers, are some of the most psychologically addictive substances on the planet. Millions of people are addicted to drugs like hydrocodone, oxycodone, diamorphine and many others. They have the potential to tear relationships apart, although for some the benefit does outweigh the cost. There are a couple reasons to quit taking opiates, the first being the mounting tolerance. You can get it to the point where you have to take upward of 30 pills a day, and that can get very expensive, which leads to the next reason to quit: the price. You can waste your entire income to fund your drug habit, which is really unproductive. Some people, however, don't stop on just throwing away their income. They decide to steal from and harm others for their own gain. While I do believe that opiates have their uses, this article is about the addiction associated with, and overcoming it to quite taking the narcotics.

The first thing I would recommend doing if you are addicted to opiates is to tell your doctor. The benefit had from this will be two-fold; 1. the doctor might be able to prescribe you a detox medication like methadone or Suboxone to help deal with the pains of withdrawal. 2. He can refuse to prescribe you any painkillers, thus ridding yourself of one possible venue for exploitation. Your doctor will also be able to offer advice or refer you to a therapist to help you cope with your addiction and the act of quitting.

Second most important is learning to deal with the withdrawal symptoms. For some opiates, they can be pretty bad, but compared to a lot of other drug, opiate withdrawals are pretty tame, despite the stigma they seem to have. You can expect widespread pain and an amplification of already existing pain. Tylenol or ibuprofen can help quite a bit in a situation like that, and I would certainly recommend investing in it. Also, if you haven't been taking laxatives for the entirety of your habit, you will experience frequent and often painful bowel movements as you will no longer have the opiate-induced constipation. Then there's the nausea, but this seems to only effect a select few, but if you do know it happens to you, I would suggest talking to your doctor about Suboxone to help curb the withdrawals. Weaning off slowly can also help, especially when dependence has reached a very high level, at which point the withdrawals can become extremely uncomfortable. Some other symptoms you might experience are night sweats and insomnia, both of which are pretty common. The withdrawal period, from my experience, seems to last anywhere from 5-10 days, although ti can go as long as 2 or even 3 weeks. Just remember that once it's done, it's done. Remind yourself that you don't want to go back to the drug for that reason.

Finally, it's very important to prevent relapse. This means cutting yourself off from all possible drug sources, and maybe even seeing a therapist occasionally. I know I have days where I just want to curl up and die, and i feel like opiates are the only thing that can help me. That sort of situation, in my opinion, is actually more psychologically stressful than the acute withdrawal symptoms. Just remember if you have one of those melancholy or downright emotionally painful days, to remind yourself that it'll pass, and you'll feel better. It's good to be free of addiction, especially if it means having to live in squalor or if it's causing relationship or health problems.

* Again, I reiterate - you should definitely contact your doctor before stopping any drug, because people react differently from the withdrawals, and the doctor will be able to give you a better understanding of what you're going to experience and how to deal with it. They are a great resource and help when it comes to overcoming addiction.