Heroin abuse is affecting thousands of Americans across the nation today. Therefore, it’s vital that you understand the short-term and long-term heroin effects. If you’re struggling with the addiction, how can you quit? Moreover, if you’re looking for help for a loved one, what should good-quality rehab look like?
Opioids are the Gateway Drug for Heroin Abuse
It’s an open secret that opioids and opiates function in very similar ways. As a result, people who abuse prescription pain pills sometimes make the leap to heroin. In fact, the street drug is cheaper and easy to find.
What is Heroin?
Heroin’s the quintessential opiate. In addition, it comes from the opium poppy plant. Most people inject it into their veins. Doing so is dangerous because it makes overdosing very easy.
Other people snort it like cocaine. Some also smoke their heroin. Although the delivery methods vary, the heroin effects are similar. Moreover, the addiction potential is also identical.
Short-Term and Long-Term Heroin Effects
There’s no safe way to take heroin. Also, there’s no reliable dosage. Each time you use, you open the door to a possible overdose.
Short-term heroin effects initially include a rush of euphoria. Furthermore, it feels like everything’s muffled and slowing down.
Specifically, chemicals in the heroin connect with the body’s opioid receptors. These are found in the brain and along the spinal cord. The drug causes the brain to release dopamine, which is the body’s feel-good neurotransmitter.
These side effects can happen any time you use the drug. If you persist with the abuse, you’ll eventually have to deal with the long-term heroin effects. Your body will develop a tolerance, which leads to larger doses. You’ll notice that your veins collapse, and it’s getting more difficult to find areas to inject yourself.
Depending on the care you take with cleanliness, you might put yourself at risk of contracting infectious diseases. It only takes one dirty needle to contract HIV or hepatitis. Moreover, the drug causes infections of the heart valves and lungs.
Seek Help with Rehab
Do you need treatment for heroin addiction? If so, you don’t have to go down this road any longer.
Pain-free detoxification is now possible thanks to the development of pharmacological support medications. They help get you off the drugs without the dreaded withdrawal symptoms. However, choose a facility that immediately transitions you to rehab. It cuts down on the possibility of relapse between medical and clinical care.
For example, rehab might consist of treatments such as:
- Cognitive behavioral therapy that encourages you to replace areas of dysfunctional responses with healthier ones
- Dialectical behavior therapy, which helps you gain control over seemingly overwhelming emotions in high-stress situations
- Dual diagnosis treatment for when an assessment shows that you’re also dealing with a co-occurring mental health disorder
- Trauma therapy, which helps you move past unresolved experiences from the past or PTSD
- Pain recovery treatment that assists with chronic pain or nerve pain that might have gotten you started on opioids
Don’t lose another day to heroin. Ashley Addiction Treatment is here for you. Call 866-313-6310 today and learn more about our programs and treatments.