Heroin Addiction And Dependency

Heroin is a semi-synthetic opioid that mimics the action of endorphins, your body’s “pleasure chemicals”. It is used therapeutically as a pain killer, but is also used recreationally. It is also known as smack, gear, black tar or diesel and compared to other illicit drugs, is significantly more addictive. Heroin quickly invokes tolerance and withdrawal symptoms are severe and experienced quickly. For this reason alone, heroin dependency and addiction are very, very serious.

How Heroin Works

Heroin binds to the body’s opioid receptors, inhibiting the sensation of pain. It also binds to receptors which regulate breathing and coughing. In the short term, users feel a rush of euphoria, as well as analgesia and a reduction in anxiety. The drug also causes hypothermia, suppressed appetite and chronic constipation.

The dangers of recreational heroin use are not always from the drug itself. Intravenous users of heroin are at risk of contracting blood-borne diseases such as HIV and hepatitis, or bacterial infections such as endocarditis or venous sclerosis. Deaths from heroin are often because the drug has been cut and sold with dirty or lethal contaminants. Heroin overdose rarely causes death alone – often it is the combination of heroin with other drugs such as benzodiazepines or alcohol that is lethal.

Withdrawal from a heroin addiction is intense and can be experienced as little as six to 24 hours after cessation of drug use, although this varies depending on the duration and frequency of heroin abuse. Symptoms of withdrawal include sweating, anxiety, depression and persistent and constant penile erection in males. Cramp-like limb pain, yawning, sleep disturbances, nausea, diarrhea and vomiting can also occur during heroin withdrawal.

Heroin Dependancy Recovery

Two approaches to heroin addiction rehabilitation are generally taken. The first is to substitute heroin use with a longer-acting opioid such as methadone or buprenorphine. The doses of these drugs are slowly reduced over time. Studies have shown that methadone treatment is safe for heroin dependency patients who are pregnant. The second approach uses benzodiazepines to suppress the anxiety that is associated with heroin withdrawal. This approach is used with caution, since benzodiazepines are also an addictive drug, whose withdrawal causes many more fatalities than heroin itself. Some addiction rehabilitation programs offer detox under anesthesia – where large doses of opiate-blocking drugs are administered to an anaesthetized patient. Rehabilitation programs for heroin almost always include a behavior change component, which is needed to help users devise strategies to combat the addictiveness of heroin.

Given its extremely addictive properties, many reformed heroin addiction patients will return to use the drug. Heroin use in newly-detoxed patients is particularly dangerous, since tolerance to heroin rapidly decreases. Doses that may previously have been acceptable to the user may, after detox, be lethal.

Despite the “heroin-chic” look made popular by many supermodels in the nineties, heroin use is not fashionable, desirable or healthy. Heroin is a highly addictive drug and can seriously affect your health. If you or someone you love suffer from heroin addiction / dependency, seek professional help right away.