Narcotics are the common drugs young people abuse. Addiction to pain killers can affect anyone at any age, so we need to be aware of the basic information regarding these medicines.
Statistics have shown significant increase in the number of individuals addicted to painkillers. About 2.5 million people are using painkillers each year and one in every 5 young people are engage in its illegal use. Recently, prescription drug is the second most common type of illegal drug used.
The two most commonly abused pain relievers areHydrocodone and Oxycodone. People may abuse any pain relievers depending on its availability. Other common pain relievers that are abused are fentanyl, morphine, codeine, and opium. Most of these drugs come as pills but some could also be available as liquids, suppositories, or liquids.
There are many other painkillers on the market that people might abuse. It may be snorted, injected, chewed, swallowed, or taken as a suppository. Since these drugs are cheap and accessible many tend to abuse it. Though the intention of taking these drugs is to ease pain from post-surgery or pain from diseases the risk of addiction exists.
Those who are addicted to painkillers often ask where to go to find appropriate help for them. When painkiller abusers recognized their addiction problem it’s the 1st step to recovery. The earlier one acknowledges the problem the faster the healing. Choosing the right rehab facility and a skilled doctor or counselor for the abuse of pain killers is the next step. Patients must talk about what they expect in the treatment and the physician must thoroughly explain the program to them.
Withdrawal symptoms treatment starts in the outpatient or inpatient facility where the patient is admitted. The patient is under thorough assessment and monitoring to guarantee safety. Patient may feel that the withdrawal is unbearable and may crave for the drug. Synthetic opioids are given to mimic its effects with no undue side effects.
Detoxification begins when the withdrawal symptoms subsides. When patients are stabilized they’re ready to attend counseling or a 12-step program to learn about addiction and to teach them on how to avoid addiction relapse. This stage is really helpful to encourage abusers not to be addicted again. It would be more advisable for the abusers to join support groups for strengthening. Being with people who have undergone the same experiences and problems can help encourage them. This is also proven helpful to avoid pain killer addiction relapse.