| HELPING A HEROIN ADDICT Written By Nicky |
Heroin is a very addictive drug which can be used in many ways, the main being smoking, injecting or snorting.
Within a week or so of starting to use the drug a person will become physically addicted, making it very hard for
them to stop no matter how much they might want to.
Understanding Heroin and Its Effects
Heroin (Diacetylmorphine or Diamorphine) is one of the opiate family, a group of pain killing drugs (analgesic’s)
derived from the Opium poppy. Opium, may be refined into morphine, codeine and heroin. Heroin is made from the
sap of the opium poppy, Papaver somniferum, which had been the most effective painkiller known to medicine for at
least 7000 years. Heroin exerts its primary addictive effect by activating many regions of the brain; the brain regions
affected are responsible for producing both the pleasurable sensation of "reward" and physical dependence.
Together, these actions account for the user's loss of control and the drug's habit-forming action. It mimics certain
chemicals in the brain that are already present (i.e. endorphins) that block pain and induce feelings of pleasure and
contentment.
Soon after using, heroin crosses the blood-brain barrier. In the brain, heroin is converted to morphine and binds
rapidly to opioid receptors. Users typically report feeling a surge of pleasurable sensation, a "rush." The intensity of
the rush is a function of how much drug is taken and how rapidly the drug enters the brain and binds to the natural
opioid receptors. Heroin is particularly addictive because it enters the brain so rapidly. The effects are almost
immediate and the user may initially feel sick. A feeling of calm and warmth spreads through the body and any
troubles or pains seem very distant and unimportant. At higher doses the user slips into a dreamlike state where
they are not asleep or awake, but somewhere between.
After a ‘fix’ users will feel warm, happy and content with themselves and the world around them. All negative feeling
disappear and they have no worries. Time goes very quickly. This will continue until the effects wear off and the
heroin is finished. The user will then need to start thinking about where to score and/or where to get the money
from for the next hit.
As well as being a very powerful painkiller, heroin also depresses the central nervous system activity, making the
heart rate and breathing slow down, suppressing the cough reflex and depressing the activity of the bowel, causing
constipation. Some blood vessels dilate, releasing heat through the body, giving a feeling of warmth. Opiates can
change the brain stem, an area that controls automatic body functions and depress breathing; the limbic system,
which controls emotions to increase feelings of pleasure; and can block pain messages transmitted by the spinal
cord from the body.
Someone who uses heroin can talk and think coherently. Although at high doses the user becomes drowsy and
starts gouching (nodding off into a sleep like state). Pupils become tiny (pinned) and the eyes roll back. Even with
doses sufficiently high to produce euphoria, there is little change to co-ordination, sensation or intellect.
Although some users may take it occasionally, heroin offers most users an unparalleled state of mind and once
used, most find it difficult not to keep going back for more. It has been documented that it only takes 3 days of
constant use to become addicted, remembering that there are different levels of addition and withdrawal. Most
people will not notice the subtle withdrawal symptoms after this short a period and may put it down to feeling a little
down, getting a cold, etc. The two issues with addiction are the length of use and the average morphine content in
the body. Usually though, people will notice that they have become addicted between 1 - 2 weeks after starting
constant use. After this amount of time, stopping will result in obvious withdrawal symptoms.
Main Effects of Heroin
Feeling warm, drowsy and content
Relieves stress and discomfort
Relaxed detachment from pain (increased tolerance to pain), desires and activity
Short-lived state of euphoria, followed by drowsiness
Nodding off, ‘gouching’ (at very high doses).
Heroin Myths
It is important to remember that just because someone is an addict, it doesn’t make them a bad person. You cant
assume that they are a thief, prostitute, criminal, etc. or that they are dirty, diseased, and not worth knowing. Many
addicts go about normal life bringing up families and going to work, without anyone suspecting that they have a
habit. This is why you don’t hear about the good ones, as they keep it under control and nobody has an idea. For
example, my husband and I were addicted for eight years and during that time he always went to work. I also worked
in the beginning and then I left to start a degree course at University. Nobody had any idea about us, as life
continued as normal except for the fact that in private we were using heroin. It was only years later when our habits
spiraled out of control and we borrowed money that we couldn’t pay back and had to pawn items from our home,
that people began to suspect.
Helping An Addict
It is always hard to learn that your loved one is using heroin. You will feel angry with them for doing it, ashamed by
their life choice as well as many other things. If you share the problem with others, their advice might be to cut them
lose and have nothing more to do with them. PLEASE don’t do this. My family was given this advice and thankfully
they didn’t follow it. Without them I would still be addicted to this day, it was only with their love and support that I
have managed to get clean and start living a normal life.
During the eight years I was addicted I desperately wanted to get clean and I tried many, many times. I was usually
trying a detox every two months, sometimes even more as I was that desperate to get off. I cant remember a New
Year or birthday that I didn’t try, as special dates seemed like they might help. I would always think, this New Year
my resolution is to be clean and I would try and fail, yet again! I tried numerous different medical treatments and had
help from addiction services, but nothing can beat the help of loved ones. When my family discovered my addiction
and agreed to help me and my partner, we finally did it. I wont say it was easy, because it wasn’t. It was a stressful
time but it worked out.
Before dismissing the addict, remember the person that they were and can be again. Remember that the longer it
goes on the harder it is to stop. If an addiction is stopped near to the beginning, the withdrawals will be easier and
not last as long as they will with a long term addict. For example in the beginning I once managed to get clean on my
own (had been addicted about 6 months) - the withdrawals lasted a week and I was feeling fine (Bumping into
friends and being encouraged to use again was my downfall). The point is though, that after a week I was well. This
time, after eight years of use, I was very ill for a week, to the point of being hospitalized. Then the prolonged
withdrawals lasted about two or three months.
So PLEASE try to help the addict as soon as you discover the problem. It will save them (and you) a lot of pain in the
long run. It will also help towards ensuring they stay clean.
Do remember though that not many addicts manage to complete a detox and remain clean on their first attempt. If
the addict does relapse, don’t go crazy and disown them. Try to understand how hard it has been and help them to
start again. Think of when you have tried to stop something or given yourself a resolution, do you always do it first
time? Heroin addiction is not all physical as well, there is the mental addiction to cope with and even though the
withdrawals might have gone – the mental addiction will still be there, urging them to use again.
Heroin Withdrawal
When helping an addict withdraw, it is important to know the facts and symptoms. Withdrawal occurs a few hours
after taking the drug, once the effect starts to wear off and the body has broken down the heroin in the blood
stream. This occurs more rapidly, the more frequently the drug has been used.
After the last dose, users will normally start experiencing mild withdrawal symptoms around 4-8 hours later. These
will get worse until they peak on the third day. This is the worst day, with things slowly getting better from this day
onwards. These acute symptoms are usually greatly improved by the fifth day and are largely gone by seven to ten
days.
For longer term users that isn't the end of it! This acute withdrawal is followed by a "protracted abstinence
syndrome" which can continue for up to 32 weeks afterwards. The symptoms that continue over this time are:
restlessness; disturbed sleep pattern, blood pressure & pulse rate; dilated pupils; feeling cold; irritability; change of
personality and feeling; as well as an intense craving for the drug.
Heroin and other opiate withdrawal symptoms are extremely uncomfortable and are not likely to be fatal or lead to
permanent injury, but can cause death to the foetus of a pregnant addict.
Often the hardest part of detox, is not the withdrawing itself but staying off it altogether. To remain clean, a whole
change of life is required. New friends, keeping away from areas where you used to score, and finding things to
relieve the boredom and time you would have spent using, are amongst the things that have to change, as well as
wanting to stay clean.
This is where people who have never used, can never hope to understand. It is not so easy to just change your
whole life - never seeing your friends, starting to go out all the time when your used to staying in, etc. Even things
like watching the TV are totally different when your clean, nothing feels the same. This is why so many people get
clean and then go back to using.
Symptoms (Cold Turkey)
Being cold and then getting hot flushes - constant temperature change
Sweating / chills
Yawning
Shivering, tremors
Sneezing and runny nose
Watery eyes
Large pupils
Vomiting / nausea
Diarrhoea
Feeling sad, crying at little things (even TV soaps, adverts)
Constantly needing to urinate
Insomnia, not sleeping for days on end
Sore, restless legs, muscle cramps
Irritable
Shy of bright lights and of noise. When turkeying everything seems brighter and louder
Being more lively. Laughing more and seeming more ‘awake and alive’
Coughing, sometimes to the point of vomiting
Feeling weak and tired, although not being able to sleep
Pain in the small of the back, as well as the whole body
Boredom, time going slowly
Loss of appetite
Elevations in blood pressure, pulse and respiratory rate
Medical Help
There is a number of treatments now available to try and help alleviate the withdrawal symptoms. The main
treatments are:
Buprenorphine - a strong pain reliever which acts as a substitute and therefore aids the patient in withdrawing over
a period of time. It is also used to detox from opiates over a week by helping to relieve the withdrawal symptoms.
Whilst the withdrawal symptoms are not as severe, the user will still get all of them and will probably get little or no
sleep. Sleeping tablets can not be taken with Buprenorphine as they increase the sedative effects of the drug and
can increase the risk of overdose.
Like all drugs, Buprenorphine may cause side effects: constipation, headaches, difficulty in sleeping, lack of energy
or weakness, drowsiness, nausea and vomiting, fainting and dizziness, drop in blood pressure on changing position
from sitting or lying down to standing, sweating. Rarely the following have occurred: severe difficulty in breathing,
liver problems, hallucinations.
Dihydrocodeine (DF 118) - is a medium strength, short-acting opiate. It is a very strong painkiller and is very
addictive. A detox on DF118 is similar to methadone but the physical withdrawal symptoms may be less severe and
not last quite as long. However, the fact that DF118 feels more like heroin means that it can make the cravings to
use heroin worse than if you are detoxing on methadone. Because of this many services won't prescribe it, along
with the fact that it can be more psychologically dependency forming than methadone - because it gives more of a
rush.
Because it is addictive in itself, your dose will be reduced gradually as you will need to wean yourself off it slowly to
avoid additional discomfort. You will also need to get your heroin use to a low amount before starting, as it is a
relatively weak opiate and won't therefore be much help if your habit is too large.
A DF118 detox may mean that:
The psychological withdrawals and cravings can be worse (because it can feel better to take a short-acting drug)
The physical withdrawals may be less severe than with methadone
It can cause bad constipation
It can increase the hot/cold flushes
You can't take it once a day and feel OK all the time
You may have times when you are feeling rough and times when your feeling intoxicated
Lofexidine - is a drug that reduces the effect of excess noradrenaline in your system during a detox. It isn't an
opiate and its only function is to prevent the action of extra noradrenaline in your system. Using opiates makes it
harder for the body to produce a chemical called noradrenaline, so your system gears up to work extra hard to
produce it. When you stop using opiates your body is still working hard to produce extra and it is this overload of
noradrenaline that causes most of the physical withdrawal symptoms, as it over-stimulates the brain and nervous
system. You can't get dependent on it in the same way that you can with opiates. It can be taken as part of an
inpatient detox programme or at home.
There is a similar drug that is still used sometimes in detox units and hospital wards called Clonidine. Clonidine
tends to lower blood pressure more than Lofexidine, so it can't be safely prescribed to people who are detoxing at
home. This excess lowering of blood pressure also makes it difficult to increase the dose of Clonidine if the
withdrawal symptoms are not being controlled.
Lofexidine:
Reduces the physical withdrawals, but doesn't deal with the craving for opiates
Is non-addictive
Has to be prescribed to you by a Doctor
Makes quick detox's less painful than it would have been with nothing
Works better for some people than for others
Means that you can stop taking opiates as soon as you have decided that it is what you want to do
Enables you to know from the start that the detox wont drag on: they usually last 7-10 days
Can make you feel drowsy
Can make you feel faint/giddy when you stand up or get out of a hot bath
Won't really help you sleep
Can't be stopped suddenly: the dose has to be reduced over 2-3 days
Methadone - treatment has been used effectively and safely to treat heroin addiction for more than 30 years using it
as a substitute for heroin. The Methadone is usually taken orally in the form of a sweet tasting green liquid, although
you can get it in tablet and injectable ampoule form. It suppresses withdrawal for 24-36 hours, relieves the craving
associated with heroin addiction and patients are able to perceive pain and have emotional reactions. Combined
with behavioral therapy or counselling and other supportive services, Methadone enables patients to stop using
heroin and return to more stable and productive lives, as you will be able to see what a drug free life is like (having
more money in your pocket, going out, etc.) be able to do more things, etc.
Rehab - addicts can also go to Rehab. Most of which are inpatient, with the addict staying a required length of time
until they are clean and on the road to recovery. The only problem with this is the cost. Medication will be given to
them in rehab as well as counselling.
Encouraging a User to Quit
Most peoples reaction when finding out that a loved one is using, is to speak to them about stopping by threatening,
pleading or begging. This wont work – heroin is too strong an influence over their lives for them to be able to stop
just because you want them to. Heroin users will only stop when they are ready to. You might be able to force them
by locking them in a room, but sooner or later you will have to let them out and they will go straight back onto it.
Nothing is then achieved apart from them being more devious and sneaky, to ensure that you don’t find out about
their relapse and force them again.
The best way to help a user is to offer your help when THEY are ready for it. Sooner or later they will get sick of the
life and want to come off themselves, this is the time for you to step in and encourage them further. Think about
anything that you enjoy doing that other people don’t (smoking, drinking, even things like cycling, riding your
motorbike). If someone told you to stop because they didn’t like it – would you? Could you?
Try to help them whilst they are still using by:
Keeping in contact
Treat them the same as before
Make a rule about money – decide if you are willing to lend them money or not and stick to the rule.
Keep temptation out of the way – most addicts would never steal from their friend and family, although some do it
easily. However, to save it from happening ensure that you don’t put them into a situation that is too tempting.
Be honest – speak to them about any worries you have without lecturing them. Let them know you are concerned.
Be supportive and avoid suspicion – appreciate that it is hard to detox from heroin and not everyone is successful. If
they fail don’t take it as a personal insult, offer support for the next time they try.
The best way to encourage an addict toward a safer lifestyle is to be understanding and supportive of them. You
can't make decisions for them. Keep in mind that most heroin addicts do eventually get and stay clean and that the
average length of time that someone stays addicted to heroin is about three years. If you have a loved one who is a
heroin addict, take heart; it probably isn't as bad as you think.
More information on all the subjects talked about is available on my website helpingaddicts.net.
Best of luck,
Nicky
Within a week or so of starting to use the drug a person will become physically addicted, making it very hard for
them to stop no matter how much they might want to.
Understanding Heroin and Its Effects
Heroin (Diacetylmorphine or Diamorphine) is one of the opiate family, a group of pain killing drugs (analgesic’s)
derived from the Opium poppy. Opium, may be refined into morphine, codeine and heroin. Heroin is made from the
sap of the opium poppy, Papaver somniferum, which had been the most effective painkiller known to medicine for at
least 7000 years. Heroin exerts its primary addictive effect by activating many regions of the brain; the brain regions
affected are responsible for producing both the pleasurable sensation of "reward" and physical dependence.
Together, these actions account for the user's loss of control and the drug's habit-forming action. It mimics certain
chemicals in the brain that are already present (i.e. endorphins) that block pain and induce feelings of pleasure and
contentment.
Soon after using, heroin crosses the blood-brain barrier. In the brain, heroin is converted to morphine and binds
rapidly to opioid receptors. Users typically report feeling a surge of pleasurable sensation, a "rush." The intensity of
the rush is a function of how much drug is taken and how rapidly the drug enters the brain and binds to the natural
opioid receptors. Heroin is particularly addictive because it enters the brain so rapidly. The effects are almost
immediate and the user may initially feel sick. A feeling of calm and warmth spreads through the body and any
troubles or pains seem very distant and unimportant. At higher doses the user slips into a dreamlike state where
they are not asleep or awake, but somewhere between.
After a ‘fix’ users will feel warm, happy and content with themselves and the world around them. All negative feeling
disappear and they have no worries. Time goes very quickly. This will continue until the effects wear off and the
heroin is finished. The user will then need to start thinking about where to score and/or where to get the money
from for the next hit.
As well as being a very powerful painkiller, heroin also depresses the central nervous system activity, making the
heart rate and breathing slow down, suppressing the cough reflex and depressing the activity of the bowel, causing
constipation. Some blood vessels dilate, releasing heat through the body, giving a feeling of warmth. Opiates can
change the brain stem, an area that controls automatic body functions and depress breathing; the limbic system,
which controls emotions to increase feelings of pleasure; and can block pain messages transmitted by the spinal
cord from the body.
Someone who uses heroin can talk and think coherently. Although at high doses the user becomes drowsy and
starts gouching (nodding off into a sleep like state). Pupils become tiny (pinned) and the eyes roll back. Even with
doses sufficiently high to produce euphoria, there is little change to co-ordination, sensation or intellect.
Although some users may take it occasionally, heroin offers most users an unparalleled state of mind and once
used, most find it difficult not to keep going back for more. It has been documented that it only takes 3 days of
constant use to become addicted, remembering that there are different levels of addition and withdrawal. Most
people will not notice the subtle withdrawal symptoms after this short a period and may put it down to feeling a little
down, getting a cold, etc. The two issues with addiction are the length of use and the average morphine content in
the body. Usually though, people will notice that they have become addicted between 1 - 2 weeks after starting
constant use. After this amount of time, stopping will result in obvious withdrawal symptoms.
Main Effects of Heroin
Feeling warm, drowsy and content
Relieves stress and discomfort
Relaxed detachment from pain (increased tolerance to pain), desires and activity
Short-lived state of euphoria, followed by drowsiness
Nodding off, ‘gouching’ (at very high doses).
Heroin Myths
It is important to remember that just because someone is an addict, it doesn’t make them a bad person. You cant
assume that they are a thief, prostitute, criminal, etc. or that they are dirty, diseased, and not worth knowing. Many
addicts go about normal life bringing up families and going to work, without anyone suspecting that they have a
habit. This is why you don’t hear about the good ones, as they keep it under control and nobody has an idea. For
example, my husband and I were addicted for eight years and during that time he always went to work. I also worked
in the beginning and then I left to start a degree course at University. Nobody had any idea about us, as life
continued as normal except for the fact that in private we were using heroin. It was only years later when our habits
spiraled out of control and we borrowed money that we couldn’t pay back and had to pawn items from our home,
that people began to suspect.
Helping An Addict
It is always hard to learn that your loved one is using heroin. You will feel angry with them for doing it, ashamed by
their life choice as well as many other things. If you share the problem with others, their advice might be to cut them
lose and have nothing more to do with them. PLEASE don’t do this. My family was given this advice and thankfully
they didn’t follow it. Without them I would still be addicted to this day, it was only with their love and support that I
have managed to get clean and start living a normal life.
During the eight years I was addicted I desperately wanted to get clean and I tried many, many times. I was usually
trying a detox every two months, sometimes even more as I was that desperate to get off. I cant remember a New
Year or birthday that I didn’t try, as special dates seemed like they might help. I would always think, this New Year
my resolution is to be clean and I would try and fail, yet again! I tried numerous different medical treatments and had
help from addiction services, but nothing can beat the help of loved ones. When my family discovered my addiction
and agreed to help me and my partner, we finally did it. I wont say it was easy, because it wasn’t. It was a stressful
time but it worked out.
Before dismissing the addict, remember the person that they were and can be again. Remember that the longer it
goes on the harder it is to stop. If an addiction is stopped near to the beginning, the withdrawals will be easier and
not last as long as they will with a long term addict. For example in the beginning I once managed to get clean on my
own (had been addicted about 6 months) - the withdrawals lasted a week and I was feeling fine (Bumping into
friends and being encouraged to use again was my downfall). The point is though, that after a week I was well. This
time, after eight years of use, I was very ill for a week, to the point of being hospitalized. Then the prolonged
withdrawals lasted about two or three months.
So PLEASE try to help the addict as soon as you discover the problem. It will save them (and you) a lot of pain in the
long run. It will also help towards ensuring they stay clean.
Do remember though that not many addicts manage to complete a detox and remain clean on their first attempt. If
the addict does relapse, don’t go crazy and disown them. Try to understand how hard it has been and help them to
start again. Think of when you have tried to stop something or given yourself a resolution, do you always do it first
time? Heroin addiction is not all physical as well, there is the mental addiction to cope with and even though the
withdrawals might have gone – the mental addiction will still be there, urging them to use again.
Heroin Withdrawal
When helping an addict withdraw, it is important to know the facts and symptoms. Withdrawal occurs a few hours
after taking the drug, once the effect starts to wear off and the body has broken down the heroin in the blood
stream. This occurs more rapidly, the more frequently the drug has been used.
After the last dose, users will normally start experiencing mild withdrawal symptoms around 4-8 hours later. These
will get worse until they peak on the third day. This is the worst day, with things slowly getting better from this day
onwards. These acute symptoms are usually greatly improved by the fifth day and are largely gone by seven to ten
days.
For longer term users that isn't the end of it! This acute withdrawal is followed by a "protracted abstinence
syndrome" which can continue for up to 32 weeks afterwards. The symptoms that continue over this time are:
restlessness; disturbed sleep pattern, blood pressure & pulse rate; dilated pupils; feeling cold; irritability; change of
personality and feeling; as well as an intense craving for the drug.
Heroin and other opiate withdrawal symptoms are extremely uncomfortable and are not likely to be fatal or lead to
permanent injury, but can cause death to the foetus of a pregnant addict.
Often the hardest part of detox, is not the withdrawing itself but staying off it altogether. To remain clean, a whole
change of life is required. New friends, keeping away from areas where you used to score, and finding things to
relieve the boredom and time you would have spent using, are amongst the things that have to change, as well as
wanting to stay clean.
This is where people who have never used, can never hope to understand. It is not so easy to just change your
whole life - never seeing your friends, starting to go out all the time when your used to staying in, etc. Even things
like watching the TV are totally different when your clean, nothing feels the same. This is why so many people get
clean and then go back to using.
Symptoms (Cold Turkey)
Being cold and then getting hot flushes - constant temperature change
Sweating / chills
Yawning
Shivering, tremors
Sneezing and runny nose
Watery eyes
Large pupils
Vomiting / nausea
Diarrhoea
Feeling sad, crying at little things (even TV soaps, adverts)
Constantly needing to urinate
Insomnia, not sleeping for days on end
Sore, restless legs, muscle cramps
Irritable
Shy of bright lights and of noise. When turkeying everything seems brighter and louder
Being more lively. Laughing more and seeming more ‘awake and alive’
Coughing, sometimes to the point of vomiting
Feeling weak and tired, although not being able to sleep
Pain in the small of the back, as well as the whole body
Boredom, time going slowly
Loss of appetite
Elevations in blood pressure, pulse and respiratory rate
Medical Help
There is a number of treatments now available to try and help alleviate the withdrawal symptoms. The main
treatments are:
Buprenorphine - a strong pain reliever which acts as a substitute and therefore aids the patient in withdrawing over
a period of time. It is also used to detox from opiates over a week by helping to relieve the withdrawal symptoms.
Whilst the withdrawal symptoms are not as severe, the user will still get all of them and will probably get little or no
sleep. Sleeping tablets can not be taken with Buprenorphine as they increase the sedative effects of the drug and
can increase the risk of overdose.
Like all drugs, Buprenorphine may cause side effects: constipation, headaches, difficulty in sleeping, lack of energy
or weakness, drowsiness, nausea and vomiting, fainting and dizziness, drop in blood pressure on changing position
from sitting or lying down to standing, sweating. Rarely the following have occurred: severe difficulty in breathing,
liver problems, hallucinations.
Dihydrocodeine (DF 118) - is a medium strength, short-acting opiate. It is a very strong painkiller and is very
addictive. A detox on DF118 is similar to methadone but the physical withdrawal symptoms may be less severe and
not last quite as long. However, the fact that DF118 feels more like heroin means that it can make the cravings to
use heroin worse than if you are detoxing on methadone. Because of this many services won't prescribe it, along
with the fact that it can be more psychologically dependency forming than methadone - because it gives more of a
rush.
Because it is addictive in itself, your dose will be reduced gradually as you will need to wean yourself off it slowly to
avoid additional discomfort. You will also need to get your heroin use to a low amount before starting, as it is a
relatively weak opiate and won't therefore be much help if your habit is too large.
A DF118 detox may mean that:
The psychological withdrawals and cravings can be worse (because it can feel better to take a short-acting drug)
The physical withdrawals may be less severe than with methadone
It can cause bad constipation
It can increase the hot/cold flushes
You can't take it once a day and feel OK all the time
You may have times when you are feeling rough and times when your feeling intoxicated
Lofexidine - is a drug that reduces the effect of excess noradrenaline in your system during a detox. It isn't an
opiate and its only function is to prevent the action of extra noradrenaline in your system. Using opiates makes it
harder for the body to produce a chemical called noradrenaline, so your system gears up to work extra hard to
produce it. When you stop using opiates your body is still working hard to produce extra and it is this overload of
noradrenaline that causes most of the physical withdrawal symptoms, as it over-stimulates the brain and nervous
system. You can't get dependent on it in the same way that you can with opiates. It can be taken as part of an
inpatient detox programme or at home.
There is a similar drug that is still used sometimes in detox units and hospital wards called Clonidine. Clonidine
tends to lower blood pressure more than Lofexidine, so it can't be safely prescribed to people who are detoxing at
home. This excess lowering of blood pressure also makes it difficult to increase the dose of Clonidine if the
withdrawal symptoms are not being controlled.
Lofexidine:
Reduces the physical withdrawals, but doesn't deal with the craving for opiates
Is non-addictive
Has to be prescribed to you by a Doctor
Makes quick detox's less painful than it would have been with nothing
Works better for some people than for others
Means that you can stop taking opiates as soon as you have decided that it is what you want to do
Enables you to know from the start that the detox wont drag on: they usually last 7-10 days
Can make you feel drowsy
Can make you feel faint/giddy when you stand up or get out of a hot bath
Won't really help you sleep
Can't be stopped suddenly: the dose has to be reduced over 2-3 days
Methadone - treatment has been used effectively and safely to treat heroin addiction for more than 30 years using it
as a substitute for heroin. The Methadone is usually taken orally in the form of a sweet tasting green liquid, although
you can get it in tablet and injectable ampoule form. It suppresses withdrawal for 24-36 hours, relieves the craving
associated with heroin addiction and patients are able to perceive pain and have emotional reactions. Combined
with behavioral therapy or counselling and other supportive services, Methadone enables patients to stop using
heroin and return to more stable and productive lives, as you will be able to see what a drug free life is like (having
more money in your pocket, going out, etc.) be able to do more things, etc.
Rehab - addicts can also go to Rehab. Most of which are inpatient, with the addict staying a required length of time
until they are clean and on the road to recovery. The only problem with this is the cost. Medication will be given to
them in rehab as well as counselling.
Encouraging a User to Quit
Most peoples reaction when finding out that a loved one is using, is to speak to them about stopping by threatening,
pleading or begging. This wont work – heroin is too strong an influence over their lives for them to be able to stop
just because you want them to. Heroin users will only stop when they are ready to. You might be able to force them
by locking them in a room, but sooner or later you will have to let them out and they will go straight back onto it.
Nothing is then achieved apart from them being more devious and sneaky, to ensure that you don’t find out about
their relapse and force them again.
The best way to help a user is to offer your help when THEY are ready for it. Sooner or later they will get sick of the
life and want to come off themselves, this is the time for you to step in and encourage them further. Think about
anything that you enjoy doing that other people don’t (smoking, drinking, even things like cycling, riding your
motorbike). If someone told you to stop because they didn’t like it – would you? Could you?
Try to help them whilst they are still using by:
Keeping in contact
Treat them the same as before
Make a rule about money – decide if you are willing to lend them money or not and stick to the rule.
Keep temptation out of the way – most addicts would never steal from their friend and family, although some do it
easily. However, to save it from happening ensure that you don’t put them into a situation that is too tempting.
Be honest – speak to them about any worries you have without lecturing them. Let them know you are concerned.
Be supportive and avoid suspicion – appreciate that it is hard to detox from heroin and not everyone is successful. If
they fail don’t take it as a personal insult, offer support for the next time they try.
The best way to encourage an addict toward a safer lifestyle is to be understanding and supportive of them. You
can't make decisions for them. Keep in mind that most heroin addicts do eventually get and stay clean and that the
average length of time that someone stays addicted to heroin is about three years. If you have a loved one who is a
heroin addict, take heart; it probably isn't as bad as you think.
More information on all the subjects talked about is available on my website helpingaddicts.net.
Best of luck,
Nicky
| DEFEAT ADDICTIONS.ORG © 2009 Defeat Addictions Inc. All Rights Reserved The opinions contained on this website are Mr. X's and in no way reflect those of the financial supporters of this website. All material provided on the Defeat Addictions Website is provided for informational or educational purposes only. Mr. X cannot provide individual clinical or therapy recommendations for persons consulting this site. Consult a licensed therapist or physician regarding the applicability of any opinions or recommendations with respect to your problems or medical condition. |
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