According to a recent report from the Centers for Disease Control, the rate of heroin-related deaths has quadrupled in the past ten years. Of the people surveyed between 2011 and 2013, nearly 663,000 said they had used heroin in the past year; 379,000 said they had between 2002 and 2004.
Scott Davis, Clinical Director at The Meadows, says that the path leading to heroin addiction is often different from other drug addictions. In many cases, it begins with a prescription for an opioid painkiller, such as hydrocodone or oxycodone. Many others start with prescriptions for benzodiazepines, such as Xanax or Ativan.
The Path to Opiate Addiction
Many people coming to us with opiate addictions don’t necessarily fit the mold for most addictions. They don’t typically have a family history of addiction or the long-term dependence on the drug you see with many other addicts.
That doesn’t mean they don’t have trauma or that their family doesn’t have issues. They may have issues that exacerbated their dependence on the drug and made the addiction more likely—but they might not have otherwise found themselves addicted had they not been prescribed an opiate as a pain killer.
Once the pills become difficult to obtain, it can be easy to slip into heroin abuse. Heroin’s chemical structure is very similar to that of prescription pain medications and works in the same group of receptors in the brain. It’s also cheaper.
Signs of Heroin Addiction
Heroin significantly impacts the brain’s reward system. Heroin influences feel-good chemicals such as dopamine and endorphins. The intensity of heroin’s effects is why the substance is so addictive. Typically, the brain releases these chemicals for survival behaviors, including eating and coping with pain. The brain automatically links heroin to the activation of these chemicals to the point where the user can’t function without it.
Signs that a person may be addicted to heroin include continued use despite related problems, failing to quit or cut down on usage, persistent cravings, building a tolerance to the drug, and experiencing heroin withdrawal. Heroin side effects differ from person to person, but they will worsen the longer the drug is abused.
Some of the most common heroin side effects include:
- Liver disease
- Skin disease
- HIV or Hepatitis A and B
- Chronic pneumonia
- Blood clots
- Heart attack
- Stroke
- Kidney disease
- Respiratory depression
- Seizures
- Overdose
- Death
Heroin withdrawal can be extremely severe and last up to a week. However, the severity and duration of withdrawal depend on the length of use and the amount of heroin used.
Heroin withdrawal symptoms include:
- Nausea
- Abdominal pain
- Sweating
- Shaking
- Nervousness
- Agitation
- Depression
- Muscle spasms
- Cravings for drugs
Root Causes of Heroin Addiction
For heroin and opiate addicts, there are typically three levels of pain that they must overcome to reach sobriety: the physical pain that led them to the drug, the pain of detoxing from the drug, and emotional pain that led to their addiction.
Physical Pain
For many opioid addicts, their drug problems start with chronic physical pain. That pain is real and needs to be taken into account when developing a treatment program.
At The Meadows, we have a full-time medical doctor on staff to help patients address the pain and medical issues that are causing it. Patients cannot thoroughly address any underlying psychological aspects of their addiction if they suffer from physical pain that initially leads them to abuse drugs.
Pain from Detox
Heroin disrupts the brain’s natural opiate production process, helping reduce pain and calm the nervous system. When a person experiences heroin withdrawal, they feel pain and anxiety more intensely than before. This makes detoxing from heroin extremely painful.
The Meadows highly-trained medical team, including 24-hour nursing staff, can help patients safely and comfortably detox from heroin and opiates onsite. They develop a detox plan for each person that allows them to stabilize more quickly, experience less pain, and avoid some of the heroin withdrawal symptoms they would have if they went off the drug cold turkey. Easing patients through detox makes it easier for people to stay in treatment and of the drug.
Patients detox in a hospital or other settings in many treatment systems and then go to the treatment program. Because we can help patients detox in-house, they don’t have to wait to begin treatment. As long as the patient feels well enough, they can start attending classes and therapy sessions within the first two to three days after their arrival on campus. This makes the transition into treatment easier for them and allows them to start developing coping strategies for living without the drug right away.
Emotional Pain and Trauma
The path that led to heroin use may have begun with a need to address physical pain. The user probably realized that it also minimized their emotional and psychological pain. The coping mechanisms the addict had previously used to manage their stress and anxiety may have fallen by the wayside because the drug could do the trick more quickly and effectively.
That’s why a key component of the treatment program at The Meadows focuses on addressing trauma, family issues, and emotion regulation. Our staff works with patients to help them identify and address any buried psychological pain and repressed feelings that may have played a role in triggering their addiction.
The Connection Between Trauma and Addiction
Traumatic experiences, whether from your childhood or something you faced in adulthood, shape your everyday life and alter how you view yourself and the world. The deadly link between trauma and addiction often leads people down a dark path.
The brain’s plasticity allows it to respond and adapt to your experiences. Everything you do causes your brain’s neurons to grow. When you experience trauma, this trait enables your brain to relearn everyday skills, rewiring itself to function regularly. The brain’s plasticity also affects how you carry childhood experiences into adulthood, including how you think, behave, and react to specific people and situations.
Childhood trauma and maltreatment can cause abnormalities in the brain’s structure leading to various cognitive and behavioral problems. As a result, these abnormalities impede normal brain development. Trauma can also cause multiple mental health issues, including PTSD. Many people also model abusive behaviors that they observed growing up. Self-medicating provides the foundation for the link between trauma and addiction.
Letting Go of Shame
Many heroin addicts unintentionally found their way to the drug. Many of them may also be the only people in their family with addiction, contributing to feelings of isolation and shame.
There’s no shame attached to our addiction treatment programs at The Meadows. We’re not going to tell them it’s all their fault, and they should have known better because drug addiction is a disease. We’ll look at the chemical addiction and address the underlying issues that make this drug particularly potent for them.
Addiction Treatment at The Meadows
For over 45 years, The Meadows has helped people overcome addiction, heal unresolved emotional trauma, and develop the tools to transform their lives. Heroin addiction treatment is no quick fix. Our compassionate team of experts is waiting to help you begin your journey toward long-term recovery.
If you or a loved one is struggling with heroin addiction or may be abusing prescription drugs, we’re here to help. Call our intake office at (800)-244-4949 or contact us online.