Opiate Addiction in Texarkana

Opiate addiction in Texarkana can be addressed at a drug rehab treatment center in the area. It's always important for addicts, alcoholics, and their family members, who often become their formal support system when they enter recovery, to have local resources to turn to whether it's for counseling or education.

Knowing that there is treatment available for opiate addiction in Texarkana can mean significant peace of mind for those involved in the life of an addict. Opiates are a very large category of drugs that includes both legal, prescription drugs as well as illegal street drugs. Opiates in general are a very dangerous class of substances because many are highly addictive and have been known to lead to someone developing a dependency in very few uses (sometimes only one use in extreme cases).

They are also dangerous because there are so many that are legal drugs, which, make them seem safer to the average person. The abuse of legal opiates has become more prevalent in recent years, however, even the use of prescription drugs as order can lead to addiction.

Drug and alcohol rehab specialists are always on the lookout for different combinations of drug use in order to have a good strategy to address each individual addict's needs. Opiate addiction rehab can help individuals no matter whether they are addicted to prescriptions meds, an illegal street drug, or a combination of substances.

What is Opiate Addiction?

Opiate addiction is the circumstance wherein a person has developed a dependency to one of the many substances in this category of drugs. From a technical point of view, an opiate is a drug that comes directly from the opium poppy seed plant, without synthesis.

Drugs that have been synthesized are opioids, however, the two terms are often used interchangeably. Addiction to any of the drugs in the category, whether they are legal or not, can lead to the abuse of more than one substance in the family of drugs.

As friends and family members can learn through drug and alcohol rehab education programs, this is due to the fact that opiate or opioid addicts often use the "drug of opportunity" at the moment when they need a hit.

This means that even if they are addicted to a prescription opiate, they will turn to heroine if they cannot get their typical drug of choice. As many learn when they've entered opiate addiction rehab after an overdose, switching from one drug to another can be very dangerous due to the differences in doses and effects. This danger becomes compounded when some goes from a prescription drug they are abusing where they have some idea of the strength of the substance to an illegal street drug that can differ greatly in potency. Opiate addiction in Texarkana has led to overdoses and deaths for this very reason.

Opiate Effects: Why are Opiates so Addictive?

Family members often have trouble convincing a loved one who has become addicted to an opiate to enter drug and alcohol rehab because of what many addicts feel are the positive effects of the substance they are taking.

In general, opiates make you feel good, even if this is in response to being in pain and using an opioid prescription drug as directed. The drugs in this category affect an area of the brain that blocks pain and brings on a state of euphoria, while one side effect is also drowsiness.

All of this put together brings on a state of feeling good, something individuals are apt to want to repeat, which is what can lead to addiction and the need for opiate addiction rehab.

How are Opiates Used?

Opiates can be used in a variety of ways including shooting up, smoking, snorting, and ingesting orally. Prescription drugs like OxyContin and hydrocodone are typically taken in pill form by mouth, but are sometimes ground up to be used in other ways.

Heroin is one substance that is taken in more of a variety of ways, like shooting up, smoking, snorting as mentioned. One thing family members learn at drug and alcohol rehab is that taking prescription drugs doesn't seem so bad because they are a controlled substance often taken like any other pill. However, opiate addiction rehab is just as applicable for heroin as it is for Codeine.