Why One may need Heroin Addiction Treatment

Heroin addiction treatment wil help one get their life back from the horrors of heroin addiction.Heroin, derived from the poppy plant, is an extremely dangerous and addictive opioid drug that causes over 50,000 overdose deaths per year. The initial feelings of heroin are pleasurable, such as a rush of energy and euphoria; however, the prolonged use of heroin not only leads to addiction, overdose and death, but it also causes many detrimental effects to both mental and physical health.

Short-term effects of heroin use include:

• Warm or flushed feelings
• Heavy sensation in the extremities
• Reduced sensation of pain
• Drowsiness
• Sedation
• Lethargy
• Nausea and vomiting
• Grogginess
• Dry mouth
• Itchy skin
• Confusion
• Slowed respiration and heart rate
• Light sensitivity
• Constricted pupils
• Lower than normal body temperature

The long-term effects of heroin use include the following:

• Decreased dental health marked by damaged teeth and gum swelling
• Excoriated skin from scratching
• Severe constipation
• Increased susceptibility to disease from diminished immune system
• Weakness and sedation
• Poor appetite and malnutrition
• Sleeping problems
• Decrease in sexual functioning
• Liver or kidney damage
• Infectious diseases
• Brain damage due to lack of oxygen
• Abscesses
• Bacterial infections
• Mental health, such as depression and anxiety
• Social isolation
• Memory problems

As mentioned above, the prolonged use of heroin will also lead to addiction. Addiction is caused when the body becomes tolerant and dependent on a substance. The chemicals in heroin significantly interrupt the brain’s natural functioning. Heroin is meant to dull pain and cause euphoric feelings; those feelings are usually produced by the brain; however, overtime the brain will discontinue its natural production because it is used to the effects of heroin causing those feelings. When the brain stops its production, the body will rely solely on heroin to create the feelings the brain once did; this is dependence and it is extremely unhealthy and dangerous.

Additionally, the prolonged use will also lead to tolerance, which occurs when the body becomes used to the initial effects of heroin and will need more and at a more frequent rate in order to feel similar effects. Tolerance significantly increases the risk of overdose and overdose significantly increases the risk of death.

Heroin use does not only affect the user; it also affects home, work and social life. As mentioned above, heroin addiction leads to social isolation, memory problems and mental health issues, each of which can detrimentally affect performance at work and relationships with friends. Additionally, heroin addicts are putting their children and unborn children at risk for developing an addiction, or putting themselves at risk for being charged with child endangerment. In recent cases, cell phone footage shows heroin addicted parents overdosed in their car while their child is in the back seat or a mom passed out in a Dollar Tree while her daughter wanders the aisles screaming for help.

Heroin addiction will take control of your life; people turn into monsters who neglect their children and any other responsibility they may have. Heroin addiction treatment can help addicts turn their lives around. Treatment for heroin addiction significantly increases the chances of a healthy and happy life, as well as the ability to maintain a sober lifestyle throughout a lifetime.