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Oxycontin Withdrawal
Percocet Abuse
Xanax Withdrawal
Methamphetamine Detox
Cocaine Addiction
OxyContin can rob you of your life, your family, and your finances. You need help to break the strangle hold that narcotic drugs have on your body and mind. Recovery Connection has been helping people find treatment for years. We can help you too. Call now and get started on the road to recovery today.
OxyContin is brand name for a time-released version of the narcotic oxycodone. Oxycodone is a semi-synthetic opioid (opiate) derived from thebaine, a component of opium. Oxycodone, affects the brain's neurotransmitters (naturally produced chemicals such as endorphins, dopamine, gaba, serotonin, epinephrines). Each one of these neurotransmitters performs a specific function in communicating with the cells which in turn communicate with the body's nerves, muscles and organs.
In 2008, 50.1 million oxycodone prescriptions were dispensed (U.S. Department of Justice, Office of Division Control). Oxycodone and OxyContin are high on the list of the most prescribed and abused prescription drugs.
OxyContin is the controlled release form of oxycodone. Both are Schedule II narcotic analgesics (a drug used to suppress pain). These two drugs are within the opioid family of central nervous system agents. They are similar to heroin, Percodan, Vicodin and morphine. The legal use of OxyContin is to treat severe acute and chronic pain, though it began as a treatment for people suffering mostly from pain associated with various types of cancer.
In 2008, 13.8 million people used some type of oxycodone while 4.8 million people used Oxycontin. (source: Office of Diversion Control, http://www.deadiversion.usdoj.gov/drugs_concern/oxycodone/summary.htm)
OxyContin is highly addictive. Often, individuals start to use OxyContin illegally in order to control heroin or methadone withdrawal symptoms. Eventually, heroin or methadone addicts will trade their former addictions for OxyContin addictions. Whether the drug is prescribed or bought on the street, as an individual continues using, he or she will develop a tolerance to OxyContin. This will result in an increased amount of the substance being needed to produce the same effect on the user’s body and mind. At this point, only medications for the withdrawal of opiates to be administered at a drug detox facility is recommended.
Oxycodone (OxyContin) abuse has grown exponentially. Unfortunately, the figures mentioned above also include the thousands of babies born with oxycodone (OxyContin) addiction. Between 2006 and 2009 the number of babies addicted to this opiate increased by 170%. This is a sad and staggering figure.
Oxycodone is found in the following commercial preparations:
According to the Drug Abuse Warning Network 2007 study, 324,000 emergency department visits in 2006 involved non-medical use of pain relievers. The incidents of prescription drug abuse for adults has been increasing since 2002, straining our nation's health care system. The mental health of the abuser and those with an intimate relationship with the abuser has also suffered.
The effects of OxyContin are similar to the effects produced by the release of the natural occurring chemical endorphin. OxyContin attaches itself to brain cell receptors and blocks the transmission of pain while providing a sense of euphoria and sedation. The body quickly adapts to the drug inducing a tolerance. As the level of tolerance increases, the body requires more of the medication to achieve the initial sense of relief, relaxation, or sedation. The greater the tolerance, the larger the dosage needed. There is no way to stop this process and the initial sense of ease is never fully attained again. An addict can chase the feeling of ease irrespective of whether or not pain continues.
The proper use of OxyContin is contrary to the use by an addict. It is not designed to be ingested on a "as needs basis" nor is it designed to be broken, snorted, or crushed or smoked. The mechanism which provides a controlled release will be obliterated. The full amount of the drug will then immediately be absorbed into the body and could result in an overdose with the potential for death.
The power of this narcotic cannot be overstated as the addiction process is fast and brutal. Self-medicating with this drug will result in trying to stave off withdrawal symptoms which becomes the addict's new reality. Physical symptoms of addiction are serious. Because OxyContin causes respiratory depression and sedation and person ingesting too much of the drug in a short period of time may have difficulty breathing.
Whether you are taking OxyContin or oxycodone, you run the risk of overdosing. Addiction kills whether you began using with a valid prescription or not. Call now and get into treatment before it is too late. Save yourself, save your family, save you life. Treatment works.
Once a person is gripped by the disease of addiction, he or she is likely to spend a large part of his/her day chasing the drug to try and achieve the initial effects of the drug. OxyContin taken in combination with other drugs can lead to death by respiratory and cardiac collapse. Drug seeking, for those with OxyContin addiction, is always more important than everything else in the addict's life. This means familial relationships will suffer, productivity in work or school will be greatly reduced or stopped, and personal and familial finances will be severely compromised.
Symptoms of OxyContin addiction include:
Once a person has taken OxyContin for a few days, abruptly discontinuing usage is not recommended as it only takes a few days for the body to develop a tolerance. Abruptly discontinuing usage will bring on OxyContin withdrawal symptoms. These withdrawal symptoms can be difficult to manage. They include flu like symptoms, fatigue, and nausea lasting 3-7 days. Medication can help ease the detox process but should be administered in a detox facility by doctors and nurses with expertise in addiction medicine. Addiction treatment, depending upon the person's history and use is needed to break the cycle of addiction.
OxyContin addiction treatment is paramount for the healing process and the ability to break the addiction cycle. OxyContin detox alone is bound to fail. As a matter of fact, the American Society of Addiction Medicine does not support detox alone as an appropriate treatment for OxyContin addiction.
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