Heroin Help
Heroin Help for drug addiction: An American tragedyOnce heralded as a safe and non-addictive alternative to morphine, heroine Heroin Addiction has turned into a national menace since coming to the United States in the late 1800’s. Sometimes glamorized, heroin Heroin Help and Addiction is the most rapidly acting of the opiates and the most abused. It is everywhere, in our communities, in our schools and its reach crosses all socio-economic boundaries. It is highly addictive and all too often fatal.
To learn more about the unique history of Heroin Addiction in the US click here
What is Heroin Help for drug addiction?Heroin is a highly addictive drug, made from morphine, which is made from opium, a processed derivative from a natural substance harvested from the seedpods of poppy plants. The drug appears as a white powder, although it is sometimes also seen as a brown powder.The drug is usually injected, but it can also be smoked, or snorted. Users inject because the intensity of the high is greater, and chronic users may inject up to four times or more each day. The user gets his “rush” within seconds after the injection. When the drug is smoked or snorted, it may take up to 15 minutes for it to take effect. The “rush” is not as intense. The National Institute on Drug Abuse warns that regardless of the way the drug is taken, it’s extremely addictive. In recent years, the smoking and snorting of heroin has been widely reported among those seeking treatment for addiction. Many have a misconception that Heroin Help and Addiction only happens if (they) inject it; NOT TRUE!Although people over 30 are the largest user group according to national data, there is an alarming indication that young users are being attracted by a high purity form of the drug, which is also inexpensive. This form of the drug is usually smoked or sniffed, not injected. How did heroin come to the United States?Opium found its way into the United States in the 1800’s when Chinese immigrants came to work on the railroad. They brought opium with them, and while we may have an image of the Wild West being riddled with saloons, opium dens were once as common. Morphine was developed from opium around 1810 in Germany for use in blocking pain. The medicine came to this country in the 1850’s and was widely used in the Civil War. The unexpected consequence of morphine was addiction, as tens of thousands of Union and Confederate soldiers became addicts. Meanwhile, back in Germany, a supposedly “safe and non-addictive” form of morphine was being developed and in 1874 we were introduced to heroin and Heroin Help for drug addiction. This “miracle drug” would do everything that morphine did, only without the negative side effects. In fact, drug companies thought it was so safe they even recommended it for children. Heroin Help and Addiction became such a problem that it was included in the Dangerous Drug Act of 1920, as Congress tried to stop the dreadful tide of Heroin Help for drug addiction.What does heroin do?Heroin is a central nervous system depressant that gives the user a “rush,” an intense feeling of pleasure, euphoria. – The user feels a warm flush to the skin. The user’s arms and legs feel heavy, and relaxed. – Dry mouth is common. – Users may feel sleepy one moment and be wide awake another. – The central nervous system is depressed under heroin, and mental functions slow down. These are all short-term effects.Long-term, abuse and Heroin Addiction can lead to:– Collapsed veins. – Serious, unseen problems can occur, such as heart problems, infections of the heart lining and valves. – Cellulites and liver disease can develop, as well as pulmonary disease. – Addicts who are in poor health are in jeopardy of contracting pneumonia, as heroin depresses the respiratory system.Users develop a tolerance to heroin and that leads to abuse and Heroin Help for drug addiction. Abusers need more and more heroin to get the same “rush” and as the amount of heroin needed grows, the dependence on the drug takes hold. Addicts need the drug because their bodies become used to the drug being present, as if it were supposed to be there in order for everything to function. The BRAIN has been fooled into thinking it “needs” the heroin. Reduction in the amount of heroin used produces withdrawal symptoms, even though the addict is still using. Even after a short period of time, as little as a few hours, the body wants more. Addicts experience pain in the muscles and bones, diarrhea, chills, vomiting and insomnia. The worst of the symptoms of withdrawal occur 48 to 72 hours after taking the drug, and can linger on for a week. Addicts who are in poor health are actually at risk of dying if the drug is taken away. However, a withdrawal is not as life-threatening or dangerous as barbiturate or alcohol withdrawal. Heroin Overdose is COMMONUsers who take to the streets to find heroin, do not necessarily know what they are buying. The powder they think is heroin is actually a mixture of other substances heroin. The heroin is cut with sugar, or quinine, or some other substance, even another drug.The buyer does not know the dosage of the heroin, or the content of the mixture. As a result, overdoses are common. As users develop a tolerance to heroin, and take more and more to get high, the risks of overdose increase. Health risksHeroin addiction is a major problem because of its serious health risks. Users who mainline heroin are in jeopardy of contracting AIDS and hepatitis from sharing dirty needles, and those users often sustain collapsed veins. Heroin overdose is a serious risk, and too often those overdoses are fatal. Women using this drug while pregnant can suffer a spontaneous abortion.In another section of this web site we refer to rehab programs that administer alternatives to heroin.
Please see the treatment page to understand heroin treatment risks!
This is done because of the danger involved with cutting the addict off and denying the body the opportunity to reset itself to functioning without the drug. The hardest part about Heroin Addiction help is getting it, even though there is a lot of Heroin Addiction help available. It’s hard because the drug addict does not want help. They want to LEFT ALONE. They know they don’t have a problem and they want everyone to MIND THEIR OWN BUSINESS!Their families see it but it doesn’t matter. Their friends see it. Their co-workers see it.They don’t see it and everybody else is wrong!Actually, it is important that the addict see the problem. Without the buy-in of the addict, without him/her realizing they have a serious problem, no treatment is going to take place. They WILL REFUSE to get Heroin Addiction help to matter what!There is a television reality show called “Intervention” which documents the denial of addicts as they are approached by family and friends to seek help. In one episode, the Methamphetamine addict, who is destroying her health, her family’s property and all of her relationships, is steadfastly in denial that there is any problem of any kind and refuses Heroin Addiction help. Totally LostShe curses her family for bringing it up. On video, we see how selfish she has become because of the drug. She cares for no one but herself and her drug use comes before anything else. She refuses treatment. She refuses Heroin Addiction help. Most everything she mutters is profane. She is completely lost.The wake left behind a drug addict is the crushed hearts of those who see the problem, want to help, but on their own, for the best of reasons, likely contribute to the problem rather than solve it. In these shows, an interventionist is called in by the family, not just to confront the addict and coax them into rehabilitation, but to coach the family and teach them communication skills. More importantly, the interventionist teaches the family boundaries, and how to stick to those boundaries.Heroin Addiction help is not based on enabling the addict; once rules are established they MUST be adhered to. If the rules are broken the addict MUST feel the consequences otherwise the family is going to enable the addict to continue using. No Heroin Addiction help is possible!
Heroin Help and Addiction is a community problemHeroin Help and Addiction is not just a family problem. It’s a community problem and therefore, help from the community is a necessary ingredient for any addict achieving recovery. Families are too close to the addict. They love that person, they care, they cry for them. Their loving regard for the addict blocks their objective thinking and prevents them from being the answers to the problem. They become enablers and feeding the problem. Heroin Help and Addiction help from a professional is needed to treat all parties involved in the addiction.Once the family and friends are onboard with the need for professional help, and new communication patterns and boundaries are established by the professional, “their” problem will become the addict’s problem. Once the addict realizes that they have the problem, the first step towards recovery is taken. If you know someone that needs Heroin Help and Addiction help or if you’re struggling with an addiction, and need help call 1-800-662-HELP.
Consider using this at-home guide to end your addiction forever!For more information on heroin Heroin Help — Addiction please click here
Read these five pages and learn what you need to know to spot Heroin Help and Addiction in: Yourself… Your Family… Your Friends… Your Community…The rest of the pages are there for your reference to explain important topics in more detail.
Finally don’t miss the Spiritual and 12-step sections to fully explore how understanding THE SPIRIT can lead to recovery!
