Heroin Addiction: The Signs and Symptoms

Heroin is an addictive drug which belongs to the opiate family, and includes any morphine-based medication. The drug is derived from the poppy plant and known by the chemical name diacetylmorphine. Becoming addicted to heroin can happen the very first time a person uses the drug and is one of the most difficult to conquer.

Many people who are addicted to heroin will agree that using only one time can result in a full-blown addiction and when the drug is not used withdrawal sets in so a person is driven to use more. Like many other drugs, heroin can be smoked, snorted or injected into a vein. Users prefer the injection route because of the immediate effects produced, it is also the most common way the drug is used.

Heroin has a unique way of working on the human body and acts upon the central nervous system. The effects of heroin begin within approximately seven seconds and can last for several hours. Using heroin results in the user feeling extreme euphoria and elation, which is what makes the drug so initially appealing. Only after a person suffers from a full-blown heroin addiction is the situation recognized as being grave and serious.

Immediately after being used, heroin enters the blood-brain barrier and is converted into morphine. Once the initial euphoria has subsided, a person will experience dry mouth, sweating, flush skin and paranoia. Later, the person can be prone to episodes of vomiting, itching and tremors and much worse. Heroin also acts as a sedative and will make the user fatigued and sleepy for a period of many hours. The drug also interferes with cognitive abilities, as a person is impaired the situation graduates into respiratory and breathing rate slowing down.

The worst part of using heroin is the highly pleasurable feelings imparted to the user and are what lure countless numbers of people to try the drug. Heroin gets into the body quickly and because of how good it makes a person feel, they want to do more and more. Dependency and tolerance develop almost immediately and the cravings will take over and the person is prone to doing anything to be able to use heroin.

Long-term physical damage that occurs from an addiction to heroin includes brain, heart and central nervous system damage. Kidney, liver and lung damage, secondary infections, abscesses and bone problems such as osteoarthritis and arthritis are also common due to long-term heroin abuse.

Withdrawal from heroin is a serious situation which requires monitoring by a skilled team of medical professionals. Within hours of last ingesting heroin, a person will become violently ill and display a number of possibly life-threatening symptoms such as rapid and strong body movements, convulsions and severe vomiting. Heroin addiction is one of the most common and rapidly rising forms of drug addiction in the country. Without the right professional help a person suffering from an addiction to this drug can experience an overdose and die.

Heroin Addiction: Putting the Addiction in Perspective

When an addict is confronted about heroin addiction, the situation is never easy and can quickly erupt into a negative encounter. Most addicts have well-thought excuses offered up at the ready to dispel and deflect the reality of a substance abuse problem. An addict is mistakenly led to believe that discontinuing heroin addiction can be done by free-will alone and without the benefit of professional help, which is a dangerous way of thinking.

Heroin is considered by many experts to be the most dangerous drug to abuse. Unlike many other illicit drugs, a person only needs to use heroin once to become a full-fledged addict. Without using heroin, a person will experience painful withdrawal symptoms even after a short time of using, which makes the potential for abuse and addiction extremely high.

People use heroin for various reasons, but mostly because of the way it makes them feel. Users report experiencing feelings of euphoria, hallucinations and being an opioid drug, heroin also has pain-killing abilities. Heroin is a Schedule I and IV narcotic drug under the Controlled Substances Act and is illegal to manufacture, sell or possess in the U.S.

Heroin is a very catastrophic drug and can cause several unpleasant and painful side effects, such as:

Delirium
Disorientation
Central nervous system depression
Lowered heart and blood pressure rate
Hypoventilation
Shallow and labored breathing
Hypotension
Dry mouth
Pinpoint pupils
Analgesia
Nausea
Vomiting
Constipation

The addict will go to any length to use heroin which has the capacity to destroy life and kill people. Heroin addiction is nothing to play around with and can cause dangerous and negative consequences. Coming down from heroin is what causes many people to become addicted, in order to avoid the pain and side effects of the drug a person will take a second dose and the cycle of addiction begins.

A person abusing heroin is subjected to many health-related complications such as collapsed veins, HIV/AIDS, hepatitis, liver disease, heart and heart valve infections, breathing difficulties, organ failure, overdose, coma and eventual death. As with any form of drug addiction, heroin abuse never leads to happiness or positivity in life, only pain and suffering.

Heroin abuse and addiction are treatable and one should never try to beat the illness alone. There are many reputable professional drug treatment programs around that can help. With time and therapy, addiction can be successfully overcome and substance abuse can be a thing of the past. Research shows that an addiction to heroin can be one of the most physically devastating and difficult forms of addiction to beat.

Knowing there is help available has shown many chronic heroin users there is a way to break the cycle and stop using. With the right rehab, intensive counseling and individual and group therapy a patient learns new and effective behavior patterns and how to avoid the triggers and temptations of heroin. There is hope and help for a better tomorrow when an addict admits the situation and asks for help.