What Is Opioid Addiction?


Opioids are commonly prescription drugs like morphine, hydrocodone, oxycodone, and heroin, which are administered to relieve patients of extreme pain due to an injury. These substances directly affect certain receptors in the brain, which are called opioid receptors. Such substances combine with naturally produced secretion like endorphins, which trigger "happy feelings" or the "happy hormones" within the human body, leading to significant mood elevation and benumbing the sensation of pain. Thus, the possibility of addiction to such opioids, that is, dependence on such drugs even when not medically feasible or advisable, increases greatly. This is called opioid addiction. One of the most important anti-opioid addiction drugs available in the market is buprenorphine, and the buprenorphine treatment locator is used to source information about opioid de-addiction by prospective patients, their family members, counselors, medical advisors, and state services.
Causes of Opioid Addiction
It has been noted that most patients who finally develop opioid addiction have some form of severe psychological co-morbidity, or inclination toward addiction to the strong anti-depressant, anti-anxiety properties of these drugs. Dysfunction of serotonin can also lead the patient to crave for anti-depressants, such as opioid drugs. More information about the causes and possible symptoms of opioid addiction can be obtained by using the buprenorphine treatment locator, which aims at educating people about the common nature of such self-medication and drug abuse. Addiction to prescription drugs which can often be sold over the counter is common, but the awareness is not proportionately high.
Withdrawal Symptoms of Opioid Addiction
  • An addict often experiences severe craving for opioids. Symptoms of opioid addiction are common to those of other drug abuse tendencies.

  • Often the patient experiences withdrawal when the dosage of the opioid has been stopped or reduced significantly.

  • Their psychological dependence on drugs increases and they tend to waste time and money in the pursuit of drug-induced pleasures.

  • They tend to neglect alternative pleasures that had thus been a source of entertainment for them.

  • The addict often experiences diarrhea, vomiting, nausea, chills, cold and cough, sneezing, tremors, itching, priapism, akasthisia. The mental or psychological imbalances caused by withdrawal include paranoia, insomnia, dizziness, cravings, among others.

  • More information about symptoms can be obtained by taking recourse to the buprenorphine treatment locator services, which not only allow people to access treatment programs for de-addiction, but also provide them with basic and fundamental information about the nature and causes of addiction.
Thus illegal consumption of opioids must be brought to an end to prevent an individual from falling into the chain of addiction to prescription medications.