Heroin is an illegal street drug with no medicinal benefits. Yet because it almost instantly affects the brain’s chemistry causing a euphoric sensation, it is one of the most addictive drugs out there. While most drugs and alcohol take months to create a dependency, heroin addiction can occur after a single-use. Thus, individuals struggling with heroin addiction need professional help to overcome the heroin detox effects at a heroin addiction rehab center like Beaches Recovery to kick the habit.

About Heroin Addiction

Heroin is an illegal street drug. It has no known medicinal benefits. Because of its ability to create euphoria, it remains a popular street drug among drug users. The drug’s most disturbing quality is the speed at which a heroin addiction can form. It’s common for most drugs to require months of use before an addiction sets in. With heroin, a user could form an addiction within weeks.

Because of its side effects, heroin is a hazardous substance. The side effects can occur in short order and are capable of lasting for long periods of time. At the moderate end of the spectrum, heroin’s side effects include itching, nausea, slowed cognitive function, dry mouth, and the warm flushing of the skin.

At the severe end of the spectrum, the side effects raise the stakes significantly. This is when a heroin habit has become an addiction. This level of side effects might include the following:

Nausea and vomiting
Muscle pain and cramping
Stomach cramps
Heart damage
Kidney and liver damage
Mental disorders
Health issues related to how the user takes the drug

In all cases, people should be wary of any side effects they might incur. They should also be very concerned about withdrawal symptoms should they suddenly decide to stop taking the drug. Heroin withdrawal can create some severe health conditions.

Why Does Heroin Addiction Develop?

Many people wonder why heroin addiction occurs in the first place. Each year, thousands of people die from this drug addiction. However, what causes the terrible disease? First, it’s important to remember that heroin addiction is a disease. No one chooses to have a heroin addiction. Furthermore, once it starts, it’s almost impossible to stop on your own. To end heroin addiction, you need help from a professional heroin drug rehab center. 

Individuals throughout the United States turn to heroin for a variety of reasons. Perhaps two of the most common reasons heroin addiction develops is because individuals are suffering from an undiagnosed mental health issue or is already addicted to opioids and in need of a more accessible, cheaper options to address their dependency. Thus, you can see how the prescription opioid epidemic dovetails with heroin addiction. However, no matter the reason someone beings using heroin, they are likely doing so because they are in pain. 

The use of the drug temporarily masks the pain or discomfort they experience, whether it’s emotional or physical. Unfortunately, like all diseases when left untreated, the underlying mental health issue only worsens causing further heroin use and dependency. In order for someone suffering from both an underlying mental health issue and addiction to fully recovery and get healthy again, they need treatment for both conditions. Dual diagnosis treatment is the means by which professionals treat this co-occurring disorder. But before an individual can get the treatment they need to address their addiction and other issues, they need to get the substance out of their system. For many, the first step upon entering a heroin addiction rehab center is detoxing from heroin and any other substances.

Heroin Use and Dependency

The primary issue with heroin is that it’s extremely physically addictive, and even after one use, someone can experience harsh withdrawal. The symptoms of withdrawal from heroin are very difficult to deal with because they’re mental and physical. Many people can’t tolerate the symptoms of withdrawal, so they continue using heroin. They believe the only way to live is to keep using and avoid withdrawal.

Part of the disease of addiction tells a person that continuing to use is the easiest thing to do. Addiction treatment and detox can change a person’s life and give him or her hope. Addiction medicine has created different non-narcotic medications that help decrease the symptoms of withdrawal. A person can safely detox with the help of a qualified facility and then begin treatment.

Great program. I received excellent individual and group therapy. I enjoyed the recreational activities like surfing, camping, and running on the beach. The doctors, therapists, and staff were all very helpful, personable, and non-judgmental.

-TM

Getting Help for Heroin Abuse

Given the dangerous nature of heroin effects on the body, treatment from a reputable detox and rehab center is always necessary. Upon admission, there’s a strong chance the medical staff will recommend detox. The detox process is required to curtail cravings and clear the body and mind of the harmful substance.

From detox, it’s off to treatment. Treatment usually includes group therapy and hours of intensive individual therapy. The goals of treatment include educating the patient about their addiction and helping them identify triggers. Armed with this information, the counselor and patient should be able to develop coping skills and a relapse prevention plan. Absolute focus and commitment from the patient are the keys to lasting recovery.

Detox: Your First Step to Recovery

Because of its side effects, heroin is a hazardous substance. The side effects can occur in short order and are capable of lasting for long periods of time. At the moderate end of the spectrum, heroin’s side effects include itching, nausea, slowed cognitive function, dry mouth, and the warm flushing of the skin. At the severe end of the spectrum, the side effects raise the stakes significantly. This is when a heroin habit has become an addiction. 

In all cases, people should be wary of any side effects they might incur. They should also be very concerned about withdrawal symptoms should they suddenly decide to stop taking the drug. Heroin withdrawal can create some severe health conditions. Some of these symptoms can be severe and even life-threatening. For example, the most common withdrawal symptoms may include:

Nausea and vomiting or sharp stomach pains
Severe cramping or pain in your muscles
Sweats or chills
Agitation or anxiety
Extreme fatigue or inability to sleep
Hallucinations

More severe symptoms may include ongoing depression, hypertension, rapid heart rate, impaired respiration, and, of course, ongoing cravings. It is highly unlikely you can handle these symptoms on your own. Unfortunately, many think they can. Self-detox is dangerous for several reasons. However, there are two primary reasons why individuals need a medically-supervised detox. 

First, in medically supervised detox individuals are in a controlled environment. Thus, they don’t have to worry about outside influences or events distracting or hindering their detox. Also, there is little danger in the individual themselves harming someone else or themselves. Second, withdrawal symptoms can lead to severe health problems that need medical care. In medically supervised detox, there are professionals at the ready should any symptom lead to complications. Furthermore, when an individual attempts to self-detox, they routinely relapse. Because any duration of detox can change the body’s tolerance, individuals will frequently think they can return to using familiar dosage. Often this leads to overdose and not infrequently death.

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The Decision to Enter a Florida Heroin Addiction Rehab Center

According to the National Institute on Drug Abuse, approximately 4.2 million Americans have used heroin. About 23% of those who try the drug become addicted. Once addicted to heroin, breaking the cycle of substance abuse and addiction is extremely difficult. Unfortunately, heroin is terribly dangerous. This is particularly true in its effect on the brain stem, the area of the brain responsible for critical life functions, such as breathing, blood pressure, and arousal.

Deciding to enter a heroin rehab center in Florida is a lifesaving one. At Beaches Recovery, our Jacksonville drug rehab center provides assistance with the psychological and physical ramifications of heroin addiction, as well as the underlying causes of substance abuse. Our addiction treatment programs help you search for the cause and address any other underlying issues to get you to complete recovery.

Treatment at a Heroin Addiction Rehab Center

Our heroin addiction rehab center offers extended care to help you get through detox and rehab. We offer evidence-based treatment, holistic treatment, and ongoing care to guide you through every stage of recovery.   

Beaches Recovery provides a caring environment to help you feel at home and focus on getting better. We also offer 24/7 monitoring and supervision to provide you with the highest level of care. You can feel confident that you are in good hands with professionals that can help you meet your recovery goals.

A treatment specialist will meet with you to assess your addiction and identify any mental health issues you may have. Through dual diagnosis, we can develop a treatment plan that takes you from addiction to recovery and beyond. Our treatment options include: 

Inpatient and outpatient rehab: Inpatient or residential treatment is what many think of when they imagine rehab. It is when individuals live at the facility getting structured therapy on a fixed schedule for usually at least 30 days. Outpatient rehab is designed for those patients who don’t require 24-hour supervision but do need or want a structured support system and treatment regimen to help them achieve sobriety.

Partial hospitalization program (PHP): A middle ground between residential and outpatient care, here patients come to the facility for treatment but return to their home or sober living facility. In this way, patients can work on developing and using their recovery skills but have the necessary support around them should they falter.

Extended care addiction treatment center: For some individuals, the standard 30-day rehab treatment is not enough time to address their issues or get them to a point where they are comfortable returning to the everyday world with their addiction. Extended care allows for 60 or even 90-day treatment so patients reach the most secure place they can.

Dual diagnosis treatment: For many struggling with substance use disorder, heroin addiction is a symptom of an underlying mental health issue. Often, the individual is not even aware they have a mental health condition such as depression, anxiety disorder, or PTSD (post-traumatic stress disorder). However, if the underlying condition isn’t treated at the same time as the body’s physical addiction is, then relapse is highly likely. Dual diagnosis treatment addresses this working to help patients recognize and heal.

Individual and group therapy: Nearly all substance abuse treatment involves forms of talk therapy. Whether individually in one-on-one sessions with a therapist or counselor or in a larger setting with others, patients talk through their issues, triggers, challenges, solutions, and successes.

Thus, you’ll have everything you need at our heroin addiction rehab center.

Our Heroin Addiction Rehab Center Treatment Plan

When you enter Beaches Recovery, you will have the opportunity to take advantage of our entire treatment that starts with detox and carries you through rehab and aftercare. For many, a heroin addiction rehab center is a pathway to a new life or a fresh start. Regardless of how long you or a loved one has been using heroin, we can develop a treatment program that leads you to a full recovery. 

Our compassionate and experienced staff will meet with patients to go over the details of addiction to develop the right treatment plan to address their specific needs. We offer both evidence-based therapies and holistic treatment. 

Taking the first step and contacting us will help the heroin abuser in your life begin anew for the chance of a healthy future that everyone deserves. Call Beaches Recovery in Jacksonville, FL today at 866.605.0532 and take the burden of heroin addiction off your back.