Heroin addiction is a very serious problem in America. Heroin is a highly-addictive opioid used in the medical world to treat pain. However, many people use this drug recreationally as well. It is illegal to possess or distribute heroin in many countries, including the United States and Canada. If used for an extended period of time, heroin users will develop extreme physical and psychological dependence on the drug that is difficult to break.
Many heroin addicts try to break their addiction on their own. When the user stops taking heroin, they will experience symptoms of withdrawal. These symptoms include cold chills, excessive sweating, insomnia, vomiting, extreme muscle pain, and increased feelings of anxiety and depression. These withdrawal symptoms usually begin within 24 hours after the last dose of heroin, and can be debilitating for the user. The symptoms will usually begin to dissipate and should disappear within one week. However, because these symptoms can be extremely severe, many users revert back to using heroin to relieve the withdrawal symptoms. This cycle continues, making it very hard for a heroin addict to break their addiction on their own.
Heroin addiction rehab is the best way to try to break an addiction to heroin. There are numerous rehabilitation facilities located across the country willing to help addicts overcome their addictions. It has been shown that users who check into rehab are much more likely to successfully break their addiction than those who attempt to do this alone. Rehab provides the support an addict needs to work through the withdrawal symptoms and become heroin-free. Heroin addiction rehabilitation centers also offer both group and individual therapy, helping an addict to understand why they became addicted to the drug in the first place.
In addition to providing support, rehabilitation centers often help an addict to gradually reduce the amount of drug they are taking until they can stop altogether. Medical professionals at these centers can administer medication designed to relieve the effects of the withdrawal symptoms the patient will experience.