Throughout history, drug use has been associated with a number of incredibly horrible side effects, ranging from anxiety and confusion to manic depression, paralysis, and death. In fact, in the 1800s, the presence of opium in China led directly to two wars! Though there are two centuries between then and now, drugs are still a…
Drugs– like guns, gambling, and other vices– are inanimate objects or concepts that, in and of themselves, can do no damage. However, we as human beings are quite the opposite. We are quite capable of doing horrible and irreversible damage on our own– and we often use inanimate objects like drugs to do so. Studies…
Far too often, those suffering from an addiction to any one of a number of substances, attempt to downplay the severity of their dependency by ignoring addiction. Unfortunately, studies have shown that many of their would-be saviors do, too. Is it a coping mechanism? An attempt to err on the side of caution, in case…
Like most things, addictions is often the culmination of a number of other issues that have been around for much longer than the drug abuse has. While researchers have worked for decades on a way to determine the definitive cause of addiction, the simple fact of the matter is that there is relatively little that…
Most people grow up with what they consider to be a “basic understanding of drugs”, based on many common myths. “Marijuana isn’t so bad,” they say. “Natural drugs aren’t as harmful as synthetic ones.” Here are 5 of the most common myths about drugs and addiction… and their startling truths. Sharing prescription medication isn’t really…
Substance addiction is a disease that forces your brain to seek pleasure from something that does your body an incredible amount of harm and has absolutely no upside, save the fleeting feeling of euphoria that soon becomes weaker and weaker as your body begins to crave more and more of said substance. Those that abuse…
The short answer is a resounding yes. Research indicates that the detoxification process can be one of the most difficult and testing periods of an individual’s life. In this process, an individual effectively forces themselves to enter into a stage of intense withdrawal and allow their bodies to purge themselves of a substance that has…
Many people who use heroin began their addiction with prescription opioids. Often, an individual begins taking a prescription painkiller as prescribed, begins abusing their prescription, and eventually turns to illicit opioids because they are cheaper or they are no longer able to get their prescription. Addiction is a slippery slope and the progressions from prescription…
Heroin overdoses have become much more common and much more dangerous in recent years with the introduction of powerful synthetic opioids like fentanyl. According to the Center for Disease Control, “heroin-related overdose death increased fivefold from 2010 to 2016, and from 2015 to 2016, heroin overdose death rates increased by 19.5%, with nearly 15,500 people…
A quick and flippant answer to the question “how does heroin work” might be “all too well”. Heroin and medical morphine have the same effect on a person’s brain and metabolism, and a person’s body converts both heroin and medical morphine into the same form of morphine after it is administered. The primary difference is…