Prescription opioid misuses carry a serious risk of addiction, abuse and overdose.
In 2017, over 47,600 Americans died of an opioid-related overdose. Prescription opioids accounted for 35% of these overdoses, or almost 17,000 total.
Every day, more than 1,000 people are treated in emergency departments for misusing prescription opioids.
Opioid misuse can cause slowed breathing, which can cause too little oxygen to reach the brain, possibly resulting in coma, permanent brain damage or death.
In 2019, 1.6 million people aged 12 or older had an opioid use disorder.
Withdrawal symptoms from opiates severity depends on the type that was being used. There usually is an acute withdrawal phase that is followed by a protracted phase that can last for months.
Opioid overdose can be severely fatal but can be reversed using a medication called naloxone, available by injection or nasal spray. First responders and medical professionals can administer naloxone to rapidly reverse the overdose and possibly save the individual’s life.
The first step of prescription opioid addiction treatment is detoxing or ridding your body of the drug. Detox should be medically supervised, and it should be done gradually. Do not try to stop taking the drug cold turkey, as this could worsen your withdrawal symptoms. As with every type of drug addiction treatment, detoxing is only the first step of recovery, and should be followed by a longer-term program.
Behavioral counseling is strongly recommended for opioid addiction treatment. Opioid addiction counseling addresses many factors that influence substance abuse, such as coping skills, trauma, grief, anger management, communication skills, and relapse prevention. Counseling can be done on an inpatient or outpatient basis and can be done alongside medication assisted treatment.