Opioid addiction is a serious condition that causes physical and psychological health problems. It also puts a strain on our healthcare and criminal justice systems.
People who are addicted to opioids may take them for a variety of reasons, including the feeling of euphoria they experience from the drugs. Over time, this euphoria can become less and less enjoyable.
Addiction is a chronic disease
Just as someone with diabetes or heart disease must make a choice to exercise and eat healthy, a person with addiction must choose to take treatment. The choice may be made for an individual’s own health reasons, or in response to a court order or family ultimatum.
Addiction is a chronic disease that affects the brain and body. It changes the way the brain reacts to certain substances and behaviors, making it hard for the body to control them.
In addition to the physical effects of substance abuse, addiction can also lead to a variety of psychological problems. These can include anxiety, depression, and other mental illnesses.
Like any chronic disease, addiction can be treated to prevent further damage and to keep the person living a full and productive life. Treatment can include medications, therapy, and detox. It can also involve a combination of these treatments to treat specific symptoms. Depending on the severity of the addiction, some individuals may need to stay in a facility while receiving treatment.
Overdose
Overdose is when someone takes too much of a drug or when they take it in an unsafe way. It can happen quickly and can make someone very ill.
People can overdose on drugs of all kinds, including prescription medication and alcohol. It can be fatal, and it can affect people of all ages.
Opioid overdose can be particularly dangerous. It can cause breathing problems that lead to a loss of oxygen in the brain, and can cause permanent damage and death.
To combat this problem, CDC is working with states to collect data on overdoses. This helps communities track trends and prepare for potential increases in overdose rates across the state or region.
Tolerance
Tolerance to opioids can be a serious problem. It can cause patients to become dependent on the drug and require higher doses in order to achieve a desired effect.
Researchers are working to better understand how tolerance develops, which may lead to new ways to treat this disease. Tolerance can be caused by a number of factors, including illness, stress, and other drugs.
There is also evidence that some people can lose their tolerance to an opioid if they stop taking the drug for a period of time. This can make them more vulnerable to overdose and death if they try to start using the drug again.
Scientists have found that the amount of tolerance that develops depends on the type of receptor being acted upon, and that tolerance can vary by receptor selectivity, efficacy for signaling, metabolism, lipophilicity, and ability to influence trafficking. These factors affect the duration of an opioid's action, and can also influence the level of sensitivity to its agonist.
Treatment
Many different kinds of treatment are available to help people with opioid addiction, including medications and therapy. Medications such as methadone and buprenorphine can reduce cravings and withdrawal symptoms, and can help prevent relapse.
These medications can also be used as long-term maintenance medicine after detoxification and can help with other problems such as anxiety and depression. The medication may be given by a healthcare provider at home or in a medical clinic.
Behavioral therapy such as cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT) and family therapy can also be helpful for some people with opioid use disorder. These therapies can help you identify why you might be using drugs and teach you to cope with your struggles more effectively.
While these interventions are important, there is limited research on the effectiveness of psychosocial treatments in combination with medications to treat opioid addiction. This is an area of important future research that needs to be addressed in an effort to increase access to and improve outcomes for individuals struggling with opioid addiction and their families.
