Heroin Addiction Treatment

The best way to start overcoming these stigmas is to understand that the drug truly takes control of the brain and body, sometimes after only one use. Those who struggle with addiction to heroin are chemically dependent on the drug; many reach a point where they need the drug to feel any normalcy or happiness because of the way it affects brain chemistry.

Heroin is a type of opiate, which is a derivative of the opium poppy plant used for thousands of years for its pain-killing properties. Modern opiates are a class one narcotic in the United States because of their ability to affect the sympathetic nervous system — the system that controls functions like heart rate, breathing, blood vessel dilation and oxygen intake. Using opiate drugs like heroin significantly slows these processes and blocks pain receptors, resulting in a sleepy, enjoyable high. However, overdosing on heroin can result in insufficient breathing or cardiac arrest as the lungs slow and heartbeat fails.

With continued use, heroin abusers need increasingly more of the drug to experience the same level of high. This is known as drug tolerance, and it occurs as the brain starts to rely on the drug to produce enough neurotransmitters to stabilize your mood. The more tolerance you develop, the more heroin you need to move beyond a stable mood and into a high. This is one of the reasons that so many heroin users overdose: before they realize it, they are taking dangerously large doses of the drug in an attempt to achieve a high. This also has the effect of making the time between highs feel worse, which further encourages users to continue using. Some signs that may indicate a steadily worsening heroin habit include:

The problem with heroin addiction, much like every opiate addiction, is that those affected are put into prisons for taking these drugs when the problem is much bigger than violating laws. Addiction goes much deeper than what we see at face value, and people are beginning to understand this idea. No matter how much we jail these people that are affected by heroin addiction, they will not stop using. Even in these facilities, they will find a way to get drugs.

But in addiction recovery centers, we understand the extent of the healing process. We know that it is possible for a person struggling with addiction to overcome their habits and successfully establish a new, substance-free life. We also know that addiction stems from a much deeper place than random criminal activity or delinquent boredom — the stigma of drug abusers as deserving of punishment is simply not true in the vast majority of cases.

In treatment at Cypress Lake Recovery, we want our patients to feel comfortable seeking treatment and never worry about any judgments related to heroin addiction. Coming forward and admitting you need help is the very first step in overcoming heroin addiction in Texas. We can help you get real treatment for heroin addiction that will detox the body and free the mind from all stresses and anxiety, allowing you to start over sober with a clean slate.