As the American opioid crisis continues to grab headlines and impact a large subset of the population, people are becoming more interested in the origins of opioids. Although many of the most popular painkillers like hydrocodone and oxycodone are partially human-made, they also derive partly from opium. Opium has a long and complicated history among humans, but most people don't fully understand ...
Outpatient Methadone Treatment Benefits
When looking for opioid addiction treatment for yourself or a loved one, you can choose from inpatient or outpatient options. While inpatient care involves checking into a facility, outpatient care consists of regular visits. Both treatment models have benefits for patients. The right choice for one person will differ from someone else's because everyone has a unique experience with addiction and ...
Veterans and Opioid Abuse
Due to the intense daily demands for military members, many of them encounter various injuries, pain or discomfort during or after military service. These issues can lead to months of recovery and even chronic pain. Opioids are one of the most commonly prescribed medications to help alleviate pain and discomfort. Unfortunately, opioid pain medication is a legitimate health concern in the ...
Benefits of Adding Counseling to Methadone Treatment
Opioid addiction has physical, emotional and social elements. Methadone maintenance treatment involves the use of medicine to address the physical aspects of addiction. When you take methadone as directed, it reduces your withdrawal symptoms to help you commit to recovery. Support services like counseling address the emotional and social aspects of opioid use disorder. Once you have fewer ...
What’s Stronger — Methadone or Dilaudid?
Opioids have different levels of strength and various purposes in medical settings. The medicines used in medication-assisted treatment (MAT) count as opioids, but they interact with the body differently than other opioids. How do these medications differ in strength and usage? We can compare two opioids, methadone and Dilaudid® (hydromorphone), as an example. Why Only a Doctor Can Determine the ...
The Effects of Heroin
Heroin is one of the most addictive drugs in the world, and it has made a resurgence as part of the opioid epidemic. We are not experiencing the first point in history that heroin has been a popular drug of abuse. The Bayer Company started manufacturing heroin in 1898, after realizing it was more effective than codeine for treating respiratory diseases. However, it soon became apparent that the ...
