Opiate Abuse can be simply defined as the intentional misuse of opiates in spite of the potential for negative consequences like opiate addiction, serious opiate withdrawal symptoms, and the possibility of overdose.  

Opiate use and abuse in America today is a far cry from the stereotypical image of the “junkie” on the street. In fact, the face of opiate abuse now probably looks more like your next door neighbor.  A construction foreman on medication for an aching back, a soccer mom dealing with chronic pain,  a teenager who has easy access to their parents prescription pills. Just about anyone using opiates over an extended period of time can be susceptible to opiate abuse, with the potential for addiction.  The truth is there are twice as many Americans abusing prescription painkillers as there are abusing cocaine and heroin-combined.  Ask any teenager, opiate abuse has gone mainstream.   

Opiate Abuse Can Follow You Home From The Doctor or The Dentist  

Opiate-based painkillers are a pretty common sight in American medicine cabinets; mainly because opiate painkillers are so effective at relieving pain. The dramatic rise of opiate abuse among adults, and increasingly among teens, stems in part from the common use of painkillers prescribed for a myriad of aches and pains.  Doctors routinely prescribe opiate-based pills for backaches, arthritis, and all sorts of aches, pains, and injuries. Pills like OxyContin, Violin, Codeine, Percocet, Preceding, Lora (and many others), regularly prescribed to patients after dental work or minor surgery, have helped to make opiate abuse a mainstream health problem.   The DEA reports that Hydroquinone, a common prescription for pain and coughs, may be the most commonly abused prescription drug in the country.  

A Simple Definition of Opiates  

Opiates are excellent pain relievers but they are highly addictive, if used daily over time, even at prescribed dosages.  What might begin as a routine treatment for pain can lead some patients to opiate abuse, opiate dependency, and opiate addiction. Perhaps because they are legal and easy to get,  most people don’t understand the inherent dangers in using opiates. The term “opiate abuse” might mislead people into thinking opiates are only illegal drugs like opium, heroin, or morphine. They might imagine an exotic scene of a literary wastrel smoking Opium in an Oriental den.  Or perhaps they picture a heroin “junkie” getting a fix. But the reality of opiate abuse is far more mundane.  A quick glance in the medicine cabinet might turn up one of any number of common opiates.  Many people believe that legally prescribed pain relievers with names like OxyContin, Vicodin, Codeine, Percocet, Percodan - or other opiate-based pills or liquids- are relatively safe and non-addictive.  This is simply not true.  Every one of them is an Opiate with addictive qualities similar to heroin or morphine. In fact, the term “Opiates” points to the true nature of each of these brand name pills.  Each of these pills is a synthetic narcotic, derived from the alkaloids of the Opium poppy.  They have the same source as Heroin, and the same potential for opiate abuse, addiction, and withdrawal.  

Our Prescription for Opiate Abuse  

At Reliance Center™, we have developed an opiate detox program designed to return the patient back to his or her normal state of being, prior to addiction.  Our program is designed to ease the major medical and psychiatric complications of withdrawal, to provide humane treatment and relief from the discomfort of withdrawal, and to engage the patient in opiate detox counseling and lifestyle modification.  If you feel that you may be struggling with opiate abuse or addiction, please call us for a consultation.  

More Information on Opiate Detox  

If you would like more detailed information about the opiate detox program at the Reliance Center™, please read about our evidence-based medication and counseling approach on our website, call us today at 415-788-0500, or e-mail us at info@RelianceCenter.com.

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