Opiate addiction is a serious and widespread health-related issue. Over the past decade, rates of opiate abuse have skyrocketed nationwide. Sadly, many men and women who have addiction recovery resources available to them have lost their lives to the disease of opiate addiction, either because they remain unaware of available resources or because they believe they can overcome opiate addiction on their own accord. It is important to recognize that while the symptoms associated with opiate withdrawal might not be directly life-threatening, they can be extremely dangerous and harshly uncomfortable when left untreated.
Detoxing From Opiates On Your Own
Many describe the physical symptoms associated with opiate withdrawal as similar to the symptoms that might go hand-in-hand with the bad flu – runny nose, watery eyes, nausea, vomiting and diarrhea, muscle aches and cramping, persistent headaches, sleep-related issues, profuse sweating, and body tremors. These symptoms are extremely uncomfortable and can last for up to two full weeks. Fortunately, all of these symptoms can be effectively treated in a medically monitored detox facility. In many cases, medication-assisted treatment will be utilized, and individuals who were suffering from opiate addiction will be prescribed useful opioid antagonists like Suboxone.
Not only will medications like this help alleviate the physical symptoms associated with opiate withdrawal, but they will help clients effectively manage psychological opiate cravings. One of the main reasons why opiate detox should never be attempted in an at-home setting is because psychological cravings often lead individuals to relapse before the withdrawal process is over. However, there are many additional reasons why opiate addiction should never be attempted at home. Including the following – take a look!
At-Home Opiate Detox – A Good Idea?
There are several reasons why you should never attempt to detox from opiates of any kind (including heroin and prescription painkillers) in an at-home setting. These reasons include (but are not limited to):
- If something goes wrong, you will require immediate medical attention. If you are in an at-home setting you will not have access to the care you need. If you are undergoing a medical emergency and there is no one around to call emergency first responders, opiate withdrawal could prove to be fatal.
- Even if you have access to medications like Suboxone that help with opiate withdrawal, administering these medications yourself is extremely dangerous and could lead to overdose.
- There is no reason to undergo a painful withdrawal. At Agape Treatment Center, we provide all of the comforts of home along with numerous additional, luxury amenities to make the detox process as comfortable as possible.
- You will have access to these luxury amenities – things you would never have access to otherwise. Things like well-appointed private bedrooms that are deep-cleaned daily by support staff members, chef-prepared meals, around-the-clock clinical care, medication-assisted treatment, therapeutic services, and much, much more.
Agape Treatment Center and Opiate Abuse
At Agape Treatment Center, we have extensive experience treating men and women of all personal backgrounds who have been suffering at the hands of opiate addiction of any severity. We sincerely believe that for an individual to overcome opiate addiction long-term, he or she must undergo an intensive, multi-phased continuum of clinical care – which always begins with medically monitored detox. Attempting to detox at home is extremely dangerous and should never be attempted. Not only can the physical symptoms of opiate withdrawal present serious complications if not professionally treated, but the psychological cravings that go hand-in-hand with opiate withdrawal are often overwhelming and impossible to effectively combat without medication and therapeutic care. At Agape Treatment Center, we believe in a comprehensive approach to detox, meaning that in addition to physical healing we focus on emotional and mental healing as well.
If you have attempted to detox at home (or anywhere other than in a medical detox facility), there is a good chance that you experienced a relapse into old behaviors and active drug use within the first several days – if not the first several hours. If you are ready to reclaim your life and stay sober long-term, give us a call today. Our treatment advisors are standing by to answer any program-related questions you may have.
