I worked some overtime today. Its so rare to get overtime with the state of Pa. Anyway on the way to work on the NJ transit bus, I was talking with 2 folks. They were on the way to a methadone clinic in Camden. One was on heroin and the other was hooked on percocet. They explained that they have to go to the clinic EVERYDAY to get their methadone. It got me to thinking that recovery is a full-blown lifestyle. I notice that they can talk about this for hours. (bus is a 2 hr ride). It really impresses me that heroin addition is nothing to take lightly. It becomes your life even while you have been off for years. It has been an education talking and listening to folks dealing with their lives.
Here is a description of methadone that I found :
Here is a description of methadone that I found :
Methadone is a rigorously well-tested medication that is safe and efficacious for the treatment of narcotic withdrawal and dependence. For more than 30 years this synthetic narcotic has been used to treat opioid addiction. Heroin releases an excess of dopamine in the body and causes users to need an opiate continuously occupying the opioid receptor in the brain. Methadone occupies this receptor and is the stabilizing factor that permits addicts on methadone to change their behavior and to discontinue heroin use. Taken orally once a day, methadone suppresses narcotic withdrawal for between 24 and 36 hours. Because methadone is effective in eliminating withdrawal symptoms, it is used in detoxifying opiate addicts. It is, however, only effective in cases of addiction to heroin, morphine, and other opioid drugs, and it is not an effective treatment for other drugs of abuse.
Methadone reduces the cravings associated with heroin use and blocks the high from heroin, but it does not provide the euphoric rush. Consequently, methadone patients do not experience the extreme highs and lows that result from the waxing and waning of heroin in blood levels. Ultimately, the patient remains physically dependent on the opioid, but is freed from the uncontrolled, compulsive, and disruptive behavior seen in heroin addicts.Withdrawal from methadone is much slower than that from heroin. As a result, it is possible to maintain an addict on methadone without harsh side effects. Many MMT patients require continuous treatment, sometimes over a period of years.
Methadone maintenance treatment provides the heroin addict with individualized health care and medically prescribed methadone to relieve withdrawal symptoms, reduces the opiate craving, and brings about a biochemical balance in the body. Important elements in heroin treatment include comprehensive social and rehabilitation services
See y'all later from my world
