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Most Commonly Abused Drugs
Drug addiction is now commonplace in our society. Nearly every family in the U.S. can say how they either personally have experienced addiction from a direct family member or from a close member of their community. The answer in how to end drug addiction begins with the accessibility and availability of professional drug addiction treatment programs. The drug addiction programs available in New Jersey that we advocate for utilize science-based methods that enable quality addiction recovery as a program for drug addiction treatment.
The centers we advocate for focus on comprehensive drug addiction treatment for heroin, prescription opiates, alcohol, benzodiazepines, and stimulants. Addiction to each of these drugs over time and quickly become very difficult to overcome without professional help.
Heroin Addiction
Heroin addiction is extremely difficult to stop using without replacement medications to help the addict withdrawal safely and successfully. Heroin is a synthetic opiate-based drug that derives from the resin of poppy flower, which is found in Asia and other parts of the world. It was discovered initially for its ability to lessen pain and morphine was developed from it. Heroin is not processed the same way that morphine is and therefore is much stronger and more addictive.
Heroin addicts use the drug either by injecting it with a needle, smoking it or snorting it. Once a person uses heroin regularly their body becomes physically dependent on it and unless they continue to use it they exercise debilitating withdrawal symptoms that can be life-threatening. The first step in helping someone who is addicted to heroin is to admit them into a medically supervised detox center that treats heroin addiction. The heroin addiction treatment centers we recommend in New Jersey are able to admit a person into detox within 24 hours.
Opiate Addiction
Like heroin addiction, prescription opiates are also as physically addictive and dangerous. Prescription opiates include Vicodin, Oxycontin, and Oxycodone, Fentanyl, Opana, and Codeine. All of these prescription opiates are prescribed by a doctor but are also sold on the street illegally. The symptoms that a person experiences who has become addicted to prescription opiates are similar to those of heroin addiction. Over time the person who is taking prescription opiates becomes physically dependent on them and must continue to take them in order to avoid experiencing severe physical withdrawal symptoms.
Prescription opiate drugs, like heroin, require medical supervision in order to detox safely off.
Alcoholism
Alcohol is extremely addictive and is unfortunately abused by more than half of the country. Alcoholics are faced with an even more difficult challenge when they are attempting to stop drinking as alcohol is available everywhere. The treatment for alcoholism most commonly begins with admission to a detox center. Alcohol withdrawal symptoms are life-threatening. Once a person has been abusing alcohol in mass quantities and for a long period of time, their bodies experience very dangerous withdrawal symptoms. The danger of these symptoms is that they can cause seizures, heart attacks, suicidal thoughts, and severe depression and anxiety. Like other addictive drugs a person who is addicted to alcohol must continue to drink to avoid these symptoms. To begin helping someone who is an alcoholic the first step is to admit them into a treatment program that specializes in alcohol treatment.
Benzodiazepine Abuse
Benzodiazepines also was known as Benzos, are a class of drugs that are named central nervous depressants. These drugs are prescribed by a doctor to treat anxiety, depression, and fear. The people who become addicted to benzos typically started taking them from the advice of a doctor. However, many people who are addicted to benzos became so without a doctors prescription.
The types of benzos that are commonly abused include, Xanax, Valium, Ativan, and Klonopin. These drugs also cause physical dependency and require medical supervision in order to detox safely. People that are addicted to benzos must be tapered off the drug slowly. Without a taper, the person can be put in a life-threatening the physical state.
Stimulant Abuse
Stimulant drugs are a class of drugs that most commonly include cocaine, crack cocaine and methamphetamine. These types of drugs are highly addictive and often cause the user to remain on them for many years. Although neither these drugs cause physical addiction they are extremely dangerous to detox off. Stimulant addicts often experience emotional disorders as well as mental health concerns. The steps to helping the person who is addicted to cocaine or methamphetamine begin with admitting them into a professional drug addiction treatment program that specializes in cocaine or methamphetamine addiction.