Generally speaking, withdrawal from heroin and other opiates may occur as early as a few hours after the last use. The withdrawal symptoms of heroin addiction include:

•  drug craving
•  restlessness
•  muscle and bone pain
• insomnia
• diarrhea
• vomiting
• sweats and cold flashes

Major withdrawal symptoms of heroin addiction and other opiate addictions peak between 48 and 72 hours after the last dose. Without proper medical care seizures or convulsions can occur. The good news is that an addict can usually complete heroin detox or opiate detox within five and seven days.

Choose Inpatient Heroin Detox or Opiate Detox Programs

Heroin detox and opiate detox can be a very challenging process both physically and emotionally. It is my opinion that anyone undergoing heroin detox or opiate detox, should do so in drug rehab programs or addiction treatment programs that specialize in medical detox programs. All heroin detox programs should be medically monitored, complete with 24 hour nursing, able to dispense medications as needed and directed by a physician trained in addiction medicine (addictionologist).

Ongoing Addiction Treatments

Even after heroin or opiate detox is complete, many people require ongoing addiction treatments, therefore heroin detox should take place within one of many drug rehab centers or addiction treatment programs. Drug rehab programs provide a smoother transition from heroin detox and opiate detox programs, which are medically driven, into a clinically driven level of care within the drug rehab.

Structure is Key

Another reason we feel that heroin detox should be provided within the confines of drug rehab programs or addiction treatment programs is due to the structure they provide. Many people attempt heroin detox on an outpatient basis. While outpatient heroin detox can work for some, most addicts require the structure of inpatient detox programs to deal with the cravings and keep them away from their environment, old friends and access to opiates.

While in the grips of heroin or opiate addiction, addicts are often involved in high risk activities. By undergoing opiate detox or heroin detox in drug rehab centers, addicts receive a comprehensive physical examination. This will help identify any medical problems that are present and need to be addressed. This examination process is begun in detox and ongoing support is available if a person transitions into drug rehab.

Successful interventions include expressions of warmth, caring and concern for the affected person. They are best facilitated by trained professionals who support all participants and who structure the intervention so that concerns are addressed and unnecessary conflict is kept to a minimum. Most intervention specialists will work in advance with the concerned parties to prepare for the formal intervention itself. A successful intervention typically results in the chemically dependent person entering treatment.

What Happens in the Body With Heroin Addiction

Just why it’s so hard to overcome heroin is easy to see when you look at what the drug does to your body. Over time, your nervous system has adapted to accommodate chronic use of the drug. When heroin first infiltrates your body, your brain’s natural chemistry reacts with heroin’s toxins to create the feeling of heroin euphoria. Other effects include a feeling of heaviness and inability to move, dizziness, nausea, change in skin temperature. You feel tired, and the world seems to no longer exist around you. In effect, you are incapable of functioning either mentally or physically.

Heroin also damages the central nervous system, and may also cause short- and long-term harm to the respiratory and cardiovascular systems. Many users overdose and die from the drug’s toxic effects, while others suffer severe and permanent damage.

A University of California study of 581 male heroin addicts monitored over 30 years (1964 to 1994) found alarming results. After 30 years, more than half (284) of the original participants, had died. Causes of the deaths: 22 percent died from overdose, 15 percent of chronic liver disease, and 20 percent from suicide or homicide. Of the remaining 43 percent of the deaths, the causes were AIDS, cancer or cardiovascular diseases. What about the 297 addicts still alive after 30 years? The sad truth is that 43 percent of them were still using heroin.

You’ve Made the Decision to Enter Detox – Now What?

Just by entering detox you’ve made a powerful first step. You may have finally hit bottom, due to a combination of physical and emotional consequences of the effects of heroin. Perhaps you had an intervention and that’s why you arrived at detox. The point is that you’re here. Now what?

Some of the immediate effects of detoxification from heroin are those you’re already quite familiar with. Every time your high wore off and you didn’t get your fix right away, your body started to feel some of the withdrawal symptoms. You may have even tried to quit cold turkey – not a good idea, as you well know if you’ve tried it.

Physical withdrawal symptoms include: a 3- to 5-day period of intense anxiety, insomnia, flu-like symptoms, cramps, chills, sweating, diarrhea and goose bumps. Muscles start to tighten and twitch, leading to involuntary spasms or kicking. Psychological cravings for the drug become almost unbearable, impossible to fight. Peak withdrawal symptom severity occurs about 24 hours after termination of the drug, and can last a week or more. Without medication to manage the withdrawal symptoms, the pain can be excruciating. But unless other medical problems exist, detox itself is not life-threatening.

Detoxification under medical supervision alleviates the discomfort of heroin withdrawal, managed by administration of medication – if the patient chooses this method. Using medication, the effects can be minimized or even prevented. Drugs used include methadone, clonidine and buprenorphine drugs like Subutex or Suboxone.

By Suzanne Kane

Probably the most challenging area for health care providers is diagnosing patients who truly have a dual diagnosis. The reason a dual diagnosis is so difficult to determine is because more cases than not, a mental illness is coupled with a substance abuse and addiction situation. It is for this reason that many of these patients are placed in addiction treatment homes or centers only to discover that they are in fact dealing with a dual diagnosis. The problem is that substance dependence can masquerade as a psychiatric disorder, so many times the mental illness is not discovered or revealed until much later than at the initial evaluation.

It can be a very difficult situation to identify a patient with dual diagnosis. Most times they are in denial about their substance abuse so when the addiction is discovered, they overlook the fact that the mental illness is still exacerbating the substance problem and vice-versa. Therefore only one of the two issues is identified. And with teens it is even more difficult. With kids going through puberty and all of the emotional fluctuations that accompany that, how can you be sure that this young man or woman are actually suffering from a bi-polar disorder or even depression? For that very reason it is imperative that when seeking an addiction treatment center you find one that has an acute awareness of this dual disease. It is only then that you can truly have hope for a full recovery.

by Groshan Fabiola

In general, Ultra Rapid Detox is a process of accelerating the detoxification process in patients who are addicted to drugs such as opiates, heroin, and even prescription pain relievers. The Ultra Rapid Detox process should be conducted in a hospital setting while the patient is under general anesthesia. The process needs to be overseen by certified anesthesiologists and a nursing staff that specialize in such procedures. While under anesthesia, the patient is administered medications that counteract the addictive substances. If the procedure is done correctly, the patient awakens from general anesthesia having gone partially through the drug withdrawal syndrome. Depending on how long the individual is under general anesthesia, withdrawal symptoms and physical cravings may be absent or partially absent upon awakening. However, the psychological and emotional aspects of addiction are not treated and, also, the patient hasn’t learned to change their behavior or response to their emotions regarding drugs. Because of this there is a significant risk that the patient will return to drug use shortly after ultra rapid detox.

If you are looking to get clean and stay clean clean then visit Florida Sunrise Detox or New Jersey Sunrise Detox where true medical professionals can assist you in the recovery process.  At Sunrise Detox they will treat you with care and compassion and help you through one of the most difficult times in your life.  You don’t have to detox alone and with the proper care you are more likely to stay off of drugs and lead a fulfilling life!  Sunrise Detox is a renowned  drug treatment facility specializing in detox for heroin, cocaine, alcohol, benzodiazepines and other prescription drugs.

Myths About Ultra Rapid Detox

With Ultra Rapid Detox I’ll wake up completely free from my addiction
Depending on the length of general anesthesia, you may or may not wake up free from the physical cravings of your addiction. In either case, you will still be completely addicted psychologically to the drug that you are addicted to.

I won’t feel any withdrawal symptoms with Ultra Rapid Detox
If you are under general anesthesia long enough, this might be true. However, there is a marked risk of death when one is placed under prolonged general anesthesia. Therefore, more recently “ultra rapid detox” treatments are done where the patient is under for no more than 4 to 6 hours. With shortened general anesthesia there’s a higher likelihood of having residual withdrawal symptoms upon awakening.

Ultra Rapid Detox is safe
Ultra Rapid Detox has higher risks than other detox methods and remains controversial within the medical community. There is a relative lack of scientific research to support the safety of this procedure. General anesthesia carries with it a risk of death and this risk is increased when anesthesia is prolonged. Some facilities will keep a patient under for up to 24 hours. Safety increases when time under general anesthesia is lessened, for example, down to 4 to 6 hours. However, a shorter course of general anesthesia may result in the individual experiencing more withdrawal symptoms upon awakening than otherwise.

Ultra Rapid Detox works!
Despite the wide publicity of Ultra Rapid Detox, there have not been any controlled studies to prove its effectiveness. This lack of scientific support makes it an unproven and controversial treatment for drug and opioid addiction. Ultra Rapid Detox does not treat the psychological, behavioral, and lifestyle aspects of addiction, only the physical addiction and, as time and practice prove, it is these latter aspects which hold the most control over the recovering addict.

Signs of heroin addiction are no different than that of most other opiate addictions, or any addiction for that matter. Here is just a short list of some of the things I have experienced in my own life. If any of these things sound familiar whether it’s in your life or the life of someone close to you, it could be the beginning of a heroin addiction. Addiction is a very serious issue and should be dealt with by medical professionals in the initial withdrawal stages to ensure a safe detox from heroin.

If you feel ill often for long periods of time then you may be going through heroin withdrawal. This can make someone very irritable and lash out to the ones close to them. When heroin is leaving the system it is a very painful and traumatic experience for the addict. Withdrawal can make you sick for days on end and if you must come off the drug, then it is best to do so under the care of a doctor and enter a detox center. Heroin addiction is a serious issue. If you feel you may be addicted please consult a doctor.  A doctor can best advise proper heroin addiction detox treatment. Then later after the drug is removed from the system, then you can think about drug addiction recovery. There are many great treatment centers available that can be visited around your schedule. A 28 in patient treatment may be the best route, but outpatient treatment is also available. 12 step recovery is also a great way to deal with addiction once released from treatment. This way you can have a form of personal treatment when released into the real world.