Children and Addiction | Video on Opioid Addiction

Posted on November 2, 2011 by pgh

Children and Addiction | Review of Opioid Addiction Video

Children And Addiction

This is a review of a video on children and addiction. We don’t really see children in methadone treatment centers, but they too have opioid problems. The original video can be located at the PCSS-B website. It covers the topic of children and addiction to physician authorized medications. It also covers children and addiction and the current treatment with the medication Suboxone.

I thought the video on children and addiction very interesting. It is aimed towards physicians who prescribe Suboxone (buprenorphine), but it is simple enough for the pubic to understand most of it. The video is about 40 minutes in length. Adding the introduction, body and Q&A it will take close to an hour to watch.

Children and Addiction Video Highlights

The lecture on children and addiction reviews the current problems with opioids in children and teens and then moves to the use of suboxone in children and young adults. Here are the main points:

Children and teens use physician authorized opioids because of several reasons. They think because these medications are prescribed by a doctor, they are not harmful. Since they observe adults using physician authorized narcotics, they think they are safe to experiment with. Finally, they think that since one doesn’t have to obtain the drug from an illegal source (you can go to a pharmacy) that they are not really “bad” and they will get into less problems using these medications. There seems to be less stigma using physician authorized pills compared to illegal drugs. All these combine to the increase the risk of children and addiction.

There has been an effort in the United Stated during the last ten years to alleviate pain better. This has caused more physician authorized drugs in the community and more children and addiction.

There were about 1 million people addicted to opiates in the year 2000. In 2006, the national survey on drug use and health indicated this number being 2.4 million.

Narcotic related admissions for 18-25 year olds doubled from 1993 to 2002.

Children and addiction comes from the fact 1 in 8 teens has tried narcotics “for fun” before completing high school. Half of the new narcotic users in 2001 were below the age of 18. 60% of teens indicate physician authorized meds are easy to get from family and others. Half of teens say narcotics are easy to buy from the internet or easy to obtain or steal from others close to them.

The USA has 4.6% of the globe’s population, but 80% of the narcotic supply is here. 99% of the globe’s hydrocodone (in Vicodin) is consumed in the States.

Following alcohol and cannabis, physician authorized opioids are the most abused drugs

Suboxone is approved for ages 16 and above. It has been used in younger children.

Daily habits of physician authorized pills initially can be purchased by a teen, but soon costs get out of control and can reach hundred’s of dollars per day. When this occurs, they begin using heroin which is more pure and cheaper and this increases the children and addiction.

In 2003, the price of narcotic addiction was 100 billion dollars

Children and Addiction | Summary

The use of opioids in children and teens continues to increase yearly. There are likely multiple causes. Children see physician authorized pills as more safe and having less of a bad name than other drugs. They don’t see how children and addiction problems progress over time and cause many problems including a high cost, risk of death from overdose, and being enslaved by the drug. Suboxone (buprenorphine) is one treatment for narcotic dependence. Suboxone can be used to successfully treat children and addiction problems at this young age.

Suboxone Treatment Directory And Methadone Treatment Directory

Dr. Rich is a Board Certified Psychiatrist with licenses in Texas and Hawaii. He specializes in the treatment of opioid addiction with buprenorphine and runs a FREE locator service to find Methadone Treatment including Suboxone treatment of oxycontin addiction. Suboxone Doctor in your area.
Dr. Rich has written more articles on the cost of oxycontin, buprenorphine (Suboxone) including frequently asked questions and a recent post : Suboxone Cost : Will Medicare and Medicaid Cover Treatment ?

Other Resources:

EXPLODING DRUG MYTHS

Drug Addiction Treatment Act

Dark Paradise: A History of Opiate Addiction in America

How To Get Prescription Drug Dependence Long-Term Treatment

Posted on October 14, 2011 by pgh

Drug Dependence and Prescriptions| A Real Problem

Drug Dependence

Prescription drug dependence affects not only families, but the individuals close at hand to them. Within the last fifteen years, the amount of narcotic prescribed drugs has risen dramatically. The U.S. Government Accountability Office reports the use of methadone alone rose eight times between 1998 and 2006 to 4.1 million prescriptions. This increase in the number of prescriptions has led to more diversion and drug dependence of opioids. The Centers for Disease Control has spoken that overdoses of prescription medication are so broad, that only automobile accidents are more frequent. These numbers signal a need for people to seek medication drug dependence treatment.

Medication drug dependence treatment has made advances over the past 10 years. Up until short while ago, doctors would prescribe other addictive opioids to help patients who could not get off their own opioid drugs. This was referred to maintenance treatment. This way of treatment was outlawed until methadone was approved for the treatment of narcotic dependence in the mid 1960’s.

Methadone Maintenance Treatment for Drug Dependence

Methadone Maintenance Treatment has served a valuable function aiding opioid addicts who have been unable to get completely off their drugs. Even though methadone is a narcotic and clients become addicted to this treatment, it is thought to be more useful to do this than have clients go to the streets to satisfy their drug dependence. Narcotic addicts could now go to a physician, receive counseling, and not have the permanent risk of having withdrawals from opioids.

Methadone Maintenance Assistance has many benefits. This treatment is supervised firmly by the people in Washington. It has shown to subdue crime in the areas where addicts are receiving treatment. Expectant mothers have better results for their babies. Methadone maintenance has allowed many drug dependent people to maintain stable employment.

There are downsides to methadone maintenance help. Many of these treatment facilities are positioned in areas that are far for patients to journey. Patients find it complicated to attend the treatment center on a daily basis. Finally, many patients feel these treatment facilities do not allow the amount of concealment they want.

Suboxone Treatment For Prescription Drug Dependence

A newer form of narcotic long-term drug dependence treatment has been a standard over the past 10 years. This approach uses the medication suboxone. It has several advantages over methadone. One main advantage is that suboxone is prescribed by thousands of physicians across the States instead of only a few hundred as is the situation with methadone.

Suboxone overdose rarely results in death. This means it is very much safer than methadone in this respect. Suboxone is abused less commonly than methadone because it does not provide the same high as methadone. Finally, suboxone can be written monthly which is an useful thing for patients. The major disadvantage to the use of suboxone is that it doesn’t seem to assist some of the extreme narcotic addicts that methadone appears capable of doing

Summary Prescription Drug Dependence Long-Term Treatment

Doctors now have two prescription drugs used for opioid drug dependence long-term treatment. The first medication is methadone, and this is administered at approved clinics. The newer drug suboxone, can be prescribed from a physician’s clinic. Because of the advantages of suboxone, many more individuals seeking help for painkiller dependence are able to receive treatment.

If you are trying to find painkiller drug addiction treatment, use our suboxone physician directory to seek out help around you. If you want facts on methadone facilities, you can find more about a methadone treatment clinic here.

Drug Addiction : Finding Help For Loved Ones

Posted on October 13, 2011 by pgh

Finding Help For Drug Addiction

Drug Addiction

Drug Addiction Quick Skip to:

Drug Addiction Treatment Center Directory

Methadone Clinic Treatment Center List

Suboxone Doctor in Your area

Getting help for a person you know with a drug addiction is a rough process. It is challenging to confront your family member and talk about the difficulty they are going through. Some may anticipate losing the relationship while others fear the friend will take even more drugs of abuse. There are two parts to this course. The first piece is getting together with the loved one and having a talk with them. The next part is finding the relief that is acceptable for them.

While you are getting prepared to talk with your loved one about their drug habit, make certain you are in a secluded situation. Try to talk to them when either of you are not under a lot of stress. Arrange something happy to do on the weekend with the friend. Try to start by expressing to them you care for them and that you are fearful at things that are going on in their life. Make clear the problems that you have witnessed happening with them and that you anticipate they want to get relief. You want to see how motivated the loved one is to get help.

Some people with a drug addiction may react well to being petitioned to get help by a person who has their best interest in mind. They may just required a little help with making the decision to look for treatment. Most probably, your friend will not be wanting to seek treatment. The process of determining to get help with a drug addiction can last many months or even years. Just reminding the family member at intervals the problems you see is the most constructive deed you can achieve. If you are seeing the family member doing things that place them or others in danger, you can go to any close drug treatment center. They will help in deciding whether there needs to be mandatory steps taken an if the friend needs immediate treatment against their will.

Forcing drug treatment on loved one is only to separate them from harm’s way. Although some persons do take steps with compelled treatment, plenty don’t. When they are let go, they may be disinclined to get any more help from others. Addiction treatment is a long process. A brief stay in an hospital will only get them on the way of recovery, but they are going to need ongoing help for many months or years. Securing them aid requires a lot of fortitude.

Acquiring Aid with Painkiller Drug Addiction

The treatment for drug addiction has gotten better over the preceding twenty years. There are several new medication treatments that may be beneficial. None of them is a panacea, and each has it’s problems, but countless numbers people have been aided.

Addiction to legal medications is a problem that is becoming confirmed as a major problem. May clients have been introduced on pain pills for a specialized problem such as back pain. We are not sure why, but a chunk of these persons will at the end of the day display addiction to the medication. In days gone by, drug addiction to opioids meant injecting drugs. This is no longer the fact. There are millions of people addicted to physician prescribed pain pills.

Some persons can stop their drug addiction to opioids by securing encouragement from their Family Doctor with getting removed from the opioid. Becoming clean from the painkillers works for almost all persons. Medications can be given by your doctor to assist lessening of the withdrawals from a cutback in the opioid medication. Others need longer treatment. They are rotated to a new drug such as methadone, and slowly reduced from the medication over a period of months or years.

Some clients are unable to get off the drug without backsliding to their old opioids , so they are kept on the methadone for as long as required. This is called maintenance treatment. There is an alternate method, Suboxone treatment, which is a newer medication that does the same thing. It is also safer than using methadone.

There is an additional choice for prescription drug addiction when sobriety is a problem. This is the treatment of an narcotic antagonist such as Vivitrol. This medication blocks any opioid drug in the brain so the person will not sense extreme happiness. This type of medication is now ready for use in a longer acting set preparation. It mainly helps coax an individual to not act on an impulse to use drugs because it won’t let them get high.

Summary of Getting Drug Addiction Help

Helping a family member with a drug addiction requires calmness and caring. Reminding the person you care for of the unmanageables in their life coming from from drugs, that you care for them, and that you will help them seek help is the best way to help them. Many individuals take years to decide to accept drug treament. For some, forced treatment makes them face getting help. There are newer medications available for opioid drug addiction. Reviewing these medications with a doctor can help determine which is the most fitting for you or the person you are trying to help who has a drug addiction.

Drug Addiction Resources

If you are looking for more information on Suboxone, find a suboxone doctor and read artices on suboxone
Find oxycontin addiction treatment and information.

National Institute On Drug Abuse

Opioid Addiction : 10 Questions For You

Posted on September 23, 2011 by pgh

Opioid Addiction: The Problem

Opioid Addiction : 10 Questions If You Have It

Opioid addiction is a major problem in the United States. Statistics from the National Institute on Drug Abuse indicate that there were almost 10 million abusers of prescription drugs in 2009. The number of people overdosing on prescription narcotics (by accident or not) has tripled since 1999. Seniors in high school are using prescriptions (10%). Most recreational use of these prescriptions comes from friends or family members. Oxycontin has become a real problem.

Many people began using opioids for a medical issue such as leg pain, only to have their use become an opioid addiction. Others began by partying in high school only to find they needed to keep using. Many people then wonder if they have an addiction. They want to stop the medication, but they are starting to have problems like withdrawals. They may have never had addictive problems before. Here are some signs of opioid addiction:

Top 10 Signs of an Opioid Addiction

1. You sell items in your house and use the money for opioids-another almost sure sign of addiction.
2. You keep using opioids despite problems such as money, family, legal, or medical problems.
3. You are involved with other drugs of abuse. Having an addiction to alcohol or other drugs of abuse makes you at a greater risk of developing one with narcotics.
4. You go to perilous places, have dealings with questionable people to obtain pills. Seeking opioids in dangerous situations is usually a good sign of a problem.
5. Family or friends say you use too much pain medication. There are arguments over your use.
6. Your day is spent thinking of the drug or trying to find it.
7. You go to more than one doctor for pain medication.
8. You take prescriptions from your spouse or others. Taking other’s prescriptions is a sign of a problem.
9.You are take more pain medication than prescribed by your physician .
10. You skip or are late to family and work responsibilities to use of obtain opioids.

Avoid Opioid Addiction

Opioid medications have been a savior for people with pain. However, there has been an increase in the number of people with addiction problems from these medications as they have become more widely available…and diverted. The first way to avoid Opioid addiction is to only use prescription medication under the care of a single physician. Having different doctors prescribing narcotics to you will eventually cause problems. Always talk to your physician before changing the dose of your prescription.

The next way to avoid problems with opioids is to discuss with your physician alternative chronic pain treatments such as massage or acupunture. There are other alternative treatments. We are finding that chronic pain does not get better with narcotics, so it is worthwhile to look into other treatments for the pain including weight loss, exercise, non-narcotic medications, surgery, stretching, and getting adequate sleep. All these should be discussed with your doctor.

Opioid Addiction Signs Recap

There are many signs of opioid addiction. Others easily see the problems caused by the opioid use and usually will tell you. Other signs are doctor shopping, escalating your dose to high levels over time, and having family, social, and employment problems from the opioid. Be sure to periodically talk with your doctor about getting off opioid medications and if this would be the right choice for you. Long-term opioid use can be more harmful than helpful.

Here is more help on Opioid Addiction Help and Treatment

All About Suboxone : A website that discusses the use of Suboxone for the treatment of opioid dependence. It also contains a doctor and clinic directory to find help near you.
Oxycontin Treatment Directory: Site devoted to Oxycontin Addiction. It contains a database to find treatment help in your area
National Library of Medicine: This link specifically discusses opioid dependence.

Suboxone Treatment Methadone Alternative : What is it?

Posted on September 22, 2011 by pgh

What Is Suboxone Treatment (Buprenorphine Treatment)?

Suboxone Treatment Methadone Alternative

Suboxone treatment is another type of treatment for opioid addiction. It contains many similarities to methadone maintenance treatment. Opioid addicted patients usually relapse when trying to get off opioids such as oxycontin, heroin, vicodin, and other narcotics. Most addicts are unable to get through the withdrawal periods and don’t even last a several days. Others get off, but at the first major stressor in their lives, they return to opioid use. Suboxone treatment can help stop this continuous relapse cycle.

Suboxone treatment will stop the dreaded opioid withdrawals. Since suboxone is another opioid, it will stop these withdrawals. It also stops with cravings that an addict is going through. Many addicts return to opioid use because of these creavings. Suboxone replaces the opioid in the patient’s system. It has to be prescribed and monitored by a doctor. If one is unable to get off opioids, it is better to be on one that is supervised, rather than getting it off the street with all the problems that come with doing this. Eventually for many, the hope is to get off the suboxone treatment with the aid and medication from a physician. Some are able to get completely clean.

Why Suboxone Treatment ? Why Not Just Quit Suddenly

Getting on and staying on a narcotic such as methadone or suboxone works better than stopping suddenly. When a patient is not having to be preoccupied with constant cravings they are able to focus on treatment. When they don’t have to worry about losing their next job from being late getting high, they can focus on treatment. The point of suboxone treatment is to stabilize the person to get other areas of their life better first.

Opioid dependence destroys patient’s lives. Heroin addicts frequently have legal problems. Others are forging prescriptions from their doctor or they are doctor shopping. Not being able to hold down a job cause financial instability. Marriages split apart because of all the arguing and sneaking around. It is hard to pay attention to these areas of one’s life when a person is spending their time looking for drugs. Narcotics can found and taken by children. Relatives learn to distrust you. People seek suboxone treatment to stop all these problems.

Is Suboxone Treatment a Hassle?

Suboxone treatment is much less of a hassle and more convenient than methadone maintenance treatment. The psychiatric evaluation is done in a private doctor’s clinic. Getting stabilized on suboxone can be done in a matter of hours or a few days. The nice thing about suboxone treatment, it that when one is finally doing well with the medication, they only need to go to their doctor’s office once per month to get the medication. Those familiar with methadone maintenance understand that methadone clinics require going to the clinic daily.

Suboxone treatment is less public than methadone maintenance. They see their own doctor and are not around other substance abusing individuals. It is easier to get in and see a suboxone doctor than to get seen at a methadone clinic. During the treatment process, patients will go to their own therapist or to 12 step meetings for counseling. In most cases, they get to determine who they will see. Suboxone is a tablet and is taken under the tongue.

In summary, suboxone treatment is a great alternative for opioid dependence. Although not all patients talking methadone for addiction treatment will successfully be able to convert to suboxone, many can. Now methadone is not the only medication that will work for opioid addiction. Be aware the generic name for suboxone is buprenorphine.

Suboxone Clinic Directory Find a Suboxone Physician Near You

Dr. Rich Senyszyn is a Board Certified Psychiatrist with licenses in Texas and Hawaii. He specializes in the treatment of opioid addiction with buprenorphine and runs a FREE locator service to find help with Oxycontin including Suboxone treatment of oxycontin addiction. Suboxone Clinic in your area.
Dr. Rich has written more articles on the cost of oxycontin, buprenorphine (Suboxone) including frequently asked questions and a recent post : How do I find a Buprenorphine Doctor?

Suboxone Detox Instead of Methadone Treatment ?

Posted on September 13, 2011 by pgh

Suboxone Detox

Suboxone Detox Instead of Methadone Detox

Detoxing from a narcotics involves slowly reducing the quantity of a drug to avoid severe or dangerous withdrawal. People usually seek detox for : Alcohol, benzodiazepines (Xanax, Valium, Klonopin), and opioid drugs. Physical dependence is when an individual experiences withdrawal symptoms when abruptly discontinuing a medication. Symptoms may include tremors, insomnia, anxiety, high blood pressure, seizures, and even death. When a person has taken a narcotic for a long enough period, suddenly stopping the narcotic will lead to withdrawal because of their physical dependence. Symptoms specific to opioid withdrawal: severe cravings, goosebumps, runny nose, diarrhea, stomach cramps, and sweating. The reason for a slow narcotic detox is to help limit these problems and avoid relapse.

Methadone, Suboxone (buprenorphine/Naloxone) are two medications used for detox from opioid drugs. They are used if the patient has not been able to taper the drug they are taking on their own or with the supervision of their physician. One is usually switched from the current medication(Oxycontin, Vicodin, or heroin) to Methadone or Suboxone (buprenorphine) and then the dose of the drug is slowly reduced.

Who should consider Suboxone detox or Methadone Treatment Detox?

If you are unable to stop using heroin in any form.
If you have become addicted to pain killer medications.
If you are having dangerous side effects from opioid pain medications.
If you are injecting or ‘shooting up” narcotics in any form.
If you are snorting opioids in any form.

Previously, it was thought that people addicted to heroin were the main people needing detoxification. However, more recently, we have seen a lot of younger and older patients seeking treatment because of being addicted to their pain medications. Remember, Everyone will eventually get physically dependent to opiods if they are taken long enough and at a high enough dose. However, not everyone becomes an opioid addict. The people who are physically dependent but not involved in addictive behaviors (stealing, planning use, using despite health or social consequences) do quiet well once they are detoxed from opioids.

Suboxone Detox: Another Choice than Methadone Treatment

Suboxone detox is that it can be accomplished from your doctor’s office. Previously, one had the choice of having a opioid detox in the hospital or going to a methadone treatment center for detox. A Suboxone detox is generally more convenient the patient than methadone and can take less time. Many people prefer going to their own physician rather than a methadone clinic. If the patient and doctor decide to do a slow detox with suboxone, there are less office visits (methadone treatment requires almost daily visits) . Suboxone (buprenorphine/naloxone) detox is considered a good for many, but not all opioid addicted individuals who don’t want to go to methadone treatment.

Opioid Detox: How Fast To Reduce

How fast the Methadone or the Suboxone is tapered depends on the what is best for each patient. The detox can be as short as a week to longer than half a year.

The more stable a patient is in their personal, work, and social life, the faster the reduction can be done. Has the patient relapsed many times in the past during or after detoxification? How long have they been using opioids? Are they on other drugs of abuse? Do they have another psychiatric illnesses like depression? How much legal problems dothey have? Theses things need to be weighed by the patient and discussed with their physician before undergoing methadone treatment detox or Suboxone detox.

Suboxone Detox: What Happens

The amount of narcotic withdrawal symptoms that people experience during Suboxone detox varies from patient to patient. Usually, the higher the dose one is starting from and the quicker one reduces the medications, the more withdrawal symptoms that will be experienced.

Despite using Suboxone or Methadone for detox, most people will experience opioid withdrawal symptoms. During opioid withdrawal, my experience is patients have the most problems with the sleeplessness, abdominal pain, diarrhea, and cravings. The National Pain Foundation has a nice summary regarding the symptoms and ways to help.

There are a number of drugs that can be used to help with the withdrawal symptoms that happen during detox. They can be very helpful in getting rest while going through detox in addition to reducing the diarrhea. Using methadone or Suboxone alone during the detox with a slow taper will help reduce the cravings and cramping.

Suboxone Detox: Where Can I find One?

Most psychiatric hospitals can provide a suboxone detox. This can be done in the hospital, or by attending a partial hospitalization program. In an outpatient setting, you need to find a doctor who will prescribe suboxone. There are several Suboxone (buprenorphine) physician directories available that will help you find a center or doctor in your area.

Suboxone Detox Summary:

Methadone and Suboxone are drugs that are used for detoxification in those people wanting to get off their opioid medications or illicit narcotic drug use. The opiod withdrawal symptoms can be reduced with a number of medications. Suboxone doctors and Methadone treatment clinics are available and can be found treatment center directories online.

Find Methadone Treatment or a Doctor in Your Area That Can Start You on Suboxone:

If you need help and are looking for a physician who prescribes Suboxone, click Suboxone Doctor Directory. If you think you may need more intensive treatment such a methadone detox, other opioid detox, or getting started on buprenorphine inpatient, click here for our state opioid treatment center registry. Dr. Senyszyn is a Maui psychiatrist.