Prescription Drug Addiction Is Real

The doctor prescribed this medication for you, so it’s safe to take, right? Prescription medications are generally safe, when taken under a doctor’s careful supervision. The problem is that some medications are addictive in nature. It might take more and more of the medication to have the same effect as when you first were prescribed it. Over time, your body begins to crave this medication. Pill addicts, as they’re often known, start to seek these medications outside of their doctor’s care. They might buy them on the streets. They might become patients of many doctors who prescribe these drugs unwittingly. Some become known as “frequent fliers” in local ERs where they come in with repeated injuries in an attempt to score more meds.

If you or a loved one find it difficult to live without a particular prescription drug, it’s time to seek treatment at a rehab facility.

The common prescription drugs that lead to abuse are those that have a narcotic effect on the brain’s chemistry. They’re known as Schedule II or Class D drugs. Some of them are stimulants, like Adderall or diet pills which perk you up. Others might be sleeping pills or sedatives, like Valium. The most common addiction, the one that has fundamentally reached a national epidemic level, is to opioids. These are generally prescribed as pain killers, like Oxycontin or Oxycodone. Many people are first prescribed these drugs following a serious accident or surgery. There is a tremendous danger that patients who can no longer access these drugs legally will turn to dealers and even try heroin.

If you or a loved one find it difficult to live without a particular prescription drug, it’s time to seek treatment at a rehab facility. There’s no shame in admitting that you are addicted to a drug. It’s like any disease; you need help to get well.

Call Rehab-Finder.Org at 877-251-4813. One of our experts will help you find the treatment plan you need to kick your addiction to the curb.

Could You Be Addicted to Prescription Medications?

How are you using the medication your doctor prescribed? Are you taking it as directed? Are you using more of it than recommended or taking it for a reason other than prescribed, such as to get high? This is how drug addiction begins. You may have originally been prescribed a medicine to treat an illness, help you cope with pain, lose weight, stay focused, or even relax and sleep. At some point, what started off as short-term use to treat a specified condition became a long-term pattern of abuse with serious repercussions.

Addictions are often the result of other issues. You could have a genetic predisposition to become addicted, such as a family history. You could have a mental illness. You might suffer from a form of post-traumatic syndrome, such as from grief or being physically or sexually assaulted or abused. This medication may have helped you cope with the pain, even taken it away briefly. Like with any addiction, though, you needed more and more to get that high.

Just because these are prescription drugs, it doesn’t mean that they are safer than street drugs if you abuse them. If you find that the drug has control over your life, you need to seek help. Prescription drugs are meant to be therapeutic, but it is possible to become addicted, especially if you mistreat their use. If this is you, we want to help you get clean.

Signs That You Could Be Abusing Prescription Drugs

Many people don’t realize that they’re abusing prescription drugs because they were given them by a doctor. Others decided to try drugs offered to them by friends, without knowing how these meds would interact with their brain chemistries. We live in a society in which pills have become the go-to coping mechanisms for every ailment, from physical pain to coping with daily life.

Sadly, what starts out as an attempt to get well is ultimately making you sicker. You might find that you’re self-medicating and increasing your doses to feel better. Stimulants, sedatives, and opiates all have the ability to impact your brains’ signals so that you crave these drugs. Over time, not only do you need more medication to get that good feeling, but you’re destroying aspects of your life.

It’s not uncommon for people who are addicted to prescription drugs to neglect their families and friends, studies, or work. Their overall attitude may change dramatically, giving way to violent outbursts. They may become obsessed with partying and start drinking heavily. Their finances begin to suffer, and they may begin to steal from others, including family and friends. People who are in the throes of a drug addiction tend not to groom themselves, letting their looks go. They become secretive and anxious, and avoid family and friends in favor of those who also use.

Does this describe your life? Is this what you want? You want to get better and we want to help you.

Call us at 877-251-4813 to get started on feeling well again, without drugs.

Prescription Drugs Have Side Effects When Misused

All drugs can have side effects. When you’re missing using prescription medications, these become more severe. Understanding how prescription medications can interact with your body could help you realize how important it is that you seek help if you are abusing them.

The side effects of prescription drugs when abused can vary based on the drug itself. Some to look for, including from drugs like Vicodin, Ritalin, Xanax, Valium, and Oxycontin are:

• Impacted sleep (sleeping more or less)
• Impaired decision-making abilities
• Rapid and extreme mood swings
• Hostility
• Tolerance and increased dosage
• Forging prescriptions
• Theft
• An appearance of being high, such as animated or subdued
• Doing anything you can to get a prescription, from scamming doctors to losing scrips
• Taking over-the-counter drugs to try and get the same effect

It is extremely possible to overdose on prescription drugs if you are abusing them. Call 911 and seek immediate medical treatment if you encounter the following warning signs:

•  Nausea
• Vomiting
• Diarrhea
• Seizures
• Confusion
• Difficulty breathing
• Internal bleeding
• Decreased respiration
• Heart issues (fast or slow pulse)
• Hallucinations
• Unconsciousness

Any of these symptoms should be treated as a medical emergency, as they could lead to permanent damage or death. DO NOT DELAY seeking treatment.

Helping a Family Member Fight Addiction Is a Call Away

It’s such a helpless feeling to see someone you love in the grips of an addiction of any kind. Prescription med addictions in particular can be hard because you or your loved one believed these were safe drugs to take. If you missed the warning signs of a prescription drug addiction, don’t beat yourself up. You can still help your loved one seek help. In fact, at Rehab-Finder.Org, we can help get you in touch with professionals who understand how difficult it is to convince someone else it’s time to end this abuse.

There are some things to remember as you go down the path to helping a loved one get help. When you’re ready to address this issue with a person, here are points you need to consider:

• Your loved one may not be able to grasp the severity of his or her problem at first. In fact, it is going to take some time. You need to be prepared for what could be a long process of getting him or her to accept that he or she needs help.
• Make sure that you are able to address this problem when you are alone with this person and free from interruptions or distractions.
• If your loved one is in denial and refuses to accept that he or she has an issue, tell them you’ll talk to them later.
• Don’t try to convince so much as open his or her eyes to the fact that you see the behaviors that signal an addiction.
• You want your loved one to know that you are here to support them, so let the conversation be a two-way street. Do not let them think you are lecturing or accusing them, as this can backfire.
•  Make sure he or she knows that you are concerned for his or her safety and overall health.
• If he or she is under the influence, wait until later to discuss the problem. People who are using are less likely to understand the logic and could react poorly.
• Remember, this is a LONG process, possibly a lifetime endeavor for which you will need to be prepared. There is no such thing as an immediate fix.