There is a drug that has been used for treatments of narcotic withdrawal symptoms and dependences. It is called Methadone, and it is commonly used to treat things such as opium and heroin addictions. Because of the difficulty most people have shaking these addictions on their own, methadone is very helpful for people because it allows them to avoid the symptoms of withdrawal that keep them sick and under control of their drug.
In order for it to work successfully, methadone must be taken once a day. It works to suppress the withdrawal symptoms of the narcotic, and it keeps working for up to a day or perhaps more. It is often used to help opiate addicts get through the detox process because of its symptom-blocking effects. Methadone is monitored by a drug addiction specialist and is often used as part of a drug rehabilitation program.
Unfortunately, methadone is only effective when someone is addicted to heroin, morphine, or other drugs that are opiates. It is not an effective addiction treatment for other types of drugs. Methadone is able to reduce the cravings that are usually associated with heroin use, and therefore the high of heroin is blocked from the user.
Most often, patients who take methadone remain physically dependant on the methadone, which means they are still addicted to a substance, it is just not as dangerous a substance as the drug they were addicted to. However, they do not experience the highs and lows that usually result from the heroin going through their bodies, and so it replaces the addiction.
There will come a point where someone must manage to get through withdrawal from methadone. This is also going to be hard on someone, but they will not be anywhere near as hard as the original withdrawal from the opiate might have been. Also, a patient in the drug rehab center will do this portion of the treatment under a doctor’s guidance, so the doctor is going to be able to help them with the methadone withdrawal.
Like all drugs, there can be problems with methadone use. Most of the major problems occur when someone uses this drug in ways that it is not intended to be used. When it is used under a physician’s care, there are not going to be any problems that are associated with the use of methadone. However, with the abuse of methadone, there will be serious complications and side effects. Methadone is used by many drug addiction treatment and drug rehab programs to help control withdrawal symptoms.
It also happens that a person does not intend to abuse methadone. If someone believes that since one dose of methadone was so effective, two will be even more so, and they take more doses than the doctor has prescribed to them, they are going to develop a tolerance, and eventually will develop a strong addiction, typically known as prescription drug abuse. This type of addiction is not going to be as easy to shake as the slight addiction that occurs when it is used under a doctor’s care. If a person takes more methadone than they are supposed to, the chemicals in it are going to build up in their bodies and they are going to see the same negative effects that they would be seeing if they were still using their drugs.
Keep in mind that it is also dangerous to stop methadone without the advice of your doctor. Methadone also creates an addiction, so you need to be taken off of this by a doctor, and it is not something you should ever do on your own. In order to correctly stop using methadone, you need to take a look at your life and figure out how it is best to cut down. The doctor will help you gradually cut back on methadone until you are not taking it at all.