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Heroin Facts
- Short-term effects of heroin include: warm flushing of the skin, dry mouth, slurred speech, constricted pupils and droopy eyelids, as well as itchy skin.
- Heroin is sometimes sniffed, or the fumes from the heated powder is inhaled (this method is sometimes called "chasing the dragon").
- Heroin is a highly addictive drug derived from morphine, which is obtained from the opium poppy.
- Users often experience nausea and vomiting the first time they take heroin, especially after injecting.
Heroin Treatment
Heroin Addiction Recovery is similar to the recovery of most addictive drugs, except that heroin addiction withdrawal can last several weeks to months. Attempting heroin addiction detoxification without proffessional assistance is not only dangerous, but sometimes deadly. Heroin addiction withdrawal can cause serious physical and emotional trauma including: stroke, heart attack and even death. Methadone is often used to ease heroin withdrawal, though this typically ends with the individual acquiring an addiction to another drug. Recovery from heroin addiction involves detoxification as the initial step. Secondly, the individual needs to be willing to participate in a rehabilitation program and continually exert themselves daily throughout their heroin addiction rehabilitation program. The highest documented success rates for heroin addiction recovery are through long term drug rehabilitation treatment lasting at least 3 to 6 months. This gives structure and support to provide long term recovery from heroin addiction.