Important Questions to Ask About Opiate Addiction
If you are taking opiates to get high, you may come to a point where you begin to question your use. It could be that you have had one too many bad experiences or that you wake up realizing you lost some of the important things in your life. When you reach this point, there are some important questions to ask about your opiate addiction.
How do I know if I am Addicted?
Sometimes it is easy to rationalize that your opiate use is just that. You are using opiates for a purpose. You might wonder if you are addicted to the opiates rather than simply using them. According to the National Institute on Drug Abuse, some of the signs of drug addiction are:
- You lose interest in things you used to enjoy in favor of the drugs
- You have problems at work or school because of the drugs
- Your mood changes depending on where you are in the cycle of taking opiates
- You go through withdrawal when you try to stop taking them
- You begin to lose the things that you care about in favor of taking the drugs
These are only a few of the signs you might experience. If you feel you are using opiates despite the negative consequences, chances are you are addicted.
Where can I Find Help for my Opiate Addiction?
You can find help for your opiate addiction in a treatment center. There are a variety of different types of centers that can help you to overcome your addiction. A few of these are:
- Inpatient treatment centers
- Outpatient treatment centers
- Combination treatment centers
- Alternative treatment centers
Many of the best places for treatment combine all of these times in one convenient location. This way you can get all of the services you need without having to go to different centers to get it.
How People Hide Their Opiate Addiction
Opiate addicts spend a lot of time and energy trying to hide their addiction. If you suspect that a friend or relative is an opiate addict, one way you can tell is by being aware of the ways people hide their opiate addiction.
Using a Form that is Easy to Conceal
According to the National Institute on Drug Abuse, opiates come in many forms. Some of these forms are easier to hide than others. The common forms of opiates are:
- Heroin
- Morphine
- Oxycodone
- Hydrocodone
- Codeine
- Opium
Some of these opiates are easier to hide than others. Prescription painkillers for instance are easily hidden in purses and pockets. Taking prescription painkillers recreationally is easy to hide through a legitimate prescription from a doctor.
Ways People Hide Their Opiate Addiction
There are a number of ways that people can hide an opiate addiction. By the time that the addiction gets bad, most are skilled at hiding what they are doing. Some of these ways are:
- Injecting the opiates in unusual places such as in between to toes or more recently in the eyes.
- Working late or getting high at work.
- Hiding or stealing money from friends, work, or family to buy the opiates instead of trying to explain where their money is going.
- Losing their prescriptions or requesting multiple prescriptions
- Doctor shopping or going to more than one doctor
- Developing multiple complains that require opiates to treat.
- Refusing other forms of treatment to get opiates
- Filing false insurance claims for their prescriptions
All of these are ways that people hide their opiate use. It takes practice to become skilled at hiding drug use and the use can be difficult to discover.
If you suspect someone is abusing legal or illegal opiates, look for the signs of opiate addiction and use. When you find someone abusing opiates, it is important to encourage them to seek help as soon as possible.