How to to Get Off of Opiates and Heroin

07 February 2010

Many people have to battle with the vicious demons of addiction. However, one of the most difficult addictions to recover from are opiate drugs and heroin. However, there are some option available to these persons to allow them to live a "normal life". This article will help you understand what options are available to assist you with your cravings and withdrawal symptoms.
Things You'll Need:
Understand that you have a problem.
Realize that this will not be an easy road to recovery.
Strong support system.

Step 1 First you will need to realized and understand that you have a problem. If you do not understand that addiction is not a normal way of life and see your addiction as a problem then you will not be serious about your recovery process. Recovery should be something that you want, and need to take serious.

Step 2 There are two different options that will allow people to live normal lives while in recovery. By normal I mean a life free of the cravings and withdrawals symptoms that are associated with opiate and heroin addiction. The two options are Methadone and Suboxone. Both of these are medications that help keep you from wanting and craving the drugs. Methadone is a long acting opiate drug. The wonderful thing about this drug is you cannot get high off the drug. You will be closely monitored while on this drug, and offered individual counseling while in the program that offers this treatment as an option. The other option is Suboxone which is not an opiate and pretty much does the same thing as methadone. You can find valuable information about these two options online. However, methadone is a lot cheaper alternative especially for individual's without insurance.

Step 3 How do you get enrolled into one of these programs? If you think that methadone would be an option for you then you would like to find a methadone maintenance treatment program in your area. These are usually privately ran clinics, and often time do not accept insurance. However, there are few clinics out there who will accept the insurance. In order to be placed on suboxone you will have to find a doctor who is willing to prescribe this medication.