Detoxing Vicodin does not come easy, and anyone who has been using the drug for several weeks can suffer from withdrawal symptoms.
Here are what you can expect when you start detoxing Vicodin:
- Withdrawal symptoms are inevitable.
- These symptoms can cause distress.
- Detoxing is difficult without medical help.
Don’t be afraid to undergo detox since that helps you recover from addiction. Proper medical assistance can help you overcome this problem, and soon, you’ll regain back your healthy lifestyle.
What Causes Withdrawal Symptoms During Vicodin Detox?
Vicodin is a psychoactive pain reliever that is commonly prescribed to treat moderate to severe pain. It typically acts on neurotransmitters and weakens the kind of pain that is sent to the brain. This results in a significant feeling of relief.
With this constant function in the body, it is likely for the brain to be dependent on the presence of the drug in perceiving pain as mild and bearable. Apart from that, this mechanism also increases the levels of dopamine in the body, which leads to experiencing euphoria. This is high, which makes users hooked on taking the drug in large doses.
When detox happens, a reduced amount of the drug stays in the body. This amount is not enough to satisfy what the brain usually expects and in turn, it causes chaos in the central nervous system. This leads to the onset of withdrawal symptoms that typically vary in severity depending on the degree of drug use.
High intoxication of the substance follows a serious strain on the brain that influences severe withdrawal. Treatment for this case frequently takes long, specifically when a person has heavily abused the drug over some time.
Is Vicodin Detox Fatal?
Yes, but this rarely happens.
If you are concerned about the safety of the treatment, the best option would be to seek medical help as you start the process. Although withdrawal symptoms can be inevitable, they can be controlled and managed in a way that leads significantly to your recovery.
The risk of a fatal detox can be caused by three of the following things:
Poor health condition
This can pertain to either physical or mental health. Detox changes the normal function of your body and if you have an existing illness, these conditions could get worse.
For instance, if your cardiorespiratory function is poor, detoxing can be a major problem for you since getting rid of the drug in the body can trigger hypertension and rapid heart rate.
A similar effect happens when you suffer from mental health concerns such as anxiety and depression. Episodes of panic attacks or suicidal ideation can intensify and without medically supervised treatment, these health problems can cost you your life.
Weak response to treatment
Every detox experience is unique, and nobody can ever predict how your body responds to the treatment and be capable of overcoming the challenges of withdrawal pain.
While gastrointestinal issues are typical withdrawal symptoms, every person may severely suffer from these conditions. This includes nausea, vomiting, and diarrhea. When these conditions persist, they can weaken a person and lead to dehydration.
Dehydration is one of the fatal outcomes of withdrawal. The amount of fluid loss in your body can cause seizures, coma, and death. It takes only three days of dehydration for these conditions to happen.
Detoxing alone
This comes with a lot of risks. People can just quit cold turkey. Relapse becomes imminent. And overall, it is easy to just give up the treatment. The lack of a structured treatment plan, guided by an expert, most commonly leads to nowhere, and worse, can even be fatal.
When you quit cold turkey, the chances of relapse are high. When you relapse, you can suffer from a fatal overdose. This is a condition where the body becomes overwhelmed by the dose of the drug after a period of abstinence.
And most importantly, detoxing alone weakens your drive to overcome your physical dependence. And what happens with this? You will stay in the loop of addiction, and develop a tolerance to a certain dose which will make you seek more, and impair your overall health.
Does Medically Assisted Detox Work
Yes, and it has long proven itself safe and effective for years already. The big question is: How does a medically assisted detox work?
The following details can explain this thoroughly to you and find out how it can benefit you:
A tapering schedule
Tapering off your doses requires professional help. This is a crucial matter. It is not just about choosing a random dose anytime. A proper assessment from your doctor is necessary for making adjustments to your doses.
This is an essential step since it can greatly help in controlling the number of withdrawal symptoms that can occur. The gradual reduction of the drug in your system allows your brain to slowly adapt and cope with these changes in the body.
Opioid substitution therapy
This pertains to the prescription of either Methadone or Buprenorphine as a way to replace the function of Vicodin in your body. With this kind of substitution, your physically and psychologically dependent self may not notice the reduction of the substance in your body.
These are also FDA-approved drugs for opioid withdrawal, and they have been used for several years already. They do not only aid in limiting the number of withdrawal symptoms that you may likely experience, but they also help control intense cravings for the drug and eventually prevent relapse.
Behavioral therapy
Behavioral therapies are essential partners of medical prescriptions during detox. They allow individuals to identify their triggers for substance use and train them to build strong coping skills. They help patients understand how their body works and how important it is to take care of them.
This is also a necessary element in treating coexisting mental health problems with substance use disorder, particularly because anxieties and depression may prolong for months. Therapy sessions would be greatly valuable in overcoming them long-term.
While it is one thing to talk to a therapist, the benefit of support groups can also significantly impact every person’s journey towards a lifetime recovery.
