Opium withdrawal and treatment

Project by Sara Burbidge, Ashley Rogers & Eric Walker

Contents

Withdrawal symptoms

Acute withdrawal is usually referred to as simply as "withdrawal." The American Society of Addiction Medicine defines withdrawal as " the onset of a predictable contellation of signs and symptoms following the abrupt discontinuation of, or rapid decrease in, dosage of a psychoactive substance." Such signs and symptoms are generally the opposite of the intoxication effects of the particular substances.

Complications include vomiting and breathing in stomach contents into the lungs. This is called aspiration, and can cause lung infection. Vomiting and diarrhea can cause dehydration and body chemical and mineral (electrolyte) disturbances.

The biggest complication is a return to drug use. Most opiate overdose deaths occur in people who have just withdrawn or detoxed.

Early symptoms of withdrawal include:
  • Agitation
  • Anxiety
  • Muscle aches
  • Increased tearing
  • Insomnia
  • Runny nose
  • Sweating
  • Yawning
Late symptoms of withdrawal include:
  • Abdominal cramping
  • Diarrhea
  • Dilated pupils
  • Goose bumps
  • Nausea
  • Vomiting
Opioid withdrawal reactions are very uncomfortable but are not life threatening. Symptoms usually start within 12 hours of last usage and within 30 hours of last exposure.

Because withdrawal reduces your tolerance to the drug, those who have just gone through withdrawal can overdose on a much smaller dose than they used to take.

Protracted withdrawal is the presence of substance-specific signs and symptoms common to acute withdrawl but persisting beyond the generally expected actute withdrawl timeframe.

Chronic substance use causes molecular, cellular and neurocircuitry changes to the brain that affect emotions and behavior and that persist after acute withdrawal. Adaptive changes in the central nervous system may lead to affective changes that persist for many weeks or longer beyond acute withdrawal. For example, repeated use of a substance causes the brain to respond more readily to it's effects but less readily to naturally rewarding activities such as listening to music. This state, in which a person's ability to experience pleasure is decreased, is called anhedonia.

Common protracted withdrawal symptoms include:
  • anxiety
  • hostility
  • irritability
  • depression
  • mood instability
  • fatigue
  • insomnia
  • difficulty concentrating and thinking
  • reduced interest in sex
  • unexplained physical complaints especially of pain