Fighting Withdrawal: Methadone Abuse & Addiction & Testing
By: Stalin
Methadone is a prescription medication that is used to treat
severe pain. It also helps those addicted to heroin to cease their
use of the drug without experiencing horrendous withdrawal
symptoms. Since heroin causes an excess of dopamine to be released
into the brain, addicts feel a constant need for the drug to
maintain this high. Methadone satisfies this need for an opiate
without the euphoria associated with heroin. While users of
methadone are ultimately transferring their dependence from one
drug to another, they become more stable and no longer experience
urgent impulses to take heroin. Once the desire to take heroin is
completely diminished, patients are then weaned off of the
methadone, although this process can sometimes take several years
to complete.
Effects of Methadone Methadone side effects can vary greatly and
should be closely monitored. Symptoms that are typical of methadone
users include upset stomach, headache, drowsiness, constipation,
dry mouth, insomnia, decreased sex drive and excessive sweating.
Severe side effects should be reported to your doctor. These
methadone side effects include lightheadedness, swelling of
extremities, rash, hives, itching, difficulty breathing and chest
pain.
A methadone overdose can be very serious. Should someone you know
exhibit the symptoms, call 911 or poison control immediately.
Warning signs of a methadone overdose include loss of
consciousness, coma, difficulty breathing, extremely small pupils,
clammy skin and loss of muscle tone.
It should also be noted that methadone has a high interaction ratio
with other drugs. For instance, Elavil is the brand name for
amitriptyline, a tricyclic antidepressant. Taking both Elavil and
methadone can be potentially hazardous. A methadone interaction
with Elavil could cause a dangerously high dose of methadone to be
released into your system, causing an overdose. Should an overdose
not occur, it is still highly likely that once the Elavil exits
your system, withdrawal symptoms will be experienced for the high
levels of methadone that were previously experienced.
Symptoms of methadone withdrawal include dilated pupils,
irritability, stomach pain, fever, sweating, runny nose and eyes
and nausea.
Signs of Methadone Addiction As with any addiction, someone with a
methadone addiction will do whatever it takes to continue taking
the drug. Some may make their doctors believe they require a higher
dosage of methadone, while others may double up on their dosages.
Still others may continue to take heroin and use methadone as a
topper of sorts. Methadone is addictive, and most who begin taking
methadone as a means of ceasing an addiction to heroin or another
opiate become addicted to the new drug. Tolerance and dependence
develops, creating the need for a methadone detox program, which
can take much longer to complete than many other rehabilitation
programs.
How To Test For Methadone Abuse Methadone drug testing is an
invaluable resource for many individuals, including employers,
parents and government agencies. While methadone does have its
legitimate purposes, extremely high doses of the substance can
create dangerous side effects and should be monitored. Methadone
drug tests come in a variety of forms including urine drug tests,
saliva drug tests and hair drug tests. Each of these methods works
very well in detecting methadone in an individuals system. For a
longer testing window, hair follicle methadone drug testing is the
way to go. Results are achieved in a laboratory setting and can
detect methadone use for up to the past 90 days.
Employers benefit from methadone drug tests, as they prevent
potential drug-related liability claims, accidents and other
misfortunes from occurring. Investing in a drug testing program
helps to increase employee productivity and maintain the positive
image you want for your company.
While methadone is a prescription substance, it can be obtained on
the street illegally. Parents who are concerned about their
children or teenagers behavior can benefit from methadone drug
testing tremendously. Drug test kits put your mind at rest and
allow you to either put the question of whether or not drug use is
occurring in your house behind you or take the next step in getting
your teen drug rehabilitation.
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