When you are suffering, you need to know how to ease heroin withdrawal symptoms. They start about six to 12 hours after the last fix. You already know that checking into a heroin addiction treatment program is the safest way to overcome addiction. But you wonder whether therapists at such a facility know how to help. In fact, they do; here’s how.
Before You Can Learn How to Ease Heroin Withdrawal Symptoms, You Have to Understand Them
Heroin’s a nervous system depressant. When you withhold the drug from your body, the nervous system comes back to life. However, it does so haltingly. At the same time, it seems as though sometimes wires cross.
Therefore, you experience a series of unpleasant and painful signs of heroin withdrawal. Because everyone’s different, it’s impossible to say what your withdrawal will look like. Almost everyone experiences flu-like symptoms on days one and two. You feel like you’re coming down with something.
By the end of day two, these symptoms worsen. You now experience severe muscle cramps and gastrointestinal upset. Therapists deciding how to deal with heroin withdrawal symptoms may now propose IV treatment. This means that they’ll counteract the loss of fluids.
However, there’s more to it. The medically assisted treatment program you locals can trust will also use pain medications. A good example is buprenorphine. This medication reduces the physical symptoms of withdrawal. It also minimizes cravings.
Therefore, you feel strong enough to keep going even though you’re now entering day three, during which withdrawal symptoms intensify further. You’ll now deal with shivering, fluctuations of the heart rate, and headaches. Medication-assisted treatment helps with the worst of the discomfort.
How to Ease Heroin Withdrawal Symptoms after Detox
Therapists call them post-acute withdrawal symptoms. They’re nowhere near as bad as what you went through during detox. However, they can crop up suddenly. When deciding how to deal with heroin withdrawal symptoms, therapists may once again reach for pharmacological support.
The goal is to maintain your focus on healing through therapy. During a heroin detox and withdrawal management program, you managed to end the physical addiction to heroin. Now, you’re working to deal with the psychological aspect of the disease. It’s essential to keep going.
Naltrexone is a medication that shows great promise. It doesn’t sedate you the way that heroin did. At the same time, it can minimize your cravings and put an end to sudden bursts of pain. It’s a good option for clients who already underwent detox and are now in the midst of therapy.
Many therapists will also encourage participation in an outpatient addiction therapy program you can count on. Modalities might include:
- Massage therapy, which promotes wellness through muscle relaxation
- Meditation classes as a means for overcoming stress through post-acute withdrawal symptoms
- Yoga therapy, which combines breathing exercises with simple stretches for stress relief
- Exercise therapy as a tool for building up dopamine in the brain and helping you embrace a healthy lifestyle
- Life skills training that prepares you for relapse prevention as you near program graduation
Many of these holistic care approaches work together with medication-assisted treatment to overcome discomfort. Because therapists continue to focus on this aspect of care, you can benefit from therapeutic interventions. Examples include:
- Cognitive-behavioral therapy for undoing dysfunctional patterns in thoughts, feelings, and actions
- Dialectical behavior treatment, which helps you master intrusive emotions
- Dual diagnosis treatment that benefits clients with co-occurring mental health conditions
- Trauma treatment as a means for reprocessing adverse situations from the past so they won’t interfere with the present
- Family therapy that helps you reconnect with loved ones and rebuild trust with them
Enroll in Treatment Today
Therapists know how to ease heroin withdrawal symptoms during detox and rehab. Therefore, it’s essential that you enroll in a treatment program today. The addiction won’t get better on its own. Besides that, you won’t be able to beat it at home alone.