Opioid abuse is a major health concern affecting millions of people in the world today. What may have started with prescription medications or recreational drug use can quickly develop into dependence and addiction. If you try to stop using opioids, you might experience withdrawal symptoms and require opioid detox to manage severe withdrawal. Research shows that teens represent an especially vulnerable population with increased risk of opioid overdose due to inexperience with opioid drugs and their potent effects [1].
Check out this video, where Howard Barker with Clear Behavioral Health covers what a teenager would need to know about opioid abuse in depth. This topic can educate you on the common nature of how prescription opioids are obtained, how opioid use disorder develops, and risk factors associated with opioid misuse.
Understanding how opioid abuse can begin offers the ability to notice the signs early. This knowledge can also prevent opioid abuse or even save a life by catching the signs that a person close to you may be struggling with drug addiction.
We are the leading experts in opioid detox and addiction treatment in the Los Angeles, California area. Call us today to get started.
Opioid Abuse Education Video Transcription:
How Opioids Are Introduced
Hey everyone, Howard Barker here with Clear Behavioral Health. Today, we wanted to talk about what a teenager needs to know about opioid abuse.
Opioids are an interesting topic because, unfortunately, most people’s first introduction to them is through prescription drugs. It’s not because they went to the street looking for heroin, and it’s generally not someone that has any preconception that they want to become an addict.
Who Uses Opioids?
Usually, it’s someone that:
- Has a friend that plays sports
- Sustained an injury
- Got their wisdom teeth pulled out
- Had a more severe surgery
But their first introduction is through something like
- Vicodin
- Percocets
And it appears to be relatively harmless, right? It’s a prescription drug. They have a friend that takes them periodically, and that person is fine, and they’re still doing well in school. Maybe one of their parents deals with some pain issues, and they take them, and it’s not a big deal.
How Opioids Work
The problem is that opioids work really, really well. They numb you out, they make you feel good emotionally, and they make you feel good physically. If you’re dealing with a breakup or if you’re dealing with a lot of other things that are regular parts of life, opioids take a lot of that pain away.
And the other thing is that they’re not so intoxicating the way a tremendous amount of alcohol is or the way that a bad trip on some sort of a psychedelic is. So, a lot of people think, “Hey, this is harmless, right? I’m going to drink this lean or I’m going to take this Vicodin, and it’s not that big of a deal.”
Why Opioids are Addictive
Unfortunately, what happens is that opioids are very different from a lot of other drugs in the sense that you can rapidly develop a physical dependence. Usually it’s very, very cunning. Usually it’s very, very insidious.
It’s something that happens in spite of yourself, and it’s something that you’re not aware of what’s happening. But really, really rapidly, your body develops physical dependence. Once that physical dependence starts, it’s not something that is your force of will or you get to choose not to do because you start to get sick.
Related: Dependence vs. Addiction: What’s the Difference?
How Prescription Drug Abuse Turns into Heroin Use
And from personal experience, as someone in long-term recovery from opioid addiction, no one starts out saying, “You know, I want to shoot heroin into my arm.” That’s never how it begins. It starts out with things are going well, I’m in school, I’m hanging out with my friends, I’m going to take these pills periodically. You know, I play sports, I get good grades, and it’s not that big of a deal.
Then really quickly, what happens is, all of a sudden, it’s more expensive to find prescription drugs. I can much more cheaply go get heroin or fentanyl on the street and use that instead. And by then, you’re off to the races.
What Happens After Addiction Begins
What happens is, it morphs in the beginning into this very fun and lighthearted thing. And really, really quickly, without your knowing and without your choice, it becomes this really serious addiction that requires detoxification. It kicks you into withdrawals, and it can lead to a very serious overdose. And overdose isn’t something that’s limited to the end stages.
Someone can overdose their first few times, especially when mixing opioids with alcohol or other things like Xanax, which is very, very common and which unfortunately we’ve seen here in the South Bay. So, the next time you’re in a situation where you have a friend that’s using a prescription opiate or you’re considering taking one at a party, think twice and understand the big picture. It’s not about just the here and the now, but the trajectory of opioid use is never a pretty one.
Learn more about opioid detox and treatment in the Los Angeles, California area. Contact our experts today.
Clear Behavioral Health Is Here to Help
If you or a loved one is struggling with opioid abuse or any other substance abuse, Clear Behavioral Health is here to help. Our mission is to help those struggling with substance abuse get back to healthy and purposeful lives.
We offer a full continuum of care for opioid addiction treatment, including opioid detox to help manage opioid withdrawal symptoms safely and comfortably, drug and alcohol rehab to help you build a solid foundation in recovery, and outpatient addiction treatment programs for ongoing support.
In the case of teen opioid abuse, once your teen has detoxed and gone through rehab, we offer an outpatient teen program to help them transition back into regular life while working through mental health issues and learning effective coping skills that can help them sustain recovery.
Contact us today to start your journey, we’ll be with you every step of the way.
Resources:
- Tanz, L. J., Dinwiddie, A. T., Mattson, C. L., O’Donnell, J., & Davis, N. L. (2022). Drug overdose deaths among persons aged 10–19 years — United States, July 2019–December 2021. MMWR Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report, 71(50), 1576–1582. https://doi.org/10.15585/mmwr.mm7150a2
