What Kind Of Detox Is There For Fentanyl Addiction?

If you have not heard about the fentanyl addiction epidemic in America, then you have not been paying attention to the news. This might well be one of the worst drug epidemics to ever hit America. Why? It turns out that fentanyl is a killer.

The number of deaths related to a fentanyl overdose has gone beyond anything that the government has ever seen in the past. The issue with fentanyl is its potency. First, fentanyl is a very strong opioid. Second, experts consider it to be heroin to the power of 10. Yes, there are claims that fentanyl is 10 times more potent than heroin.

Therein lies a major problem. Heroin users will upgrade to fentanyl without taking into account the drug’s potency. If they start using fentanyl at anywhere near the same levels they have been using heroin, they are putting their lives at risk. Under the category of “for what it’s worth,” small doses of fentanyl are often used as a painkiller for large mammals like elephants after surgery. Here is the kicker. Fentanyl is many times more addictive than heroin. It doesn’t take more than a few weeks of continual fentanyl abuse before a full-blown addiction is created. Once that happens, the fentanyl user will become subject to the harsh reality of withdrawal symptoms.

We are talking about withdrawal symptoms like:

  • Visual and auditory hallucinations and nightmares
  • Blood pressure and heart rte problems that are dangerously high
  • Psychological issues like suicide, depression, and anxiety
  • Severe stomach cramping with nausea and vomiting
  • Inability to manage physical coordination and concentration efforts
  • Severe body convulsions
  • Severe trembling in the extremities
  • Profuse sweating, sleeping issues, and loss of appetite

Danger lurks on this list. For that reason, fentanyl addicts need to seek help with the detox process.

What Kind Of Detox Is There For Fentanyl Addiction?

To avoid suffering while detoxing from fentanyl, you have two choices. One is a standard medical detox program and the other is a drug tapering program. The choice between these two options would likely depend on the following factors:

  • How long you have been using fentanyl as well as heroin
  • The amount you are using each time and each day
  • The frequency of your drug abuse
  • The level of your body’s dependence on fentanyl

The easier option would be the standard medical detox program. Under the care of medical staffers, you would get a chance to detox as naturally as possible. If and when the withdrawal symptoms would become dangerous, a doctor would be available to intervene. Their intervention might include them prescribing certain medications to relieve any pain or discomfort you might be experiencing. For the most part, this process should take 7 to 10 days.

If your addiction to fentanyl is significant, the threat level would be much higher. That’s when a doctor might prescribe a tapering program. A tapering program involves the use of a tapering drug. That would normally be suboxone when dealing with an opioid addiction issue. Suboxone is an opioid. However, it does not have the same addictive traits as say fentanyl. Doctors will prescribe it as a substitute for fentanyl or heroin to decrease the effects of withdrawal symptoms.

Over a period of weeks or even a month or two, the doctor will start decreasing the amount of suboxone allowed. This will continue until the addict’s dependence on fentanyl diminishes. When it’s safe to do so, the doctor will eventually wean the addict off suboxone and let them complete the detox process as naturally as possible. At the end of the day, doctors will prescribe the detox program that best matches the addict’s fentanyl addiction profile.

The focus will always be on the addict’s health and well-being. Once the detox process is completed, the addict should be in a mental and physical state where they can handle the rigor of therapy. If you are having issues with fentanyl, please stop using the drug. Before you do, we want you to contact us about a detox program and therapy.

You can reach out to one of our representatives by calling 833-820-2922. This might well be the most important call you will ever make in your life. We’ll use it as an opportunity to tell you about treatment and encourage you to come in and get the help you need today.