Fentanyl is far more potent and potentially deadly than heroin. Drug dependence and other serious consequences of misusing the drug, even in very small amounts, are more life-threatening than risks from heroin or other opioid abuse.
Opioid drugs are derived from a natural substance extracted from seed pods of opium poppy plants mostly grown in Mexico, Colombia, and southern Asia. The drugs work by binding to the brain’s opioid receptors.
People who were young teens in the 1980s or ’90s may remember their experience with the Drug Abuse Resistance Education (DARE) program, which started in 1983 in the spirit of the war on drugs.
Struggling against alcohol or drug addiction is a very rough position to be in. For so many people battling addiction, there’s a sense of helplessness to overcome it and sustain recovery long-term without relapsing.
Many people who look back on their period(s) of alcohol or drug abuse years or decades later discover that their substance addiction recovery has not really fit into the traditional model. The lifelong patterns indicating an “addictive personality type” have not characterized their recovery experience.
The COVID-19 (coronavirus) pandemic has impacted everyone and this is particularly true for those who are battling addiction and substance abuse disorders. Financial difficulties, shelter in place orders, and the public health crisis have led to a significant spike in mental health concerns.
Recovery is more about a journey than a destination and the fear of relapsing back to old ways is very real for those who have suffered from addiction. Therefore, it is critical for everyone who is in recovery from drug abuse and addiction to rely on the help of trained medical professionals.
Many adults can go to a party, have a drink, socialize, and go home happy and sober. For them, this is normal. Others of us, however, struggle with this situation. Some of us can’t stop at one drink. One drink becomes two and two drinks become five.
It's great to be able to interact personally with a professional, which is why the Renaissance Recovery Center offers a number of programs to help those battling addiction and/or mental health issues to get the help they need to fully recover and go on to lead happy, productive lives.
We often feel helpless as we watch a loved one slip away, tethered to their drug addiction with no release in sight. Convincing a loved one with an addiction to consider going into a drug addiction rehabilitation program may be one of the harder things you’ve ever have to do.
