While addiction to any substance is extremely serious and can be deadly…heroin addiction is currently the worst and vastly spreading. We will continue to discuss the heroin epidemic in our country because every week that goes by, it gets worse. From the rural countryside to our urban cities, people are dying from this deadly substance.

Listed below are some of the signs and symptoms of heroin use. If you, a family member, or anyone in your life shows any of these signs the clock is ticking and outside help needs to be sought immediately.

Heroin is used in a variety of ways. It can be smoked, snorted, or injected. Depending on how the addict is using the substance there will be red flags pointing towards it. Heroin comes in a powdery form that ranges in color from white to dark brown. Black tar heroin is smoked and comes as a black, sticky substance. Evidence of use is left behind in a variety of ways. Small, empty baggies with a powdery residue, syringes, caps to syringes, pipes, burned spoons and/or tinfoil are all strong indicators of heroin use.

There are various physical symptoms that a heroin addict may present with. Most users will show at least one of these symptoms:

• Itching
• Nausea
• Vomiting
• Constricted Pupils
• Nodding or Falling Asleep
• Track Marks on Skin (Injection Sites)

Many of these signs and symptoms are also common with the abuse of opiate pain medications. These medications are traditionally used for extreme pain after surgeries, or for diseases like cancer. Drugs of this class include:

• Vicodin
• OxyContin
• Oxycodone
• Methadone
• Dilaudid

These drugs are commonly viewed as synthetic, legal heroin due to the effect produced from taking them. The use and abuse of these drugs is just as, if not more, dangerous than the use of traditional heroin. Many prescription pill abusers use the fact that the “doctor wrote the prescription” as justification for continuing to take it.

If you or someone you care about is demonstrating any of these symptoms or you suspect they may be abusing a medication, Clearbrook can help.  Please contact our trained staff today and we can advise you through the process of helping your loved one get the help they need.

Don’t wait until its too late…of the thousands that died from this disease this year, I’ll bet not one of them thought they’d be part of this sad statistic today.