Doorway to Recovery has been very gifted to have a wonderful intern for the past several months helping out in the office. I asked him to help us out by writing a blog… He did a great job laying out information about Heroin and what it does. If you are a family member or loved one, make sure that you educate yourself by reading through…
Heroin: What is it?
Heroin is an opioid drug that is synthesized from morphine, which is naturally occurring from the seed pod of the opium poppy plant. You know, the pretty red flowers that are depicted in paintings. These pretty flowers!
As beautiful as these flowers are comes a dark and ugly side of them too. From their seed pod, people use the liquids that are extracted to produce heroin. Heroin usually comes in a white or brown powder or in a black sticky substance called “black tar heroin”.
Heroin can be smoked, snorted or injected by the user, all of which deliver the drug to the brain very rapidly. With this rapid delivery to the brain, users have a high risk of addiction, health issues and relapse if the person has quit the drug.
How Does Heroin Affect the Brain?
As soon as the heroin reaches the brain, it is immediately converted back to morphine. While in the brain, the morphine binds to molecules on the cells, which are your opioid receptors. These receptors are located all throughout your brain, body and brain stem- which control automatic processes of life, like breathing, blood pressure and heart beat.
Heroin overdoses more often than not involve the slowing down of breathing and heart rate. With breathing slowing down and heart rate dramatically slower, the brain receives less oxygen, a condition called hypoxia. Hypoxia can lead to short and long-term neurological effects, including coma, brain damage and death.
Other Health Effects of Heroin
Heroin abuse can and will lead to a number of serious health concerns. Some of which include fatal overdose, spontaneous abortion, hepatitis and HIV. To go along with that, chronic users can develop collapsed veins, heart lining and valve infections, liver and kidney disease, and pulmonary issues due to the effects on the breathing of the users.
Additionally, street heroin contains toxic additives that can clog vessels that help transport vital oxygen, nutrients and blood to the lungs, liver, kidneys and brain. All of which can cause permanent damage to these vital organs.
The use of heroin during pregnancy can lead to a wide variety of different pregnancy issues. According to drug abuse.org, low birth weight and other developmental issues can develop. Drugabuse.org also states that if the mother is regularly using the drug, the infant can be born with a physical dependency on heroin thus suffering from a condition called neonatal abstinence syndrome or NAS.
Breaking the addiction process is a tough uphill battle. A battle that is worth the fight. With recovery, you receive your normal life back and you get restored to your family, friends and most importantly, yourself.
For more information on the facts of heroin and how devastating it is, visit the following:
Drugabuse.gov
Drugpolicy.org
Drugfreeworld.org
For help visit or call the following:
1-877-751-7925
1-855-drugfree – 1-1855-378-4373
1-877-670-0564
Drugfree.org