Vicodin Addiction, Abuse, And Treatment

You may be tempted to take more opioid medicine than your taper recommends. Do not start taking any opioids you have at home that you received from other health professionals or visits to the emergency room. Extra opioids, alcohol and drugs can increase your risk of an overdose.

• As her tolerance level rose, she was consuming up to 50 pills of Vicodin a day.
• Hydrocodone is a drug of abuse and you should be aware if anyone is using your medicine improperly or without a prescription.
• Along with taking high doses of Vicodin, other things can cause an overdose.
• Vicodin is typically prescribed for severe pain that cannot be controlled without a narcotic.

Is dependence the same as addiction?

Tolerance to the drug can develop quickly — in some cases, within a week. You may feel you need to take increasingly higher doses to achieve the same effects you felt when you first started the medication. Hydrocodone works by attaching to specific opioid receptors in the brain and blocking pain signals.

How Long Does Vicodin Withdrawal Last?

An overdose occurs when people have adverse reactions to an excessive amount of a drug. But more severe effects, such as depression and addiction, can linger for a lifetime. Hydrocodone is one of the most misused drugs in the United States. According vicodin addiction to the 2016 National Survey on Drug Use and Health, approximately 6.9 million people had misused hydrocodone products like Vicodin during the previous year. Vicodin changes your perception of pain and your emotional response to it.

Hydrocodone Symptoms And Warning Signs

It can affect relationships, employment, your health, and other parts of your life. A long-term addiction that involves high doses of hydrocodone may involve a longer recovery period than addiction from short-term use. The best way to prevent hydrocodone addiction is to take the drug exactly as your doctor prescribes.

Effects of Vicodin on the Brain

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What causes hydrocodone addiction?

• Get professional help from an online addiction and mental health counselor from BetterHelp.
• Since hydrocodone has been circulating for the past century, people have learned that mixing it with other drugs, such as acetaminophen, can increase its strength and effects.
• This is not a complete list of side effects and others may occur.
• Stop taking Vicodin and call your doctor right away if you have skin redness or a rash that spreads and causes blistering and peeling.
• Using Vicodin in any way that doesn’t match your doctor’s prescription is considered substance abuse.
• By Buddy TBuddy T is a writer and founding member of the Online Al-Anon Outreach Committee with decades of experience writing about alcoholism.