Approximately 213,000 people used heroin in 2007, reports the National Survey on Drug Use and Health. According to the National Institute on Drug Abuse, around 23 percent of people who try heroin end up addicted to it. Heroin, an opium derivative, is highly addictive, both physically and psychologically, and there are many programs and therapies that focus on heroin detoxification. Although acute symptoms from heroin withdrawal peak between 24 and 48 hours and can last around a week, psychological effects can last for many months.
Physical Symptoms
Physical withdrawal from heroin can cause symptoms in just a few hours in regular users of the drug. Physical symptoms occur in stages, and include nausea, vomiting, diarrhea and abdominal cramping. Muscle and bone pain similar to a bout of the flu, with muscle cramping and twitching may occur. Cold chills accompanied by goose bumps, runny nose and tearing eyes often occur frequently during withdrawal. Involuntary leg movements, or "kicks," full body shaking, pupil dilation and yawning may also occur. Blood pressure, pulse, respiratory rate and temperature may all rise 18 to 24 hours after withdrawal begins, according to the University of Illinois at Chicago.
Vomiting can cause aspiration of stomach contents into the lungs, which can lead to pneumonia. Electrolyte imbalances and dehydration can occur. Withdrawal from heroin is physically painful but not life-threatening in a person with normally good health, although it can be fatal to those in poor health, warns the National Institute on Drug Abuse.
Emotional Symptoms
Withdrawal from heroin causes racing thoughts, restlessness, irritability and insomnia. Extreme anxiety and strong drug cravings and drug-seeking behavior commonly occur within six to 12 hours after withdrawal begins.
Long-Term Psychological Effects
Heroin is a very difficult addiction to overcome. The National Institute on Drug Abuse states that relapse and physical cravings for the drug can last for months after physical symptoms subside, often triggered by stress or things previously associated with drug use. The most likely time for overdose and death to occur from heroin is right after detoxification or withdrawal, because the person's tolerance to the drug has decreased, and a previously normal dose will actually be an overdose, warns the University of Maryland Medical Center. Recovery is tenuous, and relapse is always a concern, according to Harvard Medical School.
References
- National Institute on Drug Abuse: Heroin
- University of Illinois at Chicago: Pharmacotherapeutics; LaGenia Bailey, PharmD
- Virginia Commonwealth University: Withdrawal from Alcohol, Cocaine and Heroin; Michael Weaver, M.D.
- University of Maryland Medical Center: Opiate Withdrawal
- Harvard Health Publications: Treating Opiate Addiction
