Heroin is one of the easiest drugs to detox from at home because the withdrawal does not pose any life-threatening symptoms like alcohol or prescription painkillers, report doctors at the National Institutes of Health. Instead, for those who have undergone home detox from heroin the uncomfortable shaking, sweating and diarrhea are manageable with help from friends and family and an unwavering desire to get clean.
Step 1
Know that you will be feeling bad for about 36 hours. If you develop a positive attitude about the upcoming detox you can minimize the pain. Doctors at the Schaffer Library of Drug Policy report that addicts with the same severity of symptoms each portray their pain in various degrees. While some report feeling as if they have the flu others report feeling like they are dying.
Step 2
Prepare to stay inside for about three days while the toughest withdrawal symptoms occur. Stock up on plenty of sports drinks to replenish electrolytes, tissues for a runny nose and blankets that may become soaked with chilling sweats.
Step 3
Get ready for the withdrawals to start about 12 hours after your last dose of the drug. Initial withdrawal symptoms include muscle aches, anxiety, tearing, insomnia and agitation.
Step 4
Ask a friend or family member to stop by on day two as you begin the heaviest withdrawals that can include diarrhea, cramping, nausea and vomiting. The strongest withdrawal symptoms begin to abate within about 30 hours, report doctors at the National Institutes of Health (NIH). Other people can check on your mental condition to make sure that you are not overly depressed.
Step 5
Visit a local meeting of Narcotics Anonymous (NA) on the third day to receive support from others who have been through the same ordeal. NA is composed of previous drug users who help each other stay clean. Once the withdrawal stage is over the mental obsession kicks in and can be harder to get through than the physical withdrawals.
Tips and Warnings
- Get into counseling to double your efforts to remain drug free. As an adjunct to NA meetings a counselor can help you work through your mental obsessions and guide you to discover why you used heroin in the first place. A psychiatrist can prescribe antidepressants that may help you endure the initial psychological withdrawals.
- Doctors at the NIH warn heroin addicts about using opiate-blocking drugs such as those touted by some treatment centers. A number of deaths have been associated with these medical withdrawal programs, especially when performed outside of a hospital setting. The relatively low success rate of drug-induced heroin withdrawal is not worth the risk, they report.
Things You'll Need
- Sports drinks
- Tissues
- Blankets
