Addiction to pain killers is an escalating problem today, especially the abuse of opioid pain killers. There are a number of effective treatment options to treat pain killer addiction to prescription opioids and to help manage the sometimes severe withdrawal symptoms that can accompany sudden stopping of pain killers or drugs. Less common side effects and adverse reactions of pain killers are: confusion, hallucinations, delirium, hives, itching, hypothermia, bradycardia (slow heart rate), tachycardia (rapid heart rate), raised intracranial pressure, ureteric or biliary spasm, muscle rigidity and flushing.

More than 10% of high school seniors have started taking Vicodin for reasons other than reducing pain. When you’re addicted physically to a drug, like pain killers or alcohol, etc., it’s because you’ve suppressed or shut down your body’s production of endorphins, which are natural opiate pain killers; when this happens you start craving the drug that you replaced the endorphins with whether it’s alcohol, any of a number of drugs or pain killers. Opioids used as the doctor has prescribed are supposedly not dangerous according to some well-established medical groups; but if this is the case, why are so many people addicted to them?

If you think you are addicted and want to get off pain killers or other drugs, it’s best to get detoxified as fast as you can and then go through some type of rehabilitation; it’s important to have others to lean on and learn from and offer support to you. Pain killer addiction includes: opiate dependency, opiate addiction, narcotic dependency, narcotic addiction, and pain killer dependency or painkiller dependency. Addiction is both a biological and psychological condition.

Chronic pain affects one out of three or four adults; millions of people suffer from severe disabling pain. 2.2 million people aged 12 and up first abused painkillers within the past year; this is more than the number of people who started using marijuana and has overtaken the use of cocaine. There are many side effects and adverse reactions that can occur with the use of opioids as pain killers.

Find out from your local health professionals where the closest and best pain killer addiction treatment centers are. Taking the time to spend in a treatment center, detoxing, is of the utmost priority. All other demands of children, a job, school, or any other responsibilities may make inpatient treatment seem like an intrusion but it’s not.

If you can’t do an in-patient rehab, find out how you can do outpatient rehab and pay for it under your insurance plan; check your insurance policy to see if it’s covered. If you don’t have insurance, check with your local mental health agencies to see what is available that’s free. There are many pain killer addiction treatment facilities located throughout the United States, Canada and the rest of the world.

The body’s natural pain killers, endorphins, have been replaced by these pain killing drugs; get them flowing again with lots of laughter. Knowing some of these facts and understanding endorphin production will help get you on the road to pain killer addiction recovery fast; start working on it today and hopefully you’ll notice changes tomorrow. The many problems that are associated with pain killer addiction and abuse have experts, doctors and authorities searching for solutions.

Addiction of painkillers often comes from its medicinal application. When people get immune to the initial dose of painkiller, they want more to get relieved from the pain. This gets a person towards painkiller addiction slowly, as they become physically and mentally dependant on the painkillers. Addiction to painkillers is seldom intentional, most of the time people get addicted after its usage as medicine.

You can easily know if a person is addicted to painkillers if you observe him or her carefully. The symptoms of addiction to painkillers can be easily recognized. Painkiller addicts yawn excessively; they also sleep for long periods of time. The most noticeable effect is the mood of an addict. It swings from extreme violence to calmness in moments. Some other side effects of painkillers are lightheadedness, fatigue, nausea, constipation, headache, dry mouth, euphoria, anxiety and abdominal pain. There are various other painkiller addiction symptoms that are noticeable in an addict.

Governments of every country are upset about this painkiller addiction matter. It is ruining the future of the youth generation of today. The govt. has established many free painkiller rehabs all over United States in order to uproot this addiction from the young people. Still, they did not succeed because a free painkiller rehab can never undertake all the measures that are needed for total rehabilitation of a drug addicted person. Proper treatment can only be obtained in the private rehabs. A private painkiller rehab can provide both proper treatment and comfort for the patient during the rehabilitation process.

Alongside proper medicinal treatment, comfort and luxury is a very important factor for curing a drug addicted person. Well known painkiller rehab like that of Cliffside Malibu has got enough monetary power to provide the patients with a luxurious life in a rehab. Comfort is a must during treatment as the withdrawal effects are grueling and hard for a person to tolerate. Sometimes, the patients go wild during the treatment process and only adequate comfort can sooth their mind. The intolerable withdrawal effects can even drive an addicted person towards madness.

However, the private rehabs cost a lot and due to this excessive cost, many people can’t afford it. The govt. should look to it that the facilities of the free rehabs are increased to a high level like the private rehabs or they should pressurize the private rehab to lessen the cost. Otherwise, it will be impossible to uproot the painkiller addiction disease from the society.

Marijuana is usually smoked as a cigarette (joint) or in a pipe. It is also smoked in blunts, which are cigars that have been emptied of tobacco and refilled with marijuana. Since the blunt retains the tobacco leaf used to wrap the cigar, this mode of delivery combines marijuana’s active ingredients with nicotine and other harmful chemicals. Marijuana can also be mixed in food or brewed as a tea. As a more concentrated, resinous form it is called hashish, and as a sticky black liquid, hash oil. Marijuana smoke has a pungent and distinctive, usually sweet-and-sour odor.

Marijuana and Addiction

Long-term marijuana abuse can lead to addiction; that is, compulsive drug seeking and abuse despite its known harmful effects upon social functioning in the context of family, school, work, and recreational activities. Long-term marijuana abusers trying to quit report marijuana addiction is the #1 drug problem in the US, its effects are very powerful. Also known as pot and weed it can be very addictiveirritability, sleeplessness, decreased appetite, anxiety, and drug craving, all of which make it difficult to quit. These withdrawal symptoms begin within about 1 day following abstinence, peak at 2-3 days, and subside within 1 or 2 weeks following drug cessation.

Is Marijuana Addictive or isn’t It?

Based on all the information available, the answer is yes and no.

For people with dependency tendencies, the answer is YES. There are too many people in the world who smoke marijuana almost every day to say otherwise. Other people argue that they can take or leave it and have quit for long periods of time. And for those people the answer would probably be NO.

The thing about marijuana is it so subtle. There are places in California where it is legal to possess small quantities for private use. So what’s the problem?

The problem with marijuana is, like any other drug, can become the focal point of a person’s life. All of a sudden you want to get high before or during anything and everything. Your life begins to revolve around smoking marijuana. Like alcohol, it can be used responsibly and occasionally, or it can get out of control and cause serious problems.

Some people are “addicted” to marijuana and try to rationalize or justify using it. Like any other drug, marijuana can become the focal point of your life.

Marijuana Use in the U.S.

* In 2007, there were 2.1 million persons who had used marijuana for the first time within the past 12 months; this averages to approximately 6,000 initiates per day. This estimate of past year initiates in 2007 was about the same as the number in 2006 (2.1 million), 2005 (2.1 million), 2004 (2.1 million), 2003 (2.0 million), and 2002 (2.2 million).

More Statisitics About Marijuana Use

Past month marijuana use among male youths aged 12 to 17 declined from 9.1 percent in 2002 to 6.8 percent in 2006. In 2007, the rate was 7.5 percent, which was not significantly different from the rate in 2006, but was lower than the rate in 2002. Among female youths, little change occurred from 2002 to 2004, but the rate in 2007 (5.8 percent) was lower than the rate in 2002 (7.2 percent).

The Effects of Marijuana Use

THC acts upon specific sites in the brain, called cannabis receptors, kicking off a series of cellular reactions that ultimately lead to the “high” that users experience when they smoke marijuana. Some brain areas have many cannabinoid receptors; others have few or none. The highest density of cannabis receptors are found in parts of the brain that influence pleasure, memory, thoughts, concentration, sensory and time perception, and coordinated movement.

Not surprisingly, marijuana intoxication can cause distorted perceptions, impaired coordination, difficulty in thinking and problem solving, and problems with learning and memory. Research has shown that marijuana’s adverse impact on learning and memory can last for days or weeks after the acute effects of the drug wear off. As a result, someone who smokes marijuana every day may be functioning at a suboptimal intellectual level all of the time.

Research into Marijuana Use

Research on the long-term effects of marijuana abuse indicates some changes in the brain similar to those seen after long-term abuse of other major drugs. For example, cannabinoid withdrawal in chronically exposed animals leads to an increase in the activation of the stress-response system3 and changes in the activity of nerve cells containing dopamine. Dopamine neurons are involved in the regulation of motivation and reward, and are directly or indirectly affected by all drugs of abuse.

Marijuana Use and Mental Health

A number of studies have shown an association between chronic marijuana use and increased rates of anxiety, depression, suicidal ideation, and schizophrenia. Some of these studies have shown age at first use to be a factor, where early use is a marker of vulnerability to later problems. However, at this time, it not clear whether marijuana use causes mental problems, exacerbates them, or is used in attempt to self-medicate symptoms already in existence. Chronic marijuana use, especially in a very young person, may also be a marker of risk for mental illnesses, including addiction, stemming from genetic or environmental vulnerabilities, such as early exposure to stress or violence. At the present time, the strongest evidence links marijuana use and schizophrenia and/or related disorders. High doses of marijuana can produce an acute psychotic reaction, and research suggests that in vulnerable individuals, marijuana use may be a factor that increases risk for the disease.

Should Marijuana Be Legalized

Much has been written and several states have considerd changing their laws to decrimiize marijuana. California has the most progressive laws. Some counties allow people to possess small amounts.

Myths and Facts
Marijuana is popular drug among teens, and has adverse effects on health. The widespread perception about marijuana is a benign natural herb used in treatments, distracts the serious message that marijuana abuse is not good for everyone, especially for young teens. Therefore, it is good to know the myths and facts about the marijuana abuse.

Myth: Marijuana is harmless
Fact: Marijuana abuse is harmful in many ways. Memory loss, distorted perception, trouble in problem solving, and many more short-term effects of drug abuse. Potential ability of a student is disturbed with marijuana abuse. Poor academic performance, and cognitive deficits are few long-term effects of this abuse.

Myth: Marijuana is not addictive
Fact: Many people believe that marijuana is not addictive, but recent studies revealed that students are depending more on this drug. If the abuser of marijuana is not used the drug for a period then he can develop withdrawal symptoms like irritability, anxiety, difficulty in sleeping etc., and these makes it difficult to stop the abuse. Marijuana addiction is three times more serious than any other illicit drug addiction.

Myth: Marijuana offense is not severely
Fact: Many people considered police arrest the marijuana law violator but they did not give any imprisonment. In 2007, more than 2 million people were arrested for marijuana offense, and about more than 10,000 members are in prison. Despite of many criminal, and civil sanctions, marijuana is easily available.

Myth: Marijuana is not harmful than tobacco
Fact: The abuser assumes that abusing marijuana is not harmful than tobacco. Smoking marijuana is five times more harmful than tobacco. With both tobacco, and marijuana abuse, abuser observes the similar effects, but the affects of Marijuana drug abuse on body are more dangerous than effects of tobacco.

Myth: Marijuana is not popular as MDMA
Fact: According to National Survey on Drug Use and Health, 2.1 million Americans, age 12 and older had abused MDMA at least once in a year. The same report reveals, 25 million Americans age 12 or older abused marijuana once in their lifetime. These figures convey a clear message that marijuana abuse is more than MDMA abuse.

The above information helps you in knowing seriousness of Marijuana drug abuse. By discussing these facts, you can discuss and prevent kids from the drug abuse.

Marijuana or Cannabis or any one of several names is a drug prepared for human consumption in an herbal form. The fact that using Marijuana is in fact Drug abuse should be apprised by people. People have tried to whitewash Marijuana by terming it safer to use than other drugs; however, it has the potential to do real psychological harm, not just physical harm. The fact is that Marijuana is a hallucinogenic drug, that can lead to addiction and abuse.

Marijuana’s Addiction Symptoms

Marijuana is both emotionally and mentally addictive. The mind becomes Marijuana obsessed and you start gravitating towards friends and people who are like minded. Full blown addiction causes the person to function under the Marijuana high. Their misconception that marijuana is what they need to solve their problems causes constant abuse.Addicts hate to be without their stash and are constantly concerned with the next hit. In short, you live, breathe and dream Marijuana. Some classic symptoms are:

” Marijuana tolerance: To achieve intoxication, the need for marijuana increases, and its effect decreases with continued use of the same amount of marijuana.
” Greater use of marijuana than intended: Marijuana taken in larger amounts or over a longer period than was intended.
” Unsuccessful efforts to cut down or control marijuana use.
” For using marijuana a great deal of time is spent.
” Reduction in social, occupational or recreational activities is caused due to it.
” significant problems will be caused due to continued use of marijuana despite knowing about it.

Myths and Facts about Marijuana Abuse and Addiction
There are several myths surrounding the use of Marijuana; however you should remember that interpretations vary – so the reader is urged to keep an open mind.

Cause for Permanent Mental Illness Marijuana users become irrational and often behave erratically when intoxicating them.

Even though there are not any scientific evidence showing that marijuana causes psychological damage or mental illness, psychological distress like feelings of panic, anxiety, and paranoia are caused following marijuana ingestion.

Marijuana is Highly Addictive. Long term users experience physical dependence and withdrawal and often need professional drug treatment to break the addiction.

It is not for those who smoke Marijuana occasionally and in very small quantities but for those who are long term users.

Marijuana is far more potent today than in the past. Much more dangerous drugs are being used by today’s youngsters than their counterparts from the past.

This is a highly debatable point as common sense tells us it must be true considering that man has always tried to improve everything so why not Marijuana.

Marijuana offences are not severely punished. Few marijuana addicts are arrested or sent to prison – this encourages the continued use of the drug.

But statistics shows that the number of arrests have more than doubled and is increasing. Many drug users get arrested, tried and jailed and are stopped form doing this mistake. End of the drug rule -be it Marijuana or any other drug -is wished by every country’s law.

Marijuana is more damaging to the lungs than tobacco. Marijuana smokers are at elevated risk levels of developing lung cancer and related diseases.

This has been disputed – the belief being that moderate marijuana smoking poses minimal danger to the lungs. Unlike heavy tobacco smokers, heavy marijuana smokers exhibit no obstruction of the lung’s small airway. Smoking is smoking – no matter what it is you are smoking – so wise up.