Codeine Addiction
The Abuse and Effects of a Codeine Addiction
Codeine addiction has been a problem in America for many years, simply because it has been so accessible through prescription cough syrups. These cough syrups typically contain Tylenol 3 which is the most popular product of all. While it is considered an opiate, the human body turns codeine into morphine so that it can do what it was meant to do for the person who is ill. Regardless of what it is being used for, it is still a hard habit to break once you are addicted.
How People Get Addicted to Codeine
Codeine is derived from an opiate plant, or in other words an opiate poppy. If you have ever been advised to not eat poppy seeds prior to a drug test, this is why. However, it would take quite a few to make you test positive. Because of its opiate affect, codeine relieves pain and anxiety, so as you can see it would cause a very powerful addiction. The problem with codeine is that it is a depressant in many respects. It can almost depress the anxiety symptoms so much that it’s too much, causing poor breathing, drowsiness, itchiness, urinary retention and hypotension. These are all side effects of codeine, but with a codeine addiction it can get worse when all of this stuff is in your body.
When used consistently, the body can adapt to these symptoms which then makes it very difficult to get away from the codeine. Whether or not any one person experiences these types of symptoms can have much to do with how quickly this is metabolized through the body. For those who are heavy it would take much longer, but for the person who weighs very little, or is very small the codeine could potentially override their body and really allow them to feel the effects of the medicine.
Why Codeine is Easy to Find
Codeine addiction has become very common, only because it is so easy to obtain. It can be purchased over the counter, or can be found in prescription cough syrups and other medicines. Many who have gained an addiction to the medicine have done so through the opiate effects of the medicine. Sometimes these effects are what many refer to as euphoric, where everything seems okay, and people feel so at peace that they can’t stop taking it. While a cough syrup like this would be hard to get unless you were very ill, one can also obtain the pill form and crush it, then add it to water which allows the body to absorb it really well. With a high concentration of this in the blood stream, the euphoria will take over a lot faster, leaving the individual with a horrible low once it wears off. This is the vicious cycle that begins once someone has taken it for awhile. They just can’t get away from it.
The recommended dosage that doctors give in a prescription is 10 to 60 mg at once. For those who are trying to abuse this drug, they will usually use anywhere from 60 to 400 mg at once. When a person uses more than the 400 mg, it will not be metabolized properly by the liver, thus causing it to be wasted. For someone to get the full effects of codeine, they would need to take large doses all at once, rather than smaller doses over time.
Codeine is obviously given orally most of the time, but it can be given through injection, and can also be given in the form of a suppository. If you are someone you love has a codeine addiction, it is best to speak with a doctor or other healthcare professional right away.