Narcan® 101: What You Need to Know to Save Someone’s Life
The opioid crisis in America is continually increasing the number of overdose deaths every year, devastating the lives of people across the country. Ideally, someone with a substance use disorder should receive professional medical treatment to manage their addiction, but due to the stigma and nature of the disease, many continue to misuse opioids. For […]
Prevalence of Opioid Use Disorder in the Military
With the rigorous missions American troops take on while enlisted, many often seek out pain management from doctors to deal with the physical impact on their bodies or injuries they sustained. Opioid pain killers are the most commonly prescribed treatment for these ailments. A study has shown that over 40% of the US infantry has […]
How Long Does Buprenorphine Stay in Your System?
As someone taking buprenorphine or considering treatment, you may wonder how long it stays in your system. Every medication has a half-life, the length of time it circulates through the body. This half-life impacts how long you feel its effects and when it will show up on a drug screen. Learning how long buprenorphine stays […]
How Long After Methadone Can I Take Suboxone?
Contributor: Dr. Joseph Py, DO FASAM Patients in medication-assisted treatment (MAT) are prescribed methadone, buprenorphine or buprenorphine with naloxone (Suboxone®, Zubsolv®, etc.), for opioid use disorder or, commonly, opioid addiction. These medications work due to their ability to eliminate withdrawal, decrease craving and normalize brain function. Similar to other treatments for medical disorders, a person […]
Suboxone® High: Everything You Should Know
According to the National Survey on Drug Use and Health (NSDUH), an estimated 2.1 million people had an opioid use disorder (OUD) in 2016. The majority of people with OUD had an addiction to prescription pain pills. Over half a million people had an addiction to heroin. Every day, more than 130 people die in the United States after […]
Phases of Drug Use: From Experimentation to a Substance Use Disorder
In 2016, roughly 7.4 million people over the age of 11 were affected by substance misuse or addiction. Everyone with a substance use disorder has a unique story about how they began to get involved with drugs. While many people with addiction can relate to each other, it’s important to remember that everyone’s experience is […]
Opioid Addiction in the LGBTQ+ Community
Opioid addiction has gripped the United States affecting all walks of life, including minority groups. The lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender community are at greater risk for substance use and mental disorders compared to heterosexuals, which means that opioids are a specific risk to the community. are twice as likely to misuse drugs and alcohol, […]
How to Identify Adolescents at Risk: What Can a Parent Do?
Drug use may be on the decline among most teens, but parents should still be aware of those who are at highest risk of developing substance use disorders. The science of addiction has made great strides in the past 20 years, recognizing the factors that can lead someone to drug misuse, and coming up with […]
Disease or Choice? The Debate Surrounding the Origin of Addiction
Does an illness or bad decisions cause addiction? There is division on this issue, despite convincing scientific studies that sway the argument towards addiction being an illness. Some people argue that poor choices mainly cause addiction and that willpower is the only cure to overcome misuse of a substance. Others have looked into how addiction […]