More than 130 Americans die from an opioid overdose every day, according to the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA). You might know someone who has an opioid addiction or experienced an overdose. With opioid use disorder so widespread across the United States, everyone has a part to play in its reduction. Discover how you can help your opioid addiction or on the national level.
How to Help an Opioid Addiction You Might Have
If you think you may have an opioid addiction, you have many options for help. You can talk to your medical or personal supports to get another opinion on your opioid-related behavior. Consider these approaches when you believe you may have opioid use disorder:
Talk to your family and friends: Find someone you trust who you stay in touch with regularly. Ask them frankly about your behavior and if they think you show signs of addiction. This can act as a first step for someone who feels uncomfortable going to a doctor right away.
Ask your doctor: You can also consult your doctor about your potential addiction. Record how often you take opioids and your feelings and thoughts about them, then talk about the results.
Get professional help: An opioid addiction treatment center can help you identify the signs of addiction and get help. You can contact them whether or not you already talked with someone else.
Seeking help for your potential addiction will help you find the cause of your issues and live a healthier life.
Helping Someone With an Opioid Addiction
When someone you know could have opioid use disorder, you can take these steps to assist:
Identify the signs: Learn more about the signs of opioid addiction in another person. Indicators include changes in behavior, mood, sleep and everyday function.
Look into treatment options: Research clinics and programs in your area. Depending on the person, they might feel less overwhelmed if you offer solutions.
Start a conversation: Talk to the person with a compassionate, not confrontational approach. Let them know you’re worried about them and offer to help them find treatment.
By talking to someone with an addiction, you give them some of the social support needed for a successful recovery.
How to Help the Opioid Addiction Epidemic
You also have plenty of actions you can take if you want to help reduce the impact of opioid addiction in society:
Carry naloxone: Look into classes in your area that teach you how to use the overdose rescue medicine naloxone. You can also find it at many pharmacies.
Challenge the stigma: If someone says something degrading about people with opioid addictions, remind them that opioid addiction counts as a disease like any other.
Raise awareness: Join community events, write a letter to the editor or find another strategy for teaching those around you about opioid addiction.
Every small action counts in the movement to stop the opioid use disorder epidemic.
Learn More About Opioid Addiction or Start Treatment
The Clinical Team at Health Care Resource Centers is our team of physicians and medical directors within the organization. HCRC is a CARF accredited organization and has been providing addiction treatment services for over 32 years in the New England area.
We use cookies on our website to give you the most relevant experience by remembering your preferences and repeat visits. By clicking “Accept”, you consent to the use of ALL the cookies. Cookie PolicyDo not sell my personal information.
This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. Out of these cookies, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. But opting out of some of these cookies may have an effect on your browsing experience.
Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. These cookies ensure basic functionalities and security features of the website, anonymously.
Cookie
Duration
Description
.AspNetCore.Cookies
session
This cookie is installed by BayMark Health Services, Inc. The cookie is used to maintain persistence with ChatGPT sessions.
.AspNetCore.CookiesC1
session
This cookie is installed by BayMark Health Services, Inc. The cookie is used to maintain persistence with ChatGPT sessions.
.AspNetCore.CookiesC2
session
This cookie is installed by BayMark Health Services, Inc. The cookie is used to maintain persistence with ChatGPT sessions.
.AspNetCore.CookiesC3
session
This cookie is installed by BayMark Health Services, Inc. The cookie is used to maintain persistence with ChatGPT sessions.
cookielawinfo-checkbox-advertisement
1 year
Set by the GDPR Cookie Consent plugin, this cookie is used to record the user consent for the cookies in the "Advertisement" category .
cookielawinfo-checkbox-analytics
11 months
This cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Analytics".
cookielawinfo-checkbox-functional
11 months
The cookie is set by GDPR cookie consent to record the user consent for the cookies in the category "Functional".
cookielawinfo-checkbox-necessary
11 months
This cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookies is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Necessary".
cookielawinfo-checkbox-others
11 months
This cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Other.
cookielawinfo-checkbox-performance
11 months
This cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Performance".
viewed_cookie_policy
11 months
The cookie is set by the GDPR Cookie Consent plugin and is used to store whether or not user has consented to the use of cookies. It does not store any personal data.
Functional cookies help to perform certain functionalities like sharing the content of the website on social media platforms, collect feedbacks, and other third-party features.
Cookie
Duration
Description
language
1 month
This cookie is used to store the language preference of the user.
Performance cookies are used to understand and analyze the key performance indexes of the website which helps in delivering a better user experience for the visitors.
Analytical cookies are used to understand how visitors interact with the website. These cookies help provide information on metrics the number of visitors, bounce rate, traffic source, etc.
Cookie
Duration
Description
_ga
2 years
The _ga cookie, installed by Google Analytics, calculates visitor, session and campaign data and also keeps track of site usage for the site's analytics report. The cookie stores information anonymously and assigns a randomly generated number to recognize unique visitors.
_ga_T587ECG9KC
2 years
This cookie is installed by Google Analytics.
_gat_UA-112867566-1
1 minute
A variation of the _gat cookie set by Google Analytics and Google Tag Manager to allow website owners to track visitor behaviour and measure site performance. The pattern element in the name contains the unique identity number of the account or website it relates to.
_gid
1 day
Installed by Google Analytics, _gid cookie stores information on how visitors use a website, while also creating an analytics report of the website's performance. Some of the data that are collected include the number of visitors, their source, and the pages they visit anonymously.
_hjAbsoluteSessionInProgress
30 minutes
Hotjar sets this cookie to detect the first pageview session of a user. This is a True/False flag set by the cookie.
_hjFirstSeen
30 minutes
Hotjar sets this cookie to identify a new user’s first session. It stores a true/false value, indicating whether it was the first time Hotjar saw this user.
_hjIncludedInPageviewSample
2 minutes
Hotjar sets this cookie to know whether a user is included in the data sampling defined by the site's pageview limit.
_hjIncludedInSessionSample
2 minutes
Hotjar sets this cookie to know whether a user is included in the data sampling defined by the site's daily session limit.
_hjTLDTest
session
To determine the most generic cookie path that has to be used instead of the page hostname, Hotjar sets the _hjTLDTest cookie to store different URL substring alternatives until it fails.
Advertisement cookies are used to provide visitors with relevant ads and marketing campaigns. These cookies track visitors across websites and collect information to provide customized ads.