Alabama Community Members Raise Drug Overdose Awareness

Alabama Community Raise Drug Overdose Awareness (877) 804-1531 Drug Rehab

Community members are working with the Dothan-Houston County Substance Abuse Partnership to raise drug overdose awareness. Alabama has the 26th highest mortality rate in the U.S., and the numbers have quadrupled around the country since 1999.

Heroin is less expensive than many other drugs, and is easy to obtain. Because it is extremely addictive, it doesn't take long for the person to increase the amount used, which leads to higher drug overdose rates. In fact, the number of deaths have gone from under 2,000 in 2001 to more than 8,000 in 2013, according to the National Center for Health Statistics.

If you abuse heroin, a drug overdose is a very real possibility. Seek help from drug rehab centers in Montgomery to get the help you need.

Causes for Heroin Abuse and Addiction

A person doesn't usually start out taking a drug to get addicted. They experiment with the idea that it will be fun or because someone encouraged them. They often begin with another drug that is "safer" and then move on to heroin when the other substance no longer provides the feelings of euphoria that it once did.

Heroin can be mixed with prescription drugs, alcohol or other illegal drugs for an even more intense effect. It travels through the bloodstream either by being smoked, snorted or injected until it reaches the brain where it reacts with the chemicals. Because it can even be taken in pill form, it attracts all kinds of users.

Heroin alters the pleasure sensors in the brain, creating a need for the drug to feel "normal." The system will crave the substance any time it isn't present. The system will develop withdrawal symptoms that worsen until the person obtains more of the heroin.

People with a heroin addiction no longer make their own dopamine or the chemical that makes them feel happy. The system relies on heroin to create that sensation. One reason it is hard to break the addiction to heroin is because the body cannot feel good on its own. It is common for doctors to prescribe a medication to replace the dopamine and prevent relapse.

Getting Help

Montgomery drug rehab centers and Narcotics Anonymous (http://www.narcotics.com/na-meetings/alabama/montgomery/) are available to help you with your drug addiction. Call or visit today.