Heroin
Heroin is a highly addictive drug classified under the Controlled Substances Act as a Schedule I drug that not only has a high potential for abuse but for which there is no legitimate medical use as well as a lack of accepted safety for use even under medical supervision. According to the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration, heroin is widely available and increasing in some areas. What's worse is the purity of heroin has increased, the prices are low and the number of drug overdoses and deaths due to heroin is increasing.
Heroin is a derivative of opium and, like morphine, comes from the resin of poppy plants. Heroin is usually injected, opening the door to HIV or other infections from the sharing needles. Heroin is also smoked, snorted or sniffed.
The Origin of Heroin
As dark angels have their source in hell, so does heroin have it's source from two hellish compounds, each of which are highly addictive themselves.
Bayer pharmaceutical, in Germany, first produced heroin in 1898 as a remedy for morphine addiction. Opium addiction in the 1850s was a major problem in the U.S. The solution was to provide addicts with a "less potent" and supposedly "non-addictive" substitute. Morphine was the "solution". As has been discussed on this site, treating one addiction with another substance is never an answer. Morphine proved to be a bigger addiction problem than opium ever was. The "solution" to this morphine addiction, was to make yet another "non-addictive" drug. Heroin was that solution.
Heroin itself is highly addictive. Now as this "solution" to morphine addiction was itself now a bigger problem, methadone was developed, again by German scientists, in 1937. In 1947, the drug was soon being widely used as a treatment for heroin addiction. It, of course, has proven itself to be even more addictive than heroin.
In summary: In the 1850s opium addiction was as serious problem, the solution was to give opium addicts morphine. Morphine proves to be an even bigger problem than opium. The solution to morphine addiction was heroin. Heroin addiction remains to this day not only highly addictive but a serious problem in the U.S. To solve this, another drug is used, methadone, which proves to be even worse than heroin and a greater problem.
We now have four highly addictive substances, none of which solve addiction. There is no better proof that drugs do not solve addiction.
The Risk of Using Heroin
Heroin comes in several forms. The purist among them is a white powder. It can also be rose gray, brown or black. As noted above, street heroin is purer than earlier. However, despite its "purity" it is still cut with other substances, including rat poison. The result for the user is these additives don't fully dissolve and thus clog blood vessels leading to vital organs such as the kidneys, lungs or brain which in turn leads to infection and destruction of these organs. The user also never knows the actual purity of the drug, thus they risk overdose each time they take the drug. Tolerance of the drug develops with regular use, leading to the user taking even greater amounts of the drug, thus the risk of overdose.
The Effects of Heroin
The immediate effect of first time heroin use is an intense euphoria or "rush" or sensation of being "high" which lasts only a few minutes. This feeling can also be accompanied by vomiting or severe itching. After these initial effects, the user becomes drowsy for hours. Heartbeat and breathing slow down. Mental functioning is clouded.
Within hours of use the body begins to crave more of the drug. If not supplied, he or she will begin withdrawal. Heroin withdrawal can be extremely painful. The symptoms of withdrawal include restlessness, aches and pains in the bones, diarrhea, vomiting and severe discomfort.
Narconon withdrawal and the Narconon First Step program have been successfully used to alleviate heroin withdrawal in a completely safe and natural fashion for 45 years.
The Cycle of Heroin Use
Heroin users almost immediately get caught up into heroin's addiction and a cycle begins. Shortly after taking heroin, cravings begin. If more drug is not taken, painful withdrawal starts. These physical cravings for heroin can be extremely intense. This encourages the user to obtain and use more heroin. The intense euphoria first experienced is no longer there. The user takes more of the drug still seeking this euphoria. More drug results in more physical decline. The user now falls into a cycle a having to continue to take the drug just to feel "normal". Horribly, the pain of withdrawal is always at the other end if the user attempts to break the cycle.
The Long Term Effects of Heroin
Heroin is a drug which quickly breaks down the immune system. This leaves the person sickly, gaunt, and ultimately dead. As mentioned, due to its addictive nature, the addict will begin to frequently inject themselves. This leads to collapsed veins, infections in the blood vessels and heart valves. Tuberculosis and arthritis are both long-term effects.
There seems to be no limit to the horrible physical effects created by long term heroin use. They can be anything from bad teeth and inflammation of the gums, to constipation, cold sweats, itching, coma, respiratory illnesses, paralysis, impotence, inability to achieve orgasm, loss of memory, introversion, depression, pustules on the face, insomnia, etc.
The Answer to Heroin Addiction
There is a successful answer to heroin addiction. Narconon gateway drug and alcohol rehab, since the beginning, has been helping addicts to overcome heroin addiction. In fact, the Founder of Narconon, William Benitez, himself was a long-term heroin addict and was successfully able to overcome his heroin addiction and his friends' addictions as well. This program he called Narconon (drugs no). Narconon proved conclusively that heroin addiction can be overcome and there is no one who needs to suffer from this highly addictive and ultimately deadly substance.
If you know of someone who needs help overcoming heroin addiction, contact Narconon East U.S. at 877-337-3307.