Morphine Withdrawal

Morphine withdrawal is one of the many consequences of morphine addiction. Withdrawal symptoms are experienced when the drug is discontinued by the user. Morphine withdrawal symptoms reach their peak intensity in 36 to 72 hours. Without treatment, withdrawal symptoms run their course in 5 to 7 days, even though craving for the drug may continue for months.

Morphine is a narcotic analgesic. It was first isolated from opium in 1805 by a German pharmacist, Wilhelm Sertrner. Sertrner described it as the Principium Somniferum. He named it morphium - after Morpheus, the Greek god of dreams. Today, morphine is isolated from opium in substantially larger quantities - over 1000 tons per year - although most commercial opium is converted into codeine by methylation. On the illicit market, opium gum is filtered into morphine base and then synthesized into heroin.

Morphine addiction develops very rapidly when a person continues to abuse the drug. Morphine's addictive nature activates the brain's reward systems. The promise of reward is very intense, causing the individual to continually crave Morphine and to focus his or her activities around taking Morphine. The ability of Morphine to strongly activate the brain's reward mechanisms and its ability to chemically alter the normal functioning of these systems is what produces morphine addiction. Morphine also reduces a person's level of consciousness, harming the ability to think or be fully aware of present surroundings.

Morphine withdrawal symptoms include but are not limited to:

• abdominal and muscle cramps
• coryza
• diarrhea
• goose flesh
• hot and cold flashes
• increases in body temperature, blood pressure, respiratory rate, and heart rate
• insomnia
• kicking movements
• lacrimation
• mydriasis
• nausea
• perspiration
• restless sleep
• restlessness
• rhinorrhea
• severe aches in the back, abdomen, and legs
• severe sneezing
• twitching and spasms of muscles
• vomiting
• yawning

Name:
Age:
City:
State:
Phone:
Email:
Drug of Choice:
Looking for Treatment?:
Describe the situation: