Morphine Addiction

Due to the fact that morphine is derived directly from opium, it is a very powerful and highly addicting substance.  So much so, that the only thing in the world considered more addictive is heroin.  As with any other opiate addiction, both physical and psychological addiction can occur.  Morphine’s tolerance building attributes contribute to the quickness of its dependency.  Tolerance happens when a patient begins to need more of a drug to get the same effects as they did before.  Also, when morphine is misused or overused, you can overdose on the medication, possibly leading to coma or death.

Morphine Overdose

Growing a tolerance to morphine can lead to morphine overdose.  Overdosing on an opiate can be detrimental to your health.  Overdose doesn’t just occur when taking too much of the medication.  Morphine overdose can be experienced by mixing it with other substances, such as illicit drugs, alcohol, and other medications like tranquilizers and nervous system depressants.  A Morphine overdose can be characterized by many symptoms, some quite severe, while others are less so.  For more information on morphine overdose, click here.

Morphine Withdrawal

When a patient becomes dependent on an opiate, like morphine, they cannot quit without going through something called withdrawals.  Even a reduction in dose size could cause these unpleasant and unwanted symptoms.  Everybody experiences opiate withdrawal differently, meaning they may experience some, but usually not all of the possible symptoms.  Morphine detox should not be attempted at home, as it can be life-threatening.  But there are medical detox programs that can help you to safely detox from morphine.  For more information on morphine withdrawal, click here.

Effects of Morphine

Morphine is an extremely potent analgesic medication, prescribed for severe chronic pain in patients.  Because this medication is so potent, it must be taken with caution.  The effects of this medication intensify quickly, when misused or overused.  If the medication is taken as directed, the effects of the medication will be minimal, except for the pain killing attributes.  For more information on the effects of morphine, click here.

Morphine Addiction Symptoms

Developing an opiate addiction is easier than you think.  In fact, it can happen to anyone; you don’t have to be prone to addiction to get caught up in morphine addiction.  In fact, many of the patients that are prescribed morphine are actually middle and upper-class Americans.  These people are battling illnesses cancer and liver disease, some are recovering from a trauma, but none of them set out to become dependent on morphine. For more information on morphine addictions symptoms, click here.

Morphine Addiction Statistics

Morphine addiction touches all of us.  Its affects are not limited to one individual, or one family, or even one community.  It is considered a national problem in America.  $500 billion is spent a year on morphine addiction in America, when you include health and crime costs, loss of productivity and accidents.  Morphine addiction statistics are usually placed into the general area of prescription abuse statistics, classifying it as part of the larger problem.  For more information on morphine addiction statistics, click here.