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Opioid Addiction Essay

1880 Words8 Pages

Opioid addiction is on the rise and has been for years now in the U.S. Some of the major contribution to the rise of opioid addiction is people taking prescription medication for various reasons and becoming addicted due to the addictive nature of the drugs prescribed. As of late Doctors have been audited in their practices with prescribing negligently to patients as well as big pharma companies withholding information about the addictive nature of their prescriptions. Back in 2017 Purdue Pharma began being sued for their faulty information about OxyContin being safe and not addictive. Many patients were left with severe addiction to opioids once the prescription was no longer seen as a need, they would turn to a cheaper alternative which is …show more content…

In the mid 1800’s heroin which is a derivative of opium was used throughout the west in what they called opium dens. The majority of users at that time were middle aged men that laid track for railroads and would use opium / heroin to relax after a long hard day work. In 1810 morphine was derivative of opium and used during and after major surgery. Known for giving the effect of euphoria and numbness, doctors liked to use morphine to relax the patient and keep them pain free. Unfortunately, the very addictive properties of morphine / opium went unnoticed until the end of Civil …show more content…

I have met many addicts in my line of work and they vary from well-educated individuals to young and misguided. It is sad that as a society we look at addiction with a moral lens instead of the disease lens. Stigma among addicts is the cruelest form of abuse in this community. It cause families to hide the addiction of their loved ones and in turn the turmoil manifest into deep dependency on heroin. If we could stop the stigma and get to the bottom of addiction, in my opinion we could change the everyday dilemma of death by

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