Experience Recovery Blog

Drug and alcohol addiction can have a poisonous effect on the body and mind; and, a corrosive one on personal finances, relationships, and professional achievement. And yet, for those who struggle with addiction, freedom can seem elusive. The good news: Clinical intervention works, and recovery is attainable for anyone. That’s the message of hope that Experience Recovery is bringing to Orange County.

Opioids can be effective tools for pain management; in fact, doctors have long turned to opioid drugs to help those suffering with chronic pain, cancer, or other ailments. As time goes by, however, the treacherous side effects of opioids become increasingly clear. Not only are they powerfully addictive, but they can damage the body and the mind in a number of ways—and in some cases, they can even prove fatal.

Opioid addiction is serious, and in many cases it can even be life-threatening—yet often, it starts off fairly innocently. Opioids include some illicit street drugs, but also a number of perfectly legal medications, foremost among them prescription painkillers. It is not uncommon for an individual to use these legal opioids according to a doctor’s orders, only to have addiction spiral out of control and lead them into more dangerous drugs.

Opioid addiction can have a disastrous effect on one’s physical, mental, and emotional health; in some cases, it can even prove fatal. If it’s not treated promptly, opioid addiction can truly do lasting damage to the individual, and it can be shattering to friends and family members, too.

If you’ve watched the news or read the headlines in recent months, you’ve probably heard about America’s opioid epidemic. Throughout the country, people are becoming addicted to opiate-derived medications as well as street drugs—and the effects have been dire. Even so, there remains a lot of misinformation about what opioids actually are, and how opioid addiction impacts body and mind.