How to Reduce Opiate Withdrawal

The misery that is associated with opiate withdrawal can be alleviated when you are under the supervision of a doctor in a treatment facility. When this is impossible and you want to ease the withdrawal on your own there are some things that can be done to make this difficult time a bit more bearable. Opiates include morphine, heroin, Vicodin, Oxycontin, and Lorcets.

Things You'll Need

• Anti-diarrhea medication
• Electrolyte replacement drinks
• Over-the-counter sleep aids

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Instructions

• 1

  Taper your dose initially by reducing the amount of opiates that you are taking. It is best to do this slowly, over a period of a week or two. Cut back a little about every other day to make your actual active withdrawal easier.

• 2

  Expect the earliest symptoms of withdrawal to include extreme agitation, anxiousness, achy muscles, excessive tearing of the eyes, insomnia, excessive yawning, sweating and a runny nose. These symptoms are not painful so much as aggravating and inconvenient. The best thing to do during withdrawal is to get plenty of sleep. You may need to use an over-the-counter sleep aid. Soak in a hot tub to reduce the muscle aches.

• 3

  Prepare in advance for the worst symptoms, which include abdominal cramping, nausea, vomiting, diarrhea and goose bumps. Combat these symptoms by taking an over-the-counter anti-diarrhea medication and plenty of electrolyte replacement drinks to avoid dehydration.

• 4

  Ask someone to stay with you during this difficult time. This is important in case you run into any complications such as seizures. It will also help you stay on course in case you feel like giving up and going back on drugs, which is a common occurrence with do-it-yourself withdrawal.

• 5

  Plan that after the initial 72 hours of withdrawal you will force yourself to get up, take a shower and get some exercise, even if this means simply going for a walk. This is very important and will help your withdrawal quite a bit.