Meth Addiction Recovery

Recovering from meth addiction can be accomplished within a few short months so long as the patient has help from a doctor and social network. It can be painful, but withdrawal symptoms are relatively easy to treat. With personal dedication and a willingness to get help with the struggle, anyone can kick a meth addiction.

Identification

• Meth addiction develops rapidly when a person repeatedly takes methamphetamine in any form. The drug has the effect of immediately providing a feeling of euphoria while enhancing focus, respiration speed, dropping appetite and increasing activity. Meth users often feel restless, like they need to be constantly active, doing something - anything. Many compulsively clean their house or perform repetitive motor actions in order to discharge their excess energy. The primary negative side effect is extreme dehydration - the body loses the ability to retain water, leading to tooth decay, muscle pain and fatigue as the effects of the drug wear off.

Effects

• Meth addiction develops among users so that they can self-treat the symptoms of meth withdrawal. Of course, this only exacerbates the health problems, but it's important to understand this fact in order to learn how to help with a successful recovery from the drug. After the drug leaves the system, the user is left feeling extremely dehydrated, exhausted, depressed, sluggish and in physical pain. As many meth users also stay awake for 48 hours or longer when using the drug, they're also often quite fatigued, and will need to sleep for an unusually long time.

Considerations

• Recovering from meth addiction can be aided significantly by help from a specialized recovery center. A referral service for finding a center near you is linked in the resources below. In order to recover successfully from a meth addiction, the first and most important step is to stop using the drug regularly. A recovery center can provide information and safe amphetamine prescriptions that help to reduce the discomfort involved in dropping a meth addiction. Such a center will also monitor sleep and ensure that the patient receives adequate hydration and weak painkillers to treat many of the symptoms of muscle pain.

Warning

• Full meth detoxification takes approximately between four and six weeks, so long as the patient follows all directions. Visiting a therapist can also help patients ensure that they can handle their cravings in a productive way. Even after quitting the drug, physical and psychological cravings tend to strike at regular intervals every few months. It helps to stop socializing with other drug users so that those cravings are easier to fight.

Benefits

• Quitting meth is the best single thing that an addict can do for their long term mental and physical health. The drug can cause heart failure, severe tooth decay, muscle wasting and persistent fatigue. Most meth addicts find it almost impossible to hold down a steady job or to maintain positive relationships. Luckily, meth addiction recovery does not carry significant medical risks, although the physical cravings can be very uncomfortable.