Oxycodone Abuse & Addiction

Can Oxycodone Addiction Cause Permanent Physical or Psychological Damage?

Long-term damage and permanent effects caused by opioid addiction are primarily due to hypoxia. Hypoxia is when the brain does not get enough oxygen. Hypoxia can have short and long-term effects, including coma, permanent brain damage, or death. It is unclear whether the long-term effects of opioid use can be reversed.

Opioids Affect Brain & Nervous System:

• Opioids depress breathing and heart rate.
• Opioids reinforce drug-taking behavior by altering activity in the limbic system, which impacts emotions.
• Opioids block pain messages transmitted through the spinal cord from the body.

Research has found that people abusing opioids often have a comorbidity of depression. Left untreated, depressive symptoms can make a recovery even more difficult.

The relationship between opioid abuse and depression is strongly correlated. Opioid use has been linked to higher rates of depression, anxiety, and bipolar disorders.

But some research suggests that simply using prescription opioids can put one at higher risk for depression. Researchers found that 10% of over 100,000 patients prescribed opioids developed depression after using the medications for over a month. These patients were taking the drug for ailments such as back pain, headaches, and arthritis and had not been diagnosed with depression before treatment.

What to Do if Someone Overdoses on Oxycodone

The first thing you or your loved one can do to stay safe when using opioids is to be aware of potential overdose signs.

Common Signs of Opioid Overdose:

• Shallow and slowed breathing.
• Extreme fatigue.
• Vomiting.
• Small pupils in their eyes.
• Become unconsciousness.

A drug overdose is a medical emergency. If you or someone you know is experiencing symptoms of an overdose, call 911. You may also call poison control at 1-800-222-1222.

Another preventative step is having an overdose bag with the medication naloxone.

Naloxone is a medicine that is an antidote to opioid drugs. Opioids can slow or stop a person’s breathing, leading to death. Naloxone helps a person who has opioids in their body wake up and keep breathing. The brand name Narcan is also known as naloxone.

Naloxone reverses an opioid overdose. Naloxone works by blocking the effects of opiates on the brain and restoring breathing. Naloxone will only work if a person has opiates in their system. It will not work with other drugs. A person cannot get “high” from using naloxone, which is safe for practically anyone.

If you are taking prescription opioids, you can ask your healthcare provider or pharmacist for a naloxone prescription. Health insurance might cover the cost of naloxone. If you want naloxone on hand for someone else, you can ask your pharmacist for a prescription.

Oxycodone Use, Addiction, & Overdose Statistics

In 2020, 44 people died daily from overdoses involving prescription opioids, totaling more than 16,000 deaths. Prescription opioids were involved in nearly 24% of all opioid overdose deaths in 2020, a 16% increase in prescription opioid-involved deaths from 2019 to 2020.

The opioid prescribing rate in the United States peaked and leveled off from 2010-2012 and has been declining since 2012.

There was a more than 19% reduction in the annual prescribing rate from 2006 to 2017. The declines in opioid prescribing rates suggest that healthcare providers have become more mindful of their opioid prescribing practices.

In 2017, however, there were still almost 58 opioid prescriptions written for every 100 Americans.

• Over 17% of Americans had at least one opioid prescription filled, with an average of 3.4 opioid medications dispensed per patient.
• The average number of days per prescription continues to increase, with an average of 18 days in 2017.

There is wide variability at the county level in the number of opioids received per resident.

Counties With High Opioid Prescription Characteristics: 

• Smaller cities.
• A higher percentage of white residents.
• A higher number of dentists and primary care physicians per capita.
• More people are uninsured or unemployed.
• More residents have diabetes, arthritis, or a disability.

The Cost of Opioid & Prescription Drug Addiction on Families & Society

The effects of the opioid crisis are cumulative and costly for our country. An estimated $504 billion was spent in 2015 on individuals impacted by opioid use. This negatively impacts families, workplaces, the health care system, states, and communities.

Potential Solutions to Oxycodone Abuse & Addiction

Solutions to minimize oxycodone abuse and addiction involve a variety of approaches to prevent and resolve the current factors responsible for the opioid epidemic we currently face in the United States. The primary focus of prevention includes harm reduction strategies, increased access to treatment, and education and prevention efforts.

Harm Reduction Strategies

Harm reduction is an approach that focuses on building connections with people who use drugs.

The harm reduction goals are to prevent overdose and infectious disease transmission, improve people’s physical, mental, and social well-being, and offer various substance use treatment options.

Harm reduction is essential to the comprehensive approach to addressing substance use disorders through prevention, treatment, and recovery, where individuals feel empowered to seek treatment.

Harm reduction organizations incorporate a spectrum of strategies that meet people “where they are” on their terms and may serve as a pathway to additional prevention, treatment, and recovery services.

Increased Access to Treatment

SAMHSA is proposing to expand access to treatment for opioid use disorders.

The proposal would update the federal regulations that oversee opioid treatment standards. Specifically, the proposed rule change would allow individuals to access treatment by enabling take-home doses of methadone and access telehealth to initiate recovery efforts.

Changes would make permanent medication flexibilities and update standards for opioid treatment programs, increasing access and availability for many individuals currently facing an opioid use disorder.

Education & Prevention Efforts

The US Department of Health and Human Services has the following programs to increase education and prevention efforts to combat the opioid crisis.

HHS Education & Prevention Programs:

• National Prevention Week
• It Only Takes A Little To Lose A Lot
• Opioid Epidemic Practical Toolkit
• How Can Prescription Drug Misuse Be Prevented?
• Prescription Drug Monitoring Programs

Treatment for Oxycodone & Opioid Addiction

At Guardian Recovery, we understand how difficult Oxycodone withdrawal can be. Withdrawal symptoms are often so severe that those struggling with Oxycodone addiction return to using within 24 hours.

The key to overcoming this obstacle is a medically supervised detox where withdrawal symptoms can be identified and treated immediately. Guardian Recovery provides 24-hour medical supervision and comfort care for detox clients. Our medical and client support team’s goal is to make sure all clients have a safe and comfortable detox so they can begin the next phase of their recovery journey.

Guardian Recovery Oxycodone Treatment Includes:

• Medically Assisted Detox.
• Dual Diagnosis Programs.
• Inpatient addiction treatment programs.
• Partial Hospitalization Programs.
• Intensive Outpatient Programs.