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Heroin abuse has many consequences that can lead to short-term and long-term problems for an individual. Many people do not realize that even abusing heroin one time can lead to health challenges, social issues, and even death.
Heroin Addiction
Addiction is one of the main consequences caused by heroin abuse. Around one million people over the age of 12 in the United States currently struggle with a heroin use disorder. People who abuse heroin chronically will become addicted fast. Regular heroin use changes the functioning of the brain. This is what leads to heroin addiction, which also causes a host of other issues, including:
Heroin use can lead to a long struggle with addiction.
- Tolerance
- Dependence
- Withdrawal symptoms
- Drug-seeking behavior
- Illegal actions (buying and sometimes selling the drug)
- Risky behaviors (unprotected sex, sharing needles)
- The inability to stop using heroin
Addiction to a drug as strong as heroin often requires continual treatment that may last for a very long time. Many heroin addicts attend methadone maintenance treatment. This medication lowers their likelihood of relapse but needs to be taken every day, often for several years or more. Heroin addiction changes your entire life and will usually affect you for the rest of it.
Heroin Overdose
Heroin users are in extreme danger of a fatal overdose. Because the drug is so intense, users cannot often tell how much they have taken until it is too late.
Heroin slows a person’s breathing. During an overdose, breathing can stop completely. Respiratory depression is the main cause of death in heroin overdose. A drug called naloxone (Narcan) is sometimes used as an emergency treatment to counteract the effects of a heroin overdose, but it must be administered as quickly as possible.
Other Consequences of Heroin Abuse
Heroin abuse has many consequences that people may not consider. For example, heroin bought on the street often contains a mix of substances that can amplify its negative effects. Some of those substances can be toxic and could clog the blood vessels that lead to the lungs, liver, kidneys, or brain. These organs can become permanently damaged.
More physical consequences of heroin abuse are:
- Increased risk of HIV and hepatitis through shared needles
- Coma
- Bacterial infections
- Infection of the heart lining and valves
- Arthritis
- Abscesses
Heroin abuse also has social consequences that will affect every aspect of a person’s life, especially if they use the drug chronically. Some common social consequences are:
- Families being torn apart
- Relationships ending over drug use
- Loss of a job, scholarship, or other earned aspects of your life
- Poor performance at work or school
- Money issues
- Apathy toward other aspects of life and decreased life satisfaction
The consequences of heroin abuse can affect every aspect of your life. And the longer you abuse the drug, the harder it will be to reverse them. Thankfully, there are treatment resources for individuals who are facing a heroin addiction. Search our online directory to find an accredited rehab center in your state.