Category: Drug Detox

Drug detoxification (informally, detox) is variously the intervention in a case of physical dependence to a drug; the process and experience of a withdrawal

Benefits of a Service Pet for Recovering Addicts

Staying sober is harder than getting sober. This statement is something that most addicts and treatment professionals agree on. Detox and quitting their drug of choice is extremely difficult and dangerous as physical withdrawals can last from days to weeks to months. Once the initial detox is over, the question then is, what next? The goal is to not relapse and to ultimately create a life that you don’t want to let go of.

To obtain long term sobriety, the addict must address and heal the mental and emotional causes of their substance abuse. Many addicts suffer from a mental illness and their substance abuse is a form of self-medication. Anxiety, social isolation, depression, loneliness, and suicidal ideation are all effects of mental illness. When not addressed during recovery, the chance of relapse multiplies. Depending on how long they have been self-medicating as a way to avoid their feelings, the addict will have no idea how to move forward and tackle emotions and fears daily.

Benefits of a Service Pet for Recovering Addicts

How can a Service Pet Help You in Recovery?

Service dogs are a proven way to help the addict recover and stay sober. Psychiatric service dogs are trained to help those with mental health disorders or disabilities and are trained specifically to meet the individual’s needs based on their mental illness as well as the severity of the disorder. If there is not a specified mental health disorder, the recovering addict can still be helped by the companionship of a service pet because they help relieve anxiety and lessen symptoms of depression. Some of the many benefits include: reducing negative emotions, coping mechanisms for stress, mood boosters, encouraging responsibility and healthy habits in daily life.

Addicts can be prone to a negative mindset, which hinders their recovery and causes anxiety, shame, guilt, and loneliness. The unconditional love of a service pet can soothe the addict and reduce their feelings of isolation. This encourages a more positive outlook on their life and environment and the addict will begin to develop healthy daily habits and hobbies. Addicts are encouraged to develop interests in healthy activities that will take them outside of their minds. As we all know, the mind can be our own worst enemy, and service dogs can help change the addict’s mindset. Taking care of a service dog requires grooming, bathing, playing with, feeding, and walking their pet. This allows the addict to think of positive ways to plan out their day because they have someone else to care for.

Get into Good Habits to Erase the Bad Ones

Caring for their service pet can also create positive reinforcement for the addict and they will see the benefits of positive daily habits. The addict will see that if they care for their pet each day, the pet stays happy and healthy. The addict, in turn, sees it is possible to take care of themselves and maintain their health and happiness, and therefore their sobriety.

Social isolation is much less of a choice when the addict has a pet to care for. Service dogs require daily walks, during which the addict might be “forced” to stop and engage in simple conversations. Having a scheduled activity that they are responsible for will, in turn, get the addict to wake up, shower, get dressed, make their bed, and put food out for their pet. In doing these little things for someone else, the addict will start developing a routine and begin caring for themselves as well. All of these are steps that can either help in pulling a person out of depression or keep it at bay.

The simple fact that the addict now has someone to love and that depends on them to stay alive can keep the addict motivated to make better choices and avoid relapse. Many addicts have low self-worth and self-esteem. They might think of themselves as unloved or unlovable. A cat that playfully runs around and paws at you or a dog that barks loudly and jumps up and down when you enter a room is unconditional love. This is a feeling that the addict has been chasing their whole lives and they will be motivated to stay sober.
Service pets can also increase an addict’s sense of trust and loyalty.

Addicts can have experiences that have caused them to become distrusting of the world. Animals are known for their loyalty and of course, they cannot be dishonest! A service pet can change this outlook for the addict and allow them to start having faith in others, but in a safe way. This is part of one of the most beneficial factors of working with a service pet – PTSD symptoms. Their calming and soothing effect on people – just the rhythm of their breathing or cuddling with their soft fur – can bring peace. The combination of this peaceful presence with the security that a dog, for example, can bring, is a great way to heal from PTSD.

Recreate Life Counseling is Here to Help

Recreate Life Counseling in Boynton Beach is an outpatient treatment center that teaches the addict how to achieve, maintains, and enjoy a new way of life in long term recovery. We offer a PHP program of Day / Night Treatment with Community Housing. We engage the addict in therapy and activities that will teach life skills and behaviors to prevent relapse. It is so important to one’s sobriety to have the ability to care for yourself and someone else, and our staff teaches the addict how to do this in a healthy and safe environment. If you or a loved one are suffering from addiction, please reach out and a Recreate Life Counseling staff member will be happy to help you begin your new life in recovery.

Published on: 2020-03-21
Updated on: 2024-10-28

Do Large Doses of Imodium Get You High?

TL;DR – No, large doses of Imodium (loperamide) do not produce a “high.” Imodium is an anti-diarrheal medication and, when taken in large doses, can be dangerous and lead to serious heart problems and other adverse effects, but it does not cause euphoria like some other substances.

Loperamide also referred to by it’s over the counter brand drug name Imodium A-D is being abused by opiate addicts to counter physical withdrawal symptoms from opiate addiction. Imodium A-D is an OTC medication that helps relieve diarrhea and other abnormal gastrointestinal symptoms.

Opiate addicts are taking loperamide to lessen opioid addiction withdrawal symptoms. Although loperamide is not an opioid drug, when used in very high doses it acts on mu-opioid receptors, which are the same receptors that initiate addiction to opiates, like heroin, morphine, and fentanyl.

Loperamide has become known as the poor man’s methadone. Loperamide is taken by opiate addicts when they cannot get heroin or other opioid drugs the same way an alcoholic may drink mouthwash when they don’t have access to alcohol.

The amount of loperamide that is needed to help relieve opiate withdrawal symptoms is extremely dangerous. A normal dose of Imodium is 2 milligrams to be taken up to four times a day. A person who is attempting to take Imodium to get high is taking up to 500 milligrams a day.

What are the Effects of Imodium in High Doses?

The euphoric effects that high doses of loperamide have for an opiate addict is at best minimal. Opiate addicts have reported that taking Imodium at large doses does decrease the withdrawal symptoms but does not get them high.

At dangerous doses, loperamide crosses the blood-brain barrier, which will allow the opioid receptors to produce endorphins and other neurotransmitter reactions that cause a person to feel better. The effects of loperamide only minimize withdrawal symptoms; it does not compare to the euphoria that heroin, Fentanyl, or other opiate drugs cause.

When a person increases the dose past, what is recommended for any type of OTC drug or prescription drug, they risk enduring serious medical problems and death. The history of persons taking Imodium to get high began as early as the 1990s. The Federal Drug Administration did not class Imodium as an over the counter drug until 1988.

Do Large Doses of Imodium Get You High

Before that, it was in fact, classed as a controlled substance, not unlike cocaine or and other illegal drugs. Now that there is a greater awareness of people abusing Imodium the FDA drug safety communications announced to the public this September 2019, that they will require limits on the amounts that can be sold in the packaging of loperamide.

 9/20/2019 Update

To help address loperamide abuse and misuse, FDA approved changes to the packaging for tablet and capsule forms of the brand-name over the counter (OTC) anti-diarrheal medicines Imodium A-D, Imodium Multi-Symptom Relief, and Be Health Loperamide HCl Capsules. These changes limit each carton to no more than 48 mg of loperamide and require the tablets and capsules to be packaged in individual doses. Some individuals are taking high doses of loperamide to treat symptoms of opioid withdrawal. Loperamide acts on opioid receptors in the gut to slow the movement in the intestines and decrease the number of bowel movements. It is safe at approved doses, but when much higher than recommended doses are taken, it can lead to serious problems, including severe heart rhythm problems and death. (FDA )

What are the Imodium Abuse Side Effects?

There have been numerous reports and documentation about people damaging their hearts and bodies as a result of taking loperamide in very high doses. Numerous deaths have been documented from all over the United States from emergency rooms to poison control centers. Heart problems arise quickly for people who are taking loperamide in large doses as Loperamide affects the amount of calcium that is delivered to the heart, which regulates the functions of the heart muscle.

The greatest scare of people turning to an anti-diarrhea drug to prevent experiencing opiate addiction withdrawal symptoms is that it can kill them. They may temporarily relieve some withdrawal symptoms but will pay for it with their lives. Another tragedy of this growing trend is the misinformation about Imodium available on the internet. Websites dedicated to drug-seeking cultures are promoting Imodium, as a quick fix, but not providing all the facts that it can kill them.

Most importantly,  is that addiction is a deadly disease that causes addicts to do and take anything to get high.

The safest way to help someone with their addiction to opiates like heroin, prescription pain killers, fentanyl, and others is to have them admitted into a medically supervised detox followed by opiate addiction treatment. The programs that we offer provide very effective medications that will eliminate withdrawal symptoms and help opiate addicts recover from their addictions.

Published on: 2019-10-04
Updated on: 2024-07-08

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At Recreate Life Counseling, we understand that the journey to recovery can be daunting without the proper support. We're here to listen, understand your challenges, and offer personalized guidance as you consider a life free from the grips of addiction and/or mental health conditions. Our admissions team is ready to assist you, whether you're looking for treatment, need advice, or simply want someone to talk to!

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