Whether you’re seeking help for yourself or a loved one, these FAQs provide essential information about medication-assisted treatment, overdose prevention, program costs, and what to expect during recovery. Our evidence-based approach combines medical supervision with counseling support to help individuals overcome opioid use disorder and rebuild their lives. If you don’t find the answer you’re looking for, please get in touch with our team.
Opioid Use Disorder
Opioid use disorder is a medical condition where the brain becomes dependent on opioid drugs like fentanyl, heroin, or prescription pain medications. This disorder involves two drives: seeking the euphoric effects of the drug and avoiding painful withdrawal symptoms. Opioids attach to receptors in the brain and trigger the release of dopamine and endorphins, creating pleasurable feelings. With repeated use, the brain physically changes and begins to require the drug to function normally, making it extremely difficult to stop using.
Opioids attach to opioid receptors in the brain, stimulating the release of natural brain chemicals like endorphins and dopamine. After repeated exposure, the brain develops physical dependence, causing severe withdrawal symptoms when use stops. The brain essentially resets itself to believe the drug is necessary for survival, leading to intense cravings and compulsive drug-seeking behavior.
Opioid use disorder is a medical condition, not a moral failing. While opioid use often begins as a choice or prescribed treatment, frequent use changes how brain cells work. Once addiction develops, the brain believes the drug is necessary for survival, making it extremely difficult to stop even when the person wants to quit.
Common signs include using opioids daily to “stay well” and avoid withdrawal, taking larger doses than prescribed, using the drug for longer than intended, unsuccessful attempts to quit, strong cravings, neglecting responsibilities, continuing use despite negative consequences, and engaging in unusual behaviors to obtain more drugs.
Overdose Symptoms
Signs of an opioid overdose include unconsciousness or inability to awaken, slow or shallow breathing, choking sounds or gurgling/snoring noises from someone who cannot be awakened, and fingernails or lips turning blue or purple. An opioid overdose is a life-threatening emergency that requires immediate medical attention.
First, try to stimulate the person by calling their name or vigorously rubbing your knuckles on their sternum or upper lip. If they don’t respond, immediately call 911, provide rescue breathing if they’re not breathing on their own, and administer naloxone (Narcan) if available. Tell the 911 dispatcher “Someone is unresponsive and not breathing” and provide your exact location.
An opioid overdose needs immediate medical attention from trained professionals. Even if naloxone is administered and the person wakes up, they still need emergency medical evaluation because opioids can remain in the system longer than naloxone works, potentially causing the person to overdose again.
Time is critical during an opioid overdose. Brain damage can occur within minutes of stopped or severely slowed breathing. Immediate action by calling 911, administering naloxone, and providing rescue breathing can save a life.
If a loved one is struggling with opioid use disorder, be informed and prepared for emergencies.
Treatment & Recovery
Narcan and naloxone are life-saving medications that reverse opioid overdoses. They work by blocking opioid receptors in the brain, quickly restoring normal breathing in someone who has overdosed. These medications do not require a prescription and can be obtained through The Life Change Center’s Peer Recovery Specialists. Everyone should have these medications at home.
The duration of recovery is individually determined. The Life Change Center offers programs ranging from two weeks to several years. Most patients work on gradually reducing medication within the first year of treatment through a medically supervised process called titration. It’s recommended that counseling extends beyond the medication period to maximize success.
The Life Change Center offers complete package service programs where all services (individual and group counseling, testing, medical exams, doctor visits, and other services) are included in one fee. The center accepts Medicare, Medicaid, HPN, Silver Summit, Amerigroup, Nevada State Medicaid, and private insurance. Discounts for essential services are offered based on family size and income, and services are provided regardless of ability to pay.
The Life Change Center accepts Medicare, Medicaid, HPN, Silver Summit, Amerigroup, Nevada State Medicaid, and private insurance. Insurance billing staff will verify coverage benefits immediately during the admission process.
Pain management using narcotic medications for people with opioid use disorder is complicated. For most people in recovery, narcotic pain medications are not appropriate. Many patients find that once they stop pain medications, their pain improves remarkably. If you have a chronic pain condition, The Life Change Center’s counselors can discuss options and help you find appropriate pain management strategies.
Medication Assisted Treatment (MAT) is substance abuse treatment that combines FDA-approved medications like methadone or buprenorphine with counseling and behavioral therapies. These long-acting medications eliminate withdrawal symptoms for 24 to 48 hours, allowing people to engage in positive lifestyle activities without the compulsion to use opioids. MAT is considered an evidence-based best practice for treating opioid use disorder.
Methadone and buprenorphine do cause physical dependence with repeated use, but physical dependence is not the same as addiction. Use disorders involve compulsive drug-seeking behavior despite negative consequences. MAT patients do not compulsively seek out these medications or experience the drug-seeking behaviors associated with substance use disorders. They are no more addicted than a diabetic is addicted to insulin.
Methadone is a long-acting synthetic opioid used in treatment since the mid-1960s. It has been proven the most effective treatment for opioid use disorder. Methadone prevents withdrawal symptoms and reduces cravings without creating euphoria, sedation, or pain relief when taken at proper therapeutic doses. It allows patients to function normally in daily life while in recovery.
Buprenorphine is the active ingredient in Suboxone. It is a partial opioid agonist that, when taken once daily, blocks other opioids from attaching to receptors in the brain. This helps stop opioid misuse. Treatment with buprenorphine, combined with counseling, helps people rebuild their lives in recovery.
Methadone is an opioid agonist with actions similar to morphine and other opioids. When taken at proper therapeutic doses, methadone prevents withdrawal symptoms and reduces cravings without creating euphoria, sedation, or pain relief. It does not impair motor skills, mental capability, or employability, allowing patients to function normally while in treatment.
When used with medical supervision and counseling support, methadone is very safe. Scientific studies show that long-term methadone treatment significantly improves overall health. Concerns about effects on the immune system, kidneys, and liver have been disproven. The most common side effects are constipation and sweating, which usually fade over time and are not serious health hazards.
Medication levels are individually determined based on differences in metabolism, body weight, and opioid tolerance. The proper maintenance dose prevents cravings and withdrawal without creating euphoria, sedation, or pain relief for 24 to 36 hours. Your medical team will work with you to find the right dose.
No. While methadone causes physical dependence, it does not cause the compulsive drug-seeking behavior that characterizes addiction. Methadone patients do not seek out the drug when not experiencing withdrawal, and their lives do not revolve around drug use, unlike active heroin use or opioid use.
For most patients, the answer is no. The Life Change Center offers medication programs ranging from two weeks to several years. Most patients gradually taper off medication within the first year through a medically supervised process called titration, with counseling support throughout to increase the likelihood of success.
The Life Change Center has a 75% overall success rate, significantly higher than the 20% recovery rate without treatment and 55% with standard medication-assisted treatment. Additionally, 87% of patients stop using opioids within the first 60 days of treatment.
The Life Change Center offers three main medication program types: Short-Term Detox (up to three weeks), Medically Supervised Withdrawal/MSW (long-term detoxification with gradual tapering), and Maintenance (ongoing medication with counseling before eventual tapering). All programs combine medication with individual and group counseling for the best outcomes.
Short-Term Detox is a program where medication (methadone or buprenorphine) is taken daily for up to three weeks. This program is designed to complete medical treatment before tolerance develops to the new medication, reducing the risk of withdrawal symptoms. This program is not appropriate for everyone and requires evaluation by The Life Change Center’s medical team.
MSW is a long-term detoxification program where patients start medication and gradually increase to a stable level with minimal withdrawal symptoms and no narcotic effect. Once stable, patients work with counselors and medical staff to create a recovery plan and begin slowly tapering off medication. This approach minimizes withdrawal symptoms and has the highest success rates at The Life Change Center.
In a Maintenance program, medication is started and increased until the patient reaches medical stabilization. Unlike MSW, there is no immediate focus on tapering. Patients work with counselors and medical staff to develop a recovery plan that may include tapering goals after achieving certain milestones, such as maintaining full-time employment for six months.
Substance use disorders are not simply a physical problem, so medication alone is not enough. Counseling addresses the psychological and behavioral aspects of these disorders. It provides insight into underlying contributing conditions, offers a safe and judgment-free relationship, increases understanding of use disorders and recovery, and provides support and tools for the recovery process.
The Life Change Center includes both individual and group counseling in all recovery programs. Counseling empowers individuals to develop realistic and effective recovery plans tailored to their specific needs and goals. The counseling staff are experts in opioid use disorder recovery.
The recovery process includes four main phases: Assessment and Admission (initial evaluation and first 30 days), Stabilization and Recovery Plan Development (where energy and memory return and counseling increases), Medically Supervised Titration (gradual weaning off medication with support), and Completion and Aftercare (transition to independence with continued counseling as needed).
Fentanyl
Fentanyl is a synthetic opioid that is up to 50 times stronger than heroin and 100 times stronger than morphine. It is often mixed with other drugs like heroin, cocaine, and methamphetamine, or made into counterfeit pills that resemble prescription opioids. This makes it extremely dangerous because users often don’t know they’re taking fentanyl.
Fentanyl is extremely dangerous due to its potency. Nearly 150 people die every day in the United States from overdoses related to synthetic opioids like fentanyl. Its strength means even a tiny amount can cause a fatal overdose, and because it’s often mixed into other drugs, many users are exposed unknowingly.
Powdered fentanyl looks like many other drugs and cannot be distinguished by appearance alone. It is commonly mixed with heroin, cocaine, and methamphetamine, or pressed into counterfeit pills designed to look like legitimate prescription opioids such as Percocet, Xanax, or Adderall.
Serious health problems from opioid abuse include liver and kidney disease, bacterial infections, collapsed veins, pneumonia, abscesses, organ damage from toxic additives, and infectious diseases such as hepatitis and HIV. Long-term use can cause permanent damage to multiple organ systems.
Opioid withdrawal symptoms include vomiting and diarrhea, severe muscle and bone pain, insomnia or restlessness, cold flashes with goosebumps, and involuntary kicking movements. Symptoms typically begin within hours of the last dose and continue for about one week, though some people experience symptoms for months. Cravings can be triggered by certain people, places, or things even years after stopping use.
Opioid detox is the process of safely removing opioids from the body while managing withdrawal symptoms. The Life Change Center uses medications such as methadone and Suboxone to minimize cravings and withdrawal pain. Medically supervised detox programs help people gradually taper off drugs while preparing them for ongoing recovery work. Detox alone is not sufficient treatment and must be followed by counseling and continued support.
Intense cravings and painful withdrawal symptoms are the primary causes of relapse when someone tries to quit opioids. The physical discomfort and psychological distress can be overwhelming without proper medical and counseling support. This is why medically supervised treatment with medication and counseling has much higher success rates than attempting to quit without help.
Prescription Medications
Prescription drug abuse is taking a prescribed medication that is not prescribed for you, in larger dosages than prescribed, for reasons other than the prescribed condition, or in ways other than prescribed (such as crushing and snorting or injecting pills meant to be swallowed). Despite being legal when properly prescribed, prescription drugs are just as dangerous as illegal drugs when abused.
Signs of prescription drug abuse disorder include tolerance (needing more of the drug for the same effect), withdrawal symptoms when trying to quit, drug cravings, compulsive drug-seeking behavior, stealing medications from others, forging prescriptions, visiting multiple doctors to obtain more drugs (doctor shopping), and continuing use despite negative effects on health, career, relationships, and finances.
Prescription opioids attach to opioid receptors in the brain, stimulating dopamine release and creating pleasurable feelings. When the medication detaches from receptors, withdrawal and cravings occur, creating a strong need to repeat the experience. Over time, tolerance develops and users need higher doses. The intense need to avoid withdrawal or satisfy cravings makes stopping extremely difficult, even when users want to quit.
The most commonly abused prescription opioids include hydrocodone (Vicodin), oxycodone (Percodan, Percocet, OxyContin), propoxyphene (Darvon), hydromorphone (Dilaudid), meperidine (Demerol), morphine, fentanyl, and codeine. These medications are typically prescribed for pain management but carry high addiction potential.
Prescription opioid abuse can lead to drowsiness, confusion, constipation, low blood pressure, and dangerously depressed breathing. Users who crush and snort or inject pills face additional risks of overdose, infection, and death. Withdrawal symptoms include muscle and bone pain, insomnia, diarrhea, vomiting, cold flashes, restlessness, and involuntary kicking movements.
Central nervous system (CNS) depressants, also called tranquilizers and sedatives, are medications prescribed for anxiety and sleep disorders. They slow brain function and heart rate by affecting the GABA neurotransmitter. When abused, especially in combination with alcohol or other drugs, they can cause serious breathing problems and death.
Barbiturates are a type of CNS depressant used to treat tension, anxiety, and sleep disorders. Examples include mephobarbital (Mebaral) and pentobarbital sodium (Nembutal). These medications carry a high risk of dependence and dangerous withdrawal symptoms.
Benzodiazepines are CNS depressants prescribed for panic attacks, acute stress, convulsions, and short-term sleep problems. Common examples include diazepam (Valium), chlordiazepoxide (Librium), alprazolam (Xanax), triazolam (Halcion), and estazolam (ProSom). These medications can be highly addictive with regular use.
Withdrawal from CNS depressants can be life-threatening because when use stops, slowed brain activity can rebound and race out of control, potentially causing seizures. Detoxification from barbiturates and benzodiazepines must be supervised by a physician or medical professional to ensure safety.
Yes. The Life Change Center specializes in treating opioid use disorder, including the abuse of prescription pain medications. The center offers medication-assisted treatment, medical supervision, and counseling specifically designed for recovery from prescription opioid use disorder.
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