Coping with Cravings During Treatment for Heroin Addiction

What’s the worst part of going through treatment for heroin addiction?

For most people, it’s the intense cravings.

If you’ve ever skipped a dose or tried to quit before, you know just how this feels.

However, you don’t have to give in to these cravings during treatment. There are many ways to take a stand so you don’t fall off course.

Need more help dealing with cravings? Call us now at 800-678-5931(Paid Advertiser) to speak with a representative who can guide you through your problems.

Make Sure You Are Getting the Right Treatment

Without the right treatment, you will be vulnerable to heroin relapse.

Because there are many different kinds of treatment out there, it’s important to make sure you’re getting the right help for you.

Always talk with your doctor if you feel like you’re having more cravings than you should. They may be able to recommend a different treatment for heroin addiction, such as:

Methadone or buprenorphine to help reduce cravings
Cognitive behavioral, family, or group therapy to talk through your issues and change your behavior
Getting a health coach for encouragement and to check-in when you are feeling a craving
Get craving coping skills training, which studies have shown greatly reduce relapse

Identify Triggers

Likely, there are certain scenarios, people, or objects that will trigger your cravings.

Usually, this is because they will remind you of times in the past you used heroin. Other common triggers include:

Emotions, such as fatigue or frustration
Feeling ill or tense
Times of day
Certain locations

In order to identify what’s causing your cravings, start keeping detailed records of what you were doing, seeing, or feeling when one comes on. Eventually, you’ll be able to figure out the trigger and start avoiding it in the future.

Understand It’s Normal and Give Yourself Time

Distract Yourself

In order to keep your mind from drifting back to drugs, it’s important to fill your life with other things.

Pick up new hobbies or make new friends that aren’t into drugs.

Some other things that you can do to distract your mind until the craving goes away include:

Read a book
Watch a movie
Go for a jog or to the gym
Work on a puzzle
Clean your home

Not only will this stop you from using drugs, but it can help you become a better person if you challenge yourself to replace negative behavior with positive behavior.

Do the Effects of Methadone Stop Drug Cravings?

Opiate addictions encompass a wide variety of drugs, some of which include: Heroin Morphine Demerol OxyContin Percocet When used on a short-term basis, the risk of abuse and addiction remains low as far as the prescription opiate drugs go. In general, long-term use of any opiate drug can have damaging effects on the brain’s chemical ….

Urge Surf

An opposite approach to distraction is urge surfing. Instead of trying to block out or push away your urge, you should try to stay present with the urge until it disappears.

Because most cravings are like waves, they will start small and keep growing until they reach a peak. Eventually, they will crash back down and then dissipate entirely. By riding the wave, you can take control of the craving so you don’t succumb to it.

Confused? There are three main steps to try:

First, allow yourself to understand just how the craving feels. Listen to your body and see what you feel in different areas, such as a tightness in your stomach or an itch in your nose.
Second, try to understand the exact sensation of the craving. Is it hot or cold? Does it tingle? Is your mouth dry?
Third, spend time focusing on each part of your body that is experiencing the craving. In this way, you’ll be able to watch it fade until it’s gone entirely.

This method of inward contemplation will help you better understand your cravings so you know exactly how long they’ll last and how they make you feel.

Talk With Others

Of course, it’s always helpful to talk with others when you’re having a craving. By surrounding yourself with non-drug users, you’ll have a supportive group that can help you push through in times of duress.

If you have no one to talk with, we’re here to help. Our specialists are always ready to help you cope.

Just call us now at 800-678-5931(Paid Advertiser) whenever you’re feeling the urge to use heroin.

Dealing with cravings during treatment for heroin addiction is not easy. However, by using this techniques, it will be much easier to avoid relapse.