By: Zinnia Healing Editorial Staff | Edited By: Rebecca Hill
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How to Detox From OxyContin Safely
OxyContin is a powerful opioid painkiller. When it comes to OxyContin, the risks of tolerance, dependence, and eventual misuse are even greater.
OxyContin is one of the most potent opioids on the market, but its time-release formula makes it ideal for chronic pain management.
Those misusing OxyContin may take more than prescribed or crush it into powder to experience a rush or “high” from the drug.
Additionally, even those taking OxyContin as prescribed may become tolerant to their dose.
Because of the drug’s strength, the OxyContin detox process can be uncomfortable. Medical OxyContin detox is necessary to ensure health and safety, and it may involve switching to a less powerful opioid to manage symptoms of withdrawal.
One thing that’s important to recognize is that the detox process must take place for anyone stopping OxyContin, whether they misused it or not. Here’s what you need to know about the OxyContin detox process and how it is managed.
Zinnia Healing can provide the resources and support needed during the recovery process to overcome OxyContin addiction. Visit our website or give us a call today at (855) 430-9439 to learn more.
What is an OxyContin Detox?
Whether someone is misusing OxyContin or not, a person must go through a detox to stop taking OxyContin and safely get it out of their system.
How quickly dependence on OxyContin forms depends on the amount a person is taking, their history of opioid use, and certain environmental and genetic predispositions. It’s important to distinguish physical dependency from emotional dependency as well.
Physical dependence can occur in anyone taking OxyContin for a long period of time because it will alter the brain’s chemistry.
Emotional dependency occurs primarily in those misusing the drug. Physical dependency is a hurdle to overcome whether or not a person wants to stop taking OxyContin because it’s purely a chemical side effect of long-term OxyContin use.
Once that dependency has formed, quitting OxyContin must be treated as a process and not an event. Suddenly stopping OxyContin puts a person at risk for severe withdrawal symptoms and potentially dangerous side effects. This is why medical detox is the best route to take.
In medical detox, the care provider assesses the person’s physical, mental, and psychological well-being to help come up with a personalized plan.
Typically, a person will gradually taper off OxyContin as a doctor decreases their dosage with time. In some cases, they may switch a person off of OxyContin and onto a weaker opioid with fewer symptoms and/or a reduced risk of misuse (like Suboxone).
How Long Will an OxyContin Detox Last?
The length of the detox process varies depending on multiple factors, including how long the person has been taking the drug, how much they have been taking, and the history of opioid use.
Usually, the most intense part of OxyContin detox lasts for 5 to 10 days. However, long-term replacement medications may be needed to help prevent withdrawal symptoms that can occur weeks after stopping OxyContin.
1. Early-Stage Detox
The early-stage detox symptoms generally peak within 3-5 days of entering detox. These symptoms can set on as early as 8 hours after taking your last dose.
Early symptoms are characterized by agitation, restlessness, anxiety, insomnia, yawning, irregular heart rate, sweating, fever, runny nose, and high blood pressure.
2. Late-Stage Detox
After 3-5 days, a person transitions into late-stage detox, characterized by additional symptoms. Late-stage detox is typically when nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, cramping, chills, drug cravings, depression, and trouble concentrating begin.
At most, these symptoms tend to last from a few days to a week, but the psychological side effects of OxyContin detox can last much longer.
Your personalized treatment plan will have a timeline based entirely on you. It’s important to remember that even when the detox process is officially over, it does not represent recovery — it’s just the start.
The detox process is the first phase of OxyContin recovery. Near the end of the detox process, a person enters the rehabilitative phase of OxyContin treatment.
What Are the Withdrawal Symptoms During an OxyContin Detox?
During detox, a person can experience side effects similar to flu symptoms.
These side effects begin with physical symptoms, such as:
- Nausea
- Vomiting
- Diarrhea
- Chills
- Sweating
- Tremors
Even in those who have not misused OxyContin, psychological side effects are also common during withdrawal, which is the case with all opioids. The psychological side effects can be most intense during OxyContin detox for some.
The psychological side effects of OxyContin withdrawal and detox include:
- Anxiety
- Irritability
- Agitation
- Sudden mood changes
- Difficulty sleeping
- Difficulty concentrating
These symptoms can undoubtedly affect a person’s daily life, so medical detox is so beneficial. A doctor overseeing the detox can provide tools and medications to help manage the symptoms to make the OxyContin detox process less severe.
What Types of Treatment Are Used During an OxyContin Detox?
The medical detox is step one of three in OxyContin addiction treatment. As the medical detox comes to a close, a person will enter into the rehabilitative phase where they will be introduced to various tools and therapies that will support lasting recovery.
The rehabilitative phase is often rooted in talk therapy and peer support groups, but the plan will look different for each individual.
At Zinnia Healing, we believe in offering personalized care, keeping our practices firmly grounded in leading scientific and medical research practices.
We also believe in taking a holistic approach to addiction recovery to set a person up for lasting change. During rehabilitation, a person overcoming OxyContin addiction may receive guidance in wellness, nutrition, goal-setting, and countless other key areas of concern.
The goal of the rehabilitative process is to understand why a person began taking OxyContin, what triggered them to misuse OxyContin, and what changes need to take place to avoid OxyContin misuse in the future.
Rehabilitation may work on your family dynamic, personal goals, overcoming challenges, and designing a path to a brighter future. Another important aspect is ensuring supportive; caring individuals surround each person.
As structured rehabilitative treatment comes to a close, the third and final phase of OxyContin addiction treatment is continuing care. For many, this phase is an ongoing endeavor where they continuously seek to improve themselves and their lifestyle while leveraging the lessons they learned during their treatment.
In the weeks and months following rehabilitation, the Zinnia Healing team plays a key role in ensuring that each individual has ongoing support and resources to help them achieve the long-term goals they have set out to work towards.
Continuing care plays a big role in helping a person avoid relapse, but if relapse does happen, it ensures that the person can pick back up and keep moving forward.
Can You Detox from OxyContin at Home or Not?
Due to the severity of physical and psychological withdrawal symptoms, at-home detox from OxyContin and other opioids is not typically recommended.
While most withdrawal symptoms are not life-threatening, they can be extremely painful and seem never-ending.
If you are prescribed OxyContin by your doctor, you may be able to discuss gradually decreasing your dose over time. However, if you have been abusing your medication, or taking it with other substances, it is extremely important that you are honest with your doctor.
How to Find an OxyContin Detox Center Near Me
Zinnia Healing offers rehab programs in several states, making it easy to find an OxyContin detox center near you.
The best way to find the nearest detox facility is through the locations page on our website or by calling our support line at (855) 430-9439.
At Zinnia Healing, we offer treatment plans that are tailored to your needs. We know that everyone is different, so we choose from a range of treatment options to suit your situation.
Are you interested in learning more about your options for OxyContin recovery? Do you have questions about the OxyContin detox or treatment process? The friendly professionals at Zinnia Healing are standing by to answer your questions and walk with you on your journey to a brighter future. We offer expert treatment facilities across the nation and will help you “heal for good.” Contact us today to learn more.