Morphine is one of the most abused drugs in the world. Basically this drug was manufactured for treating severe pain, but later on people started to use it as recreational drug. Morphine has a direct impact on central nervous system, and it causes neurotoxic effects on brain, making it very addictive.
The drug should only be taken after prescription from a doctor as it has several side effects. Common side effects include nausea, itching, dry mouth, excessive sweating, drowsiness, low blood pressure, psychiatric disorders, and histamine release.
Morphine causes digestion problems such as reduced gut motility resulting in constipation. It also inhibits nitric oxide generation. Gut secretions are minimized, and more fluids are absorbed in the intestine which leads to constipation.
Morphine abuse can lead to hepatitis C, or dangerous liver inflammation. Hepatitis C is usually found in abusers that inject morphine into their blood streams. The disease becomes complicated as morphine reduces immunity and quickens virus replication inside the body.
Morphine is potent and addictive. The drug can become an important psychological and physical need of the abuser. It basically activates reward system of the brain. The normal function of reward system is chemically disturbed by the drug leading to addiction. Most people get addicted to the drug within a few days of use.
If an addict suddenly stops taking the drug, it can lead to prototypical opioid withdrawal syndrome, heart failure, muscle fatigue, high blood pressure, bone fatigue, incontrollable urination, and even suicide.
Morphine addicts have low immunity levels are they have high risk of getting infections and viruses such as pneumonia, TB and AIDS. Neutrophils and cytokines play an important part in defending the body from foreign attack by viruses, but their abilities are minimized by morphine. Wound healing is also reduced as a result of morphine abuse.
Morphine slows down CNS. It causes slow reflexes, drowsiness, sub consciousness, and poor physical performance. Students, athletes, drivers, office workers, laborers, mechanics etc perform badly in their professional life if they take morphine.
Morphine overdose can take place accidentally while taking a prescribed painkiller. This drug creates extreme pleasure in brain, making it highly addictive. Morphine and medicines containing morphine should be taken with extreme care as overdose can caused numerous problems. Common symptoms of morphine overdose are:Slow breathingBlue nails/lipsVomitingLow blood pressureDrowsinessSeizuresStomach painWeak pulse
In extreme cases people stop breathing and even enter into coma. Things can change quickly and may eventually lead to death. People taking normal quantity of morphine may suffer from the above mentioned symptoms, but severity of symptoms is pretty less. One should worry if the severity of these symptoms increases. Overdose is not recommended in any case, even if the patient is having more pain on a particular day. The biggest problem caused by overdose is addiction.
Morphine is available in several different physical forms. Most commonly this drug is available as syrups, injections, tablets, capsules or suppositories. Syringe drivers are often used to adjust quantity of the dose. Injecting morphine is the quickest way to get rid of morphine. The net is filled with numerous morphine pictures.
Morphine addiction can turn out to be a life threatening issue. People that live around the addict are also badly affected. Addicts should quickly go for appropriate rehabilitation programs. These programs don't criticize the addicts; instead they guide them to live a prosperous future life. The first initiative is to enter into a residential morphine rehabilitation program. Most patients believe that they can get rid of addiction by themselves, but it's not possible, so a friend or family member of the patient should convince him/her to enter into a rehab.
Patients are provided with extensive knowledge on how they can live well without using morphine. The best results have been seen after 3 month long residential treatments. Three months appears to be a long time, but actually it's not all about treatment. Quality rehabilitation centers provide patients with all good things in life. They are given good food, physical activities, entertainment and social interaction.
Drug rehabs divide the recovery programs into small phases. The first phase is usually detoxification. Then patients are taught about dangers of using morphine. When patients develop a strong will to quit using the drug, they start recovering quickly. Tablets, morphine pictures, syringes, food or any other thing that reminds the addict of morphine can be painful, as it creates a sense of need for the drug. The staff members at drug rehabs help patients recover from such thoughts. Overall, drug rehabilitation programs are the best solution to quit morphine addiction.