It turns out that opiates addicts and chronic smokers have something in common. According to Science Daily, the effect that both nicotine and opioid-based drugs have on the reward system in the brain are “surprisingly similar.” When you smoke a cigarette, the nucleus accumbens is triggered and a sensation of pleasure is released. We sort of knew that, to an extent, right? Chemical addiction is based on the pleasure producing characteristics of the chemical of addiction. What the new research shows is that the strength and power of the pleasure triggered by nicotine is equal to that of opiates. Who knew?

What the Experts Say About Opiates and Nicotine

Daniel McGehee is an Associate Professor in Anesthesia and Critical Care at the University of Chicago Medical Center. He says:

“Testing rat brain tissue, we found remarkable overlap between the effects of nicotine and opiates on dopamine signaling within the brain’s reward centers. There is a specific part of the nucleus accumbens where opiates have been shown to affect behavior, and when we tested nicotine in that area, the effects on dopamine are almost identical.”

Dopamine, of course, is a neurotransmitter that is released during reward and addiction. Naturally, experiences like food and sex release dopamine, but for many, it’s the absence of dopamine that makes them more prone to addiction because of the artificial stimulation, especially in the case of opioid-based drugs like heroin, codeine, morphine and the like.

What this New Research Doesn’t Say About Opiates and Nicotine

It’s important to note that the similarities between opiates and nicotine end with this strange and surprising effect on dopamine levels. That’s it and that’s all. The physical effects of the drugs, the mental effects, the grip of the addiction and how best to break those addictions—all these are completely different.

Why Should You Care About the Similarities Between Opiates and Nicotine?

Well, McGehee says that the research, “also demonstrates the seriousness of tobacco addiction, equating its grip on the individual to that of heroin. It reinforces the fact that these addictions are very physiological in nature and that breaking away from the habit is certainly more than just mind over matter.”

And why is this of interest to us in particular, the opiate addicts of the world? Well, it could mean that we’re a step closer to yet another avenue to opiate addiction treatment and healing, and that’s never a bad thing.

Well! It’s been a while since I’ve made a post here, and I have missed y’all something terrible, but I can’t think of a better reason to break my writer’s block than this:

This week marks the six-month anniversaryof me beginning Suboxone treatment! Woot!

I can hardly believe that a half of a year has already passed, and so it seems like a good time to take a moment to reflect on where I came from, and where I am now.

Six months ago I was a huge mess. I was in constant pain, physically and emotionally. I’d been using opiates nearly every day for the previous year, progressing from hydrocodone to morphine and dilaudid. My life slowly and steadily constricted around me as I let go of people and activities I cared about because all I had energy for was getting high.

I dropped out of school, telling myself I’d take the quarter off to rest and get my health back - but that quarter stretched to another and another. Work wasn’t going well. I was unmotivated, lethargic and frankly, my attitude was total crap. Home life wasn’t much better - even my beloved daughter was starting to feel more like a burden to me than a joy. The worst, though, was the way I felt about myself.

I knew I was out of control. I put off paying bills because I needed drugs to stave off the dopesickness that constantly threatened to take me down. My tolerance grew so much over the previous summer that I couldn’t even get pain relief any longer, and getting high was out of the question. Over and over I tried to quit and suffered through the pain of withdrawals for days, sometimes even a week or more, only to use again at the first chance I had. Still, some twisted sense of pride kept me from admitting that I was in over my head and I needed help.

During this low-point, I became aware of this new drug called Suboxone, and it’s great potential to help people like me - opiate addicts. Did I call for help the first time I heard about it? Oh, no way. I was scared, and embarassed. But I was also intrigued, so I sought out information online. And the more stories I read, the more I became convinced that this drug could help me too.

So I finally made the call, and got into a treatment program and started taking Subxone. That was six months ago, and while it hasn’t always been smooth sailing, I definitely stopped my ship from sinking and steered it to safer waters. (to torture a metaphor, sorry!)

What does my life look like, six months into treatment? Well, I’m glad you asked, because things are great!

Because I chose, based on my substance abuse history and other mental-health issues, to go with a longer-term replacement type treatment with Subxone, I still take Suboxone every day. I’ve decreased my dose quite a bit, with an eye toward tapering off completely in the next six to eight months. I also go to therapy once a week, and I have a “recovery plan” that keeps me involved in activities that are healthy and fun - like yoga, dance, swimming, writing, and blogging.

Family life is so much better. The best thing is that I can now handle the inevitable rough-patches without turning to drugs, and sometimes I even manage to hold on to my peace of mind during the hard times. I’ve navigated some serious health issues lately without completely losing my balance, and I’m quite proud of that. I’m doing better at work too, and have been given new responsibilites that have made my job fun again.

The thing I’m most proud of, though, is that I returned to school for the Spring quarter and if all goes well, I will finally complete my Associate of Arts degree after only 15 years!!! Well, not that I was in school for that whole time, LOL, but it did take me a while. The class I’m taking this quarter should complete my degree, and I can transfer to University next year. I can not tell you how incredibly good it feels to be getting on with my life.

And, more than just getting on with life, I have goals again. Addiction steals our goals, our hopes and dreams, sometimes to the point that the only thing we’re living for is the next opportunity to get high. That is such an incredibly painful way to live, so I’m beyond happy to have found that I don’t have to live that way anymore. Nobody has to live like that - there’s help for us all.

Suboxone didn’t do all the work for me, but I doubt I could have come this far this quickly without it. If you’ve been thinking about calling, wondering if this drug could help you too - all I can say is Make The Call. I sincerely believe you won’t regret it.

Percocet is the brand name for a drug that combines oxycodone and acetaminophen. This same combination but in different strengths can also be found in the brand name drugs, Roxicet, Tylox and Endocet, but Percocet is by far the most popular prescription painkiller.

Unfortunately, it’s pretty easily prescribed: get a tooth pulled at the dentist or a couple stitches at the doctor’s office and head home with a bottle of Percocet (or at least a script for one). Take them for too long and you end up with something much worse than that: a physical dependence upon Percocet, otherwise known as Percocet addiction.

Now, the acetaminophen in Percocet is relatively innocuous. Though you can overdose on the drug and it can kill you, my understanding is that it would take a couple of weeks and it’s a long, slow, painful death. The oxycodone in Percocet, on the other hand, can end your life with a single overdose depending upon your tolerance. It also impairs your ability to think clearly, to make good decisions and your hand-eye coordination. Driving is extremely dangerous under the influence.

So what’s it like to go through a Percocet withdrawal? Not fun. Just like all opiate painkillers, your body comes to depend upon a certain amount of the drug in your system at all times. When you stop taking it without warning, your body kind of goes into shock, which translates into withdrawal symptoms that are nothing nice. It’s like the flu with fever, sweating and chills, runny nose and eyes, anxiety, nausea, stomach cramps, diarrhea…. I could go on and on. In short, it’s not fun. But there are ways to get off the Percocet without experiencing the withdrawal symptoms that go along with a cold turkey Percocet detox.

Taking advantage of buprenorphine in the form of Suboxone and Subutex is one way to bypass the most fierce symptoms and, in some cases, avoid them altogether. Depending upon what dose you are at and how long you have been maintaining your Percocet addiction, your Suboxone detox will be shorter or longer. With a treatment plan, you can be off it and complete drug-free in as few as six weeks. Check it out!