Sometimes the easy way out just isn’t worth the trouble. Such is the case with rapid opiate detox treatment. There’s no denying opiate withdrawal symptoms can be extremely uncomfortable and last for weeks at a time. Considering the damage addiction does to the body, it’s really no surprise that withdrawal stages can be difficult to bear.

As with any chronic condition, the body develops an opiate addiction over time. Likewise, the body needs at least as much time to learn to function normally, on its own. In effect, the dangers involved with trying to rush detox using rapid opiate detox treatment can cause serious health risks both now and in the future.

Rapid Detox Treatment

Undergoing a rapid opiate detox stresses your mind and body by speeding up the withdrawal process.

Rapid opiate detox treatment and emergency room procedures for treating opiate overdoses pretty much operate off of the same principle. In both cases, a person receives massive doses of an opiate-blocking drug, such as Narcan. Essentially, Narcan flushes all traces of opiates out of the system. In the process, the patient is put under anesthesia to prevent pain sensations from being experienced.

With rapid opiate detox, the patient wakes up with no recollection of having gone through withdrawal. When used to treat opiate overdose, a person – who’s most likely suffering from respiratory failure – comes back to life as respiratory processes resume.

Normally, opiate detox takes anywhere from one week to a month before all traces of opiates flush from the system. During this time, the brain and body undergo a repair process that restores body functions back to normal. According to the U.S. National Library of Medicine, while under anesthesia, rapid opiate detox puts the body through a full-blown withdrawal period in a matter of seconds.

While treatment programs using rapid opiate detox advertise it as a quick, painless and effortless procedure, the body will most likely pay a price, one way or another.

Effects on the Body

For most addicts, by the time a person becomes addicted to opiates his or her health status has declined considerably. Malnutrition, along with weakened heart and respiratory functions are common among people addicted to opiates. Under these conditions, performing a rapid opiate detox procedure can have danger effects on a person’s health.

Since the body undergoes a form of shock treatment with rapid opiate detox, already weakened systems can very well breakdown altogether from the stress this procedure places on the body. In many instances people have died within days of receiving rapid detox treatment.

Effects on Addiction

While rapid opiate detox procedures may speed up the opiate withdrawal process and eliminate the body’s physical dependence, detox is only the first step towards breaking an opiate addiction. Emotional and psychological problems, more oftentimes than not, become the driving force behind addiction. If these issues aren’t dealt with, the likelihood of relapse is imminent.

For opiate addictions in particular, the risk of relapse and overdose can be life-threatening for someone who hasn’t used in a while. To date, no confirmed records of long-term abstinence rates exist for people who’ve tried rapid opiate detox. After “shocking” the body with rapid opiate detox, the risk of relapse and overdose lean more so towards “dancing with death” than ever before.