If you have ever been injured or had a condition that caused you to feel great pain, you may have been prescribed drugs known as opioids that are intended to help you manage your discomfort. Opioids are capable of providing patients who are suffering physical pain with welcome relief.
However, in making you feel better, opioids interact with receptors that are found in various parts of your body, including your spinal cord and brain. This interaction works to give you the perception of pain reduction. There are also a variety of possible side effects, such as mental confusion, drowsiness and nausea.
However, the most pleasant effect, euphoria, may also be the most dangerous. Opioids operate in the reward regions of the brain. Obviously, if a person is strongly attracted to the feeling of euphoria, he or she may develop a fondness for the drug.
Making matters more dangerous is the possibility of developing a physical dependency to an opioid. Dependency is a natural physical response that occurs when a patient’s body adapts to the intake of a drug. Physical dependency can cause a patient to suffer withdrawal symptoms should there be an abrupt halt of the drug’s consumption.
When it comes to opioids, which include such drugs as OxyContin, it is perfectly normal for a patient to face issues when trying to taper off as the need subsides. It is from this physical dependence that an addiction can develop. For some people, addictions are nearly impossible to battle alone, and their addictions can lead them to seek relief by acquiring drugs in an illegal manner.
If your struggle with addiction has led to your arrest for possession of illegal prescription drugs, you may benefit from having a Louisiana criminal defense attorney act as your legal representative. The attorney may be able to act on your behalf to help you enter a treatment program as an alternative to incarceration.