Opioids Affect How Brain Feels Pain

The opioid crisis was caused by a variety of factors, but the main reason why these drugs are in the spotlight is because of the actions of the drug manufacturers. In order to fully understand the spark of the opioid crisis, it is imperative to understand what makes these drugs so potent. Writer and crime journalist Sam Quinones states that opioids are synthetic drugs. Naturally sourced drugs, known as opiates, are derived from the opium poppy plant. However, experts use both of these terms interchangeably. The use of opioids grew around the late 90s, and legally, most people used these drugs for pain relief. However, the people that were using these drugs had little information as to how addicting opioids actually were. In fact, opioids are

The opioid epidemic in America continues to grow at an alarming rate with no end in sight. All narcotics are derived from the opium poppy plant and then manufactured into different forms of drugs such as morphine, heroin, and other pharmaceutical and synthetic opioid drugs sold on the market for pain. Opium derived drugs block and suppress pain by binding to and stimulating the natural receptor sites for endorphins found in the central nervous system of a user’s brain. Patients who are prescribed narcotic drugs can quickly become addicted to the drugs because their body’s will stop producing endorphins and instead

These drugs are easy to become addicted to and continued use could lead to dependency. Citizen have to be sure to take drugs only prescribe to the patient on the bottle because what is safe to one person might not be to someone else. This is because our body chemistry is different for everyone.Some people are tricked into thinking it's safe because they are prescribed by doctors.This is untrue and opioid are very dangerous when taken recreational. Most opioids are given to help get through serious injuries. When you start these drugs, you can expect to experience drowsiness, slowed breathing, and constipation. The drug also will relieve the pain it was prescribed for. If long term usage occurs the user can easily become addicted. The body get used to the presence of these drugs and becomes attached. They might even need to use higher dosages to achieve the same high because the body builds up tolerance. This is how people overdose. The opioids slows the breathing so much that that stop breathing at

It has become relevant the bad effect of opioids and its hypersensitivity in the nervous system. A high dopamine, less serotonin had been seen in the biochemical pathways of the patients of a drug overdose. It hampers the entire biological, psychological response.CBS reported that Mothers after post pregnancy are addicted to opioids which lead to their second child to be abnormal. It not only destroy biologically but socially as well.

Analysis: Opioids are a class of drug that are medically used as very effective painkillers, like fentanyl and morphine, however, they are highly addictive and produce a feeling of euphoria (“Opioids”). This combination leads do a lot of abuse and dependency, where people take more than prescribed in order to feel better. People start off taking the opioid painkillers in order to not feel pain as prescribed by their doctors. Then, they end up getting addicted to them. There are also illicit opioids, such as heroin, that are also highly addictive and also lead to dependency and death (“Opioids”). These illicit versions are taken for recreational reasons, and are also often mixed with other drugs. The combination of taking an unregulated drug in conjunction with other drugs leads to a lot of overdoses.

When someone takes opioids for a long period of time, their body becomes desensitized to the drug. As a result, their body needs more of the substance over time to achieve the same effect. This can be a slippery slope that can lead to addiction and accidental overdose.

Dysphoria, formication, anxiety, depression, insomnia and inability to focus on tasks are just some of the many symptoms associated with withdrawing from opiates. Opiates, originally derived from opium plants, have been used medicinally as early as 3400 B.C. Presently, opioids are used to relive pain as they have been shown to aid in decreasing the severity of pain signals moving to the brain. However, long term usage can lead to psychological dependence and neurological changes in the body (Pregolizzi, 2012; Jamison, Butler, Budman, Edwards & Wasan, 2010). As of 2013 opioids were one of the most commonly abused drug in America, second only to marijuana. There have were approximately 1,244,872 emergency department visits related

An additional effect of some opioids is an experience of euphoria because these compounds affect the brain regions involved in reward. Those who abuse opioids may seek to intensify their experience by taking the drug in ways other than those prescribed. For example,

Similar considerations may help explain why several prescription opioids — such as hydromorphone, fentanyl, morphine, and oxycodone — have a potential for abuse that is similar to, and in some cases even higher than, the potential for abuse with heroin. Finally, these differential properties and effects are likely to interact with interindividual variability in powerful, complex, and incompletely predictable ways, so that some persons who abuse prescription opioids could find heroin less rewarding than prescription opioids, similarly rewarding, or even more rewarding

Opioid pills flood the body with chemicals to give the user pleasure and pain relief (Triffin). To many, these drugs seem safer than other drugs. However, this is far from the truth. Right now, the opioid epidemic is the fastest growing drug problem (Volk). Teens’ young age makes them especially vulnerable to addiction. John F. Kelly, Ph.D, associate professor of psychiatry in addiction medicine at Harvard Medical School explains, “The brain is in a critical and vulnerable period of growth during adolescence.” Kelly added that “early exposure to drug misuse increases your risk of addiction by 5 to 10 times, independent of other factors” (Triffin). Simultaneously, studies show that when rewarded, teens’ brains have a strong reaction. This, combined with the impulsive nature of the teen brain means that teens are attracted to thrills. These weaknesses are manipulated by drugs, as observed in animal research. Young rats tend to work harder than adult rats to get drugs, which implies that the teen brain is more attracted to drugs. The thrill of taking a drug is pleasing to teens (Teen Brain Vulnerability Exposed). In fact, When someone takes a painkiller,

Opioids are drugs that act on the nervous system to relieve pain. Using them continuously and abusing can lead to physical dependence and withdrawal symptoms. They come in different forms such as tablets, capsules and even liquid.

The short-term effects of opiate use include feelings of euphoria, pain relief, drowsiness, and sedation due to the release of dopamine in the brain. Long-term effects can include nausea and vomiting, stomach cramping, constipation, liver damage, brain damage due to respiratory depression, development of tolerance, and dependency. Other effects from opioid use, while not directly related to the drug itself, include viral hepatitis and HIV due to using unsterile needles to inject the drugs in to the system.

The opioid pain inhibition pathway is heavily influenced by estrogen (Dawson-Basoa & Gintzler, 1993; Gordon & Soliman, 1996; Smith et al., 2006). For example, pregnancy analgesia is caused by high estrogen and progesterone concentrations but is mediated by the spinal κ- and δ-opioid receptors via activation of both the dynorphin and met-enkephalin pathways (Dawson-Basoa & Gintzler, 1993). In the brain hippocampal dynorphin is elevated in the presence of estrogen (Torres-Reveron et al., 2009), and may play a role in inhibiting the formation of long term potentiation via KOR activation (Terman, Drake, Simmons, Milner, & Chavkin, 2000). Estradiol alters dynorphin/KOR tone in some areas of the brain (Mostari et al., 2013) and KOR activation by

According to National Institute of Drug abuse, addiction is defined as a chronic, relapsing brain disease that is characterized by compulsive drug seeking and use, despite harmful consequences (2014). Opioids are natural or synthetic compound that mimics properties of natural narcotics. It is a pain reliever that works by tying to opioid receptors, which are found principally in the central nervous system and the gastrointestinal tract. The receptors intervene

Opioids are drugs taken for relieving pain. This drug has its effect on the human body through the reduction of the intensity of neuro-pain signals which are relayed to the brain (Opioids, 2009). Classic examples are the painkillers that include morphine, methadone, and hydrocodone among others. Pain is a physical suffering caused by illness or injury and may vary from steady to constant and throbbing to pulsating. It is not reasonable for anyone of us to except no pain except for those who suffer from anhydrases. This is an unusual genetic disorder that makes one unable to feel pain. Opioids play a significant role in the health system but they can be hazardous if used for pleasure or in a case of addiction. It is therefore important that