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In the midst of an opioid addiction crisis, it’s important to understand each and every member of a family of drugs that leads to more and more fatalities each year. Overdoses on prescription pain relievers like Percocet take 115 lives per year, according to the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA).
With this in mind, here’s everything you need to know about Percocet: what it is, why it’s abused, Percocet withdrawal symptoms, and some of the harsh realities about addiction to the drug and other prescription opiates in the United States.
What Is Percocet?
Percocet is actually the brand name for the narcotic oxycodone mixed with a dose of Acetaminophen and acts as a powerful pain reliever. “Percocet” is actually just one of the brand names for the substance, but as the most popular brand, even the generic versions are often referred to as “Percocet.”
The drug falls into the “opiate” category, along with heroin, morphine, fentanyl, and others. More specifically, Percocet belongs to a smaller class of similar pain relievers with Vicodin, OxyContin, Codeine, and others, labeled as “prescription opioids.”
Although they share a Schedule II classification under the Controlled Substances Act, opioids like Percocet are not as powerful as morphine and fentanyl. For this reason, however, narcotic pain relievers have not been as heavily regulated, meaning that prescriptions for drugs like Percocet have been relatively easy to get, at least until recently.
How Does Percocet Work?
Like other drugs of the same family, Percocet rewires the brain to produce both intended (and unintended effects). To summarize, opiate drugs bind to opioid receptors in the brain, suppressing the body’s recognition of pain while also prompting the release of dopamine. Dopamine regulates the pleasure response in the body. After prolonged use, the brain begins to change in that it no longer functions the same without the presence of the drug. This is when dependence begins to set in, followed by full-blown addiction.
Treatment can begin quickly and discreetly, get started now In the 1990s, early opioids like OxyContin were introduced as the “less addictive” alternative to benzos like Valium and Xanax. Today, we know that these drugs are more addictive than their predecessors, and these early claims have been the cause of a number of lawsuits since then. In the late 90s, prescribing rates for pain relief with narcotics were relatively low and the drugs were only used only in cases where patients were experiencing the absolute highest pain levels. Over the early 2000s, more and more prescriptions were being written for less and less pain, bringing us to where we are today: as of 2017, the prescribing rate had tripled, despite the fact that surveys reflect that Americans didn’t see a notable increase in pain over the same time period. Today, Percocet is one of a few opioid pain relievers prescribed for moderate to severe pain, both chronic and acute. This includes cases of severe pain associated with diseases like cancers, and pain after surgery. Because of this high number of misused prescriptions, there’s a large amount of these types of prescription pain pills on the streets at any given time. This does two things in at-risk abusers: One result is an addiction that resembles heroin addiction and dependence on other opiates. Opioid addicts typically experience some or all of the following symptoms: Percocet withdrawal resembles the withdrawal from other drugs of the same category. Addicts experience the following symptoms when they stop using the drug: It is important to note that some of these symptoms are inevitable. This means that they will occur because of the severe chemical damage that has been caused to the body as a result of abusing the drug. Therefore, some of the symptoms that accompany Percocet withdrawal cannot be avoided, but can definitely be managed and treated. Opiate withdrawal is not generally life-threatening but is known to be one of the more difficult withdrawals in the treatment community. It’s for this reason that trying to detox from any opioid substance without help or medical oversight is unlikely to be successful in providing sustainable sobriety. Therefore, it’s important that Percocet withdrawal occurs with medical aid to maximize the chances of success in sobriety. Because opioids cause the user to build a tolerance to the sensations they create, users often find themselves needing to take more and more at one time to produce the same effects. Despite the fact that the user feels one dose of the drug less and less with each use, the physical effects of the drug do not lessen. Since opioids depress human respiratory function, this leads to high risk of severe health effects. One overdose of Percocet is classified as the time that drug use stops the user’s ability to breathe enough to keep them conscious or alive. The combination of high numbers of prescription opioids on the street and relative ease of overdose has contributed to some alarming numbers: as of 2017, 46 people died of overdoses from prescription narcotics like Percocet per day in the United States, according to data from the CDC. Ready to start? More questions about treatment? If you or a loved one are abusing Percocet or another member of this family of illegal prescription pain medications, it may seem harmless, but it isn’t. A seeming “habit” can turn into addiction in no time at all, and it can happen to you. Whether you think you have a problem or not, abusing pain pills is never safe or risk-free. If you misuse your own prescription medications or pills that you acquired from someone else, don’t wait to get help. The statistics surrounding opioid addiction and overdose are dire, and unless you speak to a professional about your issues, you could become just another number. At FHE Health, we treat addiction with prescription pain relievers as a comprehensive approach, combining proven therapies with counseling and medical intervention. If you or a loved one are struggling with Percocet abuse, contact us today.Need Help?
Why and How is Percocet Prescribed?
As of late 2018, many regions of the United States were still reeling in the depths of a national opioid epidemic. Much of this comes from the origins and subsequent prescribing practices surrounding these dangerous narcotics.How Is Percocet Abused?
People misuse Percocet for the euphoria it causes in the user. NIDA estimates that between 21 and 29 percent of the people prescribed an opioid like Percocet misuse it by abusing it or selling it to others for the same purpose.
What Are Symptoms and Side Effects Of Percocet Addiction?
What Are Percocet Withdrawal Symptoms?
Percocet Overdose
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Why Seek Help for Percocet Abuse?
About Kristina Robb-Dover
