Norco Withdrawal and Detox

Norco Info

• Norco Addiction and Abuse
• Norco Symptoms and Warning Signs
• Norco Treatment and Rehab
• Norco Withdrawal and Detox

Norco is a prescription drug administered to provide relief for moderate to severe pain. It is a combination of acetaminophen and hydrocodone. You are likely to develop tolerance to the drug and eventually, addiction, if you use it for longer than prescribed or at a higher dosage than prescribed by a doctor. Even when you’ve only used it as prescribed, this can still lead to dependence, so you must be extra careful and watch out for any warning signs.

It’s not difficult to know when you’ve become dependent on the drug, because you will begin to experience withdrawal symptoms. They may take the form of psychological symptoms such as depression and anxiety, or physical symptoms such as nausea and tremors. Once you begin to notice that you don’t feel quite right after staying away from the drug for a while, it’s best to consult your doctor about detoxing properly.

What Is Norco Withdrawal?

Withdrawal occurs when you stop using the drug after you’ve reached a level of dependency or addiction. The uncomfortable symptoms you experience are the result of your body trying to adjust to the absence of the substance, after having grown dependent on it to function normally. Norco is typically prescribed on a short-term basis, but when it is used for a long period of time, it binds to your brain’s pain receptors, where it exerts its effects of reducing pain.

It doesn’t take long for your brain cause cravings, because it wants more of the pleasurable effects of the drug. When you stop feeding your brain with Norco, your system reacts by producing withdrawal symptoms, as it tries to adjust to the absence of the drug. You may experience symptoms like diarrhoea, vomiting and nausea, restlessness, anxiety, sweats, severe pain, and insomnia, amongst others.

Causes of Norco Withdrawal

Withdrawal is the result of the body’s reaction to the absence of the drug after it has become used to it. This means that you have become so dependent on Norco that your system cannot function normally without it. When you suddenly stop taking the drug or significantly reduce your dosage, your body enters a process whereby it tries to readjust to working as it did before you started using the substance. This readjustment produces side effects in the form of withdrawal symptoms.

There are a number of factors that may work interchangeably to cause addiction. One of those is genetics, as it is thought that a person may develop an addiction if they have a first-degree relative with a substance use disorder. You may also have the tendency if you naturally have a neurotransmitter deficit, which can be balanced by your drug usage. Other factors include the presence of a mental illness and environmental factors.

The Phases of Norco Withdrawal

Withdrawal can be divided into three distinct phases. The first – which is the earliest stage – occurs around 8 to 16 hours after the last dose. At this stage, you may experience physical symptoms such as involuntary twitching, dilated pupils, and sweating, or psychological symptoms like insomnia, restlessness, anxiety, or agitation. Symptoms tend to gradually increase in severity until they peak, by which time you will have entered the second phase.

You can expect your symptoms to reach a peak after two or three days since your last dosage. At this stage, you might experience increased blood pressure and respiratory rate, as well as diarrhoea and vomiting. After peaking, the symptoms should start to subside. The final phase of withdrawal occurs after the acute withdrawal stage when your physical symptoms peak and subside. You may experience psychological symptoms like insomnia and depression for many weeks or months.

Hydrocodone Withdrawal Timeline

There is no specific withdrawal timeline set in stone, as the experience is different for everyone. However, you may take this general timeline as a guide for what to expect:

• First 12 hours : Within the first 12 hours after your last dose, you’re likely to experience the onset symptoms. It may take longer than this, but the symptoms you are likely to experience are physical ones such as pupil dilation and sweating.

• Days 2 to 3 : By day three or earlier, you can expect your symptoms to peak. They will remain at this heightened state until they start to decline gradually. By this time, you may experience many other symptoms, including psychological ones like insomnia and depression.

• Days 5 to 7 : By this time, your symptoms will have peaked and should have started subsiding until the physical signs are completely resolved.

• Two weeks and more : While your physical symptoms should have resolved after about a week, you may continue to experience psychological symptoms for a while afterwards. You may experience symptoms like restlessness and insomnia for many weeks or months to follow.

Risks of Withdrawal

One of the most serious risks of withdrawal stems from vomiting, which is a common withdrawal symptom. You may inadvertently inhale vomit into your lungs (known as aspiration), which can result in a serious complication that can cause pneumonia or another serious respiratory infection.

Norco Withdrawal Symptoms: What to Expect

There is a vast array of symptoms that can be caused by withdrawal from this drug – many of which resemble flu symptoms. You may experience restlessness, vomiting, diarrhoea, excessive sweating, nausea, and runny nose. Other symptoms may include tremors, rapid breathing, abdominal cramps, insomnia, depression and agitation, amongst others.

There’s no saying exactly which symptoms you will experience, because the nature and severity of withdrawal symptoms tend to vary due to a number of factors. These factors include how long you’ve been abusing the substance, how often you’ve been using it, and how heavy your dosage has been. Other factors such as your unique physiology and the presence of any co-occurring disorders also come into play.

Factors Influencing Withdrawal and Detox

There are a few factors that can influence the detox and withdrawal process – and one of those is age. If you are an older person, you’re likely to experience more severe symptoms than if you were younger. One of the possible reasons for this is that you could have other illnesses and may be on other medications that can influence the detox process.

Another crucial factor is the duration of your drug usage, as you’re more likely to have a difficult withdrawal if you’ve been engaged in substance abuse for a long time. Your withdrawal symptoms may be very unpredictable if you have a dual diagnosis of a substance use disorder and a mental health disorder. It can be difficult for medical personnel to convincingly distinguish between addiction effects and mental illness.

Lack of a solid support system can affect the withdrawal process negatively and make it more difficult for you, while your own outlook matters a great deal. If you have a positive outlook on recovery and treatment, you’re likely to have it easier than if you enter treatment believing that your symptoms will be too painful to bear.

Norco Detox Process

Detoxification – commonly shortened to ‘detox’ – typically marks the beginning of treatment for a substance use disorder. With detoxification comes withdrawal and symptoms are the major reason why detoxing in a medical facility is necessary. You may have to be given medications to help manage your symptoms and make withdrawal more bearable.

Medical management of withdrawal symptoms is only one part of the detox process, as a detox centre will typically combine this with one-on-one counselling or group therapy in order to confront your addiction problem head-on. There are a few options when it comes to detoxing methods, including tapering, medical therapy, and rapid detox.

Tapering means that you will be gradually ‘weaned off’ the drug by taking progressively smaller doses over a period of time. During medical therapy, you’ll be placed on another drug that will replace Norco, without producing the same euphoric effects, before being weaned off the new drug as detox progresses. Rapid detox involves the use of a general anaesthetic to sedate you during withdrawal. All these methods are aimed at making detox more bearable.

Home Detox

While you may think you can detox at home, we strongly advise against this, as there are too many risks involved. There is the possibility of overdosing in the event of a relapse, which can be extremely dangerous to your health. Also, there may be complications that you’ll be unable to handle on your own without the help of medical personnel.

Medically Supervised Norco Withdrawal Detox

You will not only receive medical support, but also emotional support when you opt for medically supervised detox. The medical personnel at a detox centre typically have a great deal of experience with addiction recovery and have a deep understanding of every step that must be taken. Depending on the severity of your substance use disorder or the nature of any complicating factors, medically supervised withdrawal may take place in an inpatient or outpatient setting.

While withdrawal may not typically be life-threatening, the symptoms can be extremely uncomfortable and difficult to handle on your own. There is also the possibility of developing complications that can only be properly managed by medical personnel. Therefore, you’ll be better off and have a greater chance of success if you detox in a medical setting.

Medications Used During Norco Detox

Some of the medications that may be administered during detox include the following:

• Buprenorphine : This drug is similar to Norco in that it produces nearly the same opioid mechanism. However, it cannot create the same euphoric effects and is not as potent, making it ideal for replacement therapy, whereby it will be used to replace Norco in order to reduce the cravings and other withdrawal symptoms as you go through detox.

• Methadone : Methadone (like buprenorphine) can be used to reduce cravings and withdrawal symptoms. It is a long-acting opioid medication that can be used to ensure stability during detox. It may also be used over a longer timeframe as a maintenance drug. The difference between this drug and buprenorphine is that it has the potential to be addictive.

• Naltrexone : This drug is used due to its ability to block the euphoric effects of Norco without causing any of the effects that you would typically experience with opioid usage.

Instead of having to go through withdrawal for a week or more, you’ll be placed under an anaesthetic and have medications administered intravenously. That way, the whole process of eliminating drug toxins will be completed in about four to six hours. After that, you will have to stay in the clinic for another 24 to 48 hours, until your doctor decides it is time for you to head home.

You will be monitored throughout the entire process and given medication, possibly Naltrexone, once you wake up. You may have to continue using this drug for many weeks or months after detox, as it will help you to overcome cravings. By going for rapid detox, you will be eliminating the extreme discomfort associated with withdrawal and won’t have to deal with the symptoms.

Treatment for Withdrawal

Withdrawal is expected to occur once you begin to detox from the drug. When you are detoxing in a rehab facility or hospital, medical personnel may administer medications at any point during the process of withdrawal in order to ease your symptoms and make them more bearable.

In a conventional detox facility, therapy would most likely be combined with medical management of withdrawal in order to help you deal with withdrawal over a four to six-week timeframe. This may take the form of conventional therapy with a counsellor or an individual or group setting. It might even be a form of alternative therapy, such as art or music therapy.

Withdrawing from Norco: Treatment Methods and Options

There are a number of treatment methods that may be used to help you get through the withdrawal process more easily. One of those is a method called ‘tapering’, which involves gradually reducing your doses of the drug over time – in other words, weaning you off it. By doing this, you will be saved the pain of having to go through severe symptoms.

Another method is medication replacement, which involves taking another medication as a replacement for the one you’re addicted to. One of the most commonly used drugs for this purpose is buprenorphine, which acts similarly to Norco, but without producing the same euphoric effects. Like tapering, this method will reduce your withdrawal symptoms.

There is also the rapid detox method, which is currently the only way to completely eliminate withdrawal symptoms, as you’ll be administered medication intravenously as you are under general anaesthetic. The nature and extent of your substance use disorder largely determines which treatment method will be the best for you.

Drug treatment for withdrawal

Making use of drugs during the process of treating withdrawal can be a very effective method of helping you to safely get through this difficult process. Some of the drugs that have been approved for use during the treatment of withdrawal include methadone, buprenorphine and naltrexone.

Methadone doesn’t produce euphoric effects, has a long half-life, alleviates symptoms of withdrawal and reduces cravings. Buprenorphine has similar advantages in addition to the fact that it’s unlikely to be abused and may produce antidepressant effects.

While these drugs can be immensely beneficial, they do come with disadvantages and side effects, ranging from joint pain to vomiting. Never attempt to use any of these drugs on your own without a prescription from an addiction treatment specialist, because they can be dangerous to your health if used under the wrong circumstances.

Guided Norco therapy

A treatment centre can treat the physical effects of addiction and withdrawal, but to successfully complete the recovery journey, you will need professional help to deal with the psychological effects of the drug. A detox centre will typically include therapy and counselling once detox has been completed in order to help tackle your addiction from its root and prepare you for long-term sobriety.

During your time in rehab, you’ll be involved in therapy sessions in both individual and group settings, where you’ll be encouraged to talk about your addiction. In group therapy sessions, you are bound to feel welcome, because the group will comprise of others like you who are going through a similar process. While it may feel difficult at first, you will have all the support you need to overcome the psychological issues associated with substance abuse.

Live a Sober Life Again

The ultimate goal of addiction treatment is to help you undo the damage caused by your dependence on the drug and return you to your pre- addiction state of sobriety. No matter how serious you think your substance use disorder has become, there is hope for recovery and you can live a sober life again.

Formal treatment in a detox facility is only the first step, while medical personnel can only go so far to get you back on track. You will have to put in a great deal of work yourself by ensuring you remain disciplined and optimistic about recovery. Also, you owe it to yourself to build a solid support system, comprising your friends and family members, even if you have to make new friends. Once you are ready to be sober again, reach out to Addiction Helper to help get you started.

Preventing relapse

Preventing the occurrence of relapse is a crucial part of addiction recovery, because it can set you back, which is something you certainly don’t want. That is why therapy is very important; it helps you get to the core of your addiction problem in order to understand the root causes and what your triggers are. With that understanding, it becomes easier to avoid the triggers and prevent relapse whenever you need to.

You’ll also be equipped with skills that will be instrumental in the long run to your success at maintaining long-term sobriety. Of course, the lessons and skills you learn can only go so far; you must be willing to implement them and take action as needed. With an action plan, you won’t be thrown into a state of confusion when you are confronted with potentially problematic situations.

Most importantly, you need to be extra vigilant when you leave rehab, where the protected environment prevented you from returning to drug use. Also, enlist the help of your friends and family to serve as your support system.

Find a treatment centre

Help is not far away from you or a loved one who is struggling with addiction. There are many superb treatment centres to choose from, but it is not always easy to pick the best one for you when you are uncertain where to start looking. Luckily, you don’t have to worry about that, because you can get all the necessary assistance in finding a treatment centre at Addiction Helper.

We have links with a good number of addiction treatment centres across the United Kingdom, so we can find you one close to your home. We can also help you find the perfect centre abroad if you prefer to receive treatment far from home. A good treatment centre should have a low staff-to-patient ratio, great facilities, and the right range of services to serve your needs.

After you speak with our admission team about the nature of your addiction – and any underlying conditions – we’ll do the rest by finding the perfect facility for you. Feel free to give us a call whenever you are ready.

FAQs

Find below some of the most frequently asked questions about Norco withdrawal and detox: