Opiate withdrawal timeline

Basic facts and categorization

Opiates represent narcotic opioid alkaloids, known to be acquired straight from the opium poppy plant. On the one hand we have such drugs belonging to the category of opiate as morphine, codeine and papaverine, which are found in opium as such, while on the other, such as heroin, hydrocodone and oxycodone are known to be acquired from morphine and codeine themselves. Given their highly addictive nature, those most prominent side effects can already be quite easily guessed. Furthermore, sudden breaking the habit, which involved taking the aforementioned medications on a regular basis, is known to lead to a great number of different withdrawal symptoms. Those most frequently occurring come in the form of diarrhea, severe anxiety and alike. As far as the overall duration of any of the withdrawal induced symptoms is concerned, it depends first and foremost on the specific drug a person has been taking, the dosage and for how long a person has been under the influence of the specific drug - how long ago he/she has taken it prior to stopping suddenly. Despite the fact the manifestations that occur as a direct consequence of withdrawal cannot, unfortunately, be avoided, a person can prepare him/herself for them by properly informing on their possible duration and timeline.

The term 'opiate withdrawal' actually stands for a variety of manifestations that have the tendency to affect the person in question to a great extent and cause undesired occurrences once this same person seizes to employ the drugs in question for any previously designated purpose. However, important to point out to is that these manifestations do not solely occur in those people who have the tendency to abuse drugs, but also in such individuals who take prescription medicines (most of all pain relievers) that have in them specific synthetic opiates like oxycodone and hydrocodone.Manifestations and their timeline

The duration and the overall intensity induced by the withdrawal are influenced by a number of different factors. Having specifically opiate withdrawal in mind, what research has showed is that it starts to emerge slowly within eight to sixteen hours after the drug in question is taken by the person. When heroin is taken into consideration, these manifestations are known to emerge much faster in comparison to those drugs that are present in prescription medications. However, there are also individuals who begin exhibiting symptoms only after the next 24 hours. In addition, as the time slowly progresses, there also occur other manifestations such as sweating, nausea, runny nose, dilated pupils, watery eyes, with the greatest majority of them emerging to the surface within 36 to 48 hours after the emergence of those initial manifestations.