What Are Opioids
Opioids include prescription pain relievers such as oxycodone and hydrocodone, synthetic opioids like fentanyl, and illegal drugs such as heroin.
Opioids are drugs that, when taken correctly, can help control pain. They travel through the blood attaching to opioid receptors in the brain where they block pain messages and can create pleasurable feelings.
Three types of opioids exist:
- Natural Opioids/Opiates come directly from the opium poppy plant. Examples are morphine and codeine. These have been used for centuries as pain relievers.
- Semi-Synthetic Opioids are created in a lab using natural opiates as the base ingredient. Examples are prescription hydrocodone & oxycodone and illicit heroin.
- Fully-Synthetic Opioids are created in labs without any plant-based ingredients. Examples are fentanyl, methadone and tramadol. The ability to make these drugs without needing the plant-based ingredients is directly related to the increase in opioid drugs available today.
When used as intended, prescription opioids can be very effective in controlling severe pain from injury, illness or surgery. However, opioids have a high potential for misuse, addiction, and overdose. When we experience pleasurable feelings or a “high”, our brain wants to repeat that feeling. Opioids reinforce those good feelings making the drug addictive and very difficult to stop without support.
Risk Factors and How Dependence Develops
You may receive opioids after a dental extraction, back injury or major surgery. You take them as prescribed, but after a few days or weeks you notice you need them not just for pain but to avoid discomfort or irritability. That shift is tolerance, and it can lead to dependence without any intention to misuse. What is happening is your brain adapting to the opioid and making changes to the brain structure. It is rewiring your brain making it want the reward of the opioid “high” over any other pleasurable feelings.
The risk of addiction increases with longer use and increased dosage. Even when used as prescribed at lower doses, opioids can cause drowsiness, mental fog, nausea, and constipation. They can also cause slower reaction times, impaired judgement, and slow, shallow breathing. As a body adapts to the opioids and higher doses are taken, risk for respiratory depression increases and can ultimately cause breathing to stop leading to coma or death.
Knowing the risk opioids present allows you to ask better questions of your provider before beginning or continuing a prescription. And understanding how opioids change brain chemistry helps you recognize misuse is a physical dependence and not a choice.
What You Should Know Before It Becomes a Problem
Many people in Stearns County are managing opioid prescriptions or supporting family members through recovery without clear information about how these drugs work or what signs to watch for.
What makes opioids different from other pain medications?
Opioids attach to specific receptors in your brain and spinal cord blocking pain but also triggering dopamine release that reinforces repeated use. Over-the-counter pain relievers work on inflammation without providing the pleasurable dopamine “high”.
How quickly can dependence develop?
Dependence can begin within days of consistent use, particularly if you are taking higher doses or extended-release formulations. You may not feel addicted, but your body starts expecting the drug to function normally.
Why do people use opioids even after the pain is gone?
Once your brain adapts, stopping the drug can cause withdrawal symptoms like sweating, nausea, and severe discomfort. Many people continue using not for pain relief but to avoid feeling sick.
What should you do with leftover pills after treatment ends?
Drop off unused medication at a pharmacy take-back location or law enforcement collection site. You can also dispose of medications using medication disposal bags available online. Never flush medications down the toilet/drain or throw them in the garbage. They can contaminate the environment and putting them in the trash risks them being accidentally found and ingested.
Who is most at risk in Stearns County?
Anyone can develop an opioid addiction, but studies show that certain populations are more susceptible. Young adults, individuals with mental health conditions, and individuals with a history of substance misuse are considered most at-risk. Those with poor pain management from their provider also have a higher risk of dependence.