Dihydrocodeine Addiction | Signs, Symptoms and Effects

Dihydrocodeine addiction is when you find yourself needing the drug more and more, even though it’s doing you harm. It can stem from a legitimate prescription, self-medicating for some personal issue or from chasing its relaxing effects, but the result is a physical and psychological dependence that soon takes over your life.

The more you take dihydrocodeine, the less effective it becomes. To then get high or relieve pain, you have to increase your dose, keeping your system flooded with dihydrocodeine. This causes your brain to start leaning on dihydrocodeine to do its job, and when you stop or cut back, your brain panics, triggering horrible withdrawal symptoms.

But dihydrocodeine addiction goes much deeper than this physical level. Over time, dihydrocodeine also becomes your mental crutch, a way to cope with stress, trauma and other personal challenges. With both your body and mind now dependent on dihydrocodeine, addiction can overwhelm you completely.

Despite common misconceptions, you are unlikely to suddenly wake up one day and realise you have a problem. Dihydrocodeine addiction starts with small changes that you might dismiss but which quickly blow up into a life-threatening issue. To stop that from happening, ask yourself if any of these often-missed symptoms of dihydrocodeine addiction sound familiar:

• You’re taking larger doses of dihydrocodeine because the old amount doesn’t work anymore.
• You’ve stopped following your prescription or even using dihydrocodeine without one.
• Without dihydrocodeine, you are hit by withdrawal symptoms like sweating, anxiety and nausea.
• You are keeping your dihydrocodeine abuse a secret from friends or family.
• There are times when you can’t think about anything other than dihydrocodeine.
• You have resorted to risky methods to get more dihydrocodeine, like doctor shopping or buying it illegally.
• You are behaving in ways that don’t feel like you, such as stealing or acting deceitfully.
• You know dihydrocodeine is causing problems, but feel powerless to stop.

If these symptoms of dihydrocodeine addiction feel uncomfortably familiar, understand there is help available, and you don’t need to struggle on your own.

Dihydrocodeine addiction can lead to a world of trouble, with chronic drug use harming your health and relationships and even putting you in legal trouble. Some of the most serious consequences of dihydrocodeine abuse and addiction include: 

• Dihydrocodeine overdose danger: Taking more dihydrocodeine than your body can handle – or mixing it with other substances – can slow your breathing to dangerous levels, leaving you in a life-threatening situation.
  
• Organ strain: Your liver and kidneys have to work overtime to process dihydrocodeine, but chronic dihydrocodeine abuse can damage them, potentially beyond repair.
  
• Emotional turmoil: Constant dihydrocodeine abuse often worsens anxiety and depression while making it harder to think clearly or stay focused on what matters. It can also create new mental health issues, especially as you begin to suffer the other consequences of dihydrocodeine addiction.
• Personal struggles: As you become increasingly addicted to dihydrocodeine, you may start lying, stealing or avoiding your loved ones, damaging trust and leaving you isolated. Dihydrocodeine addiction can also make it hard to cope with school and work, which can cause big problems in your life.

If you are tired of feeling trapped by dihydrocodeine addiction, Banbury Lodge offers treatment programmes that will break the physical hold of the drug and also dig deep into the reasons behind your addiction. With expert care and a step-by-step approach, we will help you create a future where dihydrocodeine no longer has you trapped. Contact us today to find out more.