Tramadol Addiction

Are you afraid that you or a loved one could be addicted to tramadol? If so, fear not, we can help.

Below you will find everything you need to know: What the drug is, what the signs and symptoms of an addiction to tramadol are and lastly but most importantly, what can be done to treat those addicted.

What is Tramadol?

Tramadol is a man-made prescription analgesic drug that is commonly used in the treatment of mild to severe pain.

Tramadol works by changing the way the body senses and experiences pain and discomfort.

Today, many doctors use it to help ease the painful effects of surgery or for conditions such as arthritis.

Tramadol is highly addictive and excessive of it may lead to physical and psychological dependence.

The drug usually comes in tablet form and is taken orally, however it is also manufactured as a powder and as a liquid for intravenous use through injection.

Individuals who are in recovery from addiction or alcoholism are warned not to use tramadol as the mind and mood altering effects may result in a relapse back to their ‘drug of choice’.

Signs and Symptoms of Tramadol Addiction

When tramadol is abused, people develop a much higher tolerance to the drug.

This means in order to achieve a feeling that was once felt through low dosages, can now only be experienced through much higher dosages, meaning the individual will have to take more and more of it, resulting in addiction.

One way to determine whether you or a loved one is addicted to tramadol is if the medication is taken in a manner exceeding what was prescribed by a medical doctor and whether any withdrawal symptoms result when medication is reduced.

Others may include, being dishonest about losing medication in order to get the prescription re-issued, visiting several doctors in order to obtain more prescriptions, obsessing about the next dosage and hiding this behaviour from loved ones or people you know would disapprove. This only results in more isolation and deeper addiction.

When the drug cannot be obtained, withdrawal symptoms may be suffered until the individual gets their next ‘fix’. These symptoms may include nausea, stress, sweating, insomnia as well as respiratory and bowel problems.

Tramadol Addiction Treatment

Prevention is the most effective way to stop any addiction from occurring; therefore it’s important to use the drug as prescribed by your medical doctor.

For those who are addicted, you can be helped.

The best way to treat a tramadol addiction is being admitted to a rehabilitation centre where you can undergo a medically managed clinical detoxification and further comprehensive treatment to address your holistic needs.

There is no set length of an person treatment at a rehab centre and it will vary from person to person depending on the type and severity of the addiction.

Included in the treatment will be individual addiction counselling, group therapy and lectures aimed at helping patients and their families better understand addiction, treatment and recovery – most importantly the behaviours that they can adopt which will help to avoid relapsing on Tramadol in the future.

Once discharged from primary care, usually a 28 day stay, some patients need to attend secondary care, as their risk of suffering a relapse without further treatment is high.

In secondary care, addicted and alcoholic patients are allowed the chance to address any underlying issues that may have preceded their addiction and also begin planning for the future in terms of tertiary care attendance and aftercare, reintegration and relapse prevention planning.

Tertiary care gives recovering addicts the chance to stay in a sober living environment, where patients are expected to be productive (working or studying) in the day time and live together outside of working hours with some formal counselling support.

This helps to ensure that alcohol and drug addicted patients make a safe transition back into society.

For more information regarding treatment, please call us now and our accredited addiction counsellor will gladly assist you.