Codeine is a very common opioid and one of the most prescribed worldwide. It is an opiate analgesic that is used to relieve pain and discomfort for various medical issues.
This drug is derived from morphine and is stronger than over-the-counter medications like ibuprofen or acetaminophen. Codeine comes in a liquid or pill form and is mostly used for mild or moderate pain, diarrhoea, and coughing.
This drug is in many other medications and comes in various strengths. Despite being readily available, codeine is an opioid and has the potential to become an abused substance.
Over the counter forms of codeine are often used in conjunction with other pain medications for maximum pain relief. Codeine also provides a sense of calmness and wellbeing which can become addictive in some individuals even at this low dosage.
Medical professionals may also prescribe it in much higher doses depending on the needs of their patients.
Misuse of codeine used to relieve coughing or mild pain has been on the rise in recent years, and there is a concerted effort to lower the risk of new users becoming addicted by educating them about the dangers.
Currently, most forms of codeine, including over-the-counter medications include a note on the label warning of the potential for addiction.
The terms “dependence” and “addiction” are often used interchangeably: causing many to assume that they are synonyms of one another.
However, it’s crucial to understand the difference between these terms, especially when identifying the type of codeine detox that would best suit an individual.
Traditionally, the state of being “addicted” to a substance described someone’s physical reliance on drugs such as codeine, while “dependence” referred to a purely psychological reliance characterised by cravings.
However, this diagnostic view has been updated in recent years to account for the fact that substance use disorders aren’t clear-cut physical vs mental conditions.
Nowadays, clinicians refer to a “dependency” when describing a pattern of drug use that, while problematic, has not become all-encompassing.
Clinical authorities such as The World Health Organization define “dependence” as a collection of behaviours (e.g. codeine use) that grow to become a much higher priority in a person’s life than other previous behaviours that were more important at one time.
For example, many emerging codeine users begin their reliance on the drug as a dependency, which has some, but not all the compulsive elements of codeine addiction.
Initially, taking codeine is deemed either a medically essential or occasional recreational activity. But as the individual becomes more dependent on the high, it turns into a main, all-encompassing activity.
It’s in this scenario that dependency turns into full-blown codeine addiction: wherein substance use is the victim’s main priority. With this in mind, those dependent on codeine but without an all-encompassing addiction may be eligible for an outpatient or home detox.
This is because their risk of experiencing withdrawal may be less than someone with a full-blown addiction to codeine.
On the other hand, those who have surpassed a codeine dependency and entered the realm of addiction should undergo an intensive inpatient detox at a rehabilitation centre. With frequent and unregulated codeine use, their risk of withdrawal and relapse is significantly higher.
Detoxification (shortened to “detox”), is one of the most crucial phases in the codeine addiction treatment process and is essentially the first stage in leaving the drug behind.
Essentially, detox is the process that allows chemical substances, including codeine and associated toxins, to leave the body.
Codeine detox is often the precursor to resolving the social, psychological, or behavioural root of someone’s addiction: taking place at the beginning of someone’s treatment programme.
It manages both withdrawal symptoms and intoxication from any pre-admission doses of codeine: minimising the physical damage caused by these processes.
If an individual has been taking codeine for many years or in increasingly large doses, detoxing can be dangerous and severely uncomfortable due to the withdrawal symptoms that occur.
This makes it essential to undertake codeine detox with clinical guidance or as an inpatient at a specialised clinic. Here, patients are offered both holistic and medical support: often receiving prescription drugs to help with unpleasant symptoms.
Each battling codeine addiction will undergo a detox strategy deemed most suitable for them by their GP or specialist. This clinical judgement is influenced by various factors: including personal circumstances, lifestyle, treatment preference, addiction severity, and any health issues pre-dating their codeine use.
Only after assessing their patient thoroughly will an addiction specialist prescribe a detox timeline, style of treatment, and any additional therapies/medication.
However, regardless of their bespoke plan, each codeine detox encompasses the following 3-part structure:
If you’ve experienced the world of addiction recovery, you’ve likely heard of home detoxification: the process of allowing a substance to leave the body without attending a treatment facility.
As with other substances, it’s possible to undergo codeine detox from the comfort of your own home: but it’s important to consider the dangers associated with this seemingly easy strategy.
Many experts in the field of addiction treatment oppose detoxing from home, whether it be from alcohol, heroin, or codeine, due to the risk of experiencing withdrawal and how this impacts recovery.
Suffering adverse physical and psychological symptoms can happen to anyone attempting to quit codeine: particularly without proper professional guidance.
For instance, many individuals attempting to detox from codeine at home will try to quit cold turkey, and won’t think to plan a proper tapering schedule.
By abruptly ceasing codeine consumption at home, individuals put themselves at risk not only of developing symptoms but of being unable to manage them alone.
Early withdrawal symptoms occur within hours of someone’s last codeine dose and are often manageable with rest, proper nutrition, and plenty of fluids. These include sweating, runny nose, muscle aches, or feeling irritable.
However, advanced withdrawal symptoms can occur in cases of a chronic codeine use disorder, and will quickly become dangerous. These include severe cramps, diarrhoea, vomiting, disorientation, and extreme mood swings.
In medically assisted settings, doctors often prescribe a codeine substitution, or drugs used to treat opiate addiction. Unfortunately, this guidance won’t be available to those who choose a homedetox.
Instead, those trying to complete their codeine detox might become overwhelmed by the acute nature of their symptoms: turning back to codeine as a means of relief.
This enhanced relapse risk may be exacerbated by their home environment: where temptations to use codeine or other triggers present themselves.
While suffering from withdrawal symptoms is a key danger of home detoxification, many individuals have additional needs that make recovering sans medical support unlikely.
Many people suffer from comorbidity: meaning that they are battling a mental health illness alongside their codeine addiction.
During the brain and body’s attempt to stabilise following abrupt codeine cessation, mental health symptoms may worsen: causing someone with co-occuring disorders to feel worse than usual.
In these situations, the vulnerable individual must receive professional support before symptoms worsen, and eventually lead to relapse.
While inpatient codeine detox is recommended in many cases, addiction is a vast spectrum, and one treatment modality might be perfect for one person, but detrimental to another.
With this in mind, many individuals are eligible for a home codeine detox as opposed to residential care or partial hospitalisation.
Flushing codeine from the body while remaining at home is a popular option for those with mild to moderate addiction, especially if their risk of withdrawal is low.
Such individuals won’t have to worry about the stabilisation process of their detox putting their physical and mental health in danger.
However, they need to have a supportive network of friends and/or the family in case any mild symptoms occur, including feelings of emotional distress or anxiety.
Having loved ones close by is key to motivating a home codeine detox, and they can even remove temptations to use again.
Moreover, the ideal candidate for detoxing at home should be able to attend medical appointments or collect prescription drugs from their local pharmacy if necessary. They must, therefore, be high functioning in their ability to leave the house, uphold essential responsibilities, and even continue working.
Eligible individuals also include those who have undertaken previous treatment for their codeine addiction, and who are battling a period of relapse.
Their pre-existing knowledge of recovery means a home codeine detox could be optimal: allowing them to taper their consumption in a space where they feel comfortable, especially as they already know what to expect from the process.
It is also less expensive than entering rehab and allows them to continue their daily routine.
If any of the above scenarios sound familiar to you or someone you love, it might be time to consider your eligibility for a home codeine detox.
However, due to the dangers associated with this method, it’s crucial to seek a medical evaluation performed by a doctor or psychiatrist. They’ll accurately assess your physical and psychological needs as well as the exact severity of your codeine addiction.
Medical assessments can be obtained through a privately funded facility or via the NHS depending on your individual needs and situation. Oftentimes, NHS evaluations are carried out by a GP or specialist in the field of drug addiction treatment.
They’ll assess your unique relationship with codeine and decide whether a home detox is the best route for you to take.
If a healthcare professional decides that you’re eligible for a home codeine detox, they’ll put several measures in place to facilitate a successful start to your recovery.
This includes taking blood tests to ascertain the need for supplements or medication, and asking patients to describe their home environment and whether any triggers are present
Doctors helping individuals plan their codeine detox will likely advise that they taper off their codeine use, as opposed to sudden abstinence. This process of gradual reduction allows the body to adjust to less and less codeine until the individual’s body no longer needs it to function normally.
While the time taken to taper your codeine use safely will be between 1-3 weeks, the exact time frame will depend on various. When planning a tapering strategy for codeine detox, medical professionals consider how long the patient has taken codeine and how high their dose is alongside their unique personal lifestyle.
A meticulously planned tapering schedule will steadily reduce someone’s codeine consumption over time and will vary based on the person. For instance, one individual might be able to reduce their dosage by 25% in the first stage of tapering, while another person might progress straight on to a 50% reduction.
This decision is based on the number of months, years, or decades that someone has spent using codeine. The crucial aspect of tapering, regardless of how much someone’s dose drops by, is that the system is never completely lacking the drug, making withdrawal unlikely.
Another benefit of implementing tapering as part of a codeine detox is that the body is allowed to heal gradually. Regardless of how long someone has been abusing codeine, the body requires sufficient time to heal itself. Tapers allow someone the time to heal both physically and psychologically before continuing their recovery journey.
While maintaining a nutrient-rich diet might seem like an obvious step toward maintaining long-term sobriety, its ability to help the body and mind recover during detox is often overlooked. When the system is put under strain, eating healthily helps limit the uncomfortable symptoms that can occur while the body acclimatises to the lack of codeine.
Oftentimes, patients undertaking codeine detox start craving foods that are high in sugar. This is often because, without its usual supply of serotonin derived from taking codeine, the body must look elsewhere for its fix of feel-good hormones.
Though many people are tempted to consume artificial, sugar-rich foods such as chocolate to satiate cravings, it’s recommended that they choose fruit over confectionary.
The natural sugars present in fruits satiate sugar cravings without putting stress on the digestive system: which is especially important for those feeling nauseous as part of their codeine withdrawal. Moreover, fruits keep the body hydrated while providing several essential antioxidants and health-promoting vitamins for systems compromised by drug use.
Another important part of an optimal diet during codeine detox is consuming vegetables. Akin to fresh fruit, vegetables are high in fibre: meaning they digest gradually and satiate hunger while preventing a spike in blood sugar. Vegetables like spinach, kale, and romaine lettuce also contain essential levels of vitamin B6, folic acid and beta-carotene.
Moreover, Individuals with a history of codeine use often encounter constipation and problems with their digestive system while withdrawing from the drug. As such, focusing on a high-fibre diet during codeine detox is crucial, and professionals often recommend a variety of healthy carbohydrates.
In particular, patients should consume a healthy amount of whole grains to provide their body with enough vitamin B to heal while aiding proper digestion. Wholegrains with a high concentration of vitamin B include red lentils, green lentils, and beans.
During their time consuming codeine, whether it was for months, years, or decades, addicted individuals are likely to have accumulated nutritional deficiencies. This lack of certain vitamins and minerals will continue into an individual’s codeine detox, with the potential of exacerbating certain symptoms.
Addicted individuals entering detox with pre-existing deficiencies might experience muscle pain, spasms, or an uncomfortable condition known as restless leg syndrome (RLS).
Moreover, low magnesium, iron, or vitamins B and C cause headaches, fatigue, and nausea among other symptoms. When experienced alongside separate withdrawal symptoms, a patient’s discomfort can reach unmanageable levels.
To make patients as comfortable as possible, each consultant or doctor will prescribe vitamins and minerals to help restore balance in the body. Further blood tests are often performed to identify any inconsistencies and decide which supplements are best for each patient to take during their codeine detox.
As the codeine leaves the system, individuals are also likely to experience dehydration. This is often caused by excess sweating, vomiting, and diarrhoea as the body readjusts to a codeine-free state. Moreover, many people enter codeine detox in an already dehydrated state: while high on the drug, it’s common to forget to drink water.
To combat this problem, patients are advised to drink plenty of fluids during their detoxification and are often provided with water consumption guides and reminders. Doctors may also recommend sports drinks or rehydration salts to restore lost electrolytes and reduce symptoms such as headaches and fatigue.
Although staying hydrated won’t accelerate the codeine detox process itself, drinking plenty of water speeds up the healing process, allowing individuals to feel better while their body repairs gradually.
Addiction treatment experts advise patients to consume water slowly but consistently throughout each day of detox and beyond: drinking a minimum of one glass per hour that passes.
Patients are advised to add citrus such as lemon or lime juice to their water to aid liver processing, or to drink green tea and aid toxin removal.
As has already been explained, there’s no such thing as a successful one-size-fits-all approach to codeine detox.
To reflect differing addiction severities, budgets, and treatment philosophies, multiple treatment settings are available in which to start detoxification.
While the option of a home detox has already been explored, there are two more treatment modalities here in the UK: inpatient codeine detox and outpatient detox.
The primary form of codeine detox for addicted individuals occurs on an inpatient basis: often performed in a specialised clinic. These specialised rehab centres provide patients with 24-hour medical care, alongside both holistic and nutritional support away from harmful triggers in the outside world.
Typically, inpatient detoxification methods are considered to be the gold standard for facilitating successful recovery. For the duration of their codeine detox, inpatients are offered the benefits of structure, safety, personalised treatments, and the long-term guidance of addiction specialists.
If an individual is suffering from a particularly severe codeine addiction, their consultant might recommend medically assisted treatment (MAT) to aid their detox. These approved medications have been used extensively, and are implemented according to the unique needs of each patient.
Those undertaking MAT treatments as part of their inpatient codeine detox will see a reduction in withdrawal symptoms and an increase in their motivation to recover. For example, Buprenorphine (Subutex) is a partial opioid agonist that aims to ease withdrawal symptoms by satisfying the body’s need for codeine.
Other medications frequently prescribed to inpatients include craving inhibitors such as Naltrexone, Methadone in severe cases, and drugs to tackle specific withdrawal symptoms such as Pain relievers, including NSAIDs, and antidiarrheal medications.
While completing an inpatient detox, healthcare professionals might recommend additional therapies for patients to undertake alongside their bespoke tapering schedule.
A combination of science-based medical treatments and holistic therapies is often beneficial during the detoxification phase. For example, many patients choose to attend yoga and breathwork classes to manage anxiety and create a healthier lifestyle moving forward.
On the other end of the addiction treatment spectrum is outpatient care. This remote form of codeine detox requires patients to visit their chosen clinic instead of staying there overnight.
As such, there’s a lot of room for programmes to vary in intensity, and it’s important to determine what you can expect from a specific programme.
Oftentimes, addicted individuals will have scheduled treatment times to fit around their daily routines. In these planned windows, patients can attend therapy or counselling sessions, meet with their doctors to discuss withdrawal management, or receive bespoke medications.
Depending on the severity of someone’s codeine addiction, some people must attend treatment or visit the clinic to receive medications once per day. In other cases, patients can visit the clinic once every few days, or even weekly if the intensity of their dependence is lower.
During their doctor check-ups, patients can discuss their medication and any other issues they are experiencing.
As individuals can return home to continue their codeine detox, outpatient care is perfect for those who can live their lives around treatment. Care can be scheduled around work, education, or other important responsibilities in the home environment.
Therefore, an outpatient codeine detox is often the best option for individuals requiring less intensive treatment. However, they can receive medication of some sort: which can be presented in the form of methadone maintenance.
These outpatient-based clinics allow patients to stabilize using methadone and avoid severe withdrawal symptoms.
Codeine detox centres for outpatients may also offer behavioural therapy or counselling sessions to ensure patients are prepared for future treatment. Typically, this is offered in the form of group support therapy or individual therapy for one-to-one counselling.
However, it’s important to note that if you opt for an outpatient codeine detox, you may not receive the same level of care as offered by an inpatient facility.
Outpatient programmes infamously do not provide 24-hour care, so they do not offer meals, accommodation, or constant support. As such, it’s often beneficial for those with severe codeine addictions to consider residential care.
While the need to undertake a professionally assisted codeine detox might be obvious to someone’s loved ones, it may not be clear to the addicted individual.
They might be reluctant to confront their codeine use professionally: either trapped in denial or fearing that they are beyond help.
Fortunately, concerned friends and family members can help their loved ones access their codeine detox and begin treatment by planning an intervention. There are various ways to conduct a professional intervention and ensure your loved one gets the help they need: from enlisting an interventionist to cultivating sympathetic ways of communication.
An intervention is a series of constructive meetings between loved ones and the addicted individual aiming to get someone into treatment for their codeine addiction.
No matter the details of where, when, and how the intervention takes place, each process will have the same core structure and planning process.
The first stage of planning an effective intervention is to gather a group of participants: which should consist of individuals important to the SUD victim: either friends, family, or work colleagues.
It’s important, however, that participants don’t include friends or family members with similar substance use issues, as this could complicate discussions.
It often takes multiple sessions of guidance and providing specific examples of destructive behaviour for an individual to accept a codeine detox and further treatment. As such, participants need to pre-arrange treatment, either at an inpatient codeine detox facility or via an outpatient programme.
Oftentimes, those planning an intervention will enlist the assistance of a trained interventionist. These professionals are available to help plan, facilitate, and ensure an intervention runs smoothly wherever you’re based in the UK.
Usually, an interventionist will have a background in mental health treatment, psychiatry, or social services.
A trained interventionist can help with the logistical side of the process: choosing an optimal location, time, and date for discussions.
They can also assist families holistically: helping them communicate better with each other, remain positive during the intervention process, and find ways to express the individual’s need for codeine detox and treatment.
An interventionist will often follow a set of research-driven guidelines to ensure proper practices are implemented during the process.
These principles can be described in the following way:
Codeine is considered a class-B controlled substance in the UK. This is escalated to a class-A when it is injected. Individuals caught using or selling codeine without proper documentation can be subjected to hefty fines or even jail time under “unlawful possession”.
This is a part of the effort being made to lower the number of people addicted to this easily procured opioid.
There are legal forms of the drug. “Neat codeine” and prescription-strength codeine medications are legal in the UK if they are prescribed by a medical professional.
They cannot be sold or given to someone else for whom they are not prescribed. It is also legal to possess over-the-counter forms of codeine as long as it is mixed with a minimum of one other ingredient (e.g., aspirin, paracetamol, ibuprofen, etc.).
For over-the-counter pills, they must be 100 mg or less and liquid forms of codeine are only legal to sell or purchase with a concentration of 2.5% or less.
Most opioids are prescribed to counter pain. They are fast-acting and are meant primarily for short-term pain management (e.g., surgery, accident trauma, etc.) and not chronic conditions.
Some exceptions are made in the case of terminal illnesses (e.g., cancers, etc.) where pain regulation is necessary to remove the pain and add a sense of calm.
There are several different common opioids, and each one is meant to work against mild, moderate, or severe pain.
They can also be prescribed for persistent coughs. Codeine and other opioids are known to cause constipation, so they are also sometimes used for cases of severe diarrhoea.
Long-term use for any reason is not recommended and can lead to substance abuse.
All opioids have the potential for addiction due to the way that they interact with neurotransmitters in the brain. Codeine is no exception, and long-term use should be avoided whenever possible. It is a fast-acting drug that quickly builds up tolerance in the body.
This means that a higher dose is necessary to achieve the same amount of relief. The body will then readjust to the higher dosage, and the process will repeat until it reaches unsafe levels.
By the time tolerance has become an issue, it is already possible that dependency has set in. The brain cannot function properly once it becomes reliant on the drug.
Any cessation or lowering of the dosage at this point will cause withdrawal symptoms. Taking codeine in amounts higher than prescribed can lead to serious injury, overdose, or death.
Codeine is used in various forms and strengths. It is often mixed with other drugs to create a tailored medication designed to provide a certain level of pain relief.
The following codeine-based over-the-counter pain relief medications are often misused and abused:
The pain-relieving effects of codeine are created through the body’s reaction to opioids. There are opioid receptors in the brain that are manipulated by codeine, causing some nerve signals to slow.
This imitates how natural endorphins lower pain. There are also the accompanying feelings of wellbeing and euphoria that becomes more evident in higher doses.
There is a risk of overdose at this point because some people will continue increasing how much of the drug they are taking to get this same high even after they become dependent on codeine.
Withdrawal symptoms will replace the perceived positive effects of codeine if an individual stops taking it or significantly lowers the dose all of a sudden.
These symptoms will range in severity depending on several factors, including how long the code was being used and the magnitude of the dose.
One should never quit a drug without being under the care of a medical professional as there is the potential for adverse side effects.
As mentioned in the previous section, codeine works by connecting itself to neurotransmitters in the brain and spinal cord which inhibits their ability to send and receive signals.
This leads to pain relief. Opioids also have the ability to create warm feelings of euphoria, which is one of the leading causes of addiction. Individuals chase that feeling, but it ends up taking more and more of the drug to create the same effect.
Over time the brain becomes so dependent on the chemicals provided by codeine it is not able to function correctly without them. The body’s floundering attempt to overcome this loss of the drug is what causes withdrawal symptoms.
Not everyone who becomes addicted to codeine will develop a psychological dependency, but those that do will have the most challenging time quitting.
It will make them crave the drug and do whatever is necessary to keep getting the same warm, contented feeling that codeine provides. This is the most common type of addiction.
No one person experiences withdrawal in precisely the same fashion. Still, there are a number of well-known symptoms of physical and psychological dependence that start within a few hours of the last dose.
A few of the factors that determine what symptoms a person will feel when they stop taking codeine and how long they will last include the following:
Codeine is a fast-acting opioid which means that anyone with a dependency will begin to feel withdrawal symptoms within hours of the previous time they took it or if their last dose is significantly lowered.
The higher the average dose of codeine, the more likely there will be noticeable symptoms. These include a wide variety of physical and mental reactions to the changes in brain chemistry produced by the lack of codeine.
Compared to other drugs, the symptoms are generally relatively mild. They are still dangerous, however, and one should never attempt to quit “cold turkey” or without the aid of a medical professional if they have been taking the drug or longer than seven days.
Symptoms of codeine detox and withdrawal include the following:
These may not seem too bad listed out, and some people are tempted to go through detox and withdrawal alone out of a sense of guilt or shame.
Even seemingly innocuous symptoms like dehydration can lead to life-threatening situations if left unchecked. Whenever possible, it is recommended that any detox happens under the care of trained medical supervision.
There are many factors that will play a part in determining the withdrawal timeline for any particular person.
This means there is no set length of time for the symptoms and cravings to last, although most people do share similar experiences as far as stages of withdrawal and a vague timeline.
While symptoms can begin within only a few hours, some of the effects of quitting can last for weeks or even months (e.g., depression, etc.) while others come and go sooner. Thanks to the fast-acting nature of codeine, it works through the body’s system quite quickly.
How a person chooses to stop taking codeine will have the most considerable impact on how long it takes for them to work through the withdrawal fully.
If they quit “cold turkey”, then it will be over relatively quickly, but this method is potentially hazardous and not recommended. Most rehabilitation facilities and medical centres will slowly taper a person off of codeine.
This can take a couple of weeks or months depending on how high their average dose was and how long they had been using the drug and what form of codeine they were taking.
The average timeline is a few weeks to a month following three main stages.
This will vary based on individual circumstances:
In most cases, it is encouraged that the individual is tapered off of codeine slowly to lessen the likelihood of symptoms becoming overwhelming or too uncomfortable.
The treatments for codeine detox and withdrawal include taking various other drugs to help counteract any adverse effects. Therapy is also helpful for the psychological symptoms and should be continued even after the withdrawal period is over.
Aftercare is essential for mental well-being. Medications may be used depending on the severity of symptoms experienced during detox and withdrawal.
Mild symptoms are usually treated with non-narcotic pain relievers and over-the-counter medications to assist with discomfort.
They include the following:
Moderate pain and symptoms can be treated with the following medications:
For people who were on codeine for an extended period or on larger than average doses, the symptoms will be more intense. Other factors come into play as well.
Below are the standard treatments for severe pain, cravings, and discomfort during opioid withdrawal:
For severe withdrawal, most people will almost always be switched over to a codeine substitute to lessen the risk of relapse and lower cravings while they are being tapered off the drug.
The most common drugs used as substitutes are methadone and buprenorphine with the majority of cases using the latter, which can give a weak imitation of the euphoria experienced while taking codeine. It makes it easier to resist relapsing and continue with the tapering process.
Substitutes are introduced while codeine is being slowly decreased in dose to help steady the brain’s chemical balance during detox and withdrawal.
Because these drugs themselves are also addictive, they will be tapered off once the worst of the codeine symptoms are gone to cut down on the possibility of becoming dependent.
Not every doctor will recommend a codeine substitute. It will depend on several things, including the severity of the withdrawal symptoms and the medical history of the patient.
There are several helpful treatments and resources that can be utilised to make the process of withdrawal and recovery more comfortable.
These include counselling, prescribed medications, group support, and a holistic approach to personal wellbeing.
Below are a few common treatments of addiction recovery:
Any treatment plans and goals should include aftercare for continued recovery.
The psychological withdrawal symptoms of depression and drug cravings may last for months after the rehabilitation programme is complete, so it is vital to have a strong foundation of support to fall back on.
This can include one-on-one therapy, community support groups, family therapy, or alternative therapies.
Many facilities offer several months to a year of aftercare services for their clients.
Individuals can work with a local medical clinic to find resources in their area.
The NHS may cover some rehabilitation services such as in-patient detox depending on the severity of the symptoms and other qualifying criteria.
Counselling, support groups, and other treatment options can all be found by reaching out to a doctor or checking the local council website for more information on the services provided in that area.
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[3] Drug Misuse in England and Wales: Year Ending March 2020 https://www.ons.gov.uk/peoplepopulationandcommunity/crimeandjustice/articles/drugmisuseinenglandandwales/yearendingmarch2020
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