Heroin Treatment in Knoxville

Heroin Treatment

Heroin dependency and addiction require special treatment options to ensure safe and effective recovery, but it all comes down to choosing the right treatment center for you.

At Landmark Recovery of Tennessee, our heroin treatment center has evidence-based programs that are designed to not only help you through detox but also to set you up for lifelong success.

What is heroin?

Made from morphine, heroin is a highly addictive and illegal opioid drug. Whether injecting, sniffing, snorting, or smoking heroin, people who abuse the drug report feeling a rush of pleasure immediately after using. Heroin influences the opioid receptors of cells that control feelings of pain and pleasure and that affect heart rate, sleeping, and breathing.  ¹

When a person regularly uses heroin, they begin to build a tolerance to the drug and its effects, meaning that a higher dosage is needed in order to have the same effect. For this reason, the more an individual increases the dosage, the more dependent they will become on heroin. With heroin as one of the most commonly abused drugs in the national opioid epidemic, a recent study found that one-third of individuals struggling with opioid use disorder reported heroin as the first opioid they used to get high. ²

The most common short-term, health-related side effects of using heroin include:  ³

• Warm, flushed skin
• Severe itching
• A sensation of heaviness in limbs
• Nausea, vomiting, and appetite loss
• Slow breathing and heart rate
• Drowsiness
• Runny nose and watery eyes
• Small pupils
• Muddled thinking

Chronic use of heroin also can lead to a number of severe health problems, including but not limited to liver disease, pulmonary infections, collapsed veins, kidney disease, heart infections, skin infections, hepatitis, HIV, deterioration of white matter in the brain, infertility, diminished sex drive, and depression. ³

Heroin also is incredibly dangerous and linked to a number of opioid-related overdose deaths in the United States every year. This is because a large dose of heroin can depress the heart rate and breathing to the point of hypoxia – where oxygen cannot reach the brain – which can result in death without medical attention. ⁴ Over the last two decades, the national statistics of annual overdose deaths involving heroin and other opioid involvement rose exponentially, with roughly 2,000 deaths in 1999 and more than 14,000 deaths in 2019. ⁵

Stopping heroin use, however, is incredibly difficult and unpleasant due to both the physical and mental withdrawal symptoms, which range from muscle and bone pain and diarrhea and vomiting to restlessness and cold flashes with goosebumps. ⁶

Heroin Abuse and Addiction in Tennessee

If you are living in or near Tennessee and are struggling with a dependency or addiction to heroin, you absolutely are not alone. Statistics related to heroin use in the Volunteer state are significant:

• 2019 was Tennessee’s “deadliest year ever” for drug-related deaths.  ⁷
• Fatal overdoses involving heroin in Tennessee nearly doubled from 2016 to 2019.  ⁸
• In recent years, the number of Tennessee patients seeking treatment for heroin use in state-funded facilities increased 157%.  ⁹

Landmark Recovery offers a full continuum of care for our patients who wish to break free of heroin addiction, including detox treatment, residential treatment, partial hospitalization, and intensive outpatient. What’s more, we aim to treat the specific challenges that lead to your addiction with more individualized treatment, and at a lower cost.

Our Knoxville Heroin Treatment Center

Before starting any heroin treatment, you must first go through detoxification to clear all traces of the drug from your body. Landmark Recovery is proud to offer our patients medically supervised detoxification services. Our team of trained professionals will provide around-the-clock care and take the necessary measures to keep you comfortable and pain-free, administering medications as necessary to treat the harshest effects of withdrawal symptoms. You will be monitored closely throughout the entire process and in the event of complications, which can be life-threatening.  ¹⁰

Following detox at Landmark Recovery, you will then transition to our evidence-based heroin treatment program in which we offer a variety of effective behavioral and pharmacological treatments. Some of the proven behavioral therapies used for treating heroin addiction include cognitive behavioral therapy, mindfulness-based cognitive therapy, contingency management, and other reinforcement and incentive-based strategies.  ¹¹ Your treatment will be tailored to your specific needs, teaching you how to cope with stressors and the triggers that led you to use heroin.

Our bi-weekly one-on-one counseling and group therapy also will encourage your new habits and behaviors to prevent relapse and emphasize your need for community as you work to maintain sobriety. Landmark Recovery continues to offer you support upon leaving our facility. You will have access to our strong support systems, from Landmark Recovery staff and alumni to a personal recovery coach, discharge plan, and events like SMART Recovery groups and AA meetings.

Contact our Heroin Addiction Treatment Center for more information

If you or a loved one are ready to overcome an addiction to heroin, please call Landmark Recovery of Knoxville at (865) 448-5174 for more details about our Tennessee heroin treatment, our medically supervised heroin detox process, and our personalized treatment programs. This is your next step to wellness and recovery.