Why Is Methadone the Wrong Way to Treat Addiction?
Our standard, operating basis as the American people have been to heed the advice and the good words of our doctors and our medical experts. Our job as citizens and patients has been to put our trust into the medical community. Our job is to believe that they have our best interests at heart.
And they usually do. But now and then, we come to find that certain medical practices create more harm and danger than they offer benefit.
Case in point, let’s discuss methadone. Methadone is a medicine used to “treat” opioid addiction. The viewpoints regarding methadone are pretty heavily divided. People can’t seem to agree if this is a miracle “cure” to addiction or just another addictive and dangerous drug for patients to become legally addicted. We’re going to explore this, and we’re going to settle the score on methadone once and for all.
What is Methadone?
WebMD has a straightforward definition for methadone. We’ve included a quoted citation from WebMD below, defining methadone for our readers:
“Methadone is part of a category called opioids. It was created by German doctors during World War II. When it arrived in the United States, it was used to treat people with extreme pain. Today, your doctor may use it as part of your treatment for an addiction to heroin or narcotic painkillers.” (WebMd)
The WebMD article goes on to better define methadone in more detail:
“Methadone changes the way your brain and nervous system respond to pain so that you feel relief…”
“Methadone changes the way your brain and nervous system respond to pain so that you feel relief. Its effects are slower than those of other strong painkillers like morphine. It blocks the high you get from drugs like codeine, heroin, hydrocodone, morphine, and oxycodone.“ (WebMD)
Methadone is an opioid, and it reacts in a very similar way on the human body that other opioids do. Methadone is an opioid, it can be misused and it creates a strong risk for a habit, but the drug is perfectly legal and its relatively easy to get a prescription. Even though it purportedly blocks the high the long-term use can be devastating to the body, and the physical and emotional/mental dependence could still be present.
The Theory Behind Methadone
The theory behind methadone is to offer a replacement for other opioid drugs. Methadone gives a similar feeling as other opioids, yes, but not to the same degree of the euphoria and mind-altered state that illegal, opioid drugs produce. Methadone acts to replace the opioids in a patient’s body with another opioid that has milder effects on them.
There is a driving thesis behind methadone. The belief system here is that, once a person becomes addicted to opioids, they are addicted, and they need to have some opioids in their systems for the rest of their lives. Those who support methadone programs generally believe that they might be able to remove their psychological and spiritual connections to opioids, but their physical conditions or behavioral lifestyles preclude a full disconnection from opioid medicines.
The Controversy Behind Methadone
The controversy behind methadone is likely self-evident by now. The whole thesis behind methadone is that patients have to be taking something to function normally. The belief system that supports methadone takes the stance that patients need to be on a “Methadone Maintenance” program, a program that they will likely have to be on for the rest of their lives.
The controversy here is that supporting methadone and engaging in methadone essentially involves a surrender, a state of mind where the person essentially gives up and agrees to have to be on an addictive and potentially mind-altering but legal medication for the rest of their lives.
What kind of life is that? What kind of condition does one want to live in where they must take a substance, and keep taking it, in spite of the clear and present risk that comes with taking such a substance? What kind of quality of living is that?
There are things that humans must take. Yes, we have to eat. Yes, we need to drink water. Yes, we must sleep. But none of these daily rituals present such risk for misuse or are so potentially harmful to the body. None of these rituals are so dangerous, so risky, so potentially disturbing as taking addictive drugs are, whether those drugs are illegal narcotics or legal pharmaceuticals. None of those daily rituals of eating, drinking, sleeping could potentially end up risking the person’s life or putting them in a serious life crisis.
Methadone is Not a Solution
The general medical community is pretty heavily divided on methadone. Much of the medical group supports the drug, but many doctors and pain experts also contest methadone. The reasons for this is clear enough. Why would doctors want to give their patients a painkiller that is just as addictive as heroin is, just because that painkiller does not pose the same opportunity for mind-altering experiences as heroin does?
The truth here is that methadone is not a solution. It is merely a lesser of two evils. It is doing one thing to avoid another thing. It is taking a legal drug as opposed to taking an illegal one (or in the case of opioid painkillers, illegally taking a legal drug). The problem with methadone is that it never solves the problem that is an addiction. It only hides the symptoms and sort of covers up the fact that the patient is still an addict.
A drug addict or alcoholic is an addict until they experience some form of rehabilitation. There is no substitute for a professionally staffed addiction treatment center. There is no quick fix, no medicine, no magic pill that can “cure” someone of addiction. Methadone is a substitute, a replacement maybe, but it is not a solution.
Side effects and Health Risks with Methadone
There is no predetermined length of time that a person will be on methadone, it is arbitrarily set by the doctor, and when it is determined he can get off the drug, he will have to be weaned off, and experience withdrawal symptoms which may be as severe or worse than simply stopping drug use would have been.
With short-term use the person may experience:
- Restlessness
- Nausea
- Vomiting
- Itchy Skin
- Heavy sweating
- Constipation
- Sexual Problems
Some side effects are more serious. You should call the doctor if you experience any of the following:
- Trouble breathing or can only take shallow breaths
- A faint or lightheaded feeling
- Hives or rash
- Selling of the lips, tongue, throat or face
- Chest pain or rapid heartbeat
- Hallucinations
- Confusion
(WebMD)
Long-term Methadone use can lead to lung and breathing problems. It can also change a woman’s menstrual cycle. If you get pregnant while taking methadone, it is essential to, talk to your doctor before changing your dose. It can cause complications.
Better Alternatives for Helping Addicts
The reason why methadone is so controversial is that it leaves addicts in a sort of stasis, a stopped condition where they never actually experience rehabilitation and freedom from addiction. It is true that addicts put on methadone are usually individuals who struggle with massive levels of pain. But our nation’s efforts into holistic, alternative, and non-addictive pain relief methodology is finally beginning to bear fruit. We no longer need to consistently rely on addictive pain relievers to address pain, whether they are mind-altering or not.
Pain relief needs to be available to those who struggle with chronic or acute pain. Rehabilitation needs to be available to those who are addicted to pain relievers, or to those who are addicted to anything for that matter. A medical “solution” that ends with the patient still being chemically dependent on a substance is not a solution at all. A medical “solution” that ends with the person never really having to confront and handle their spiritual, psychological, personal, and behavioral connection to substances is also not a solution at all.
Holistic medicine and inpatient, residential addiction treatment has advanced to a degree where no-one needs to struggle with addiction and pain. We can move through this, and we can come out of the mess all the better for it.
Sources:
https://www.webmd.com/mental-health/addiction/what-is-methadone#1
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