Clint Eastwood Youth Program - CEYP Newsletter
Issue 13: Prescription drug abuse: OxyContin®
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OxyContin (oxycodone) was developed and introduced to manage severe pain. But according to the Drug Enforcement Agency, no prescription drug in the last 20 years has been so widely abused. OxyContin has become one of the hottest drugs on the street!
OxyContin is an opium derivative that like morphine, has a high potential for abuse. OxyContin is often ingested by chewing the tablets, crushing them and then snorting the powder, or dissolving them in water and injecting the liquid. These methods by-pass OxyContin’s time-release feature, immediately releasing a potentially lethal dose of OxyContin and giving the user a high similar to high-grade heroin.
In 1999, a reported 9 million Americans used prescription drugs for non-medical purposes, that is, for recreation, to get high, to have fun, as a pick-me-up, or to calm down.
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But You Need a Prescription…
OxyContin is obtained in a variety of ways: “doctor shopping,” inappropriate prescribing by doctors, forged prescriptions, “diversion” (pharmacy staff taking OxyContin from the shelf or using forged prescriptions), stealing, buying it on the street, or buying it over the internet. OxyContin trafficking can be profitable; a legally obtained $6 pill can sell on the street for $80.
OxyContin has many street names; Oxy, Oxy’s, Oxycotton, Oxycodone, OC’s, Killers, Oceans, O’s, Oxycoffins, Hillbilly Heroin.
Why is it So Addicting?
Physical addiction to OxyContin develops when someone is exposed to high doses for an extended period of time. The body adapts and develops a tolerance for the drug, and higher doses are needed to obtain the desired effects. OxyContin mimics the action of chemicals in your brain that send pleasure messages to your brain. The result is a “short circuit” where normal interests and motivations are lost and drugs become the focus of life.
Withdrawal from OxyContin is more difficult and longer lasting than withdrawal from heroin.
Symptoms
- cold sweats
- diarrhea
- nausea and/or vomiting
- stomach cramps
- depression
- heart palpatations
- muscle/bone pain
- restlessness
- insomnia
Overdosing on OxyContin
Because OxyContin is designed for slow release over 12 hours, crushing or chewing the tablets causes large amounts of narcotic to be released immediately, which can be dangerous or fatal. Someone overdosing on OxyContin may display the following symptoms:
- slowed breathing
- seizures
- weakness, dizziness
- tiredness
- cold and clammy skin
- nausea, vomiting
- reduced vision, small pupils
- clouding of mental functions
- confusion
- loss of consciousness
- coma
- death
OxyContin can be an appropriate medication when used under a doctor’s care, but increasing numbers of adolescents and adults are dependent on or addicted to OxyContin.
There is help available.