METHADONE

Methadone Maintenance Therapy (MMT) is and will probably always be a controversial way to treat opiate addiction patients. Some argue that using methadone as a “cure” substitute’s one addiction for another. An analysis of the opiate addiction process reveals that Methadone Maintenance Therapy does more harm than good, by transferring their addiction to methadone, decreasing normal brain functioning, and causing high rates of death in some cases. Since “methadone addiction is more difficult to recover from than heroin or any other narcotic” (Methadoneaddiction), some MMT patients stay on methadone treatment for years leaving them feeling a sense of imprisonment to methadone. “True freedom from drug addiction involves physical detoxification and a program that addresses the mental, emotional, social, and spiritual , H7YN6aspects of drug addiction” (Methadoneaddiction), not a life of dependency. Methadone was first created by German scientist during WWII, to act as morphine after their supply lines were cut. It was later introduced as an analgesic or pain reliever in the United States, and it has been used to treat heroin addicts since the 1960’s. Methadone was so popular as a synthetic opiate because of its slow metabolic breakdown, and it being 3 times more potent than any other opiate and was later used as a substitute from heroin (Methadoneaddiction). Just like any other addictive drug, methadone has severe long term side effects such as insomnia, and damage to memory and attention functioning. “Researchers suspect that this outcome has to do with alternatives in brain chemistry caused by methadone” (Hall). Methadone reduces the functioning of the working and verbal memory and hinders cognitive response. “Methadone-related patients had deficits in attention; they had slower reaction times reflecting a lack of alertness” (Hall). The euphoric feeling from methadone that is suppose to reduce withdrawal symptoms can stay in the body for 24 hours and the side