Inhalant Addiction

If you’re searching for inhalant addiction treatment in NY or out-of-state, then you’ve come to the right place. Start Healing From Addiction Now.

Inhalant Addiction Treatment in New York

History has shown that many things that are socially acceptable and deemed normal until we learn more about the negative effects. For example, in time past, smoking was normal, and nearly everyone did that. Today our attitudes towards smoking and recreative drug use have changed profoundly — as we begin to grasp the extent of addictive and dangerous consequences. Inhalants are one of those substances that not everyone even knows are dangerous, but many young adults and teenages abuse them.

Understanding Inhalants and Inhalant Abuse

Inhalants are chemicals that produce psychoactive effects, usually by cutting off or reducing oxygen supply to the brain. As the name implies, these chemicals are inhaled or huffed. Inhalant abuse specifically refers to the intentional inhalation of toxic chemicals to get high. It is one of the most common and frightening forms of substance abuse, and as we mentioned earlier, it is mostly overlooked.

Inhalants are easily accessible and are common home or workplace products. Such products include spray paints, markers, glues, and cleaning fluids. These products contain dangerous substances that cause psychoactive effects when inhaled. Naturally, these products were not classified as drugs because they are not intended for getting high; instead, they are a cheaper alternative for most teenagers.

Because the high gotten from inhalants usually lasts a few minutes, users often try to make it last by continual inhalation over several hours. This is the chief reason why inhalants become addictive.

Commonly Abused Inhalants

These inhalants are household items that can be found at any store or pharmacy and do not require a prescription to use. The unregulated nature of the products makes them easily accessible. Furthermore, these products are several times cheaper than regular addictive drugs. Anyone, including underage teens, can get them without restriction.

  1. Solvents such as paint thinners or removers, dry-cleaning fluids, gasoline lighter fluid, correction fluids, and glue.
  2. Aerosols including spray paints, hair or deodorant sprays, and computer cleaning products.
  3. Gases found in the household or commercial products such as butane lighters, propane tanks, whipped cream aerosols, as well as gaseous anesthetics such as ether, chloroform, and nitrous oxide.
  4. Nitrites often sold in small brown bottles labeled as video head cleaner, room odorizer leather cleaner, and liquid aroma.

How Dangerous are Inhalants?

Many inhalants, especially solvents and aerosol sprays, are highly concentrated. They contain a large number of chemicals with potentially toxic active ingredients. An overdose can occur when a person uses too much of the inhalant and develops a toxic reaction that results in serious, harmful symptoms or even death. These symptoms can cause seizures and coma.

Sniffing inhalants can cause the heart to stop within minutes. This condition is known as “sudden sniffing death.” It can happen to an otherwise healthy young person even on the first time use. In the same vein, inhalant sniffing with a paper or plastic bag or in a closed space without ventilation may cause death from suffocation. Besides all these potential dangers, the short and long-term effects of inhalant abuse are detrimental to physical and psychological health. Short-term health effects include slurred or distorted speech, lack of coordination, euphoria, dizziness, and hallucinations. Long-term health effects may include liver and kidney damage, loss of coordination and limb spasms, behavioral changes, and brain damage.

Find Inhalant Addiction Treatment in NY

If you or a loved one is addicted to inhalants, immediate treatment can stop the effects of abuse and restore both physical and psychological wellbeing. There are addiction treatment programs, where you can receive immediate inpatient or outpatient help within New York and out-of-state.

Depending on the severity of the addiction, an outpatient program geared towards ending your dependency on inhalants can lead to a successful recovery. Mid-Hudson Addiction Resources can help you begin your recovery journey. Our addiction experts will be glad to help you.

Addiction Resources for New York

Residents of New York searching for addiction help now have plenty of resources to fight substance abuse. Our team of professionals is here to guide and support you during this difficult time. We work with a variety of Hudson Valley addiction treatment programs personalized to fit your needs:

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