Last Updated:

February 2nd, 2026

Opioid addiction

Opioid addiction statistics show that these drugs have claimed more lives in Britain than any other. Opioid painkillers, whether prescribed for a legitimate injury or obtained illegally, latch onto your brain’s pleasure circuits so thoroughly that getting clean alone is nearly impossible. Research shows that nearly one in ten people prescribed opioids for chronic pain will develop opioid addiction, putting them at serious risk of overdose and other harm. Understanding how this happens and what to do if you become addicted is knowledge that could save your life.

opioid addiction treatment group therapy

What is opioid addiction?

Opioid addiction, also called opioid use disorder, is compulsive use of opioid drugs despite serious harm to your health, relationships, and life.

Opioid abuse comes first. This may mean taking more than prescribed, using opioids to get high rather than manage pain, snorting or injecting opioid pills, or taking someone else’s medication.

Opioid dependence develops next. It is when your body has adapted to having opioids present and reacts badly when they’re absent. This reaction means withdrawal symptoms like sweating, muscle pain, nausea, and anxiety, which appear if you don’t take opioids for a couple of hours. Eventually, you may keep taking opioids because you’re scared of these reactions, even when you desperately want to stop.

Opioid addiction is the final stage. It means getting and using opioids has become the organising principle of your life. You have likely tried to cut down or stop and failed, and opioids now run all important parts of your life.

What are the signs of opioid addiction?

One of the biggest opioid addiction signs is that you are reading this page. However, if you are still in opioid addiction denial or you are worried about someone else, here are some other important opioid addiction symptoms:

 

  • Obsessive thinking about your medication
  • Being constantly aware of how many pills remain
  • Your mood is becoming increasingly tied to opioid availability
  • Being convinced you still need opioids for pain even when the original injury healed months ago
  • Being moody between doses
  • Not caring about friendships or social life
  • Pinpoint pupils
  • Drowsiness at inappropriate times
  • Slurred speech
  • Constipation
  • Weight loss
  • Poor hygiene
  • Track marks (if injecting opioids)

What causes opioid addiction to develop?

Opioids attach to receptors in the brain that control pain and pleasure. When activated, these receptors release dopamine, which is the chemical responsible for feelings of reward. The dopamine rush opioids trigger dwarfs anything you would get from food, sex, hobbies, or personal achievement. Your brain quickly learns to prioritise opioids above everything else and dials down its natural feel-good chemicals to compensate.

But while these effects explain continued opioid misuse, they don’t explain why some people face a higher risk of opioid addiction. That is because this risk comes down to a few different factors.

First of all, addiction of all kinds tends to run in families. While this isn’t a guarantee, having a close relative with substance problems raises your own risk. 

Mental health conditions also sharply raise the risk, which is why there are so many people with co-existing depression and addiction, anxiety and addiction, and ADHD and addiction. Trauma history, particularly childhood abuse or neglect, is another major factor.

People prescribed opioids for longer periods or at higher doses also face greater drug addiction risks than those on short courses of low-dose opioids.

What are the most addictive opioid medications?

Some opioids are more addictive than others, but none are safe with long-term use. Some of the most common forms of opioid prescription drug addiction include:

Morphine addiction

Creates a powerful physical dependence, just like heroin (which turns into morphine in the body).
Morphine addiction

Codeine addiction

Often catches people off guard because codeine is available in over-the-counter medications.
Codeine addiction

Fentanyl addiction

Particularly dangerous because fentanyl is approximately 100 times stronger than morphine, and even small dosing errors can be fatal.
Fentanyl addiction

 

Oxycodone addiction

One of the biggest early causes of the American Opioid Crisis.
Oxycodone addiction

Methadone addiction

While methadone is used to treat opioid addiction, it can also create another dependency.
Methadone addiction

Tramadol addiction

Tramadol was once considered lower risk, but it can and does still cause addiction.
Tramadol addiction

 

Dihydrocodeine addiction

Develops from a stronger codeine relative and can be extremely dangerous.
Dihydrocodeine addiction

Demerol addiction

Comes from Demerol use, which is a powerful painkiller used in hospitals.
Demerol addiction

Vicodin addiction

Develops from a combination of hydrocodone and paracetamol, which is more commonly prescribed in America.
Vicodin addiction

 

Hydromorphone addiction

Stems from hydromorphone, a potent painkiller several times stronger than morphine.
Hydromorphone addiction

What are the biggest opioid side effects and addiction dangers?

Opioid addiction becomes more harmful the longer you use and the more you take. Some of the biggest dangers include:

Opioid overdose
Opioid overdose kills thousands of people in Britain every year. An opioid overdose usually happens when the drug suppresses breathing to the point where oxygen can’t reach the brain. The risk increases with higher doses, combining opioids with alcohol or benzodiazepines, using after a period of abstinence (when tolerance has dropped), and using opioids of unknown strength or purity.

  • Signs of opioid overdose include:
  • Unresponsiveness
  • Slow or stopped breathing
  • Blue lips or fingertips
  • Gurgling sounds
  • Pinpoint pupils

If you suspect an overdose, call 999 immediately, and place the person in the recovery position if they’re breathing. If you have access to naloxone (Narcan), administer it as this medication can reverse an opioid overdose. Stay with the person until emergency services arrive.

Short-term opioid side effects
Other opioid side effects include drowsiness, constipation, nausea, cloudy thinking, slower reaction times, and poor coordination.
Long-term physical dangers
With long-term opioid misuse, immune function weakens, making infections more likely, hormones become imbalanced, affecting sex drive and fertility, and chronic constipation can cause serious bowel complications. If you are injecting opioids, risks multiply to include damaged veins, skin infections, and serious diseases, including HIV and hepatitis.
Opioid addiction and mental health
Opioid addiction and mental health problems make each other worse. Opioids may initially mask depression or anxiety, but long-term use deepens both. The emotional flatness that comes with dependency can slide into severe depression, anxiety can spike between doses, and some people can start self-harming or become suicidal due to the fallout of addiction.
Impact on families and personal lives
Living with someone’s opioid addiction is very tough on individuals and their families. Many people sadly go through divorce, have strained relationships with their children, experience legal and financial issues, and lose their jobs, educational opportunities, homes, and all future prospects.

group therapy for Opioid addiction

What does treatment for opioid addiction involve?

Opioid addiction is treatable, and thousands of people recover every year. It starts with prescription drug detox, where you will possibly move on to buprenorphine or methadone with a view to tapering off all opioids eventually.

Opioid rehab then provides therapy, relapse prevention, lifestyle skills, and aftercare support to help build lasting recovery foundations. For ongoing support after treatment, NA Meetings put you in touch with people who get it and can help you stay on track, and if you still have pain management needs, you can discuss these with your doctor.

Finding help for opioid addiction

Contact us today for a private, honest conversation with our expert team. We can give you the best advice on what you need to begin a new, opioid-free life.

Frequently Asked Questions

What are the common behaviours of someone struggling with opioid addiction?
Common behaviours that may indicate an opioid addiction include running out of prescriptions early, visiting multiple doctors to obtain medication, becoming secretive about pill use, and withdrawing from family and friends.
How do you help someone with opioid addiction?
Start by expressing concern without judgment or accusation. Choose a calm moment when they’re sober, and focus on specific behaviours you’ve observed. Offer concrete support like researching treatment options or accompanying them to appointments. Set boundaries about what behaviour you will and won’t accept, and don’t enable continued use by covering up problems or providing money.
What factors increase the risk of developing an opioid addiction?
Risk factors include family history of any addiction, personal history of substance misuse, mental health conditions, history of trauma or abuse, young age at first use, longer duration of opioid prescription, higher prescribed doses, and social environments where drug use is normalised.

(Click here to see works cited)