Heroin Users and Ex-Addicts: Understanding Your Relationship With Dental Care
If you are addicted to heroin or recovering from a heroin addiction, you may be wondering how that affects your relationship with dental care. There are a few special things you should keep in mind. Here is what you need to know:
1. You deserve dental care.
Your attitude toward dentistry is the cornerstone of your relationship with dental care. Unfortunately, if you are still in the throes of addiction, you may have a low sense of self worth, and you may have a little voice in your head telling you that you don't deserve nice things in life. This is a common feeling among addicts, and it can cover everything from buying a nice shirt, to indulging in a bowl of ice cream, to accessing medical and dental care. Even if you feel like you do not deserve dental care, you do, and you should seek it.
2. Your need for dental care is even stronger as an addict or ex-addict.
Many people assume that if they inject, swallow or snort heroin that it won't affect their teeth like smoking meth or tobacco does. However, that is not true. Research suggests that heroin users are very likely to suffer from dental problems.
If you currently use or recently quit using heroin, it will likely have had an affect on your teeth. Ideally, you should see a dentist before the decay spreads or the issues worsen.
You should also focus on preventative dental care. No one is sure why heroin users have dental issues, but researchers assume it may be related to poor diet or lack of dental hygiene. Remember to eat healthy food and brush when you can.
3. You should talk with your dentist about your addiction.
It can be very hard to talk about addiction. If you have recently quit using, you may still feel embarrassed, and if you are still using, you may not want anyone to know. As a medical professional, your dentist is required to respect your confidentiality, and you should advise him or her of your addiction, just as you tell him or her about any prescription drugs you are taking.
That way, your dentist can keep your addiction in mind when providing care to you. This is especially important when it comes to prescribing painkillers after dental work.
4. You don't need to take painkillers that mimic heroin.
If you have recently quit taking heroin, you want to avoid painkillers that mimic the qualities of heroin, as they can reignite your addiction in some cases. Luckily, Novocaine doesn't contain any opiates so you can safely use that (as well as other popular anesthesia options) while having work done, but for the recovery period, ask the dentist to give you extra strong ibuprofen rather than opiate-mimicking painkillers.
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