How To Stop Using Afrin

What Is Afrin?

Afrin is a popular nasal spray used to temporarily salve nasal congestion due to colds, allergies and sinusitis. Afrin contains water and a chemical called oxymetazoline, a topical decongestant exerting vasoconstricting backdrop. Vasoconstricting agents cause narrowing of blood vessels and capillaries. Spraying Afrin into your olfactory organ immediately produces constriction of blood vessels in the nasal passages, which reduces swelling of nasal tissues and congestion.

How Does Afrin Compare to Other Nasal Decongestants?

While Afrin uses oxymetazoline to save congestion, other make-proper name decongestant nasal sprays like four-Way and Neo-Synephrine use phenylephrine hydrochloride, another vasoconstricting agent that decreases swelling and congestion.

Since both oxymetazoline and phenylephrine hydrochloride are vasoconstrictors, the divergence betwixt Afrin and other nasal decongestants is minimal to none. Some people merely prefer using Afrin over other nasal sprays, and vice versa, for various reasons such every bit price, effectiveness and availability.

What Are the Side Furnishings of Afrin?

Afrin users rarely report allergic side effects. However, temporary side effects are common, especially if likewise much Afrin is sprayed into nostrils. Possible side effects of Afrin employ include:

Stinging and burning of nasal passage tissues
Runny nose
Sneezing due to irritation (sneezing stops later irritation diminishes)

Many people who utilize Afrin for over a calendar week or more experience these side effects when Afrin starts wearing off and sinus tissues begin swelling again. Within seconds of using Afrin, these side effects normally disappear.

This is chosen the rebound effect of nasal sprays.

What Is the Rebound Effect Caused by Afrin?

Rhinitis medicamentosa is the clinical term for rebound congestion, a major trouble caused by excessive and lengthy use of Afrin. This rebound effect has led to the erroneous belief that you lot can go fond to Afrin.

Afrin-caused rebound congestion is not a form of addiction. Instead, suffering recurring nasal congestion due to overuse of Afrin is a physiological reaction involving tolerance of nasal passage tissues to oxymetazoline. The nasal spray rebound result has no psychological component. People don't crave Afrin the manner they would a chemically dependent drug like opiates. The only matter that compels them to keep using Afrin is that they cannot breathe normally through their nose without repeatedly spraying oxymetazoline onto nasal passage tissues.

Is Flonase Addictive Similar Afrin?

Flonase is a nasal spray prescribed past doctors for relieving symptoms of allergies and sinusitis. Belonging to the corticosteroid form of drugs, Flonase works differently than Afrin. In addition to reducing inflammation, Flonase as well blocks the irritating effects of pollen, dust, mold and pet dander. Besides, while Afrin starts working immediately to relieve congestion, Flonase users may not feel congestion relief for a few days.

Although Flonase doesn't cause a rebound outcome like Afrin does, long-term employ of corticosteroid nasal sprays can promote recurring nosebleeds and headaches.

What Happens If You Can't Terminate Using Afrin Considering of Rebound Congestion?

Your power to cease using Afrin depends on how you lot can handle several days of a stuffy nose and being unable to breathe normally. Since the rebound effect isn't an Afrin addiction, you can withdraw from daily use at habitation safely.

One way to defeat rebound congestion is to simply get cold turkey. About long-term Afrin users cannot practise this because having a stuffy nose 24/7 is just uncomfortable and interferes with eating, sleeping and piece of work tasks. Saline solutions may assist ease the side furnishings of rebound congestion and become you through the worst days.

Saline nasal sprays comprise sodium chloride and water that moisturize nasal passages and remove debris such equally pollen and dust. Immigration stuffy nasal passages with a saline solution also gets rid of excess mucus to facilitate animate normally over again. Although saline solutions are non-habit-forming and won't cause a rebound effect, the relief you lot experience later on spraying saline and water onto your nasal passages is a short xxx to 45 minutes. Fortunately, you can employ saline nasal sprays as much every bit y'all want without harming nasal tissues.

If going common cold turkey or using saline solutions doesn't work, you can effort eliminating the rebound result by working on clearing one nasal passage. In other words, use Afrin on ane nasal passage only while letting the other nasal passage remain congested until the rebound result wears off. After a few days, you should exist able to exhale well enough through one side of your nose to either go cold turkey or employ saline sprays on the other side of your nose.

What Is the Clinical Definition of a Substance or Behavioral Addiction?

According to the American Society of Addiction Medicine, "Substance addiction is a chronic, treatable medical illness that involves circuitous interactions amongst genetics, chemicals in the encephalon, a person'southward environment and a person's life experiences. People with a drug habit engage in compulsive behaviors that continue despite the person suffering harmful consequences as a result of their drug-seeking behaviors."

The ASAM further states that "treatment approaches and prevention efforts put forth by local and federal agencies are typically as successful as approaches and efforts used to treat chronic medical diseases."

The rebound effect acquired past Afrin overuse is not an addiction to nasal sprays. Rebound congestion that occurs when you end using Afrin doesn't require professional intervention by experienced addiction counselors. Nor does information technology crave medical detoxification to rid the body of harmful drugs. Also, rebound congestion is not a medical illness involving the brain. Finally, people compelled to utilize Afrin on a daily basis don't appoint in behaviors that severely compromise their jobs, relationships and general wellness.

An Exception: Process Addictions

While the chemicals contained within Afrin and similar drugs do not create a chemical, physiological dependency in the same way that drug families like opiates and amphetamines do, they can be function of aprocess addiction behavior. This refers to a behavior that someone is 'addicted to', not because of the specific chemicals involved, but the beliefs'due south psychological stimuli and reward of performing. Gambling addiction, for example, does not involve the introduction of external chemicals but is a system finely tuned rewards that can create destructive behaviors. Whatever urge and relief upon completion can be role of this bike, but some are more prone to abuse than others. This type of beliefs sometimes called a process habit is an indication that handling is needed but is just recognized as an official disorder in sure circumstances, such every bit video games and gambling.

Nearly can vanquish a dependence on Afrin past yourself. People with substance addictions cannot. They need empathetic, experienced habit counselors and psychologists to help them understand why they're fond to drugs or alcohol and what they need to do to achieve a successful recovery.

When Y'all Need Professional Treatment for a Real Substance Addiction

Many people inbound our rehab center who are addicted to snorting cocaine, crushed opioid pills or methamphetamine accept become heavily dependent on Afrin or other nasal sprays containing oxymetazoline or phenylephrine hydrochloride. Snorting drugs is known to gradually destroy nasal passage tissues. Frequent nosebleeds and the development of ulcerations within the nasal passages usually affect cocaine and meth abusers and intensify the inflammation and swelling of nasal tissues.

FHE Health is a leading substance abuse and mental health treatment facility in Southern Florida that provides personalized intendance, medical detoxification services and inpatient/outpatient treatment programs to help adolescents and adults regain their physical and psychological health. We also specialize in treating co-occurring disorders involving substance addictions and mental illnesses. Please phone call usa today if y'all or someone you know has co-occurring substance abuse and mental health disorders.