Opiate Withdrawal
"I was recently diagnosed with endocarditis a deadly heart and blood infection due to being an IV heroin user. I needed to be on IV antibiotics for 4 weeks but the fear of WDs kept me from staying in the hospital since the docs wanted me to go cold turkey. Finally thanks to the dedication of my PCP she was able to coordinate with a medical hospital to detox me and give me the IV therapy that I needed then put me on suboxone to continue treating my addiction. But in order to take the sub I had to be heroin free for at least 2 days. I was panicked about how bad the WDs would be. But the addictonologist I worked with prescribed the clonidine (a patch and up to 3 doses orally a day) and I have to say it was a godsend. It got me through it."