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Struggling with an opioid addiction? We can help!
At the Charles County Department of Health, our outpatient substance use program provides behavioral health services to residents of this county and other surrounding areas. We provide services to adolescent and adults who are experiencing substance use concerns.
We have walk in services Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday from 8:30 am to 3:30 pm. No referral is necessary. Medication Assisted Treatment is scheduled after the Behavioral Health assessment is completed. Please feel free to call 301-609-6600 for any questions you might have.
What is an Opioid?
Opiates are drugs derived from the poppy plant or synthetic chemical equivalents.
The medical use of opiates is to alleviate pain, decrease cough, and to treat opiate addiction.
Some of their side effects are euphoria and sleepiness. Some common opiates are morphine,
heroin,and codeine. Opiates are sometimes referred to by the broader term, “narcotics.”
While Opiates have been used as pain killers for hundreds of years,
they have also been used recreationally and abused for many years.
Addiction does not discriminate.
What is an Opioid Overdose?
Opioid overdose happens when a toxic amount of an opioid—alone or mixed with other opioid(s),
drugs and/or substances—overwhelms the body’s ability to handle it.
Many opioid-related overdoses result from mixing prescription painkillers or heroin with benzodiazepines (benzos), cocaine and/or alcohol.
Fentanyl
Fentanyl is a synthetic opioid that is 50-100 times more potent than morphine, and 25-50 times more potent than heroin. Below are lethal doses of heroin, fentanyl, and carfentanil.
Drugs users are not always aware when their heroin is laced with fentanyl, so when they inject their usual quantity of heroin, they may accidentally take a deadly dose of the substance.
Treatment
The Charles County Department of Health provides treatment of opiate disorders and other substance use disorders in a variety of ways. We have treatment professionals who provide individual and group treatment to clients from 1 to 9 hours a week. Each person is evaluated and treatment is tailored to their unique needs. Peer support specialists and community health outreach workers help individuals connect to community resources and access other levels of care. Our jail based treatment program begins treatment for individuals while they are incarcerated.
Behavioral Health Treatment Services Locator:
Behavioral Health Treatment Services Locator:
The Disaster Distress Helpline, 1-800-985-5990, is a 24/7, 365-day-a–year, national hotline dedicated to providing immediate crisis counseling for people who are experiencing emotional distress related to any natural or human-caused disaster.
Support Group
A weekly family support group meets to discuss ways to support those who have a loved one using drugs. Loving someone struggling with addiction can be incredibly difficult because drug addiction impacts the whole family. Members learn to avoid encouraging destructive behavior, and works towards caring for themselves when the addiction is creating chaos in their world.
Narcan Training
We also train people to use Narcan (Naloxone) to reverse opioid overdoses. We offer Narcan training at the Department of Health to the community Off site training is offered as available. For more information and to schedule a training or an appointment call 301-609-6631.
