In addition, your doctor may test you for narcotic abuse by injecting a drug called naloxone hydrochloride into one of your muscles and recording your body's response. If you have taken an overdose and have trouble breathing, the doctor will clear your airway and keep it open with a breathing tube. The doctor may hospitalize you. Intensive care unit treatment may be necessary. When you're breathing normally, the doctor will give you an injection of naloxone hydrochloride and watch you for 48 hours.
Naloxone hydrochloride counteracts the effects of a narcotic overdose.
For long-term treatment, the doctor will enroll you in a treatment program. These treatment programs often use a community approach to give you a new life among an alternative group of peers. The success of treatment depends greatly on your motivation. Narcotics Anonymous offers outpatient treatment but should not be substituted for initial inpatient treatment. Staying employed or staying in school, in addition to continuing treatment, improves your prospects for recovery.