How Your Brain Heals After Quitting Heroin

How your brain heals after quitting heroin.

Mood: Heroin damages the brain’s neurotransmitters  — specifically endorphins and dopamine. After quitting heroin, your brain’s level of endorphins and dopamine normalize, which reduces stress and produces a feeling of well-being.

Cravings: As you recover, the powerful urge to use heroin gets weaker, and your ability to resist environmental triggers gets stronger.

Emotions: Quitting heroin frees you to address and resolve feelings of anger, guilt, and depression. Quality of life and psychological health improve, which offers a path to rebuilding self-esteem, relationships, and community ties.

Sleep: Insomnia, fragmented sleep patterns, and sleep anxiety recede as your brain adjusts. Jitters and exhaustion subside as your body begins to heal.

Hormones: You stop experiencing the negative effects of heroin on your sex drive. Hormones such as testosterone and estrogen normalize and help allow for healthier sexual and endocrine function.