8–24 hours (short-acting)
- Onset for heroin, oxycodone, hydrocodone and similar
- Anxiety, restlessness, cravings
- Watery eyes, runny nose, yawning, sweating
- Muscle aches
Substance detox
Opioids detox, with a team beside you.
Opioids covers a wide range — prescription painkillers like oxycodone and hydrocodone, heroin, and synthetic fentanyl — and physical dependence develops the same way across all of them. How withdrawal unfolds depends mainly on whether the opioid is short-acting or long-acting. Medically supervised detox with 24/7 nursing manages that safely, and medication-assisted treatment addresses the cravings that outlast it.
Knowing the signs
When it's time to get help.
You don't have to hit a crisis point to reach out. A few signs that opioids has become something worth treating:
Taking more than prescribed, or taking it longer than intended
Withdrawal symptoms between doses
Needing more for the same relief
Using someone else's prescription, or buying outside a pharmacy
Doctor-shopping or running out early
Using to feel normal rather than for pain
Failed attempts to cut down
Continuing despite clear consequences at work, at home, or medically
What to expect
The opioids withdrawal timeline.
Everyone's different, but here's the general shape of withdrawal. These are typical patterns, not a diagnosis — your plan is built by a clinician around your history.
24–48 hours (long-acting)
- Onset for methadone and extended-release formulations — slower to start, longer to finish
- Early symptoms mirror the short-acting picture but build more gradually
48–72 hours
- Peak for short-acting opioids
- Nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, abdominal cramping
- Goosebumps, chills, dilated pupils
- Insomnia and agitation at their worst
72 hours–8 days
- Peak for long-acting opioids falls in this window
- Short-acting withdrawal begins resolving
- Fatigue, low mood, and poor sleep persist
Weeks to months
- Post-acute withdrawal: episodic cravings, low motivation, disrupted sleep
- Medication-assisted treatment and therapy target this stretch
- Tolerance is reduced — overdose risk on any return to use is elevated
This is general information, not medical advice. Your plan is built by a clinician around your history and health.
How we help
Treating opioids at Jasper Grove.
Medically supervised detox
24/7 nursing monitors you and uses comfort medications to help keep you safe and ease the worst of withdrawal.
Learn moreMedication-assisted treatment
When it's the right fit, we use Suboxone, Subutex, or Vivitrol to steady cravings — started and managed by our medical team.
Residential treatment
Detox flows straight into residential care — therapy, and treatment for the mental-health conditions so often underneath opioid use.
Learn moreReady to take the first step?
Admissions answers 24/7. One call starts your plan and checks your coverage.
Call (317) 527-4529 Getting care in Indianapolis
Close to home, insurance accepted.
Opioids have touched a lot of families across Indianapolis, and the shame around them keeps people from reaching out longer than it should. The hardest part is deciding to call — from there, our team knows how to help you through it.
Opioid detox and residential treatment are accepted through Indiana Medicaid — Anthem, CareSource, MHS, and Humana Healthy Horizons — plus most major insurance. Call and we'll verify your specific plan and your exact cost up front.
Level of care is determined by a clinical assessment. Jasper Grove provides medical detox and residential treatment, and is accredited by The Joint Commission.
Common questions
Opioids detox, answered.
Is opioid withdrawal dangerous?
Opioid withdrawal is rarely life-threatening on its own, but it's severe — and the vomiting and diarrhea can leave you dangerously dehydrated. The bigger risk is after: tolerance drops during detox, so a return to use carries a high overdose risk. That's why doing this with medical support, and starting medication-assisted treatment, matters so much.
How long does opioid detox take?
The most acute withdrawal usually peaks in the first few days and eases within about a week, though it varies with the opioid and the person. Cravings can linger longer, which is where medication-assisted treatment helps.
Do you use Suboxone or Vivitrol?
Yes — when it's the right fit, we use Suboxone, Subutex, or Vivitrol as part of treatment, started and managed by our medical team. We do not offer methadone.
Do you accept Indiana Medicaid for opioid treatment?
We accept Indiana Medicaid and most major insurance for detox and residential care. Call and we'll verify your specific plan and your exact cost up front — before you commit to anything.
How long does opioid withdrawal last?
For short-acting opioids like heroin, oxycodone, or hydrocodone, withdrawal begins 8 to 24 hours after the last dose and peaks at 48 to 72 hours, with acute symptoms easing over about a week. Long-acting opioids such as methadone start later — 24 to 48 hours — and peak between 3 and 8 days. Cravings and sleep disruption can continue for weeks or months in both cases.
What's the difference between short-acting and long-acting opioid withdrawal?
Short-acting opioids leave the body faster, so withdrawal starts sooner, hits harder, and finishes sooner. Long-acting opioids taper themselves as they clear, so withdrawal begins later, feels less abrupt, and lasts longer overall. Your detox plan is built around which you've been taking.
Is it safe to stop opioids suddenly?
Opioid withdrawal is rarely fatal on its own, but stopping abruptly without support is hard to sustain and carries real risks — dehydration from vomiting and diarrhea, destabilization of existing medical conditions, and a sharp drop in tolerance that makes any return to use more dangerous. Medically supervised detox manages all three.
Will I be given medication during opioid detox?
Comfort medications are used to manage nausea, cramping, agitation, and sleep during detox. Separately, when it's the right fit, medication-assisted treatment with Suboxone, Subutex, or Vivitrol is started and managed by our medical team to address cravings after detox. We do not offer methadone.
What we treat
We help people detox from more than one thing.
Dealing with more than one substance is common — and we treat the whole picture. Explore the others we help with:
Take the next step
Detox that's safer with a team beside you.
Don't try to get through it alone. Admissions answers 24/7 — call and we'll help you start opioids detox safely, and verify your coverage first.