How Long Does it Take to Develop Drug Tolerance?

What is a Drug Tolerance?

Drug tolerance is how many drugs you can have before you feel an effect. So, for example, if you need lots of drugs to start to feel high, that is an indicator of high drug tolerance. However, if only a small amount gives you a high, that indicates a low tolerance.

What determines your drug tolerance comes down to many different complex factors. These factors come together and help your body either have a high or a low tolerance. But you may be wondering why does drug tolerance matter?

Well, the simple answer is that your drug tolerance impacts your life. For example, you may struggle to get medical treatments if you have a high tolerance for painkillers.

But when it comes to addiction recovery, especially, it changes the kinds of treatments you need in drug or alcohol rehab. For one thing, high drug tolerance often indicates a severe addiction due to the frequency of your drug use.

This presents a danger; if you start getting treatment and then relapse, you may assume you still have the same tolerance. Unfortunately, this leads people to consume too many drugs for what their body can handle and often causes an overdose as a result. Drug tolerance is built up over time, so especially in the case of a relapse after going sober, drug use can be fatal when your body no longer has the same tolerance.

How Long Does it Take to Develop a Drug Tolerance?

The development of drug tolerance can vary depending on the drug used, your body’s genetics, how often you use drugs, and how pure the drugs are.

While there is no definitive timeline for tolerance development that works for everyone, the following can give you an idea of what to expect.

• Short-acting: Drugs that don’t stay long in your body, such as some opioids, can develop tolerance relatively quickly. This can happen within a few days to a couple of weeks. Eventually, finding that you need more drugs to feel the same kind of high, which is why these prescription drugs are so addictive.
• Long-acting: Drugs that last a bit longer, such as certain opioids or benzodiazepines, may take longer for tolerance to develop. It can range from weeks to several months, depending on how often you use them.
• Stimulants: Tolerance to stimulant drugs like amphetamines and cocaine can develop quickly, with some people finding that the drugs have lost their kick after just a few uses. However, complete tolerance may take longer to develop, often weeks to months, if you constantly use it.
• Cannabis: Tolerance to cannabis can develop fairly quickly, especially with heavy use. Regular users may find that they need higher amounts of cannabis to feel high. However, this tolerance can fade pretty quickly if you were to take a break from it.
• Hallucinogens: Hallucinogens like LSD tend to have a unique tolerance pattern. After using these substances, there is a rapid tolerance build-up, meaning that people may need to wait a few days to achieve the same effects. However, tolerance also diminishes quickly, and complete tolerance may not develop to the same extent as with other drugs.

All of these timelines can be altered by outside factors such as your genetics, past experience with substance abuse and, of course, your body metabolism. The time it takes to develop a drug tolerance is different for everyone but can range from 5 uses to more.

What Causes a High Drug Tolerance?

As each person’s body is unique, it means that there is no definitive answer as to what causes a high drug tolerance.

However, there are a few factors that can come together to form one for you.

• Dosage: A higher dose of drugs can lead to you developing a high drug tolerance quite quickly. This is because your brain is bombarded by the chemicals and is trying to adapt to them.
• Frequency of use: How often you use drugs, such as making them a part of your daily routine, can build also your tolerance quickly. It can also be a sign of a drug addiction.
• Drug combinations: By mixing the substances you take, you can build up a high tolerance very quickly. Especially when you are mixing depressants such as cannabis with stimulants such as cocaine.
• Body health: Things such as your weight and metabolism can decide how much of an impact a drug has on your body and how long it stays in your system. As you get older, your body can also lose or gain a higher tolerance depending on your lifestyle.

Dangers of Drug Tolerance

High drug tolerance is dangerous for a number of reasons.

To begin with, in order to feel any effect, you are taking a lot of drugs. These can cause serious harm to your body and even destroy your organs. It also forms a habit that if you take a break from drug use and return to it, you can easily find yourself overdosing.

You will also find yourself spending a lot more money and time around drugs in order to feel any high. This increases your chances of getting hurt by having a drug laced with something it shouldn’t be or being arrested for drug possession.

High drug tolerance is a sign of addiction and indicates that you need help.

Seeking Help and Support for Drug Abuse

Help is available for your drug addiction.

One option is to use the Narcotics Anonymous website so that you can try to find a local support group. This is a great introduction to the recovery process and will help you build up a local support system.

You can also go to a drug rehab centre to get all the treatment you need to overcome your addiction. At Action Rehab, we can help you to find the treatment that you need and a safe space to do it in.

All you need to do is give us a call at 0151 268 6992 to start your recovery journey today.

You will be able to talk to a member of our team who can talk you through everything you need to know about drug addiction recovery and all the treatments available to you.

You don’t need to worry about price or being able to access the help you need. We will be able to help you every step of the way so that the only thing you need to focus on is your physical and mental health.

Posted on Friday, June 23rd, 2023 at 9:44 am in Latest News.