Opioid addiction is a disease,
not a choice or personal failure

Opioid addiction, also called opioid use disorder (OUD), can affect anyone

It is a lasting, and sometimes relapsing, disease that changes how the brain processes rewarding experiences.

Image of Dopamine Release

How does opioid addiction affect your brain?

Opioids trigger an intense rush of dopamine, a reward chemical, to be released in the brain. When the effects of the opioid wear off, you may want to experience those good feelings again so you seek out another opioid dose.

When you take opioids for a long period of time, your body may get used to them. This creates physical dependence. So, when you stop taking opioids, you may have withdrawal symptoms.

Why is the desire to use opioids hard to control?

Using opioids for long periods of time can change the structure of your brain. These changes can negatively affect your judgment, decision-making, and impulse control. In addition, some things, feelings, or situations can be triggers for use. Common triggers include:

Feelings like stress,
anger, guilt, or rejection

Memories of opioid
use in the past

Being in a place where
opioids were used in the past

Being with people who also
used or are using opioids

Image of man and woman talking to each other

What factors play a role in opioid addiction?

Opioid addiction isn’t determined by biological factors
alone. It can be impacted by environmental, genetic, and psychosocial factors too:

  • Environmental: People around you may be using opioids
  • Genetic: There may be a history of addiction in your family
  • Psychosocial: You may also be dealing with emotional
    pain, trauma, or mental health challenges (like depression
    or anxiety)

Recovery from opioid addiction is a journey,
and it’s never easy

But medicine, counseling, and community support may help. If you are starting or restarting your recovery journey, or if you’ve been in recovery for a while, it may help to:

1

Seek professional help early

  • Talk to a healthcare provider as soon as you can. They can diagnose opioid addiction and help you with a treatment plan

2

Consider medication for opioid addiction

  • Research shows that medication should be the first line of treatment against opioid addiction. Some of these medications can help with symptoms associated with opioid dependence or addiction
  • Medicine works best when combined with behavioral therapy or counseling

3

Learn recovery skills

  • Therapy can help you understand your triggers, develop healthy coping skills, and rebuild relationships. Examples include:
    1. Cognitive behavioral therapy
    2. Contingency management
    3. Group or family counseling

4

Build a recovery support network

  • Connection is a key part of healing. Surround yourself with people who support your recovery. This can include:
    1. Peer support groups like Narcotics Anonymous (NA) or SMART Recovery
    2. Recovery coaches or sponsors
    3. Family and friends who respect your journey
Find More Tips

Suffering from opioid addiction can be hard. But taking that first step toward recovery is a step in the right direction.

Treating opioid addiction is possible

Learn more about how medication and counseling can help you.

Opioid Addiction Treatment

IMPORTANT SAFETY INFORMATION

What is the most important information I should know about BRIXADI?

  • Because of the serious risk of potential harm or death from self-injecting BRIXADI into a vein (intravenously), it is only available through a restricted program called the BRIXADI Risk Evaluation and Mitigation Strategy (REMS) Program.
    • BRIXADI is not available in retail pharmacies.
    • Your BRIXADI injection will only be given to you by a healthcare provider.
  • BRIXADI (buprenorphine) extended-release injection for subcutaneous use contains a medicine called buprenorphine. Buprenorphine is an opioid that can cause serious and life-threatening breathing problems, especially if you take or use certain other medicines or drugs.
  • Talk to your healthcare provider about naloxone. Naloxone is a medicine that is available to patients for the emergency treatment of an opioid overdose. If naloxone is given, you must call 911 or get emergency medical help right away to treat an overdose or accidental use of an opioid.
  • BRIXADI can cause serious and life-threatening breathing problems. Get emergency help right away if you:
    • feel faint
    • feel dizzy
    • are confused
    • feel sleepy or uncoordinated
    • have blurred vision
    • have slurred speech
    • are breathing slower than normal
    • cannot think well or clearly
  • Do not take BRIXADI with certain medicines. Taking BRIXADI with other opioid medicines, benzodiazepines, alcohol, other central nervous system depressants (including street drugs) can cause severe drowsiness, decreased awareness, breathing problems, coma, and death.
  • In an emergency, have family members tell the emergency department staff that you are physically dependent on an opioid and are being treated with BRIXADI.
  • You may have detectable levels of BRIXADI in your body for several months after stopping treatment with BRIXADI.

Do not receive BRIXADI if you are allergic to buprenorphine or any ingredients in BRIXADI:

  • BRIXADI weekly: anhydrous ethanol, soybean phosphatidylcholine, glycerol dioleate
  • BRIXADI monthly: N-methylpyrrolidone, soybean phosphatidylcholine, glycerol dioleate

Before receiving BRIXADI, tell your healthcare provider about all of your medical conditions, including if you have:

  • Trouble breathing or lung problems
  • A curve in your spine that affects your breathing
  • Addison’s disease
  • An enlarged prostate (men)
  • Problems urinating
  • Liver, kidney, or gallbladder problems
  • A history of alcoholism
  • A head injury or brain problem
  • Mental health problems
  • Adrenal gland or thyroid gland problems
  • A latex allergy. The BRIXADI needle cap contains latex.

Tell your healthcare provider if you are:

  • pregnant or plan to become pregnant. If you receive BRIXADI while pregnant, your baby may have symptoms of opioid withdrawal at birth that could be life-threatening if not recognized and treated. Talk to your healthcare provider if you are pregnant or become pregnant.
  • breastfeeding. BRIXADI can pass into your breast milk and may harm your baby. Talk to your healthcare provider about the best way to feed your baby during treatment with BRIXADI. Monitor your baby for increased drowsiness and breathing problems if you breastfeed during treatment with BRIXADI.

Tell your healthcare provider about all the medicines you take, including prescription and over-the-counter medicines, vitamins and herbal supplements. Talk with your healthcare provider before starting any new medicines during or after stopping treatment with BRIXADI.

What should I avoid while receiving BRIXADI?

  • Do not drive, operate heavy machinery or perform any other dangerous activities until you know how BRIXADI affects you. BRIXADI can cause drowsiness and slow reaction times. BRIXADI can make you sleepy, dizzy, or lightheaded. This may happen more often in the first few days after your injection and when your dose is being changed.
  • You should not drink alcohol or use prescription or over-the-counter medicines that contain alcohol during treatment with BRIXADI, because this can lead to loss of consciousness or even death.

What are the possible side effects of BRIXADI?

BRIXADI can cause serious side effects, including:

  • Trouble breathing. Taking BRIXADI with other opioid medicines, benzodiazepines, alcohol, or other central nervous system depressants can cause breathing problems that can lead to coma and death.
  • Sleepiness, dizziness, and problems with coordination.
  • Physical dependence or abuse.
  • Liver problems. Call your healthcare provider right away if you notice any of these symptoms:
    • your skin or the white part of your eyes turns yellow (jaundice)
    • dark or “tea-colored” urine
    • light-colored stools (bowel movements)
    • loss of appetite
    • pain, aching, or tenderness on the right side of your stomach area
    • nausea

      • Your healthcare provider should do tests to check your liver before and during treatment with BRIXADI.

  • Allergic reaction. You may have a rash, hives, swelling of your face, wheezing, light-headedness when changing positions, feeling faint, or loss of consciousness. Call your healthcare provider or get emergency help right away.
  • Opioid withdrawal. Call your healthcare provider right away if you get any of these symptoms:
    • shaking
    • sweating more than normal
    • feeling hot or cold more than normal
    • runny nose
    • watery eyes
    • goose bumps
    • diarrhea
    • vomiting
    • muscle aches

    These symptoms may start weeks to months after your last dose of BRIXADI. Tell your healthcare provider if you develop any of these symptoms.

  • Decrease in blood pressure. You may feel dizzy if you get up too fast from sitting or lying down.
  • The most common side effects of BRIXADI include: injection site pain, headache, constipation, nausea, injection site redness, injection site itching, trouble sleeping (insomnia), and urinary tract infection.

BRIXADI may affect fertility in males and females. Talk to your healthcare provider if this is a concern for you.

These are not all the possible side effects of BRIXADI. Call your healthcare provider for medical advice about side effects.

You are encouraged to report negative side effects of prescription drugs to the FDA. Visit www.fda.gov/medwatch or call 1-800-FDA-1088.

For more information about BRIXADI, ask your healthcare provider or go to www.BRIXADI.com or call 1-833-274-9234.

This information does not take the place of talking with your healthcare provider for medical advice about your condition or treatment.

WHAT IS BRIXADI?

BRIXADI is a prescription medicine used to treat moderate to severe opioid addiction (dependence) to opioid drugs (prescription or illegal) in people:

  • who have started treatment with a single dose of a buprenorphine medicine in the form of a sublingual tablet or buccal film (transmucosal), OR
  • who are already being treated with buprenorphine

BRIXADI should be used as part of a complete treatment plan that also includes counseling and behavioral therapy.

Please see BRIXADI Medication Guide and Full Prescribing Information, including BOXED WARNING.

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