Prescription drug addiction in Almaty

Reviewed byNurlan Isayev, MDAddiction psychiatrist, experience 10 years · updated 8 Nov 2026

Key facts

Who provides care

An addiction doctor (narcologist), and a psychiatrist and psychotherapist if needed

Where

At home in Almaty, in the clinic’s inpatient unit, with online monitoring

Duration

Gradual tapering — from several weeks to months, depending on the medication and length of use

Anonymity

Anonymous treatment with no registry entry and full medical confidentiality

When it is urgent

Seizures, confusion, slowed breathing, or an overdose — call 103 or 112 right away

Outcome

Safely stopping the medication and treating the original problem — sleep, anxiety, or pain

What you should know

Told by the on-call doctor of our mobile team. These calls are nothing like a drinking binge: the apartment is tidy, the person has a job, and it is often a woman over forty or an elderly man. It is the children who call: “Mom has been taking sleeping pills for five years, now three at a time, and yesterday they ran out — she’s shaking and hasn’t slept for two days.” The dispatcher will always ask which medication exactly, how much and for how long it has been taken, when the last pill was, whether there have been seizures, and whether there are chronic illnesses.

These questions are not a formality. Abruptly stopping certain sleeping pills and sedatives can cause seizures and psychosis, so after long-term use we never advise people to “just quit.” At night I usually reach the Medeu or Bostandyk district within half an hour; the Turksib district and places outside the city, such as Otegen Batyr or Talgar, take longer. If the conversation mentions seizures, loss of consciousness, confusion, or an overdose, the dispatcher will immediately direct you to 103 or 112.

When Taking Medication Has Turned into Addiction

• the dose gradually increases, and the usual number of pills no longer helps
• without the medication there is anxiety, tremor, sweating, insomnia, and a racing heart
• prescriptions are obtained from different doctors, or the drug is bought without a prescription
• the person carries pills everywhere and gets anxious when the supply runs low
• the medication is taken for its calming or euphoric effect rather than for a medical reason
• daytime drowsiness, memory and coordination problems, falls in older people
• attempts to cut down the dose on one’s own end in relapse

If two or three points apply, it is worth seeing a doctor. Phone advice is free and confidential. If life is at risk, call 103 or 112.

How Prescription Drug Dependence Develops

Most often it all begins with a legitimate prescription: a sleeping pill after a stressful event, a painkiller after surgery, a sedative for anxiety. Drugs that act on GABA and opioid receptors cause tolerance with long-term use: a higher dose is needed, and when the drug is stopped the nervous system becomes “overexcited.” The person is no longer taking the pill for insomnia but to avoid withdrawal. This is how a vicious circle forms.

The risk is higher with long-term use without medical supervision, when combined with alcohol, with chronic pain, anxiety and depressive disorders, and in older age. A separate group is young people who use medications to get high, often together with other substances. International guidelines, including those of NICE and the WHO, recommend tapering such medications gradually and under supervision.

How we help

Myths and facts

How a home visit works

1. Call or message usThe dispatcher answers 24/7 and in 3–5 minutes checks the person's condition, age, how long the drinking or use has lasted, chronic conditions and the address. No surname needed.
2. The doctor sets offAn addiction doctor or psychiatrist comes with equipment and medication. Travel time depends on the district — usually within an hour. If inpatient care or an ambulance is needed, we'll say so straight away.
3. Examination and treatmentBlood pressure, pulse, oxygen saturation, blood sugar if needed and a neurological check. Then an IV drip or other treatment as indicated, 1–3 hours.
4. A plan for the next daysAdvice for the family on what to do overnight and tomorrow, phone follow-up and a repeat visit if needed.
5. Further treatmentCoding, psychotherapy, rehab or psychiatric follow-up — once the acute state has passed and the person is ready.

Prices in Almaty

The final cost is agreed before treatment starts. Prices are in tenge and do not constitute a public offer.

Where to get help

Narcology 24 in Almaty: our duty team makes home visits day and night, usually within an hour (all city districts and nearby settlements). Two branches for appointments and procedures — 84 Zhandosova St., Almaty and 21 Seyfullina Ave., office 11, Almaty. When indicated, we arrange admission and transport.

Confidential and private

Information about your request, diagnosis and treatment is protected by medical confidentiality under the Code of the Republic of Kazakhstan “On Public Health and the Healthcare System”. We do not share it with employers, schools, the police or neighbours; the only exceptions are those expressly set by law. A first name is enough to call us, and paid confidential treatment does not mean a registry entry.

Questions and answers