You Found Kratom or 7-OH. Here's How to Help.

Signs your loved one may be dependent

You know your loved one better than any checklist, and these patterns are not a diagnosis — only a clinician can make one. But the families who call us tend to describe some version of the same things:

• Needing the product to feel normal — reaching for a shot or tablet first thing in the morning, or seeming anxious, irritable, or unwell when they have run out.
• Using more, or stronger, over time — moving from leaf kratom or a tonic to concentrated 7-OH tablets or shots, or going through them faster than before.
• Physical withdrawal when they stop — sweating, nausea, body aches, restless legs, runny nose, trouble sleeping, or low mood a day or so after the last dose.
• Hiding it or spending more — empty packaging tucked away, frequent trips to the gas station or smoke shop, buying in bulk, or money that does not add up.
• Trying and failing to quit — saying they will stop, stopping for a day or two, then going back because the withdrawal is too uncomfortable.

If several of these sound familiar, it is worth a conversation with an addiction clinician. Our companion article on the signs of kratom dependence goes into more detail, and you can always call 423-498-2000 to talk it through — no commitment, no information required about your loved one.

How to talk to them

The goal of a first conversation is not to win an argument — it is to leave the door open. A few things that help:

Lead with worry, not blame

“I found this and I'm scared for you” lands very differently than “What is this?” Many people using kratom or 7-OH started with a product sold as legal and natural and feel ashamed that it got out of hand. Shame keeps people stuck; concern invites them in.

Use the July 1 deadline as a neutral opener

Tennessee's ban gives you a reason to raise it now that is about timing, not character: “These are going to be illegal to buy here on July 1 — I don't want you to be stuck in withdrawal when the shelves go empty. Can we figure out a plan together?” It reframes treatment as getting ahead of a problem rather than admitting a failure.

Offer to make the call together

Taking the first step is often the hardest part. Offering to sit with them while they call, or to call first yourself and hand over the phone, removes the biggest barrier. You can reach our team at 423-498-2000.

What getting help actually looks like

Restoration Recovery is an outpatient addiction treatment clinic — your loved one keeps living at home and working; there is no residential stay. Treatment is built around the person, not a one-size protocol.

A doctor assesses how severe it is

At the first appointment, a doctor evaluates the dependence using a structured substance-use assessment and a withdrawal-scale check. For milder leaf-kratom use, a supervised taper paired with individual counseling may be enough. For concentrated 7-OH dependence or co-occurring opioid use, medication is usually the clearest path.

Medication can make withdrawal far easier

Buprenorphine products (Suboxone film and tablet, Sublocade injections, Brixadi injections) are FDA-approved for opioid use disorder. Because mitragynine and 7-OH bind the same opioid receptors that buprenorphine binds, addiction clinicians use buprenorphine-based treatment for kratom and 7-OH dependence — the evidence-based approach used for opioid dependence, supported by published case reports and clinical guidance (it has not been studied in large trials specifically for kratom, so we describe it honestly as off-label care rather than a guaranteed cure). In practice, it can compress a rough withdrawal that might last a week or two unsupervised down to a far more manageable few days, per established opioid-treatment guidance (SAMHSA TIP 63).

After the first visit, most care can happen from home

The first appointment is in person at one of our four clinics — the full evaluation, and for Suboxone that means starting the medication on site. After that, most ongoing follow-ups can be done by secure video from home, anywhere in Tennessee or Georgia, with the same providers. Medication-management check-ins and counseling can run on telehealth; the visits that still need a clinic are the ones that physically require it — a Sublocade or Brixadi injection, or a periodic drug screen. For a family worried about getting a reluctant loved one to repeated appointments, or for someone in a rural county far from a clinic, telehealth removes one of the biggest barriers to staying in treatment. It is HIPAA and 42 CFR Part 2 compliant, and most insurance covers virtual visits at the same rate as in-person.

Why “just quitting cold” on July 1 is risky

When supply is cut off suddenly, withdrawal can be intense — and some people reach for stronger or more dangerous opioids to make it stop, which is how a kratom problem can turn into something far more dangerous. Starting a plan before the deadline, rather than after, is the safer path. If a taper is what makes sense, our guide to tapering off kratom covers the realistic timeline and the warning signs that tapering alone is not working.

You can start the process — confidentially

You can call 423-498-2000 to ask questions, understand options, and verify insurance before your loved one is ready. Your loved one does have to consent to their own care, and we cannot share a patient's information without their written consent — addiction-treatment records are protected by 42 CFR Part 2, the federal rule built specifically to keep this private. But we can walk you through how the first visit works and how to support someone toward it.

Four clinics across Tennessee and North Georgia

Each clinic treats kratom and 7-OH dependence with the same approach. One number reaches all four: 423-498-2000.

• Chattanooga (Mon–Fri) — flagship clinic at 6141 Shallowford Rd, Suite 100; full medication formulary, on-site Intensive Outpatient Programming, and integrated behavioral health.
• Cleveland (Tue/Thu) — Bradley County; full medication formulary including injections; about 30 minutes north of Chattanooga.
• Soddy-Daisy (Mon/Wed) — northern Hamilton County; Suboxone film and tablet plus counseling and telehealth follow-ups. No injections at this location; we route to Chattanooga or Cleveland if Sublocade or Brixadi is preferred.
• Ringgold, GA (Friday) — Catoosa County, serving Northwest Georgia including Dalton. Georgia has not banned kratom, but dependence is treated the same way here.

For city-specific details, see our kratom & 7-OH treatment pages for Chattanooga, Cleveland, Soddy-Daisy, Ringgold, and Dalton, GA. Most insurance is accepted, including TennCare (typically $0 patient cost) and major commercial carriers — verify a specific plan here.

Questions families ask

Is Feel Free addictive?

Feel Free contains leaf kratom, which acts on the brain's opioid receptors, so regular daily use can lead to physical dependence and withdrawal when someone stops. Dependence is more likely with concentrated extracts and 7-OH than with occasional use, but anyone using a kratom product daily can become dependent. If you have found Feel Free and you are worried, it is reasonable to treat it as a habit-forming substance and talk to an addiction clinician.

What is 7-OH?

7-OH is 7-hydroxymitragynine, a potent compound present in only trace amounts in natural kratom leaf but concentrated into tablets, gummies, and shots. The FDA has described concentrated 7-OH as an opioid up to roughly 13 times more potent than morphine and recommended the DEA schedule it. Because it acts on opioid receptors, dependence and opioid-like withdrawal can develop. More detail: 7-OH vs. kratom concentrated products.

Can I call on their behalf?

Yes. Call 423-498-2000 to ask questions, understand options, and verify insurance before your loved one is ready. They do have to consent to their own treatment, and we cannot share a patient's information without their written consent (42 CFR Part 2), but we can guide you on how to help.

Will the July 1 ban force them into withdrawal?

Tennessee's ban takes effect July 1, 2026 and removes kratom and 7-OH from store shelves statewide with no phase-in. For someone who is dependent, losing their supply suddenly can trigger withdrawal — which is exactly why starting a plan before the deadline matters. Georgia has not banned kratom, so North Georgia families are not facing the same cutoff.

Do you offer telehealth, or do they have to come in?

Both. The first appointment is in person at one of our four Tennessee and North Georgia clinics — that visit covers the full evaluation and, for Suboxone, starting the medication on site. After that, most follow-up visits can be done by secure video from home, anywhere in Tennessee or Georgia, with the same care team. The visits that still need a clinic are the ones that physically require it, such as a Sublocade or Brixadi injection or a periodic drug screen. Telehealth is HIPAA and 42 CFR Part 2 compliant, and most insurance covers virtual visits at the same rate as in-person.

Talk to us

Our intake team answers calls Monday through Friday, 9am to 4:30pm Eastern. After hours, leave a message or request a callback and we will respond on the next business day. If your loved one is in immediate medical danger, call 911. For free, confidential, 24/7 support, you can also reach the national helpline SAMHSA at 1-800-662-4357.