Drug Addiction Treatment

Drug addiction treatment is designed to help those that are addicted to various drugs to stop depending on them.

There are several different drug addiction treatment facilities and programs that offer various programs, different forms of help, and last for various amounts of time.

One very important aspect of drug addiction a person must remember, is that detoxing your body is not enough to stop using the drug. Whatever is at the root of the drug addiction may still be still present, and a drug addict must learn to live their life without the drug as a crutch before they will no longer be addicted.

In the majority of cases, you will find that the best drug addiction treatment programs uses a combination of therapies and services that will meet the needs of each personal individually.

Residential drug addiction treatment programs involve individuals living at a treatment facility in which they must be drug and alcohol free.

Most of these programs involve the person living at the facility for between 30 & 90 days.

While in the drug addiction treatment facility, each person will be living in a roommate situation with others that are also addicted to drugs or alcohol. Every day will be monitored and will include tasks around the facility such as cooking, cleaning, etc… along with self help classes and individual & group counselling sessions.

Relapse prevention programs for drug addiction include partial hospitalisation and intensive outpatient programs.

Partial hospitalisation is a drug addiction relapse prevention program that meets at least three times per week but can meet up to five times per week. Each session lasts for several hours with all participants receiving medical monitoring as an outpatient.

Intensive drug addition outpatient programs work around a persons work, family, or other commitments. In most cases, these meet three times per week for around three hours. 

The majority of times, the drug addiction treatment will be centered on the person’s needs and the types of drugs they are using, for example, a person that is addicted to a drug such as heroin will have different needs than a person addicted to marijuana.

Some individuals that are having drug problems also have other medical or mental health problems that should also be addressed. Special needs may be required according to a persons age, sexual orientation, culture, race, gender, pregnancy, housing, employment, among others.

A few medications that might need to be used during a drug addiction treatment program include:

• If the patient is addicted to opioids, the medications may be methadone, buprenorphine, and naltrexone.
• If a person is addicted to alcohol the medication often used include Disulfiram, acamprosate, naltrexone, and topiramate.

The above-mentioned drugs help individuals overcome the addiction to the drug during the withdrawal stage.

Other medications may also have to be used to help with withdrawal symptoms such as antidepressants, anti-anxiety agents, mood stabilizers, and antipsychotic medications.

Therapy and counselling is one of the most important factors in drug addiction treatment programs. These sessions can help reinforce behavioral contingencies and promote a lifestyle without the use of drugs. Along with counselling sessions, friends and family can be a support system for those trying to cope with life without drugs.

Every type of drug addiction treatment program helps a person detox their body, learn to live life without the drug, and work through various emotions and situations that make the person want to use the drug.

Once a person has gone through the drug addiction treatment program, living life without drugs can be achieved and a drug free life can once again be enjoyed, although the importance of the support of family, friends, counsellors, and former addicts cannot be over emphasised.

In the majority of cases, a drug addiction treatment program where the person enters into a residential treatment program has greater success.

The main reason this type of program seems to work the best is that this program works with the entire person, their body, mind, and their being. During the time the patient is at the residence they will perform day-to-day tasks without the drug, talking with counsellors, and going to classes on drug addiction.

All of this will better prepare the person for life without the drug once they see that they made it through the program.

Learn more about drug abuse, drug addiction, & drug rehab.