Treatment Procedures for Drug Addiction

April 6, 2015

Treatment Procedures for Drug Addiction: Heroin and Other Opiates

Treatment Procedures for Drug Addiction will eventually make you have an addiction free life.

The problem of drug addiction has stolen the dignity of our societies and we are all in one way or another affected or infected by this problem. Most societies are ruin by the use of drugs and families have not known peace because a member is an addict of a given drug. Heroin has become one of the most abused drugs thanks to its easy accessibility and affordability. The enormity of this problem is getting out of hand and prisons blocks alone are not enough to offer the much need solution. Even though this problem is of this magnitude, the good news is that it is treatable. There are very good treatment procedures for drug addiction today and that is going to be our point of focus in this discussion. We spoke to doctor Dalal Akoury who is the MD and founder of AWAREmed Health and Wellness Resource Center and she will be helping us understand the treatment procedures available.

Doctor Akoury says that this problem of drug addiction is a treatable disorder. Prevention would have been the best option but because it is already with us we are going to look at the mechanisms of treating this disorder and consider prevention in the next article. Now because of many different conditions in drug addiction, it is important that the specific treatment must be tailored to suits the individual’s needs. This is necessary because many drug addicts have a compound of other problems that hinders proper treatment like mental health, occupational, health, or social problems.

Treatment Procedures for Drug Addiction: Types of Treatments for Patients

The success of this campaign would be realized when treatment procedures for drug addiction is adhered to. And treatments often include behavioral therapy, mediations and sometimes a combination of both. The most important thing is that when patients are duly treated for their addiction, they will be able to have some control over their lives and be productive to the society. That is why all over the world the campaign is to have as many people as possible for treatment. Therefore if you or anyone you know is suffering from any form of addiction, then you can be of help to them by scheduling for an appointment with the experts at AWAREmed Health and Wellness Resource Center under the able leadership of doctor Dalal Akoury today and you will have your life back in the most professional and dignified way.

One of the biggest hindrances to treatment is that many addicted people often make an assumption that they can quit using drugs all by themselves without treatment. Actually many have tried but they have failed consistently resulting in long term abstinence. And that is why according to the NIDA Research has shown that long-term drug use results in significant changes in brain function that persist long after the individual stops using drugs. These drug-induced changes in brain function may have many behavioral consequences, including the compulsion to use drugs despite adverse consequences which is the defining characteristic of addiction. And that is why achieving abstinence without treatment is so difficult if not impossible.

Treatment Procedures for Drug Addiction: Mechanisms Essential for a Successful Treatment

Recognition – For any meaningful treatment to yield results, the victim must first come to the point of recognizing and accepting that they have a problem which needs to be fixed. Denial is one of the greatest impediments when it comes to drug abuse treatment. Anyone in denial will not seek for help even if that help is presented to them by their concerned relatives. In many cases patients who are in denial will consent to treatment not because they have accepted but out of pressure from their loved ones

Detoxification – Treatment begins with detoxification, which is the gradual withdrawal of an abused substance under a controlled environment. In some cases a drug that is similar to the abused drug (e.g. methadone for heroin) is substituted during withdrawal to lessen the miserable symptoms and health risks associated with the withdrawal process. Depending on the drug that the person is addicted to, the withdrawal process can be handled through either an inpatient or an outpatient basis.

Rehabilitation – This is necessary to prevent the recurrence of drug abuse. Rehabilitation involved behavioral therapies such as counseling, psychotherapy, support groups, or family therapy. Behavior therapy helps people to cope with their drug cravings and it teaches them ways to avoid drugs, prevent relapse, and what to do if a relapse occurs. It has been established that merging a behavior therapy program with treatment medications, such as methadone, helps to suppress the withdrawal syndrome, the drug craving, and in blocking the effects of other drugs (caffeine). Studies have shown that using methadone at adequate dosage levels in treating heroin addiction along with behavioral therapies reduces death rates and many health problems.

Abstinence – Following rehabilitation, the abuser must have a lifelong abstinence from drug abuse. Relapses from this drug abstinence may occur and lead to recurrent dependence.

Treatment Procedures for Drug Addiction: Types of Treatment Methods

The treatment program duration could either be short term or long term depending on the patient’s condition.

Short-term methods – last less than 6 months, include residential therapy, medication therapy, and drug free outpatient therapy
Long-term methods – may include medication therapy such as methadone maintenance outpatient treatment for opiate addicts and residential therapeutic treatment

Outpatient and Inpatient

Outpatient drug free treatment– does not include medication and encompasses a wide variety of programs for patients that visit a clinic at regular intervals. It actually involves individual or group counseling. Normally patients registering for this type of program do not abuse opiates, or are opiate abusers for whom maintenance therapy is needed. Generally these patients have stable lives and only brief histories of drug dependence
Therapeutic Communities – highly structured communities where patients stay for 6-12 months. Patients generally have long histories of drug dependence, involvement in serious criminal activities, and seriously impaired social functioning. This type of program focuses on the re-socialization of the patient to a drug free and crime free lifestyle.
Short-term residential programs – chemical dependency units,” based on the “Minnesota Model” of treatment for alcoholism. Involve 3- to 6-week inpatient treatment phase followed by an extended outpatient therapy in a 12-step self-help group such as Narcotics Anonymous or Cocaine Anonymous.

Finally doctor Akoury recommends that if you are able to avoid using drugs the better. Treatment is more tasking than preventing which is the most ideal for good health. It would be the best thing you can do for yourself and to the whole society. But you are un able to all is not lost you can still get help from the experts up on scheduling for an appointment with doctor Akoury today.

Treatment Procedures for Drug Addiction: Heroin and Other Opiates

Herbs For Pain and Addiction Treatment

March 24, 2015

Use of Jamaican Dogwood, Valerian, Wood Betony, Yellow Jasmine in Pain and Addiction Treatment

Addiction is still one of the major problems that we are still living with today. Though known for its devastating effects, addiction has still remained when of the many menaces that our youths as well as the older generation alike are still glued to. However there is a bitter reality that you need to be aware of, a reality that none of your already addicted friends will let you know of; the journey to addiction treatment and recovery is that which is not easily won. There are serious hurdles that you shall have to meet along the way as you fight on to reach the greener side of life where the chains of addiction are broken. Just like any other disease there are myriads of ways through which the treatment of addiction can be effected. one is through pharmaceutical ways of treatment and the other through natural ways of treatment that may at times be used alongside the orthodox ways of treatment or as an assortment of various herbs and a special choice of diets that helps restore the damage of drugs on the addict and hence making it possible for the addict to be treated of the illness. On the other hand when pharmaceuticals are used for treating drug addiction the doctors will mostly use a substitute of your drug to satisfy your craving for the drug of abuse you are addicted to. Though this may present a short term solution it still doesn’t let you be free from the drug as you will still continue using a substance that is thought to be less addictive and not so dangerous. However the reality is that this kind of treatment does not address the brain imbalances that an addict suffers after a long term use of a certain drug.

Addiction Treatment

As we have seen in previous articles the part of the body that is adversely affected by addiction to drug abuse is the nervous system. The neurotransmitters like the dopamine and the other crucial ones are literally damaged after a prolonged use of drugs. this therefore calls for a treatment option that will not only focus on ending the craving that addicts have for their substance of abuse but to help restore the whole person back to what he or she was before he got into drug use that has since chained him or her. Most pharmaceutical drugs do not consider this but mostly gear towards treating the symptoms of addiction like depression and anxiety that is normally done with sedatives while the underlying problem; the damage to the nervous system, is left unchanged. Through the years there have been different alternatives to addiction that have since come up and have been found to be effective. An example of these alternative therapies that have shown hope to addicts is the use of stem cell therapy that aims at restoring the damage caused by drugs. Despite the effectiveness of some of these alternatives the use of herbs in addiction treatment is yet to be scrapped off, this is solely because of the effectiveness of some herbs in treating addiction. Here are some of the herbs that can be used to help in the addiction treatment and recovery.

Jamaican Dogwood

Jamaican dogwood is mostly used for pain. It has sedative effect, reduces muscle spasm and cools nerve pain. It also reduces inflammations. It has often been the top choice for relieving nerve pain and it has been proved to be powerful in pain management. It is derived from the bark of the dogwood tree, and can be taken in capsule or tincture forms as well as a tea from the bark’s powder. Though known for pain management it can contribute in help with addiction as when used it helps to calm down the nerves and relive an addict off the withdrawal effects like depression and anxiety that most of the times can lead to relapse. However beneficial it is it can be potentially dangerous when used for self-medication. It is therefore safe to use it with instructions from an integrative addiction doctor as it is irritant and can cause numbness, tremors, salivation, and sweating.

Wood Betony

Wood Betony

This herb is commonly found in Europe. This plant is rich in medicinal properties. To begin with the fresh, undried leaf of wood betony is a natural pain reliever. This analgesic is good for addiction as it helps in calming the nerves as well as fighting some common symptoms of addiction like depression anxiety and insomnia.

Valeria

Valeria has great sedation properties. As have been revealed by past literature, Valeria has great influence on the cerebro-spinal system. In a recovering addict this herb can be used to promote nerve relaxation and sleep. Insomnia is a common symptom that most addicts battle with, with valerian a recovering addict can be helped evade the grave effects of insomnia and anxiety. It does this by exerting an influence quieting and soothing in its nature upon the brain and nervous system. Other herbs that have been found to be helpful in the journey of addiction treatment and recovery are; Yellow Jasmine, St. Johns worts and chamomile among others

Finally, Here at AWAREmed Health and Wellness Resource Center we are committed to availing help to addicts by availing some of the most integrative approaches to healing an addict. We advocate for natural healing to all kinds of addiction. Call on Dr. Dalal Akoury (MD) at Myrtle Beach, South Carolina for help.

Use of Jamaican Dogwood, Valerian, Wood Betony, Yellow Jasmine in Pain and Addiction Treatment

How Profitable Is It To Create Natural Addiction Clinics?

March 23, 2015

There are lots to benefit from when an addict decides to get treatment from a natural addiction clinic. To begin with, most of these natural addiction clinics are also holistic meaning they not only focus on treating the symptoms of addiction but focuses on whole person healing that entails correcting all the defects that might have been caused by the prolonged use of the drugs of abuse. This is just another great reason that make addicts go for natural addiction clinics as opposed to pharmaceutical prescriptions that may only address the issues of addiction related symptoms and cravings but will not focus on achieving whole person healing by healing the parts of brains and the entire nervous system that have since stopped coordinating well for optimum health of the addict. The profitability of natural addiction clinics is peaking in some parts of the world while in others it has already climaxed due to the embrace with which the addicts have welcomed the exceptional ability of nature’s healing powers. Today many addiction patients will prefer to get attended to in a holistic rehabilitation center that advocates for natural addiction treatment. This has led to the mushrooming of different natural addiction centers, some of which have stayed till now offering beneficial addiction treatments to addicts while some that sprang up with the sole aim of reaping big profits have disappeared. What does this tell us? Okay, creating a natural addiction clinic can be very profitable but you as a doctor needs to be more concerned with the wellbeing of your patients than your drive to enrich yourself. AWAREmed Health and Wellness and Resource is an example of an establishment that advocates of natural healing as they are holistic, this facility has remained till now because it was created with a mission to avail the best alternative treatments to patients battling some of the most common diseases that patients find a nightmare to treat such as cancer and addiction. This establishment is a living testimony of how profitable an establishment that advocates for natural healing can be profitable when founded on the stones of care and love for patients as well as laced with unending quest to avail better and safer treatment options to patients battling addiction.

addiction Clinics

Natural addiction Clinics can benefit all addicts

Another reason that has made natural addiction clinics more popular is the fact that these clinics are well equipped and are always founded by integrative doctors who are experienced in addiction treatment and hence know the extent to which specific drugs or substances affect the person and which option of treatments can best yield the much needed result. the natural addiction clinics employs some of the traditional addiction treatments that are known to be effective and goes a long way in achieving whole person healing as opposed to treatment of just symptoms and calming down some of the common side effects of drug withdrawals like depression and anxiety. There’s no requirement for attending these clinics except that participants must deeply desire sobriety. However, most participants have been through a traditional rehab program and not had the success they desired. Natural addiction clinic programs are considered alternative types of treatment because they don’t follow the traditional model, which focuses on psychotherapy, 12-step programs and other support groups but focuses on all the benefits that can be drawn from the nature’s natural healing powers to help heal an addict with minimal or no side effects at all.

The natural addiction clinics incorporate the use of herbs and specific diets to help restore the balance in the brain chemistry and quell cravings. The natural addiction clinics are not only for those who are addicted to drugs and substances alone but also for those with behavioral addictions like gambling, sex addiction and even pornography. Natural addiction clinics may offer such services as nutritional counseling, psychiatric support, massage, yoga, Tai Chi, herbal therapies and adventure-based therapies that cater to all manner of addictions, both behavioral and substance related. These centers also have staffs who are vastly experienced in handling addiction cases. They can also customize treatment to suit every patient’s condition belief and preferences all in a bid to restore the mind the body and the spirit. The fact that the natural addiction clinics are home for all addicts further opens great avenues for qualified doctors who opt to create natural addiction clinics.

Another factor that makes natural addiction clinics preferable is the environment in which most of them are located, natural addiction clinics are not mostly established in busy town centers but on the mountains, or by a lake or the ocean. The setting is usually peaceful and idyllic in order to promote healing. Most holistic addiction doctors believe that locating these clinics in such places helps the patients to connect with nature which further helps them to recover even faster.

Offers variety of treatment options

The extent to which a person is affected by drug use will warrant the type of treatment that he gets, it is also good to note that different people will react to a given treatment differently and this is why a specific treatment that worked for a given addict may fail to work for another addict. This is why most natural addiction clinics avail different treatment options that addicts can benefit from. Some of the traditional approaches to healing like meditation are god for an addict but if for some reason you are not comfortable you are often given the freedom to skip the session. It is your determination for sobriety that shouldn’t run out.

Finally, even if creation of natural addiction clinics were to yield supernormal profits, it is good to stay within the focus which is to avail better healing options for all addicts. Dr. Dalal Akoury of AWAREmed Health and Wellness Resource center has championed the use of integrative medicine in healing addicts for years; find her at Myrtle beach, South Carolina.

How Profitable Is It To Create Natural Addiction Clinics?

Molecular Mechanisms of Methamphetamine Induced-Neurotoxicity

March 21, 2015

Methamphetamine is a stimulant that is also highly soluble in water and affects the CNS most. Categorically it fits in the group of synthetic drugs chemically related to amphetamine but it has more adverse effects on the Central nervous system than the parent compound. Abuse of these illegal psychostimulants has become an international public health problem, with an estimated 14 to 52 million amphetamine-type stimulant users worldwide, exceeding the total number of cocaine abusers and second only to the number of cannabis abusers. This number has continued to rise in spite of the fact that much has been done to publicize the adverse effects these amphetamine related stimulants are linked to. Meth or speed as known in stimulant use circles exists in different forms like powder, tablets and capsules. It can also be found in a purer crystalline form.

It’s dangerous why is it used?

Just like most stimulants or drugs that are known to induce euphoric feelings, methamphetamine is also taken for similar reasons for example; to induce euphoric feelings, increased sense of well-being, increase energy and to calm anxiety. Being a powerful drug its effects are felt immediately after the use but these effects can last for long hours. They may be accompanied by acute adverse effects such as increased blood pressure and heart rate, which may cause irreversible damage to blood vessels in the brain, resulting in cerebrovascular accidents, stroke, and death. Methamphetamine also produces hyperthermia, pupil dilation, flushing, tremors, trismus and bruxism, muscle tension, loss of appetite or anorexia, and loss of pleasure in food intake which further leads to deterioration of the user’s health.

methamphetamine

Effects of Methamphetamine

Being an addictive drug, after a prolonged use the users may develop tolerance. It’s most common symptoms after a prolonged use include; temporomandibular joint syndrome, dental erosion, and myofacial pain. Long-term use also produces lack of appetite, weight loss, accelerated aging, nose-bleeding problems, nonhealing wounds, tooth decay and fracture known as “Meth mouth”. Psychiatric symptoms include anxiety, depression, increased aggression, social isolation, psychosis, mood disturbances, and psychomotor dysfunction. Long periods of high consumption can cause paranoid psychosis. Other symptoms of chronic methamphetamine use may also include; deficits in attention, working memory, and decision making. Most addicts are stuck in the use of meth as a result of the withdrawal symptoms which include the following; irritability, fatigue, impaired social functioning, and intense craving for the drug. Researchers have given evidence that the negative neuropsychiatric consequences of methamphetamine abuse are due, at least in part, to drug-induced neuropathological changes in the brain. Although the exact molecular mechanisms of neuronal body loss are not known, there is evidence to suggest the coexistence of different types of cell death, including apoptosis and necrosis ; indicated by the morphology of neurons stained with hematoxylin-eosin. Growing evidence exhibits that methamphetamine and MDMA induce an increase in lipid peroxidation and DNA oxidation as well as increased levels of oxidative stress markers such as hydroxyl radical producing neurotoxicity. Methamphetamine increases expression of inducible nitric oxide synthase (nNOS)/ neuronal nitric oxide synthase (iNOS ) indicating increased synthesis of neuronal nitric oxide, which combines with superoxide radicals to form peroxynitrite which is a strong oxidant and a major neurotoxin . Induction of nNOS/iNOS by methamphetamine or MDMA constitutes part of the mechanism of methamphetamine damage, as selective inhibition or genetic inactivation of nNOS and overexpression of cupper zinc superoxide dismutase (CuZnSOD), an enzyme that catalyzes the dismutation of superoxide into oxygen and hydrogen peroxide, prevent methamphetamine neurotoxicity . Even though methamphetamine increases iNOS expression in the striatum , there is no basis for supposing the involvement of glial nitric oxide in methamphetamine-induced toxicity, but it is interesting to note that mice deficient in iNOS have increased resistance to methamphetamine-induced dopamine neuron damage.

methamphetamine

The neurotoxic effects of methamphetamine on the dopaminergic system are accompanied by activation of astroglia and microglia in the same areas being strongest in the striatum, the area with biggest toxicity. Glial cells are not activated in the nucleus accumbens, which is not much damaged . In mice, glial activation in striatum and in substantia nigra occurs shortly after methamphetamine administration, as indicated by a significant increase in Mac-1 ;a marker of reactive microglia 24 hours after methamphetamine exposure and prominent increases in GFAP ; a marker of reactive gliosis in response to injury occur within a week after treatment . The extent of these glial reactions correlates with the observed severity of neurotoxicity.

The dopaminergic system is also involved in this toxicity, as demonstrated in various mutant mice in which inactivation of dopamine transport, dopamine D1 receptors or D2 receptors affords a significant protection against methamphetamine toxicity. Administration of THC prevents dopaminergic toxicity after MDMA, a similar amphetamine derivative to methamphetamine, by CB1 receptor stimulation which is present in striatal medium spiny neurons. All these receptors are involved in different aspects of learning processes that became affected by the chronic use of methamphetamine or MDMA.

Finally, Drug abuse, addiction and independence are problems that people grapple with every day. These problems need to be treated effectively through integrative medicine. Dr. Dalal Akoury (MD) is an expert at this. Call her on (843) 213-1480 for help.

Molecular Mechanisms of Methamphetamine Induced-Neurotoxicity

Dopamine and Norepinephrine Contributing to Addiction?

March 20, 2015

Dopamine and Norepinephrine and Their Contribution to Addiction

Dopamine and norepinephrine are very crucial neurotransmitters whose functions can never be underestimated. These are some of the most crucial neurotransmitters in the body. In particular, dopamine has very many functions in the body but to many people it is famous for its good feeling effects that it is always identified with but this should not be the case as it has functions beyond the mesolimbic pathway. In the brain dopamine plays such roles as: It plays a big role in starting movement, and the destruction of dopamine neurons in an area of the brain called the substantia nigra is what produces the symptoms of Parkinson’s disease. Dopamine is involved in the frontal cortex in executive functions like attention and feelings among others. In the rest of the body, dopamine is involved in nausea, in kidney function, and in heart function. Though only relevant to most people when it comes to such aspects as motivation, addiction, attention or lust, dopamine is a crucial neurotransmitter that also does vital functions in different pathways. Therefore dopamine should not only be limited to the mesolimbic pathway. A pathway which starts with cells in the ventral tegmental area, buried deep in the middle of the brain, which send their projections out to places like the nucleus accumbens and the cortex. the levels of dopamine is naturally controlled by the brain, for example when a person engages in pleasurable activities the brain will increase the level of dopamine in the nucleus accumbens, however during addiction the dopamine signaling in this area is changed. For any drug to have any pleasurable feeling to the user then the level of dopamine must be increased and this is what causes euphoric feelings that drug users will do anything to achieve.

Dopamine

Dopamine depletion and cocaine addiction

Despite one of the most dangerous drugs of pleasure, cocaine has remained to be one of the drugs that are highly abused worldwide. Cocaine works in such a way that it targets the dopamine which is a neurotransmitter related with euphoric feelings. When taken cocaine will cause a surge of dopamine extracellular in limbic areas, specifically, nucleus accumbens it is this surge that causes euphoric effects cocaine is known for. It is the euphoric properties of cocaine that lead to the development of chronic abuse, and appear to involve the acute activation of central dopamine neuronal systems. Dopamine plays a key role in reward system and stimulation behavior. However, when a person uses cocaine for a long time his neurotransmitter and neuroendocrine alterations will eventually occur. Dopamine depletion is hypothesized to result from overstimulation of these neurons and excessive synaptic metabolism of the neurotransmitter. It is this depletion of dopamine that may underlie dysphoric aspects of cocaine abstinence, and cocaine cravings. With many research findings on cocaine relations with dopamine, it is clear that cocaine addiction stems from the depletion of synaptic dopamine in the mesolimbic dopamine reward system, leading to a dysphoric withdrawal state that drives cocaine seeking to restore dopamine to normal, drug-dependence level.

After using cocaine for a long time, your brain will be conditioned to use cocaine in order to raise cocaine to the required levels and this result in addicted brain that can’t function without taking cocaine. At this stage it will be hard for an addict to quit using this drug as every time you try to quit all the withdrawal symptoms will set in thereby causing addiction and dependence thereafter. These cravings contribute not only to addiction but to relapse after a hard-won sobriety especially when the addict encounters triggers.

Norepinephrine and Drug Addiction

Norepinephrine is a very vital neurotransmitter in the brain that is also one of the most abundant in the brain. It is important for such roles as selective attention, general arousal, and stress reactions in challenging environments. Norepinephrine has been implicated by several studies as a key mediator of drug reward for three primary reasons. First, the noradrenergic pathways support intracranial self-stimulation (ICSS) and modulate drug-induced changes in ICSS threshold. Secondly, the biochemical activity of psychostimulant drugs includes blockade of Norepinephrine reuptake and enhancement of Norepinephrine release and thirdly, compounds that interfere with Norepinephrine synthesis or signaling influence drug self-administration. The idea that drugs of abuse act via the endogenous reward systems in the brain first arose when psychostimulants such as amphetamine and cocaine have been found to alter support intracranial self-stimulation thresholds. One interpretation of these results was that Norepinephrine mediates the effect of psychostimulants on support intracranial self-stimulation, because these drugs cause Norepinephrine release, block Norepinephrine reuptake or do both.

Dopamine

In a 1970s research done by Davis WM and Smith SG in a study titled: Catecholaminergic mechanisms of reinforcement: direct assessment by drug-self-administration, it was found that catecholamines were important in the mediation of opiate self-administration. in this research, a series of experiments showed that depletion of Norepinephrine and dopamine with amphetamine , a drug which is known to inhibit tyrosine hydroxylase prevents or attenuates the self-administration of morphine in rodents and in nonhuman primates as was shown earlier by Pozuelo and Kerr in 1972.

Finally, Drug addiction is a vice that should be fought by all means that is why we at AWAREmed Health and Wellness Resource Center are committed to availing help to addicts and offering them a place to call home. We offer NER Treatment and Amino acid therapy that are the most effective approaches to addiction treatment and recovery. You call on Dr. Dalal Akoury (MD) today and begin your journey to victory against addiction.

Dopamine and Norepinephrine and Their Roles in Causing Addiction

Tag Archives: Substance abuse