Opiate Addiction as a Disease
According to the US Department of Health and Human Services, addiction to opiates is acknowledged as a relapsing and chronic brain disease that comes with a variety of medical consequences. Research on the cellular structure and behavior in animals in addition to brain imagining studies on humans has indicated profound disruptions in specific brain circuits and cells in regards to addiction.
Opiate addiction is a disease that will need to be treated with the proper resources in order for a person to overcome it. Although medications can help with some of the symptoms from opiate withdrawal, the most effective treatment for opiate addiction will be found at an opiate addiction rehab center.
Opiate addiction is a brain disease, but it also has physical withdrawals symptoms that come with it, so a person addicted to opiates will need treatment for both their mental and physical health. Some people think that detoxing from opiates is all they need to do to overcome their addiction, but detoxing from opiates is only the first part of treatment. Addiction is a mental illness that will require therapy for most people to overcome it, and a person can receive therapy and their medical needs through most opiate addiction rehab centers.
Treating Opiate Addiction
Opiates affect your brain chemistry in a way that makes addiction a chronic disease.
According to the National Institute on Drug Abuse, research indicated that the best and most effective treatment for drug addiction is the combination of addiction treatment medications and behavioral therapy. Treatment methods that are matched to each person’s drug usage patterns as well as any social, medical or psychiatric problems can lead to their continued recovery and a life without using drugs.
Particular medications have been specifically created to help people get through the physical withdrawal symptoms of opiate detox and these medications can be administered to patients through opiate rehab centers. Medications such as methadone and buprenorphine can significantly help a person get through opiate detox by reducing the withdrawal symptoms.
An opiate addiction rehab center will also provide a person with the emotional help they need through therapy. There are different types of therapy that people can partake in to help them overcome their addiction, but behavioral therapy has been proven to be the most effective for helping people to continue to live a drug free life.
A person should research different rehab programs because there are numerous types of rehabs that offer different types of therapy and environments for their consumers to heal themselves in. A person should decide on a rehab that best meets their individualized needs and one that they feel has the right amount of experience to help them succeed at regaining control of their life again.
