Fighting against drug abuse can be hard – but you don’t have to do it alone. Click here to learn about medication assisted treatment, and how it can help you.
Do you feel hopelessly overwhelmed by your drug addiction? Or are you watching a loved one spiral downward in a senseless cycle of drug abuse?
You’re not alone. Over 23.5 million Americans are struggling with drug and alcohol addictions.
Beating the addiction can be hard. But hard isn’t impossible and there are plenty of options for help. All you have to do is reach out.
Let’s take a look at one great option, Medication-Assisted Treatment (MAT). Could it be right for you or your loved one?
Let’s find out.
Medication-Assisted Treatment
First of all, let’s talk about what medication-assisted treatment is. If you’re trying to get off drugs, you may be wondering why you would take more drugs.
The drugs used in MAT are non-habit forming and are not dangerous to your health. As with any medication, there may be side effects for some people. But the risk is minimal, especially compared with the dangers of overdosing on heroin or opioids.
Under the watchful eye of a reputable MAT program, like Inspire Malibu, many people have been able to kick their addiction. Providers determine the length of treatment necessary on a case-by-case basis, but the FDA has approved the indefinite use of these medications.
What Can MAT Do?
In a medication-assisted treatment program, medication is used in conjunction with counseling and behavior therapy. There are a few things that providers use medication for. Let’s look at them.
Manage Withdrawal Symptoms
One of the things that make beating a drug addiction so difficult is the withdrawal symptoms. Physical symptoms of pain, vomiting, and more can torture you for a few weeks. Emotional ones like depression and anxiety can have an effect lasting several months.
Medication can mitigate these effects and help you through the most difficult part of detoxification.
Help Prevent Relapse
Once you’ve detoxified, it gets easier but you’re not out of the woods yet. Relapse is possible because your brain may still be craving the drug.
Providers can use medications to help your brain re-establish proper function and eventually stop craving the drug. Currently, there are treatments for nicotine, opioid, and alcohol cravings.
Save a Life
Medication can save your life. We don’t just mean in the figurative sense that it saves you from throwing your life away by being addicted to drugs.
The medication Naloxone, if administered quickly enough, can save a person who has overdosed on opioids. It can get them breathing again within a few minutes.
The effect lasts 30-90 minutes, long enough to seek medical care. But make no mistake, further attention is necessary because once the medication wears off the overdose symptoms can set in again.
There Is Help
Now that you understand a little more about medication-assisted treatment, we want you to know that there is hope. You, or your loved one, doesn’t have to stay stuck in the cycle of addiction.
MAT is a safe, effective way of helping addicts recover and live normal lives once again. Reach out for help today.
If you’re looking for more great advice about life in general, be sure to check out our blog. We’re always updating with new information that can help transform your life.