Every year over 500 billion dollars go into the treatment of substance abuse. The drug menace has society by the neck because there are very many people who do not seek treatment. Others who go through the treatment process relapse and go back to their old habits, or find another drug to replace the one they are recovering from. Drug addiction can not be overcome easily and it needs to be addressed in different ways.
Counseling, coupled with a rehab program, is still the most effective ways of tackling drug addictions. However, new approaches to deal with drug addictions are being discovered. To succeed in the recovery, the patient needs to have the will power to fight against the problem. Support from family and society, therapy, medications, and replacement therapies will greatly improve the chances of successful recovery.
Technological treatment
Computers are used in every aspect of our lives. Drug addiction treatment has not been left out on this. There are computer programs that are designed specially to help in the treatment of drug addiction. When this program was used together with counseling, the patients were able to stay away from drugs longer than those who were treated without it.
Technology has produced technological products that doctors use to treat drug addiction. Chinese scientists have developed an electronic cigarette, an electronic device for smokers to inhale nicotine. It provides nicotine in small quantities that range from 0-16mg but does not include toxic tar.
While every move towards addiction treatment is welcome, any new strategy must be used under a doctor’s advice. These new methods do not magically heal and still need to be used together with other proven methods.
Addiction fighting medication
Nicotine, alcohol, and opiate addiction have been treated popularly using anti-addiction drugs. Drugs are very effective when used together in the proper way. Heroine addiction has been treated using buprenorphine and methadone. These two drugs adhere to the brain’s opiate receptors, thus preventing the craving for the drug.
Suboxone has been claimed to have helped addicts to fight their problem. Suboxone is an orange pill placed under the tongue, where it dissolves. It works by blocking dopamine receptors in the brain that are associated with pleasure. Any doctor who has undertaken requisite training and received certification from the relevant bodies can prescribe suboxone.
Chantix is a drug that was introduce to the market in 2006 that also helps in curbing drug addiction. It is designed to reduce the pleasure of drinking alcohol and smoking. Patients who use Chantix have reported that alcohol and cigarettes no longer have the same flavor or effect as they did before. The use of this medicine has been reported to have some levels of success.
Nicotine injections
This is for those hooked to nicotine. It is intended to prevent nicotine from cigarettes to reach the brain. The drug contains low nicotine levels that ease withdrawal, a cause of relapse. It helps the brain fight nicotine dependency.
