Addiction is a chronic disease that is categorized as a complex mental illness. It can change the neural connections, rewiring the brain. These changes can lead to negative behaviors often seen in drug abuse.
Addiction comes in a variety of forms. Behavioral addiction, gambling, drug addiction, including alcoholism, and impulse addiction, which involves emotional outbursts or harmful behavior, are all examples of behavioral addiction. Drinking a glass of wine or playing a video game at the end of a stressful day is quite common for numerous people in the US. However, it is categorized as an addiction when you start depending on these pastime activities to deal with stress or can’t function normally without them.
Priority shift, loss of control, increased tolerance, and withdrawal, are some of the symptoms that help recognize the shift from enjoyable pastime to dependency. Various treatment options are available to treat addiction. Healthcare workers design customized treatment plans to provide treatment based on your needs and situations.
This article will discuss how to treat drug addiction without drugs.
- Rehabilitation
An excellent way to treat addiction is through rehabilitation. Various addiction support centers and treatment facilities are present across the country. Moreover, some online platforms and guides are also available to help you understand addiction and its treatment. They also provide you with the required help. One such platform is Addiction Guide, which offers an excellent, and educational guide to addiction and recovery. There are two types of rehabilitation options;
Inpatient rehab
Inpatient rehab requires patients to reside in a separate facility, where they are provided with medical and therapeutic services 24/7. Inpatient rehab facilities address all aspects of a person’s addiction. It is an excellent option for individuals with severe addiction.
Outpatient rehab
Outpatient rehab centers offer effective therapies and treatments similar to inpatient rehab centers. However, this type of rehab allows you to stay at home while undergoing treatment. Patients can continue their daily lives while attending their scheduled treatment sessions.
Outpatient rehabs are suitable for people with mild forms of addiction. As patients in this type of rehab are in touch with the outside world, there are more chances of relapse. Therefore, people with chronic addiction can’t recover in outpatient rehab facilities.
Sometimes, patients enroll in outpatient rehab programs after undergoing strict inpatient treatment as a step-down program.
- Therapy
Various therapies are also employed for addiction treatment. Appropriate therapies are used based on the person’s health status and abuse patterns. Moreover, individual and group therapy sessions are also available conducted by addiction counselors. Some popularly employed therapies include;
Cognitive Behavioral Therapy
Cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT) focuses on helping patients to uncover negative thoughts and feelings that lead them to their addiction. Moreover, CBT also helps treat any other mental illnesses and addiction.
Motivational Enhancement Therapy
Motivational enhancement therapy or MET encourages people in recovery to change their thought processes and behavioral patterns that lead them to addiction. MET is commonly used to treat people dealing with substance abuse.
Psychodynamic Therapy
Psychodynamic therapy helps patients explore the subconscious thoughts that lead them to addiction. It helps them identify the reason or underlying cause of their addiction. Knowing and understanding these deep-seated feelings and thoughts can help you identify triggers, and you can actively avoid temptations during and after the recovery process.
Biofeedback Therapy
In a biofeedback therapy session, a therapist puts electronic sensors on the patient’s skin to monitor brain activity. Viewing and analyzing brain wave patterns can help therapists recommend appropriate psychological techniques to help recover from addiction. Moreover, this therapy helps patients to understand their involuntary body processes.
Experiential Therapy
Experiential therapy involves using modern treatment methods to help patients recover. It is also a targeted therapy that helps patients overcome repressed feelings and emotions that might have contributed to addiction. A type of experiential therapy includes rock climbing.
Dialectical Behavioral Therapy
Dialectical behavioral therapy (DBT) helps improve self-esteem, equips the patients with stress-management skills, and encourages them to remove addiction triggers from their life. This therapy is often used to treat addiction and severe mental conditions like obsessive-compulsive disorder.
Holistic Therapy
Holistic therapies can include yoga, meditation, art therapy, and acupuncture. They focus on improving the patient’s overall well-being and helping them treat the withdrawal symptoms.
- Support Groups
Joining a support group is an excellent way to stay on the path of recovery after treatment. They provide long-term care and ensure that you don’t relapse. Moreover, you can meet new people through support groups, who encourage and assist you throughout the recovery process. Numerous support groups exist that cater to specific substances and demographics. You can find a suitable group of individuals that motivate you to stay sober. Some prominent addiction support groups include;
Narcotics Anonymous
Narcotics anonymous group members support and motivate each other to stay sober and avoid relapsing to narcotics abuse. Members discuss their stories of addiction and recovery to motivate and inspire others.
SMART Recovery
It is an educational support group that teaches people ways to control addictive behaviors. It encourages people to address underlying issues that may lead to addiction. This support group offers a 4-stage program (that can be completed in any order) to help you fully recover from addiction.
Addiction Counselors
Support groups headed by addiction counselors provide unbiased support for people undergoing treatment. Moreover, counselors conduct one-on-one therapy sessions to understand your unique needs. Then create a customized treatment and aftercare plans for you.
Alcoholics Anonymous
Members of this support group are mostly alcoholics and discuss the impacts of alcoholism in their lives. Family members are also encouraged to join to understand the struggle of their loved ones better.
The Bottom Line
Addiction is a chronic mental illness that can ruin lives. People can become addicted to drugs, video games, and more, negatively affecting their daily lives. It is crucial to treat addiction to gain control of your life. Various addiction treatment options are available. You can treat it by going to rehab (both inpatient and outpatient rehab services are available), through multiple therapies (like biofeedback therapy, experiential therapy, and more), or through support groups (like SMART recovery, narcotics anonymous, and more). Hopefully, this article will help you understand how to treat addiction without drugs.
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