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When getting treatment for opioids, many feel that medically assisted treatment, or using the right meds to wean you off addiction, is the best way to go. And now CBS reports that taking Vivitrol could be a powerful new tool to help people suffering from opioid addiction. In addition to fighting opioid addiction, Vivitrol, which is also known as Naltrexone, has been recommended in fighting alcoholism as well. As the medication’s official website states, it’s a “non-addictive, once-monthly treatment proven to prevent relapse in opioid-dependent patients when used with counseling following detoxification. Before starting Vivitrol, you must be opioid-free for a minimum of 7-14 days to avoid sudden opioid withdrawal.”

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Crack and meth are probably some of the most daunting and frightening drugs as most of us have seen photos or heard stories of what these drugs can do. But what are some of the differences between crack and meth? And what are the similarities?

One of the main differences between crack and meth is the way in which they are used. Crack is the form of cocaine that can only be smoked while meth can be smoked, snorted, injected, or taken orally. Another difference between these two drugs is their lasting effect times. While the effects of crack can be felt within seconds after smoking it, the effects do not last long. Meth, on the other hand, can have effects that last for several hours.

Both crack and meth are illegal, stimulant drugs that create powerful effects on the central nervous system. Crack and meth are both highly addictive and dangerous drugs that can cause drug overdose, which may result in death.

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Medical professionals and addiction specialists now recognize addiction as a chronic illness. And like individuals with diabetes and asthma, the goal of treatment is not to cure those with addiction but to stabilize their condition so that they can live full and productive lives while remaining sober.

What Is the Definition of Aftercare?

The likelihood of staying completely sober straight out of detox or rehab is remarkably slim. Research indicates that relapse after treatment is nearly 88%. This statistic while discouraging highlights the need for additional programs to treat addiction or substance use disorder.

Aftercare, also called “continuing care” is a term to describe programs and treatments that follow inpatient detox and rehabilitation. These programs aim to build on skills of earlier programs while helping their clients to transition to the next stage of treatment.

Aftercare programs may include:

Psychotherapy and Counseling

12-Step Programs

Partial Hospitalization Programs

Standard Outpatient and Intensive Outpatient Programs (IOP)

Sober Living Houses

Transitional Housing

Components of an Effective Aftercare Program

The best aftercare programs work closely with individuals while considering their past experiences and goals for the future.

With this information and often with the inclusion of the person in treatment, a comprehensive treatment plan is made. Treatment plans highlight specific areas for improvement and inform decisions about where a person is in their treatment and the degree of progress they are making.

Since the object is to lead individuals down a stable path of recovery, decisions hinge on evaluating progress. Individuals, for example, who are regularly failing drug tests or who aren’t engaging with their treatment, may have their treatment increased in intensity. On the other hand, those who have shown to be adjusting well may be deemed ready to step down to a program that requires greater responsibility.

To summarize, aftercare plays a foundational part of the recovery process by:

Helping individuals to transition or “step down” to lower levels of treatment

Encouraging and maintaining healthy social support networks

Keeping individuals engaged in their treatment

Preventing relapse or reducing the frequency of a relapse.

Helping those in recovery secure housing and employment

Building healthy habits and behaviors

Continue reading here: Life After Addiction Treatment

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Medication-assisted treatment (MAT) is one way to help those with opioid addiction in their recovery. It can safely help with the withdrawal of opioids (detoxification). Although research shows that MAT can be effective in the treatment of opioid addiction, there are other successful means such as therapy, counseling, medical detox, inpatient drug rehab and outpatient drug rehab.

When a person is suffering from opioid addiction, medication allows him or her with the withdrawal symptoms, cravings, highs and lows of drug addiction and regain a normal state of mind. Some believe taking medication for opioid addiction is merely replacing one drug with another. Others believe that when used properly, especially in a clinical setting, can help patients manage their addiction and maintain their recovery.

The most common medications that are used for opioid addiction are Suboxone (buprenorphine) and Methadone. Before beginning a medication-assisted treatment program, a detailed assessment of the individual should be conducted.

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The Effects of Marijuana

A lot of research still has to be conducted about marijuana effects. However, the fact that it has some properties which are medically useful cannot be denied. Nevertheless, marijuana supporters will be unhappy to hear that marijuana is not as harmless and nonaddictive as many people think it is. 

Consequently, this study shows that Marijuana use can be especially dangerous for people under 21 years. Of course, the amount of use also must be taken into consideration. In addition to all the effects listed above the NIH also gives a list of potential health consequences:

“Feelings of panic and fear (paranoia)

Hallucinations

Trouble concentrating

Decreased ability to perform tasks that require coordination

Decreased interest in completing tasks.”

Therefore, while marijuana can have its medical benefits and might not pose a severe risk when consumed in moderation, it is a proven fact that excessive use can lead to some unwanted health complications.

Continue reading here:  Marijuana Effects

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Anxiety, like addiction, is not a one size fits all mental disorder. And like addiction, what we worry about can be very individualized and personal. With the current research that is going on for anxiety in adolescents, like Live Science explains, “There is still plenty of space for experience and environment to reduce the risk of a full-blown mental disorder” when your child is young.

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What is Heroin?

Heroin is a highly addictive and illegal drug with a very high addiction rate and potential. Heroin gets processed from morphine which is a naturally occurring substance that gets extracted from the seed pod of varying poppy plants.

Heroin is sold as a white or blown powder that is sometimes cut with sugars, starch, powdered milk, or quinine. Black tar heroin is a sticky black substance that is what’s injected by users.

What are the signs of heroin use?

Signs of heroin use or abuse may look physical, may be psychological, or even behavioral and most of the time will have signs of all three.

Physical signs of heroin use are:

Track marks on the body from injection

Frequent sedation of the individual

Clouded thinking

Flu-like symptoms between uses

After using heroin for quite some time, addiction occurs. Signs of being high from heroin include small pupils and watery eyes so looking at their eyes will be an indicator to know if heroin use is occurring. Other signs include flushed skin, runny nose, itchy skin, and relaxation or drowsiness.

Behavioral signs of heroin abuse include:

Increased secretiveness

Life revolving around the drug

May be concerned about money

Skips out on work or family

A person who becomes dependent on heroin in 6 to 20 times more likely to die than the general population.

Continue reading here:  Signs of Heroin Use

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Easy Guide on How do Sober Living Homes Work in 2021

Have you or a loved one been struggled with substance abuse disorder? Maybe you are considering longer term treatment for your addiction, but don’t quite know where to start. By the end of this reading, you will have a better understanding of how sober living homes work as well as what the best sober living home is in the USA.

Sober Living is just one of the benefits to getting sober. You will engage with others who share similar struggles as you, as well as participate in therapy and support groups to stay on top of your recovery process. Stable living conditions are essential to staying sober.

Recovery may seem daunting; you may feel alone in your addiction. It’s important to know that sober living is a safe space, where you can heal and grow along with others who have struggled with a Substance Abuse Disorder.

What is Sober Living Home?

If you are considering treatment, you may want to ask yourself what is a sober living home? How do sober living homes work? What are the costs of sober living? These are all relevant questions to starting recovery.

Sober living comes after detoxification treatment and is not required but highly encouraged. You will be living with other individuals who are Recovering from Addiction as a way to support one another to stay sober. Sometimes we refer to sober living as halfway homes because they are a way to transition you back into society in a healthy way.

These sober living communities are generally multi-unit duplexes in residential areas and are most often privately owned. Sober living almost always requires that you follow a set of rules, and you will be living in a gender specific unit. Your stay at a sober living home could be up to a year, but most often residents stay for 90 days.

How Deep is Drug Abuse in US and Important Statistics of it

Drug abuse directly and indirectly impacts our communities and society. In a 2020 study it was shown that 31.9 individuals older than 12 years of age have used illegal drugs within the last 30 days.There are a several key statistics under the same study below:

More than 700,000 deaths from overdose happen every year in the US

6 million people have an opioid use disorder

Drug abuse is more likely to affect young males

47% of young people use illegal drugs before they graduate high school

In the last year, 53 million people used illegal drugs or abused prescription opioids

Continue reading here: How do Sober Living Homes Work

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Everything You Need to Know About Mental Illness, Symptoms, Causes and Care Methods

Mental illness can affect anyone. What’s important is to know how to get help, no matter what type of mental illness one is struggling with. Look for the best mental health treatment centers in California. Mental illness can be treated and recovery is possible. Many people believe that mental health problems will never happen to them, yet mental illness is more common than you would think. In 2020, Approximately 1-5 adults experienced a mental health problem, while nearly half of those in the US will experience one some time in their life.

What is Mental Health?

Mental health refers to matters of cognitive, psychological, behavioral, and emotional prosperity. The state of our mental health can determine or affect many things about us, from our perceptions and thoughts of people, places, and ideas to the behaviors we exhibit.

Why is it Important?

In times of good mental health, we may experience levels of calmness, contentment and composure while under pressure. When mental health is poor, however, it is common for people to experience, unhealthy levels of stress, emotional instability, and overwhelming negative thoughts.

Enduring mental health issues can disrupt one’s life, in a number of ways. On a lower scale, mental health issues make you unproductive and distracted. But at their worst, they can completely rob an individual of their ability to function.

A person with generalized anxiety disorder (GAD) for example, may regularly give in to their anxiousness and stay home instead of going out with friends. They may also opt to stay in their comfort zone and miss out on great opportunities in life.

Someone with obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD), may double, triple or quadruple check their work. They may also hyper-focus on one specific aspect of a project. This can lead their coworkers and employers to feel that they are unprepared or irresponsible.

An individual with major depressive disorder (MDD) might lose interest in doing most things including eating, grooming, or seeing other people. Where other people see inspiration or opportunity, they may only see despair.

These are just a few examples of how mental health disorders rob us of our ability to choose, succeed, and enjoy life. By practicing awareness about mental health challenges, individuals are more likely to take the steps necessary treat them.

Continue reading here: Everything You Need to Know About Mental Illness

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There have been many public service commercials and films in the past that have warned young people about addiction. And like the saying goes, the earlier you talk with your children about drugs and addiction, the better. Yet both parents and children can learn about addiction, and a new cartoon series is hoping to educate people of various ages about addiction and recovery.

Educating Through Animation

This animated series was launched by the Addiction Policy Forum from Washington, D.C. The first episode of this cartoon series is titled The Hijacker, which shows how an addiction can hijack a person’s brain.

The goal of this animated series is to clear up misconceptions and stigmas about addiction. This series also hopes to “elevate the science of addiction,” according to the group’s president, Jessica Hulsey Nickel.

As Nickel told The Guam Daily Post, “There’s so much misinformation about this disease, everything from this being a choice and not a disease, the misunderstanding about how treatment works, misunderstandings about medications, about lengths of treatment and recovery support, how you develop this disease in the first place. We are surrounded and drowning in misinformation and myths.”

Learning About Addiction One Step at a Time

As this report explains, experts on addiction “synthesized the science [of addiction] into bite-sized pieces,” then animation artist Patrick Smith created his visual interpretation of the information in a way that people can understand simply and clearly.

“Hijacking the brain” is a common term in discussing addiction, which is why the first episode is titled The Hijacker. This episode begins with a bit of history. We learn that addiction was first considered a brain disorder in the fifties. We learned more about how addiction affects the brain in the ‘90s, and one of the big revelations is that addiction affects brain tissue function.

This episode goes on to explain how addiction can take over the limbic system of our brains, which is the survival area of our minds. “This hijacker changes the brain and weakens this system to make it believe that the primary need for survival is the drug.” The hijacker can make drugs more important to us than the survival instincts we all have like food, water, shelter, and protecting our children.

In three minutes, these animated clips give audiences a good primer on addiction that’s easy to follow and understand, and they’re a good start for many who need to learn.

Continue reading here: NEW ANIMATED SERIES IS HELPING PEOPLE UNDERSTAND ADDICTION

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Heavy drug and alcohol use can have lasting impacts on the mind and body, and even moderate to mild drug use causes Long Term Side Effects. Some side effects of drug use cause cognition problems along with physical health problems.

There are ways to overcome drug abuse, the first step is recognizing you have an addiction and making the choice to go into Detox Treatment.

In the prompt below, you will gain a better understanding of how drugs and alcohol affect us mentally and physically in the long term and short term, as well as Addiction Treatment Options and ways to overcome addiction.

Long term side effects of drug abuse can permanently impact your health and even lead to death. There are also physical side effects of drug abuse that can become expensive and are hard to recover from.

These are some of the long-term effects of drug abuse:

Damage to organs and different systems in your body (throat, lung, etc.)

Risk of different cancers, especially if you smoke

Infectious diseases from sharing needles and other drug equipment

Acne and skin lesions

Long term harm to your baby, if pregnant

Needle marks and collapsed veins

Teeth and jaw problems

Mood swings and erratic behavior

Overdose

Psychosis

Mental Illness

There are many adverse effects of alcohol abuse, especially when drinking heavily and frequently. Side effects of long-term alcohol abuse include:

Loss of grey and white matter in the brain

Memory loss

Loss of attention span

Harder time learning

Alcoholic hepatitis

Liver fibrosis

Fatty liver disease

Cancer including throat, mouth, larynx, breast, liver, colorectal, and esophageal

High blood pressure

Stroke

Using drugs and becoming addicted impacts your health in so many ways, although side effects of abusing drugs can be stopped in its tracks with treatment, starting with inpatient detoxification.

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A Complete Guide on Drug Intervention Programs

Interventions have become associated with all thing’s addiction in public culture. Reality TV shows featuring obsessive hoarders, out of control teenagers and drug addicted family members. Usually these shows, and the families involved will enlist the help of addiction experts: psychologists, counselors and the like.

These intervention teams can do a lot to boost perceptions of credibility in the eyes of viewers, but do drug and alcohol intervention programs work in the real world, or are they simply good television?

In this article we will be giving you all the information you need to understand drug intervention programs–what they are, what kinds exist and the critical role that loved ones play to create a successful outcome.

What are Drug Intervention Programs?

Drug and alcohol intervention programs cater to an at-risk population of drug abusers. Ideal candidates for drug intervention programs are people who either can’t stop or refuse to stop using. They also tend to be the most at risk for being in legal or criminal trouble if they continue use.

The families of these individuals are usually at wits end with their loved one. They may have tried several times to convince them to stop–using various tactics from pleading to bargaining. At this point they may have tried to stage their own interventions. Unfortunately, when unmoderated, interventions are seldomly productive.

The ultimate goal is to convince them to enter treatment, but when emotions run high and the blame is laid on too thick, it can have the opposite effect. With the help of a drug intervention program, specialists work closely with the family using tried and true methods of convincing a person to go to treatment.

What Are the Types of Drug Interventions Programs?

The Small Group Intervention — Also called brief interventions are typically limited to one or two close family members and an intervention specialist.

The Traditional (Johnson Model) Intervention — These interventions are organized in secret without the knowledge of the subject by members of the person’s peer network and family. During the intervention everyone reads from pre-written scripts. The script

These scripts are a personal call to action. They are designed to make the person aware of how their addiction affects others, themselves and lay out the consequences should they continue to use.

Family Systems Intervention — This approach takes its lead from the family systems body of research which attempts to understand, diagnose and repair dysfunction within a family. This type of mediation is commonly used with adolescents but can also work well for adults that share deep bonds with their family.1

Crisis Intervention — In the case of overdose, a major relapse event, or some other imminent danger, a more intensive approach is necessary. Crisis intervention prioritizes removing the person immediately from harm and getting them in to a crisis counselor.

From there, a crisis intervention program can serve as a bridge, offering referral services to other mental health and social support resources.

The ARISE (A Relational Intervention Sequence for Engagement) Model — The Arise model is a family style form of intervention that is less coercive and confrontational than the Johnson method. As opposed to a single surprise meeting, the ARISE method is a multi-stepped approach that gradually raises the stakes; generally lasting from 3–5 sessions.

Continue reading here: Drug Intervention Programs

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What Happens When You Mix Cocaine and Xanax?

Combining an upper like cocaine, and a downer like Xanax, gives off powerful effects that act as a push and pull or a high and low. These drugs in combination make you much more likely to develop-tolerance, dependence, and addiction while also being extremely addictive taken on their own.

Continued abuse of Cocaine and Xanax together can result in severe depression, suicidal thoughts, morbid thoughts, suicide, and death. Because these two drugs have such opposing effects, there is a much higher risk for overdose and death when in use.

Treatment for Cocaine and Xanax addiction requires detox, inpatient rehab, cognitive therapy, behavioural therapy, and 12 step programs.

Mixing of Cocaine and Xanax?

Cocaine and Xanax are both commonly abused drugs. Cocaine is considered a stimulant or an “upper” while Xanax has an opposing effect making this the perfect drug combination for meanwhile at the same time, it is extremely dangerous and potentially lethal.

When you combine cocaine and Xanax, you feel the side effects for both consecutively and this can lead to a heavier addiction to both substances, higher risk for overdose, harsher side effects, and possible death or coma.

In a similar fashion, combining these drugs also increase negative mental health effects such as irritability, or depression. Likewise, there is a higher chance of an individual committing suicide when combining cocaine and Xanax.

What is Cocaine?

Cocaine is a powerful stimulant drug that is used by over 1.5 million individuals each year. Cocaine is generally taken orally by snorting, rubbing it on the gums directly, or smoking and has also been known to be injected into veins.

According to the National Institute on Drug Abuse, any form of the use of cocaine lead to heart attacks, seizures, and death.

Cocaine works by activating the reward pathway specifically in the midbrain region called the ventral tegmental area and cocaine also works by controlling emotions and motivations because it is so addictive and releases dopamine in the brain making you want to continue to use.

Some Common Side Effects of Coke

Cocaine is powerful and addictive while also very dangerous on its own and when using other substances together. Due to cocaine use being so high in childbearing aged women, it’s important to note that when using cocaine while pregnant, there can be many risks involved such as maternal migraines, seizures, miscarriage, and premature labor.

These are some of the symptoms of using cocaineShort Term Effects of Cocaine Use:

Increased body temperature

Dilated pupils

Constricted blood vessels

Possible violent behaviour

Possible sudden death

Headaches

Seizures

Strokes

Long Term Effects of Cocaine Use:

Withdrawal

Tolerance

Irritability

Restlessness

Paranoia

Psychosis

Loss of sense of smell

Nosebleeds

What is Xanax?

Similar to cocaine, Xanax is also a powerful and addictive drug. On the other hand, it differs from cocaine because it is a benzodiazepine that relaxes you rather than excites you.

Xanax is taken orally and works by calming down your central nervous system, immediately relieving panic and anxiety symptoms and making you feel at ease and in many cases drowsy.

Individuals generally are prescribed Xanax to relieve anxiety and panic disorders and are not looking to become addicted. Over time, tolerance of the drug becomes harder to manage and withdrawal symptoms set in. Because of this, these individuals become reliant on Xanax and start to take more than prescribed.

Long term use of Xanax can change the way the brain works without the drug in effect. Xanax can control our mood, emotional responses, thought processes, memory, and more.

Continue reading here: What Happens When You Mix Cocaine and Xanax?

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Cocaine Detox: Everything You Need to Know About It

Cocaine is derived from the leaves of the coca plant that is native to South America. Cocaine is a very addictive stimulant that creates feelings of euphoria, energy, and excitement. As cocaine leads to a short-lived high, users tend to take more and more of the drug, resulting in dependency and eventually, addiction. To reverse these effects, cocaine detox is necessary.

Long-term use of cocaine can lead to poor nutrition, weight loss, loss of smell, strokes, seizures, and death. Cocaine detox is possible but can be dangerous. It’s important to detox in a medical setting and to never detox by yourself. The withdrawal from cocaine can lead a person to continue their use, especially when detoxing without medical professionals.

What is Cocaine?

Cocaine is a very powerful and addictive stimulant drug that comes in two forms, one being powder cocaine and the other being crack cocaine. Cocaine is snorted through the nose, rubbed into the gums of your mouth, injected into your bloodstream, or smoked.

The high from cocaine is short but powerful, and because of the short high many cocaine users will repeat the use to make the high last longer thus becoming addicted. Some common street names for cocaine are:

Blow

Coke

Coca

Snow

Flake

According to the DEA, 90% of cocaine that is used in American is produced in Columbia, coming through Mexico to get into the US.

What Cocaine Does to the Body

Due to cocaine’s stimulant properties, when you use this drug, you will feel much more alert, energetic, and excited. Short term effects of cocaine use only last for a few minutes or up to an hour. Here are some of the short- and long-term effects of cocaine use.

Short-Term Cocaine Effects:

Extreme happiness and energy

Sensitivity to touch, sight, and sound

Constricted blood vessels/ dilated pupils

Mental alertness

Paranoia

High body temperature

Irritability

High blood pressure/ faster heartbeat

Nausea

Restlessness

Decreased appetite

Inability to sleep

Long -Term Cocaine Effects:

From snorting cocaine: loss of sense of smell, nosebleeds, nasal damage, trouble swallowing

From smoking cocaine: cough, asthma, lung damage

From rubbing into gums: damage to intestines, reduced blood flow

Injecting cocaine: higher risk of HIV or hepatitis from sharing needles

Poor nutrition and weight loss

The longer you use cocaine, the higher chance of dependence and damage to the body will occur.

What are the Side Effects of Using Cocaine?

There are many psychological and physical side effects that may occur when using cocaine. Cocaine works by speeding up the central nervous system which oftentimes comes with adverse effects.2

Some of these effects include:

Vertigo

Muscle twitches

Tremors

It’s possible for users to become violent or hostile when using large amounts of cocaine at once. Headaches, strokes, seizures, and coma are all possible when using cocaine even just the first time.

The longer you use a lot of cocaine, you are also at a higher risk for developing extreme anxiety or convulsions while high. Panic attacks, paranoia and psychosis can become severe and dangerous.

Continue reading here: Cocaine Detox

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A Comprehensive List of Most Drug Addicted Cities in America

There is no single population or city that is impacted by drugs. Heroin, oxycodone, cocaine, meth, and fentanyl are causing significant problems in America. Nevertheless, in Most Drug-affected Cities in America, there is a pressing need for more drug education, awareness, and Addiction Treatment programs. Even if you live in one of the Most Drug-affected Cities in America, it is still possible for you to recover from addiction.

Substance abuse disorder kills as many as 11 Americans every single year. In 2020 alone, there were roughly 88,000 overdose deaths. I Communities are directly affected by drug use all over America, but what are the most drug-addicted cities?

More than 31 million Americans are facing addiction today. According to American Addiction Centers, these are the most drug-addicted cities in America.

Usage of marijuana is highest in Omaha Nebraska, with more than 66% of their population using this substance.

Phoenix, Arizona, has the highest record for cocaine addiction with a percentage of 23.3 and a population of 1,563,025.

Roughly 3.4% of Omaha, Nebraska’s population is addicted to heroin. America’s average heroin overdose rate is a little more than 14,000 deaths.

Methamphetamine use is most popular in Phoenix, Arizona, with about 15% of their population addicted.

Cities with the highest drug use and addiction rates are Colorado Springs, Las Vegas, Phoenix, Mesa, Minneapolis, Omaha, Wichita, Tulsa, Oklahoma City, and Indianapolis.

What Is Most Common Addiction in America

Tobacco and alcohol are some of the most common addictions in our communities today. Tobacco has indirectly killed more than 8 million Americans, meaning their death was related to smoking tobacco, such as dying of lung cancer. Therefore, tobacco is considered the most common addiction in America. When you regularly smoke tobacco and nicotine products, you cut your life span by ten years. Secondhand smoke causes lung cancer as well as heart disease deaths. The best way to avoid these risks and potentially deadly diseases for yourself and the people around you is by quitting smoking and getting treatment for the root cause of your smoking addiction. Alcohol is another highly common substance used by many worldwide.

Below are some scary alcohol statistics.

More than half of individuals who overdose on alcohol are under 50 years old.

Alcohol use results in more than 2.8 million premature deaths each year

About 1.4% of the world’s population had an alcohol abuse disorder

Suicide idealization is 10x more likely in someone with an alcohol abuse disorder

Alcohol dependence can cause more than 200 health conditions

Individuals with mental health problems are at higher risk of alcohol dependency

Around 414,000 adolescents have an alcohol abuse disorder

Alcohol addiction kills roughly 95,000 individuals each year

More than 10% of children live with someone who struggles with an alcohol use disorder

Continue Reading here : Most Drug Addicted Cities in America