FDA-Approved Medication and Drug Rehab Make Treatment More Bearable

Effective drug rehab programs in California, such as Ranch Creek Recovery, use several different techniques to help drug and alcohol addicts recover from their gripping addictions. Two of the most common and effective methods, especially when they are utilized together, are medication and behavioral modification therapy. Medicines in particular are helpful for dealing with the difficult issues of withdrawal pertaining to drugs, alcohol, and nicotine.

Withdrawal Medication Use

Medicines are particularly helpful in dealing with withdrawal symptoms. They can also be employed to tackle various challenges in the treatment process. When the detoxification stage begins, medication is critical in suppressing withdrawal cravings and side effects. This is only a first step though, as the patients who undergo withdrawal with medical assistance and who do not complete the treatment procedures typically return to their drug abuse as if they had never received treatment.

Medications as Treatment

The useful function of medication in the treatment stage revolves around returning brain functions to normal. They also aid in interdicting relapses and reducing cravings to manageable levels for the addicts. There are effective medications for opioids like morphine and heroin, addiction to alcohol, as well as nicotine and tobacco. Here are the medications that are effective in treating these various classes of addictions:

1. Opioids

Buprenorphine and Methadone repress the cravings and other withdrawal symptoms effectively. Naltrexone works as a second-line medication for those who have already completed detoxification.

2. Alcohol

There are three different medications the FDA has approved to help treat dependency on alcohol, useful especially for those enrolling in an alcohol rehab program in Orange County. These are disulfiram, acamprosate, and naltrexone. The fourth, presently in clinical trials, is topiramate.

Disulfiram basically makes alcohol addicts who drink feel sick. Acamprosate lessens the symptoms present in extended withdrawal cases, like anxiety, insomnia, dysphoria, and restlessness. Naltrexone stops the receptors in the brain that give addicts their rewarding feelings for drinking and uncontrollable alcohol cravings.

3. Nicotine

With tobacco, there are a wide range of products that attempt to replace the nicotine and phase it out gradually. These include lozenges, gum, spray, and the patch, all available for purchase without a prescription. The FDA has also approved two different medications by prescription in varenicline and bupropion. While both function differently, each help to stop relapses in people serious about quitting smoking. Both medications work best when combined with effective behavioral modification treatments such as individual or group therapy.

Sources:
(Information and answers for people fighting addiction, drugrehab.com)
(DrugFacts: Treatment Approaches for Drug Addiction, drugabuse.gov)