




Facts
A pregnant woman who uses heroin should not attempt to suddenly stop taking the drug. This can put her baby at increased risk of death. She should consult a health care provider or drug treatment center about treatment with a drug called methadone. Although infants born to mothers taking methadone also have withdrawal symptoms, they can be safely treated in the nursery and generally do better than babies born to women who continue to use heroin. Steroid use can cause severe outbreaks of acne on the upper back, baldness, shrunken testicles, heavy beards, a puffy face, and depression. Extended use can lead to the growth of tumors, and can cause liver and heart disorders and damage to the endocrine system. It also changes boys' personalities. According to Joe, "You go from an intelligent, normal guy to someone who resorts to beating people up if they don't agree with you. It's a totally physical mentality, and very aggressive." Cannabis dependent users have been shown to have a significantly increased likelihood of reporting a wide range of respiratory symptoms and exhibiting decreased lung functioning. In a nationally representative sample of 6728 adults, cannabis use was associated with a number of problems including bronchitis, coughing, phlegm production, and wheezing, even after controlling for age, tobacco use, and asthma. Given that only 16 percent of the sample used cannabis on a daily basis, it is likely that the range of respiratory problems is even greater in a cannabis dependent population. Ecstasy is suspected to interfere with a number of different neurotransmitter systems, primarily serotonin and dopamine. Serotonin is involved in the regulation of mood, appetite, emotion, sleep, perception, anxiety, aggression, and memory; dopamine is involved in the regulation of movement, emotional response, and ability to feel pleasure and pain. Ecstasy stimulates an excess release of these neurotransmitters, while at the same time blocking the transporters that pump them back to the releasing neuron, which creates a high concentration of neurotransmitters in the space between the cells, called the synapse. This overabundance of serotonin and dopamine is what causes the feelings of elation, altered perception, and high energy. During this time the neurons are unable to replace all the neurotransmitters that are being released and not returned, so in the days following ecstasy use fewer neurotransmitters are released, and the number of transporters is reduced. This diminished function, primarily serotonin function, explains the depressed mood and other disturbances previously described as occurring in the days following an episode of ecstasy use. Regular ecstasy use destroys a neuron's ability to release serotonin, an effect that is long-lasting and may or may not be permanent. Noradrenaline is another neurotransmitter similarly influenced by ecstasy use, and is involved in the regulation of blood pressure and heart rate. The effects produced by this system are undesirable and potentially harmful. |
Therapeutic Community
An effective therapeutic community attends to the many needs of the individual, not just his or her drug use. Care given at a therapeutic community addresses the individual's drug use and associated medical, psychological, social, vocational, and legal problems. Also, a therapeutic community will continue to be flexible and provide ongoing assessments of the individual's needs, which may change during the course of care.
Remaining in care at a therapeutic community for an adequate period of time is critical for treatment effectiveness. The time depends on an individual's needs. For most people, the significant improvement is reached at about 3 months in treatment.
Intervention
An intervention is when a group of loved ones and/or a trained intervention counselor meets with the person in need of help for the purpose of breaking down their denial and motivating them to immediately seek drug addiction treatment. Often, individuals in the midst of drug addiction engage in a variety of self destructive behaviors. Although baffling to friends and family members such people generally either aren't aware on a conscious level that they have a drug addiction problem, or even when they know they have a problem they may cling to the false belief that the problem will somehow go away without any outside help. When an intervention is held a moment of clarity is created
for the addict. Most people struggling with the problem of drug or alcohol
addiction will accept help the very day of the intervention.
Detox
Detox is necessary when an individual through their chronic use of drugs or alcohol has developed an addiction. The objective of detox is to help the individual achieve a drug and alcohol free state. Detox is intended to relieve the physical symptoms of withdrawal and helps prepare the individual for entry into drug rehabilitation. Therefore, the ultimate goal of detox is preparation for long term recovery from drug and alcohol addiction.
Addiction Treatment
Addiction treatment is needed when an individual finds that they have developed a drug or alcohol addiction which they are not able to successful end on their own. With the help of addiction treatment, addicted individual can get help to control their drug taking behavior and live happy and successful lives. There are several addiction treatment options available for drug and alcohol addiction. Some of these options include self-help groups, counseling, drug rehabilitation programs (in and out-patient), and residential treatment facilities. Each of these differ
in their aims and outcomes and elements of these addiction treatment options are often
combined.
Drug Rehabilitation
Drug rehabilitation is a place or program that an individual enters to treat a drug or alcohol addiction. Through therapy and education, the individual is restored to their former non-drug using self. They are then able to re-enter society clean and sober. There are many reasons why a person would need to attend a drug rehabilitation program. Some of the many reasons are: the inability to control their drinking or drug use, alienating their friends and family, problems with the law, and problems at work. Also, there are several different types of drug rehabilitation programs available: inpatient, outpatient, residential, short-term, and long-term.
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