Addiction treatment - how to deal with it?

Symptoms of addiction noticeable to the environment:

An addicted person has an increased or decreased tolerance to alcohol - to reach the initial stage of intoxication, a person systematically increases the dose of alcohol consumed or, in the case of reduced tolerance to alcohol, is intoxicated after negligible doses of a substance containing alcohol.

Symptoms invisible to the environment:

alcohol craving reinforced by panic at the thought of the lack of alcohol

memory problems - the alcoholic has gaps in memory, does not remember specific events.

concentration of everyday life around alcohol - an addicted person is eagerly looking for an opportunity to drink alone or with someone.

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What are the treatments for alcoholism?

Alcoholism can be treated in two ways - with therapy or with drugs.

Addiction can be treated with therapy at any stage, however, it is recommended for people who can maintain a state of abstinence thanks to it. The therapy allows the patient to become aware of the destructive influence of the addiction on his life and health.

The psychotherapist selects the method of treatment in each case individually to the patient's needs and tries to show him the life values ​​that are important to him and how to isolate himself from them by drinking.

Psychotherapy in clinics is usually conducted in the afternoon, about 3 times a week. The duration of the first treatment phase is approximately 6-8 weeks. Afternoon sessions enable the addicted person to function normally by allowing him to start work and reconcile it with visits to meetings with a therapist. Importantly, the families of addicts can also participate in such therapy.

Outpatient treatment of alcoholism in day wards is aimed at people for whom three sessions a week is not enough given the degree of addiction and lack of self-control.

Classes at such departments are held 5 times a week, mainly from 8am to 2pm. The duration of outpatient treatment in day care units is approximately 8 weeks.

People who, due to the pressure of the environment and putting abstinence to the test (because everyone in the family drinks or the addicted person chooses such company), are unable to stop drinking and day therapy is insufficient for them, may visit 24-hour wards where treatment lasts from 6 to 8 weeks.

In the event of a life-threatening situation, patients are immediately admitted to abstinence syndrome treatment units, where they are hospitalized for 7-10 days. After this time, treatment should be started in a drug addiction clinic or addiction treatment center.

How long does alcoholism treatment therapy take and is it effective?

It is difficult to give a specific answer to this question. Therapy and its progress largely depend on the patient's will and determination to pursue their goals. Even after successful treatment for an average of 18-24 months, the addicted person still remains it and is put to the test at social gatherings or family celebrations.

It should be remembered that one remains addicted forever because even an innocent glass of wine or a bottle of beer can ruin several years of efforts and abstinence.

With properly selected individual therapy, people addicted to alcohol learn how to deal with temptations and are prepared for them - how they use the acquired knowledge depends only on themselves.

What are drug addiction treatments?

Depending on the degree of addiction, the type of substance and the degree of depletion in the body, short-term or long-term therapy is used.

Short-term therapy is usually provided by hospital departments or psychiatric clinics. The treatment lasts about 6 weeks and it is a combination of pharmacological therapy and psychological consultations. This type of treatment is offered mainly to patients in phase III - habit.

A person who is attracted to drugs, but is still able to refuse them in specific situations, is able to overcome the disease that is beginning in this way. Usually, after treatment in the ward, addicts are referred to outpatient therapy in the form of further meetings with a psychologist or psychiatrist.

Long-term treatment is implemented in the situation of people who have no control over substance use (phase IV-addiction) - who use drugs out of necessity.

Long-term therapy is carried out by specialized addiction therapy centers. In this phase, it is necessary to combine detox (administration of drips to hydrate the organism and supplement vitamins and minerals as well as electrolytes), working with a therapist with group activities. Treatment lasts about 8 weeks.

In the case of long-term treatment, when faced with the choice of a center to help win this unequal fight against the disease, let us be guided by the experience and a wide range of methodology of this facility.

These are also methods such as:

• 12 steps Minessot model an intensive 28-day program with the participation of addicted people's families
• Group therapy - activities in the environment of people with similar problems, joint motivation, support and self-help.
• Coaching - creates opportunities for faster self-development, increasing the effectiveness of therapy and faster achievement of the goal.
• Rehabilitation, i.e. making the addicted person aware of the effects and mechanisms of the disease, learning to deal with emotions and recurrent symptoms.

Is drug addiction therapy and treatment effective?

The treatment success rate is directly proportional to the involvement of the addicted person himself. Early detection of addiction and undergoing treatment is also of great importance in overcoming addiction. Hence, introducing, in the initial stages of therapy, meetings with a psychologist and specialists who make the addicted person aware of the harm he causes himself, thinking that taking the drug when orgasm demands it is the best solution.