Saturday, March 05, 2005
Commonly abused prescription drugs?
What are some of the commonly abused prescription drugs?
Although many prescription drugs can be abused or misused, there are three classes of prescription drugs that are most commonly abused:
Opioids, which are most often prescribed to treat pain;
CNS depressants, which are used to treat anxiety and sleep disorders;
Stimulants, which are prescribed to treat the sleep disorder narcolepsy, attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), and obesity.
What are opioids?
Opioids are commonly prescribed because of their effective analgesic, or pain-relieving, properties. Medications that fall within this class - sometimes referred to as narcotics - include morphine, codeine, and related drugs. Morphine, for example, is often used before or after surgery to alleviate severe pain. Codeine, because it is less efficacious than morphine, is used for milder pain. Other examples of opioids that can be prescribed to alleviate pain include oxycodone (OxyContin), propoxyphene (Darvon), hydrocodone (Vicodin), and hydromorphone (Dilaudid), as well as meperidine (Demerol), which is used less often because of its side effects. In addition to their pain-relieving properties, some of these drugs - for example, codeine and diphenoxylate (Lomotil) - can be used to relieve coughs and diarrhea.
How do opioids affect the brain and body?
Opioids act by attaching to specific proteins called opioid receptors, which are found in the brain, spinal cord, and gastrointestinal tract. When these drugs attach to certain opioid receptors, they can block the transmission of pain messages to the brain. In addition, opioids can produce drowsiness, cause constipation, and, depending upon the amount of drug taken, depress respiration. Opioid drugs also can cause euphoria by affecting the brain regions that mediate what we perceive as pleasure.
What are the possible consequences of opioid use and abuse?
Chronic use of opioids can result in tolerance for the drugs, which means that users must take higher doses to achieve the same initial effects. Long-term use also can lead to physical dependence and addiction - the body adapts to the presence of the drug, and withdrawal symptoms occur if use is reduced or stopped. Symptoms of withdrawal include restlessness, muscle and bone pain, insomnia, diarrhea, vomiting, cold flashes with goose bumps ("cold turkey"), and involuntary leg movements. Finally, taking a large single dose of an opioid could cause severe respiratory depression that can lead to death. Many studies have shown, however, that properly managed medical use of opioid analgesic drugs is safe and rarely causes clinical addiction, defined as compulsive, often uncontrollable use of drugs. Taken exactly as prescribed, opioids can be used to manage pain effectively.
Although many prescription drugs can be abused or misused, there are three classes of prescription drugs that are most commonly abused:
Opioids, which are most often prescribed to treat pain;
CNS depressants, which are used to treat anxiety and sleep disorders;
Stimulants, which are prescribed to treat the sleep disorder narcolepsy, attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), and obesity.
What are opioids?
Opioids are commonly prescribed because of their effective analgesic, or pain-relieving, properties. Medications that fall within this class - sometimes referred to as narcotics - include morphine, codeine, and related drugs. Morphine, for example, is often used before or after surgery to alleviate severe pain. Codeine, because it is less efficacious than morphine, is used for milder pain. Other examples of opioids that can be prescribed to alleviate pain include oxycodone (OxyContin), propoxyphene (Darvon), hydrocodone (Vicodin), and hydromorphone (Dilaudid), as well as meperidine (Demerol), which is used less often because of its side effects. In addition to their pain-relieving properties, some of these drugs - for example, codeine and diphenoxylate (Lomotil) - can be used to relieve coughs and diarrhea.
How do opioids affect the brain and body?
Opioids act by attaching to specific proteins called opioid receptors, which are found in the brain, spinal cord, and gastrointestinal tract. When these drugs attach to certain opioid receptors, they can block the transmission of pain messages to the brain. In addition, opioids can produce drowsiness, cause constipation, and, depending upon the amount of drug taken, depress respiration. Opioid drugs also can cause euphoria by affecting the brain regions that mediate what we perceive as pleasure.
What are the possible consequences of opioid use and abuse?
Chronic use of opioids can result in tolerance for the drugs, which means that users must take higher doses to achieve the same initial effects. Long-term use also can lead to physical dependence and addiction - the body adapts to the presence of the drug, and withdrawal symptoms occur if use is reduced or stopped. Symptoms of withdrawal include restlessness, muscle and bone pain, insomnia, diarrhea, vomiting, cold flashes with goose bumps ("cold turkey"), and involuntary leg movements. Finally, taking a large single dose of an opioid could cause severe respiratory depression that can lead to death. Many studies have shown, however, that properly managed medical use of opioid analgesic drugs is safe and rarely causes clinical addiction, defined as compulsive, often uncontrollable use of drugs. Taken exactly as prescribed, opioids can be used to manage pain effectively.
Friday, March 04, 2005
Top Treatment Centers
CoDependency Work Sheets/Work Books
Addiction Treatment Directory
How Many Times Does Someone Have To Take a Drug To Become an Addict?
How Many Times Does Someone Have To Take a Drug To Become an Addict?
No one knows how many times a person can use a drug without changing his or her brain and becoming addicted.
A person's genetic makeup probably plays a role. But after enough doses, an individual's limbic system craves the drug as it craves food, water, or friends. Drug craving is made worse because of down regulation.
Without a dose of the drug, dopamine levels in the drug abuser's brain are low. The abuser feels flat, lifeless, depressed. Without drugs, an abuser's life seems joyless. Now the abuser needs drugs just to bring dopamine levels up to normal levels. Larger amounts of the drug are needed to create a dopamine flood or high, an effect known as tolerance.
By abusing drugs, the person has changed the way his or her brain works. Drug abuse and addiction lead to long-term changes in the brain. These changes cause addicted drug users to lose the ability to control their drug use. Drug addiction is a disease.
There is no cure for drug addiction, but it is a treatable disease; drug addicts can recover. Drug addiction therapy is a program of behavior change or modification that slowly retrains the brain. Like people with diabetes or heart disease, people in treatment for drug addiction learn behavioral changes and often take medications as part of their treatment regimen.
No one knows how many times a person can use a drug without changing his or her brain and becoming addicted.
A person's genetic makeup probably plays a role. But after enough doses, an individual's limbic system craves the drug as it craves food, water, or friends. Drug craving is made worse because of down regulation.
Without a dose of the drug, dopamine levels in the drug abuser's brain are low. The abuser feels flat, lifeless, depressed. Without drugs, an abuser's life seems joyless. Now the abuser needs drugs just to bring dopamine levels up to normal levels. Larger amounts of the drug are needed to create a dopamine flood or high, an effect known as tolerance.
By abusing drugs, the person has changed the way his or her brain works. Drug abuse and addiction lead to long-term changes in the brain. These changes cause addicted drug users to lose the ability to control their drug use. Drug addiction is a disease.
There is no cure for drug addiction, but it is a treatable disease; drug addicts can recover. Drug addiction therapy is a program of behavior change or modification that slowly retrains the brain. Like people with diabetes or heart disease, people in treatment for drug addiction learn behavioral changes and often take medications as part of their treatment regimen.
Sunday, February 27, 2005
Varities of Drug Treatment
Substance abuse is defined as a dependency upon and/or addiction to any mind-altering substance, chemical, or drug. 'Mind-altering' substances can range from marijuana to medications prescribed by a physician to heroin to so called herbal remedies and designer or club drugs such as ecstasy to inhalants such as nitrous oxide, paint and glue.With that said, any form of treatment for substance abuse begins with detoxification, or cleansing the body of the substances or chemicals. Detoxification or 'detox' can be achieved in a medical setting when addiction is severe enough, or it can be achieved through abstinence.
Once abstinence is achieved and maintained, the disease of addiction or dependency itself can be addressed on a variety of levels depending upon a substance abuser's physical and mental conditions. While some people may be able to begin a recovery process by attending 12-Step meetings, others may require a more structured environment where the underlying issues and motivators of their addiction can be addressed and dealt with under the guidance of a healthcare professional experienced in treating substance abuse. This structured environment can most often be found in the form of outpatient treatment where the individual continues to work and live at home while attending classes in the evening.
Outpatient treatment usually spans several months and involves educational lectures, group therapy and one-on-one counseling with a therapist. Attending outpatient treatment helps the individual understand the disease concept of substance abuse or addiction and how it has affected his or her life. Most outpatient programs also help instill a greater awareness of oneself, an understanding of the factors contributing to and motivating one's drug use, teach effective interpersonal communication skills, relapse prevention, and offer an introduction to 12-Step programs.
Another treatment option is residential or inpatient treatment which takes place in a relaxed hospital or dormitory-like setting. Patients or clients usually room together and live in the facility for at least 30-days and sometimes as long as several months depending upon their individual needs. Program curriculums vary depending upon the individual facility, however most are based on what is referred to as the 'social model' of treatment. Patients attend lectures, 12-Step meetings, and group and individual therapy throughout the day. Since treatment is in a medical setting, patients' physical, nutritional, and psychiatric conditions can also be monitored.
Perhaps one of the greatest benefits that people find in residential or inpatient treatment is the mutual and group support they receive from each other. The experience also provides them with an opportunity to begin rebuilding there lives in a protected environment without the distractions of career and peers and outside influences which may have contributed either directly or indirectly to their conditions.
Yet another highly effective treatment option is referred to as 'Sober Living' or 'Transitional Living.' Not to be confused with half-way houses, a sober living home or facility is a safe and secure environment where residents live for extended periods of time while adjusting or transitioning back into their day-to-day lives. Most residents continue working in their chose professions or use the time to explore new careers while attending some form of outpatient treatment in the evenings. More often than not, residents transition into a sober living home upon completion of inpatient or residential treatment. This process has been proven to increase the chances of an individual being able to achieve a strong foundation in recovery and have a better opportunity of enjoying long-term recovery.
Outpatient treatment resources:
Once abstinence is achieved and maintained, the disease of addiction or dependency itself can be addressed on a variety of levels depending upon a substance abuser's physical and mental conditions. While some people may be able to begin a recovery process by attending 12-Step meetings, others may require a more structured environment where the underlying issues and motivators of their addiction can be addressed and dealt with under the guidance of a healthcare professional experienced in treating substance abuse. This structured environment can most often be found in the form of outpatient treatment where the individual continues to work and live at home while attending classes in the evening.
Outpatient treatment usually spans several months and involves educational lectures, group therapy and one-on-one counseling with a therapist. Attending outpatient treatment helps the individual understand the disease concept of substance abuse or addiction and how it has affected his or her life. Most outpatient programs also help instill a greater awareness of oneself, an understanding of the factors contributing to and motivating one's drug use, teach effective interpersonal communication skills, relapse prevention, and offer an introduction to 12-Step programs.
Another treatment option is residential or inpatient treatment which takes place in a relaxed hospital or dormitory-like setting. Patients or clients usually room together and live in the facility for at least 30-days and sometimes as long as several months depending upon their individual needs. Program curriculums vary depending upon the individual facility, however most are based on what is referred to as the 'social model' of treatment. Patients attend lectures, 12-Step meetings, and group and individual therapy throughout the day. Since treatment is in a medical setting, patients' physical, nutritional, and psychiatric conditions can also be monitored.
Perhaps one of the greatest benefits that people find in residential or inpatient treatment is the mutual and group support they receive from each other. The experience also provides them with an opportunity to begin rebuilding there lives in a protected environment without the distractions of career and peers and outside influences which may have contributed either directly or indirectly to their conditions.
Yet another highly effective treatment option is referred to as 'Sober Living' or 'Transitional Living.' Not to be confused with half-way houses, a sober living home or facility is a safe and secure environment where residents live for extended periods of time while adjusting or transitioning back into their day-to-day lives. Most residents continue working in their chose professions or use the time to explore new careers while attending some form of outpatient treatment in the evenings. More often than not, residents transition into a sober living home upon completion of inpatient or residential treatment. This process has been proven to increase the chances of an individual being able to achieve a strong foundation in recovery and have a better opportunity of enjoying long-term recovery.
Outpatient treatment resources:
Residential Drug Treatment:
Adolescent Treatment
For more information about Drug Treatment Centers, visit SoberRecovery.com
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