Treating drug and alcohol addiction should never be seen as a one size fits all process. It’s incumbent on addiction sufferers and their therapists to do whatever is possible to make sure the addiction sufferer finds recovery. Many times, the process includes detox and as much time as needed in therapy. Sometimes, it’s simply a matter of the addiction sufferer getting access to maintenance drugs. Note: using maintenance drugs like Suboxone, Methadone, or Naltrexone should never be seen as the sole path towards recovery. The addiction treatment community highly recommends that maintenance drugs should be viewed as an option for managing withdrawal symptoms, not as the overall solution.
Therapy has to be included in the treatment process. Without treating the underlying causes of the addiction, a life of chronic relapses becomes a certainty. Addressing the actual use of maintenance drugs, the general public seems to have some level of awareness about both Suboxone and Methadone. Doctors and addiction treatment professionals typically prescribe Suboxone and Methadone as tapering medications for clients who are attempting to detox off opiates as safely as possible. It’s noteworthy that doctors will also prescribe these drugs for other substance abuse issues as well. Both of these substances are in fact opiate substances. They differ from opiates such as heroin and prescription painkillers in that they aren’t nearly as addictive. They act to trick the brain into thinking it is getting the opiate substance it needs while getting something significantly less active. Over time, the doctor will start decreasing the prescribed dosage until the client has been weaned off their drugs of choice. Naltrexone serves the same purpose but does so in a slightly different way. First, doctors prescribe this particular maintenance mainly for alcoholism, though it seems to work fairly well for opioid addiction as well.
Experts often describe this drug as an opiate antagonist. That means it blocks the effects of opiates, which results in a decrease for the user in cravings and the possibility of a drug overdose. The primary benefit of this substance over the other aforementioned maintenance is it is not a restricted medication. The problem with the drug is results consistently indicate it is not nearly as effective as other maintenance drugs. That often results in the user spending time on the pills or monthly injections only to end up relapsing anyway. Let’s discuss under which circumstances you might be able to get yourself on a Naltrexone program if you seek treatment in the South Florida area.
How Can I Get Naltrexone Treatment for an Opioid Addiction at South Florida Drug Rehab Centers?
A number of the detox specialists in South Florida’s top rehabs, ours included, will prescribe Naltrexone when necessary for alcohol and opiate addiction issues. It’s up to one of the rehab’s medical staffers to decide whether or not it is appropriate on a case by case basis. If you are specifically looking to get a prescription for Naltrexone, you will first have to get through the detox process. That means clearing some very serious withdrawal symptoms. As an example, here are some of the withdrawal symptoms you might encounter if you are addicted to opiates:
- Hallucination and nightmares that interrupt sleep
- Difficulty with tremors and body convulsions
- Severe muscle cramping, particularly in the stomach region
- Significant breathing issues
- Alarmingly high blood pressure and heart rate issues
- Coordination and concentration issues
- Nausea, vomiting, and diarrhea
You can figure it will take you a minimum of seven days to complete the detox process. If your addiction is severe, the rehab’s medical staff might place you on Methadone or Suboxone until such time you have been weaned off your substance of choice. After clearing the detox process, the medical staff will then decide between whether or not to put you on the Naltrexone. If there is any reluctance to do so, it is usually because of the low success rate the drug has for preventing relapses. We hope you find this information useful.
With that said, getting yourself on a Naltrexone program should not be your primary concern. You need to start thinking about addressing your addiction issues. We would be glad to help you with that process. If you are ready to seek help, you can call one of our representatives at 833-846-5669. That call will allow one of our administrators to tell you more about our Soth Florida facility and addiction treatment services.