Prescription Drug AddictionPrescription drugs- effective when used properly, dangerous when not prescribed Prescription painkillers can be a blessing for those in pain. Prescription medication is also commonly prescribed for medical conditions such as Attention Deficit Disorder with Hyperactivity (ADHD), chronic insomnia, obesity, anxiety and depression. Most people who use their prescription medication as prescribed will not end up with a prescription drug addiction. However, there are a great number of people–perhaps you’re one of them–who are using prescription medicine without a prescription or in dosages far beyond what their doctors instructed. A United States National Institute on Health (NIH) monthly bulletin warned that approximately 16 million Americans had reported using a prescription drug for non-medical reasons with the past year; 7 million in the past month. Those using prescription drugs without a condition requiring them for treatment are even more likely to become addicted than those using them as prescribed. The three types of prescription drugs abused most often are:
Why prescription drug addiction happens so easily: The reasons for addiction are as varied as the people who get addicted, both physically and psychologically. If you were prescribed painkillers, for instance, you may have built up a tolerance and could no longer get the pain relief you needed. Needing more and more to get the same results helped contribute to becoming addicted. The way opioid painkillers work is by preventing certain brain chemicals from being released in the brain, thereby blocking your ability to feel pain. By blocking those chemicals, the brain not only doesn’t perceive the pain, but also experiences a euphoric feeling or high. Soon you find yourself taking dangerously high doses to manage pain or to get the same euphoric feelings. Using stimulants prescribed for ADHD when not medically necessary is drug abuse. The focus you got when you first began abusing the stimulant will soon require increased dosages, leading to addiction. Stimulant addiction is very serious and carries potentially severe health consequences. Breaking free is possible with professional help Once addicted, it is nearly impossible to break break your drug addiction without professional help. It is even more difficult to stay drug-free after detox without top-notch treatment. To ensure your safety, you should not detox alone. Because there can be severe medical complications during detox, supervision is necessary. At Cliffside Malibu your detox will be supervised and you will be made as comfortable as possible. Our team has a wide variety of detox treatments available to alleviate your symptoms as much as possible. Our team will create an individualized treatment program for you, taking all factors into account–your physical condition, length/amount/substance abused, and life before you entered drug treatment. A psychotherapist will be selected whose style of practice is determined to be most compatible with you. Your therapist will work with a team of industry-leading professionals to continually reevaluate your treatment program and make adjustments along the way. Working almost daily, one-on-one with your therapist to uncover the underlying reasons for your addiction, you will learn new ways to cope with the stresses of life and deal with the factors that may have driven your addiction. Our team of addiction professionals, nurses, nutritionists, personal trainers, massage therapists, acupuncturists and others are specialists in their fields and noted for their commitment to addiction recovery. Cliffside Malibu uses proven, evidence-based treatments, both age-old and cutting-edge, to heal mind, body and spirit. Holistic medicine, treating the whole person on all levels, helps the transformation from addiction to recovery. Help is a simple phone call away Call 1-800-501-1988 anytime, 24/7, to talk to an addiction specialist. It’s time to live a life you’ve only been able to imagine, drug-free and infused with a renewed sense of purpose and joy.   Call us now: Contact Us |