Alternative Medicine Approach to Drug Addiction: Acupuncture Therapy

Acupuncture has long been a respected form of alternative medicine. While acupuncture has been accepted in America as a form of treatment for a number of illnesses and disease, it has just recently started to gain attention for its success rate for treating those with alcohol or drug addictions.

Acupuncture has been used by the Chinese as a way to treat those that have alcohol and drug addictions. The practice of acupuncture operates on the belief that the body has a life energy known as qi. In health people the qi is perfectly balanced amongst all the parts of the body. However, in those with drug or alcohol addictions the qi is off balance and that causes the craving for alcohol or drugs.

While acupuncture will not cure the addiction completely it will allow the addict to complete withdraw from the drug or alcohol addiction and even reduce ones craving for the substance of choice. This allows the addict to work on the issues that caused the addiction to form in the first place.

Acupuncture therapy for drug or alcohol addiction is usually a course of treatment that lasts several times a week for a number of months. The treatments include placing needles on the tips of the ears so that the qi is balanced throughout the whole body.

In a recent study of those that engaged in acupuncture therapy while they were treating their substance abuse showed that over 50% of the addicts did not suffer from a relapse. This study has caused many alcohol and drug treatment facilities to consider adding acupuncture to their treatment programs.

Filed Under: Addiction And Recovery | Tagged: Tagged With: , ,

Going to Alcoholism Treatment Centers: Pain for a Purpose

For many of the most hardcore alcoholics, going to get treatment is one of the greatest stressors of their lives. And since stress tends to be a trigger for wanting to just drink away the discomfort, it can be a significant risk factor for a relapse. Who really wants to go to some “institution” and be forced into giving up a significant (and very comforting) part of their lifestyle? Fortunately for both the alcoholic and for the people who love them, there are some ways to make things a little bit easier for those who are unfortunate enough to have to go through this trying time.

For one thing, alcoholism treatment centers are no longer set up to be like the institutions of old. There are no straitjackets, and people are allowed to wear their regular clothes for the duration of their stay. The objective is to get the person you love sobered up and to help them understand that they are going to be capable of living a clean, sober life. One of the biggest reasons why alcohol treatment centers are effective is because they offer a full disruption to the person’s alcohol-laced existence. There is no booze there at all, so there is no temptation.

Another positive trait of the alcohol treatment centers is that they allow the person to get over all of the physical withdrawals that may come about as a result of being without their fix. If they are drunk, it allows them to sober up properly. Then it allows them to ride out their hangover in a relatively comfortable, safe place. After that, it helps them realize that if they do not get alcohol on a regular basis, they will not die as a result of this deprivation. In many cases, it actually works — relieving pain for both the alcoholic and those close to them.

Enhanced by Zemanta
Filed Under: Addiction And Recovery | Tagged: Tagged With: , , ,

Understanding The Steps to Recovery

Zero alcool pendant la grossesse
Image via Wikipedia

If you are struggling with a drug addiction or an alcohol addiction, then the first thing that you are going to want to be aware of is the fact that you are not alone in this. People all over the world are dealing with the same addiction problems, and for this reason, websites like TheCyn.com exist to help you get the help and the care that you need. The first step in the recovery process is for you to admit that you have a problem so that you can begin actually getting the help that you need.

Do not be surprised if it takes a while for you to make this admission. People struggle with admitting that they have a problem every single day, and that is the reason why so many people are struggling with addiction in this world. It may take some time and some struggling to get the help that you need, but you must admit to yourself and the people around you that you have a problem with drugs or alcohol so that you can submit yourself to the recovery process once and for all.

Once you have committed yourself to getting help, you can reach out to a rehabilitation program in your needs. There are many to choose from including inpatient programs, outpatient programs, residential programs, short term programs, long term programs, detoxification programs and rehabilitation programs. Each is going to provide you with a completely unique experience, so make sure that you are weighing all your options before choosing the right rehabilitation or detoxification program for your needs. Once you find the right help, you simply have to make a promise to yourself that you are going to stick to the program until you get away from your addiction once and for all.

Nothing feels as good as sobriety, so make that call today.

Enhanced by Zemanta
Filed Under: Addiction And Recovery | Tagged: Tagged With: , ,

Aftercare – Life After Rehab

ASHKELON, ISRAEL - JUNE 11: Dr. Andre Waisman...
Image by Getty Images via @daylife

Staying in a rehabilitation center or belonging to a rehabilitation group is essential in the journey from addict to sobriety. Rehab arms you with the tools to manage your addiction and will help you lead a life drug free. However, rehab isn’t the end of the healing process. In order to fully recover from your addiction you must partake in an aftercare program to ensure your continued success.

Aftercare is defined as the period following discharge from the rehab center, when the addict no longer requires the same intensity of treatment that they received while in rehab.

Aftercare is an integral part of staying drug free. You won’t leave rehab being miraculously cured. Every day will be a struggle but various aftercare programs are available to help you maintain a drug free existence. Various aftercare treatments include:
- Therapy or counseling
- Group therapy
- 12 step meetings
- Medical support
- Online therapy
- Buddy system

Many rehabilitation centers offer some kind of aftercare services as part of their treatment plan but these are vastly under utilized because many people feel as though they are cured after they leave rehab. No matter how good you feel or how long you’ve been sober, take advantage of some kind of aftercare program. If you didn’t go to a traditional rehab center, you can find quality aftercare programs by either talking with your doctor or therapist.

Even after completing your time in a rehab program your chances of remaining free from your addiction are not great. By being involved in an aftercare program you vastly increase your chances of staying drug or alcohol free. Many rehab centers offer aftercare programs that involve the addict’s immediate family. Addiction isn’t easily overcome and the family needs to also be educated so that they can help the addict deal with daily issues and to continue to motivate them and encourage a healthy lifestyle.

Enhanced by Zemanta
Filed Under: Addiction And Recovery | Tagged: Tagged With: , , , , , , ,

Alcoholic Anonymous

No Alcoholics / Kein Alkohol Logo
Image via Wikipedia

By the mid 19th century an age old problem had a name. A Swedish physician introduced the world to the concept of alcoholism. His finding had created a name and awareness that regular alcohol consumption could be habit forming and destructive to social interaction. As with any invention it now fell onto others to improve upon the initial concept and find practical applications.

Alcoholism had a name, but other widespread acceptance lingered. Alcoholism was also referred to as barrel fever, dipsomania and inebriety. Dipsomania literally meant drink crazy. At this time alcohol abuse, was less considered an individual with a disease than someone who could not control themselves when it came to alcohol. Dipsomania was characterized as periods of binge drinking followed by periods of abstaining.

The term alcoholism and its definition first gained popularity in professional circles. It was cited in more and more studies until a universal acceptance was gained by the early 20th century. Richard Peabody and Charles Towns were among the first to bring the terms to the general public by using the terms in popular articles. Towns ran a “drying out” hospital that was an early rehabilitation center.

As the public became exposed to the concept of alcoholism, it took awhile for the term an its recognition to become accepted the label of problem drinker continued in the 1930s as the belief maintained that there was not a physical addiction to alcohol, but individuals who could not handle themselves.

Alcoholics Anonymous was founded in the 1930s, and the success of the organization made alcoholic the preferred term. The organization made the term so common that some professionals were annoyed that alcoholic was being overused and was no longer meaningful enough to be used in professional papers. These pleas might have been heard by researchers, but for the general public the term had been established and so would the methods of Alcoholic Anonymous.

Alcoholics Anonymous has stood the test of time and has been successful for many addicts. The concept of support groups to help suffers would also spread to other cases of addiction.

Enhanced by Zemanta
Filed Under: Addiction And Recovery | Tagged: Tagged With: , , , , , , ,

Are the Twelve Steps Really Relevant Today?

Propaganda image of alcoholism
Image via Wikipedia

When it comes to alcohol abuse, there is a well-documented history of successful recovery achieved with the concerted efforts of groups of individuals lending mutual support and assisting one another in a process that involves no chemical intervention.
The expression ‘Twelve-step’ has almost become synonymous with recovery from an addiction. While many new measures are devised and put into operation by the professionals involved with individuals seeking release from an addiction, the set of twelve precepts continues to influence many programs. The list originally formulated by the longest-standing organization for those in recovery, Alcoholics Anonymous, has its merits. The requirement that it demands of the alcoholism sufferer to take responsibility for their situation and for their future behavior has obvious value. The emphasis placed on appealing to God to end the dependency is called into question by some agencies. Humanists and those who have non-theistic faiths, or indeed no faith, are unable to relate to the notion of requesting God’s intervention.
There are other aspects of the program which some find controversial. One of these is the requirement detailed in the fourth of the twelve steps to take stock of the state of one’s own morals. This then leads to a series of admissions, with the focus on error. The Twelve Steps follower effectively admits to having a flawed character.
A sizeable number of centers and therapists, on the other hand, specify that their programs are ‘Non 12 Step’. Medically-based programs in particular often insist that the addictive behavior is essentially a brain-based malfunction. While solutions that involve medical treatments and physical activities such as exercise have their advocates, it has to be acknowledged that some type of self-examination is required if the person enduring addiction is to have a chance of exercising long-term self-control.
While the jury remains out on which method is the most reliable for ridding oneself of addiction, there is something to be said for drawing up, in consultation with one or more professionals in the field, a personal list of steps relevant to the sufferer’s own experience and outlook.

Enhanced by Zemanta
Filed Under: Addiction And Recovery | Tagged:

Responding to Addiction

BANDUNG, INDONESIA - DECEMBER 15: Indonesian ...
Image by Getty Images via @daylife

The human body is fortunately strongly dedicated to its own preservation. It has many built-in strategies for survival, from the immune system to tissue repair mechanisms which swing miraculously into action to remedy injuries and illnesses. Similarly, the human brain plays its part in regulating what happens to us.
But the brain can effectively turn traitor, when it permits the body to become addicted to mind-altering substances, whether alcohol or drugs. So disposed are some of us to addiction that it represents a hugely significant threat to health in virtually every country of the world, not to mention a massive economic drain.
One question not fully answered is the following: Is addiction genetic? Part of the confusion which fogs this issue for doctors and scientists is the fact that families may contain members who are addicted to smoking and/or alcohol, due probably to learned behavior, rather than shared genes. Poverty is a factor, too. It can be no coincidence that greater consumption of tobacco and alcohol and other addictive substances occurs in low-income districts of towns and cities. Environmental circumstances play a significant part. Hence, community programs which target vulnerable individuals, especially programs that work directly with families, are often the most effective method for prevention and control of addiction.
The other strand involves the use of chemical intervention. However, the types of medication prescribed to counteract addiction themselves have varying degrees of success. In some cases, addiction to the medication is itself a problem. Genes have been found to be responsible for such responses. This is one of the areas where it is hoped that genetic testing could be used. Potential patient could be tested to ascertain whether a specific addiction treatment will work on them. The development of strategies to tackle substance abuse is an ongoing endeavor.

Filed Under: Addiction And Recovery | Tagged: Tagged With: , ,