“Not all opioid rehabs are the same”

Overcoming an addiction to opioids is not easy, of course, nothing good in life is. And all those who have recovered agree on one thing; life without opioids is much better, aka; well. Why is it so difficult to overcome opioid dependence? It is simple. It is due to the way opioids interact with the brain and body, which can easily lead to dependence.

You see, opioids bind to certain receptors in the brain, spinal cord, and other parts of the body. Opioids do this by cloaking themselves as natural pain-relieving chemicals from the body. Opioids can also produce feelings of pleasure. When you take these medications, your body will eventually become more tolerant, so you will need more to relive the pain. The more you drink, the more dependent you become.

Eventually, these drugs stop your brain from making opioid-free dopamine. Meanwhile, opioids are destroying neurotransmitters and receptors that allow you to feel pleasure. Perhaps you can see why it is so difficult to stop taking opioids once you become addicted (cite: 1).

Your body and mind demand them to relieve pain and allow for pleasure or even normalcy, yet the more you drink, the more damage you are doing. If you don’t take more, you have terrible and uncontrollable withdrawal symptoms, and doing so will drive you further down the road to destruction of your brain, body, and life experience.

Difficulty treating opioid dependence

Not all rehab centers, residential treatment centers, or drug addiction clinics are the same. Not all addictions are the same. Therefore, not all addiction treatment programs should be the same. One-size-fits-all strategies won’t work. Dependency treatment programs that treat all patients equally, administering the same treatment, have extremely low success rates.

It is not fair to patients, their families, insurance companies, or society as a whole. It is the wrong way to approach this dire situation. Opioid addiction has become a national emergency and crisis of epic proportions here in the United States (quote 2).

The best way to treat opioid dependence is by evaluating each person’s situation and developing a personalized and personalized treatment program.

References:

1.) Book; “Drugs, Brain, and Behavior: The Pharmacology of Abuse and Dependence”, by J. Brick and CK Erickson, Haworth Press, Binghampton, NY, 1998, 194 pages, ISBN: 0-7890-0274-4.

2.) Article from the White House website; “President Donald J. Trump is fighting to end the opioid crisis that has devastated too many American communities,” posted online April 24, 2019.