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Addiction

User to Abuser: Can Certain Risk Factors Determine Cocaine and Opioid Dependence?

There are risk factors that can predict how quickly a person can develop a dependence to a certain drug? How does someone go from being an occasional drug user to abuser? Are there any risk factors that can predict how quickly a person can develop a dependence to a certain drug? According to a new study being published in Addictive Behaviors (February 2014), there are. And hopefully such insights can help doctors amp up preventative measures for those most vulnerable. Read more

Top Myths About Substance Abuse and Treatment

 Top Myths About Substance Abuse and TreatmentHere are some of the top myths about substance abuse and treatment:

Myth #1 Drug and alcohol addiction is a voluntary behavior. It’s true that using drugs or alcohol is a voluntary decision in the beginning. But over time, continued use of drugs or alcohol alters the way your brain works and leads to compulsive, even uncontrollable use of drugs and alcohol.

Myth #2 Drug and alcohol addiction is a character flaw.  Addiction is a brain disease. Drugs and alcohol hijacks the reward system in the brain until they become the most powerful motivator in a person’s life. Addiction is not a character flaw, lack of willpower, or moral failing. It is a disease that requires medical attention. Read more

The Buprenorphine Debate: Should Addiction Treatment Include It?

Buprenorphine prolongs the detox process and puts an individual at risk for exchanging one addictive habit for another. Debating whether addiction treatment should include buprenorphine is a complex issue. This week The New York Times printed an article called “Addiction Treatment with a Dark Side” that explored the history of buprenorphine and the dangers that it poses. This article sparked a debate with the HuffingtonPost and The New Republic both posting rebuke pieces, “New York Times Misses Mark on Buprenorphine” and “The Media Needs to Stop Stigmatizing Our Best Weapon Against Heroin Addiction,” respectively. So what is buprenorphine and what role should it have in addiction treatment?

Buprenorphine (often sold on the market and prescribed as Suboxone) is an anti-craving drug, like Methadone, used as drug replacement therapy for heroin and painkiller addictions. Partially developed and promoted by federal officials, it has been hailed as a major tool in the fight against drugs. It has been deemed safer than Methadone and has allowed patients to take the medication at home (lessening the community stigma that surrounds Methadone clinic). It has played into the common belief that “replacing illegal drugs with legal ones, needles with pills or liquids and more dangerous opioids with safer ones reduces the harm to addicts and to society.” (NYT) But does this approach really free an addict from the chains of addiction? If not, what then is our goal as addiction specialists? Read more

The Rapid Rise of Middle-Aged Women and Prescription Drug Overdoses

Middle-Aged Women and Prescription Drug Overdoses: A Spike in an Unlikely Demographic

We are seeing the largest spike in prescription drug overdoses, usually painkillers, in middle-aged women. This month Trust for America’s Health released a report that showed deaths involving prescription drug overdoses has quadrupled in the past decade. More people are dying from prescription drug overdoses than heroin and cocaine combined. And in 29 states,  more people are dying from prescription drug overdoses than from automobile accidents. This incredible spike primarily involves prescription drug painkillers like OxyContin, Percocet, Vicodin, Darvocet, Lortab, Lorcet, Methadone, Opana, and oxymorphone. And the problem is only getting worse.

But what is even more surprising is the demographic that we are seeing the largest spike in prescription drug overdoses: middle-aged women (aged 45-54), particularly painkillers. When one thinks of the typical demographic of dying drug abusers, it’s not middle-aged women: mothers, sisters, wives and daughters. And yet these numbers are rapidly rising. Read more

Fear and Denial: The Barriers to Success?

researchers identified two of the most common barriers to entering addiction treatment: fear and deniall.Are fear and denial keeping you from leading a healthy, happy life free from substance abuse?  According to the 2012 National Survey on Drug Use and Health, 23.1 million people (ages 12+) are in need of treatment for drug or alcohol abuse, but only 2.5 million actually seek help. What is standing in the way? In a study published in the Journal of Substance Abuse Treatment, researchers identified two of the most common barriers to entering addiction treatment: denial of a problem and fear of treatment. Read more

Do I Need Drug Rehab? How To Tell

It can be difficult to evaluate your situation objectively, but here are some warning signs that you need drug rehab“Do I need drug rehab?” is not an easy question to ask yourself. If you are in the middle of an addiction to drugs or alcohol (or any addictive behavior), it is difficult to be able to step back and objectively evaluate the situation. And each person struggles with drugs or alcohol in his or her own way, so there is no clear cut answer. But here are some warning signs or questions you can ask yourself to see if you need drug rehab: Read more

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