Texas Drug Rehabs

There are a wide variety of different types of methods, environments and philosophies associated with drug detoxification, and it is absolutely imperative that each program be assessed and reviewed before you make any set decision on what type of rehabilitation facility or addiction recovery program you will enter into. You need to make sure that you find an Texas drug detoxification program coupled with a drug rehabilitation program in order to allow for the smoothest possible transition from one into the other.

Although you will find that there are a variety of very different methods when it comes to  drug rehab and there are an increasing number of philosophies surrounding alcohol addiction recovery - the goal of each of these drug rehabilitation and alcohol rehabilitation programs in Texas is actually exactly the same: To remove the toxins and drug residues from the body that have accumulated throughout the years of drug abuse, and to teach the recovering addict exactly what they need to know in order to prevent a relapse in the future.

Most rehabilitation facilities and the people who are running them agree completely that one of the most effective of all forms of drug rehabilitation and alcohol rehabilitation begins with treatment that is administered medically. What this treatment essentially entails is that the recovering addict will taking their drug of choice cold turkey and the withdrawal symptoms that come as a result will begin to kick in. In order to lessen the effect of these withdrawal symptoms, and in order to make the entire detoxification process a great deal simpler and less uncomfortable overall, medicines are administered that counteract the drug's effects, making withdrawal less painful.

As you probably know, both safety and effectiveness are crucial elements in choosing the right drug rehabilitation program or alcohol rehabilitation program that will put you on the road to recovery in Texas.

Most medical drug rehabilitation programs involve twenty four hour on call nursing service, on call physicians who are ASAM certified and trained in addiction medicine, and a full set of 24 hour on call addiction treatment staffers who are capable of supporting the recovering alcoholic or drug addict in a variety of different ways. This way, the recovering addict can make a relatively smooth and seamless transition from the detoxification portion of the treatment into the rehabilitation portion of the treatment. The rehabilitation portion of the treatment has to do with teaching the addict how to overcome the chance of relapsing.

It is vital that all Texas detoxification and rehabilitation programs have the ability to assess the individual patients and their needs for ongoing rehabilitation, or even residential treatment. Research has demonstrated in the past that people who do not enter into programs for drug rehabilitation or alcohol rehabilitation eventually end up in relapse no matter how dedicated they seem to be to recovering. This is not actually a reflection on the effectiveness of the drug detoxification programs in Texas; it simply demonstrates how difficult it is for people in recovery to completely beat drug abuse and alcoholism without rehabilitation.

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Oklahoma Drug Rehabs

Are you looking for the right drug rehab or alcohol rehab program in the great state of Oklahoma? There are a variety of different types of drug abuse and alcoholism rehab programs, and each has its own unique philosophy and way of handling the detoxification and rehabilitation processes. The main goal is always the same, however, and that is to completely eliminate toxins from the body. These toxins have accumulated over the years because of drug abuse and alcoholism.

Programs that exist to handle drug rehabilitation and alcohol rehabilitation can be found inside drug rehab facilities or addiction treatment centers, and the most ideal centers should have on call twenty four hour support including nursing, physicians, and even counselors. This will allow the detoxification and rehabilitation process to be smooth and seamless in many ways.

One of the safest and the most effective forms of drug detoxification and rehabilitation is medical based programs, and what these programs entail is the administration of medicines to counteract the symptoms of withdrawal. Withdrawal is a necessary part of the rehabilitation process, as it is the physical and emotional symptoms that occur when the body is no longer receiving the addiction drug.

There are two different types of withdrawal symptoms: The first type is physical withdrawal, which is what happens to the body during the detoxification process. The second form of withdrawal is emotional or psychological withdrawal, and relates to the mental part of the addiction. Both of these parts of withdrawal have to be treated in order to allow the recovering addict to be successful. The physical aspect of withdrawal is treated using medication and detoxification, and the psychological aspect is treated through counseling, therapy and support.

The main goal of all Oklahoma drug rehab and alcohol addiction recovery programs is to remove both the physical and the psychological aspects of addiction. By removing the physical aspects of addiction, and the withdrawal symptoms associated with them, recovering addicts can focus on the most important aspect of addiction: The psychological aspect. It will take rehabilitation through counseling, therapy and support to remove the bad habits and replace them with good ones, so that a recovering addict can avoid temptation and move on with life drug abuse and alcoholism free.

In a study called TEDS (Treatment Episode Data Sheet) conducted in Oklahoma in 2006, a total of 16, 348 people were admitted to drug rehab and alcohol rehab facilities all throughout the state. 2,816 of these admissions were for alcoholism, 2,893 were for a dual diagnosis with an addiction to alcohol and a secondary drug, 2,910 were for marijuana use alone, and 1,848 were admitted for cocaine abuse.

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What is Amphetamine Addiction?

Viewed in some circles as the less-threatening "little brother" of the dangerous and highly addictive crystal meth, amphetamine remains a significant threat to the adolescents and adults who use the drug in misguided attempts to fight off fatigue, enhance concentration, or gain a competitive edge in an athletic event.

Viewed in some circles as the less-threatening "little brother" of the dangerous and highly addictive crystal meth, amphetamine remains a significant threat to the adolescents and adults who use the drug in misguided attempts to fight off fatigue, enhance concentration, or gain a competitive edge in an athletic event.

ABOUT AMPHETAMINE
Commonly referred to as "speed," amphetamine is the primary active ingredient in medications designed to deal with a wide range of conditions, including attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, narcolepsy, traumatic brain injury, and overweight.

According to the National Institute on Drug Abuse, amphetamine intoxication can lead to increased heart rate, blood pressure, and metabolism; feelings of exhilaration and energy; heightened alertness; and reduced appetite. Health consequences of amphetamine abuse and withdrawal, NIDA reports, can include irritability, anxiety, and restlessness; delirium and psychosis; the loss of coordination; panic and paranoia; and heart failure.

On June 23, 2008, the Reuters news service reported that a three-year review of more than three million hospitalized adults in Texas discovered that amphetamine abusers ages 18 to 44 were 61 percent more likely to be treated for a heart attack than were non-users in the same age group.

In the United States, amphetamine is classified as a Schedule II stimulant, meaning that the U.S. government has determined that although the drug has legitimate medical uses, its high potential for abuse - and the likelihood that its use may lead to severe psychological or physical dependence - demands that its possession and distribution be subject to federal regulation.

A HISTORY OF USE & ABUSE
The history of amphetamine abuse involves a cast of characters that would make any film noir scriptwriter proud. Nazi soldiers ingested mass quantities of the drug during the dark days of World War II; Jack Kerouac is alleged to have written his classic novel On The Road while high on amphetamine-rich Benzedrine; Malcolm X recalled his use of the drug in his autobiography; and even the great fictional spy James Bond took it on at least two occasions, in the novels Moonraker and Live and Let Die.

First synthesized by German chemists in the late 1880s, amphetamine remained relatively ignored for more than 40 years, until the company Smith, Kline, and French began marketing Benzedrine as a decongestant in the early 1930s.

During World War II, both Axis and Allied troops used Benzedrine to ward off fatigue and keep themselves alert. In "Hitler's Drugged Soldiers," an article that appeared in the May 6, 2005 edition of the German magazine Der Spiegel, writer Andreas Ulrich reported German soldiers' widespread use of Pervitin, an amphetamine-based drug.

"The Nazis preached abstinence in the name of promoting national health," Ulrich wrote. "But when it came to fighting their Blitzkrieg, they had no qualms about pumping their soldiers full of drugs and alcohol. Speed was the drug of choice ..."

Long before the United States entered the war, German leaders were issuing massive quantities of the drug in the name of alertness and morale, Ulrich reported:

During the short period between April and July of 1940, more than 35 million tablets of Pervitin and Isophan (a slightly modified version produced by the Knoll pharmaceutical company) were shipped to the German army and air force.

Some of the tablets, each containing three milligrams of active substance, were sent to the Wehrmacht's medical divisions under the code name OBM, and then distributed directly to the troops. A rush order could even be placed by telephone if a shipment was urgently needed.

Reporting on a recent resurgence of Pervitin abuse in the Czech Republic, Prague Post staff writer Markéta Hulpachová noted that the drug can have devastating effects. In the Nov. 28, 2007 edition of the paper, Hulpachová reported that Pervitin use "can cause long-term psychological damage, leading to certain types of psychosis."

After the war, amphetamine became one of the drugs of choice of many of the writers and poets who comprised the Beat Generation. As the online reference site Wikipedia reports, "Benzedrine at that time was available in the form of plastic inhalers, containing a piece of folded paper soaked in the drug. They would typically crack open the inhalers and drop the paper in coffee, or just wad it up and swallow it whole."

A CONTINUING THREAT
Benzedrine was available over the counter until 1959, when concerns over its abuse prompted the FDA to reclassify it as a prescription-only medication. Long after the removal of Benzedrine from drug store shelves, though, amphetamine continued to be used recreationally. It also served as an appetite suppressant, as well as an "upper" to help truck drivers on long hauls and college students cramming for exams. Restrictive laws implemented in the 1970s made the drug harder to acquire, and the spotlight shifted onto substances such as cocaine, Ecstasy, and crystal meth.

A high-profile reminder of the dangers of amphetamine abuse occurred in 2002, when media reports of a "friendly fire" incident in which American planes mistakenly bombed Canadian forces in Afghanistan noted that U.S. Air Force pilots routinely took dextroamphetamine-laced "go pills" before heading out on long missions.

In an Aug. 1, 2002 article, Toronto Star reporter William Walker wrote that Air Force pilots "are allowed to 'self-regulate' the amounts of Dexedrine they take. They carry the pills in the single-person cockpit of their F-16s and take them as they wish." Walker also reported that pilots who can't sleep after missions are often given Ambien or Restoril.

Among those who took issue with this practice was Dr. Joyce A. Walsleben, director of the Sleep Disorder Centre at the New York University School of Medicine, who warned against giving wartime pilots a drug that can cause hallucinations and delusions.

"Dexedrine also leads a person to build a tolerance level for the drug and ... addictive tendencies among those who continue to use it regularly," Walsleben told Walker. "The threat of abuse and addiction is definitely higher with Dexedrine."

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The path to drug addiction begins with that first act of taking drugs. Over time, a person may need more of the drug to get the same effect. Drug seeking becomes compulsive, in large part as a result of the effects of prolonged drug use on brain functioning and, thus, on behavior. Drug addiction makes drug use a compelling need, not a casual choice.

Why can't drug addicts quit on their own?
Nearly all addicted individuals believe in the beginning that they can stop using drugs on their own, and most try to stop without treatment. However, most of these attempts result in failure to achieve long-term abstinence. Research has shown that long-term drug use results in significant changes in brain function that persist long after the individual stops using drugs. These drug-induced changes in brain function may have many behavioral consequences, including the compulsion to use drugs despite adverse consequencesÑthe defining characteristic of addiction.

Long-term drug use results in significant changes in brain function that persist long after the individual stops using drugs.

Understanding that addiction has such an important biological component may help explain an individual's difficulty in achieving and maintaining abstinence without treatment. Psychological stress from work or family problems, social cues (such as meeting individuals from one's drug-using past), or the environment (such as encountering streets, objects, or even smells associated with drug use) can interact with biological factors to hinder attainment of sustained abstinence and make relapse more likely. Research studies indicate that even the most severely addicted individuals can participate actively in treatment and that active participation is essential to good outcomes.

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The principal routes of cocaine administration are oral, intranasal, intravenous, and inhalation. The slang terms for these routes are, respectively, "chewing," "snorting," "mainlining," "injecting," and "smoking" (including freebase and crack cocaine). Snorting is the process of inhaling cocaine powder through the nostrils, where it is absorbed into the bloodstream through the nasal tissues. Injecting releases the drug directly into the bloodstream, and heightens the intensity of its effects. Smoking involves the inhalation of cocaine vapor or smoke into the lungs, where absorption into the bloodstream is as rapid as by injection. The drug can also be rubbed onto mucous tissues. Some users combine cocaine powder or crack with heroin in a "speedball."

Cocaine use ranges from occasional use to repeated or compulsive use, with a variety of patterns between these extremes. There is no safe way to use cocaine. Any route of administration can lead to absorption of toxic amounts of cocaine, leading to acute cardiovascular or cerebrovascular emergencies that could result in sudden death. Repeated cocaine use by any route of administration can produce addiction and other adverse health consequences.

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Crack - Cocaine Addiction
There has been an enormous increase in the number of people seeking treatment for cocaine addiction since the 1980s. Treatment providers in most areas of the country report that it is the second most commonly cited drug of abuse among their clients. The majority of individuals seeking treatment smoke crack, and are likely to be poly-drug users, or users of more than one substance.

The widespread abuse of crack cocaine has stimulated extensive efforts to develop treatment programs for this type of drug abuse. Cocaine abuse and addiction is a complex problem involving biological changes in the brain as well as a myriad of social, familial, and environmental factors. Therefore, treatment of cocaine addiction is complex, and must address a variety of problems. Like any good treatment plan, treatment strategies need to assess the psychobiological, social, and pharmacological aspects of the patient's drug abuse.

Through the use of sophisticated technology, scientists can actually see the dynamic changes that occur in the brain as an individual takes the drug. They can observe the different brain changes that occur as a person experiences the "rush and the high" and finally, the craving of cocaine. They can also identify parts of the brain that become active when a cocaine addict sees or hears environmental stimuli that trigger the craving for cocaine. Because these types of studies pinpoint specific brain regions, they are critical to identifying targets for developing medications and treatments to treat addiction.

Cocaine and Crack Availability

Cocaine is a principal drug threat to the United States. Both powder cocaine and crack are prevalent throughout the country, and overall availability is stable. Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) Field Divisions report that powder cocaine and crack are readily or widely available, and most describe cocaine as the greatest drug threat to their areas.

Obviously, many more residential and long-term treatment resources are needed.  Call 1-877-212-2070 to speak to a Certified Chemical Dependency Counselor and see how to help yourself or a loved one find "The Solution."
 

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Drug Addiction - The Hard Truths
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Those who struggle with drug addiction don't set out to destroy themselves and everyone and everything in their path--rather, these disastrous consequences are the effect of the vicious cycle of addiction. For many, drugs seem to be a means of averting emotional and/or physical pain by providing the user with a temporary and illusionary escape from or way to cope with life's realities. In fact, more problems--often life-shattering ones--are created by using drugs.

 

Addiction is more than an uncontrollable desire for substances; it is an underlying behavior pattern with deeply emotional roots. Successful treatment requires digging down and revealing the long-ingrained pattern at the root level. What's often revealed is behavior born of anger, helplessness, and shame, compounded by intense desires for immediate escape from these unsettling feelings.

Have you begun to worry about how much you-or someone close to you-is drinking or drugging? Excessive drinking or drugging can harm your health and your well being. But how much drinking or drugging is too much? And how can you tell when it's become a problem that needs to be addressed?

"Raves" or all-night dance parties continue to attract teens and young adults who may think Ecstasy, GHB, Rohypnol, and other club drugs are harmless. While researchers continue to study club drugs with a sense of urgency, treatment and prevention strategies are being developed. The bottom line is simple: even experimenting with club drugs is an unpredictable and dangerous thing to do.

The developmental stages of drug involvement and addiction are not necessarily identical for men and women. The path to drug abuse can be more rapid and complex for women and typically includes a pattern of breakdowns in individual, familial, and environmental protective factors and an increase in childhood fears, anxieties, phobias, and failed relationships.

Results of a recent nationwide survey reveal that, while millions of Americans habitually smoke pot, drink alcohol, use cocaine and swallow prescription drugs, too many who meet the criteria for needing treatment do not recognize that they have a problem. The figure of those "in denial" is estimated at more than 4.6 million--a significantly higher number of individuals who could benefit from professional help than had previously been thought.

Methamphetamine--known by such slang names as speed, meth, chalk, ice, crystal, crank, glass, and uppers--is a highly addictive and ultimately dangerous stimulant. Whatever the excuse to use meth, or whatever the perceived short-term attraction to the drug may be, meth use is predictably physically, emotionally and mentally destructive.

A Cognitive-Behavioral approach to treating cocaine addiction attempts to help patients recognize, avoid, and cope. That is, to recognize the situations in which they are most likely to use cocaine, to avoid those situations when appropriate, and to cope more effectively with a range of problems and problematic behaviors associated with substance abuse.

Marijuana has adverse effects on the brain, heart, and lungs--and mounting evidence also suggests a correlation between marijuana use and depression. The question experts on all sides want answered is, which came first? Marijuana use or depression? Do depressed teens smoke pot to relieve their symptoms, or does smoking pot actually cause depression?

Selecting a drug rehab for yourself or someone you care about may be one of the most important decisions you will make in your lifetime. Most of us don't know what to look for in a quality program. Not all drug rehab centers are the same--they differ greatly in program options, staff qualifications, credentials, cost, and effectiveness.

Diversion and abuse of the prescription pain reliever OxyContin has become a major problem. The Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) reports that, in the United States, oxycodone products, including OxyContin, are frequently abused pharmaceuticals.

A recent survey of teens conducted by the National Center on Addiction and Substance Abuse found that one in four questioned said they had a friend or class mate whom they knew had used Ecstasy, and 17% said they knew more than one user. Often referred to as this decade's version of LSD, Ecstasy is, according to some of its users "the hottest drug going now." It's also one of the deadliest.

A new survey estimates that as many as three-fourths of American adults think they know enough about how drinking affects their blood alcohol levels, while in fact, most don't even know the legal limits in their own state. The Century Council, a group backed by major distillers, is campaigning to better educate the public about those limits and how much you have to drink to exceed them.

Researchers say that drugs may create "extreme" memories by overstimulating the brain's dopamine system. When drugs cause an overabundance of dopamine it may cause the brain to "overlearn," creating a memory of drugs as "good."

The word "cocaine" refers to the drug in both a powder (cocaine) and crystal (crack) form. It is made from the coca plant and causes a short-lived high that is immediately followed by opposite, intense feelings of depression, edginess, and a craving for more of the drug. Using cocaine has dangerous emotional and physical effects that can prove to destructive to all aspects of a person's life--and can even be fatal

According to a new survey released July 18, 2006 by the National Association of Counties (NACo), county law enforcement officials across 44 states reported that methamphetamine remains the number one drug problem in their county.

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 Let me tell you a little about what is going on with the addict and why these other programs don't work and what the solution is: in all of our brains there is something called neurotransmitters and what they are is like little roads that goes back and forth.  This is where our dopamine, seratonin and endorphins are produced; it's kind of God's natural reward system. 

When we are eating good; sleeping good; exercising, having sex, anything that we do naturally and normally we feel better, live longer and we're happier.    When a person drinks or does drugs we block off those roads in our brain.  It takes them about 25-35 days to start producing at a normal level again.  This is about the time that a person comes out of a traditional or twelve-step treatment program.   And if this was the only thing going on in our body we could go to treatment anywhere; come out go to meetings, counseling, church, after-care, half-way house whatever and stay clean.  But there is something else going on in your body and it is called Metabolization; what that means is that the drugs and alcohol are termed lypo-philic or fat-bonding so traces of the drugs and alcohol are stored in your body, so lets say that a person honestly tries not to use. 

Sometimes a person can go a few days; sometimes a few weeks; sometimes a few months, but not usually, all it takes is getting stressed out; having an argument with someone, not eating properly, running into a drug buddy at the store, getting a pocket full of money; anything that speeds up the metabolizism and the heart rate and the metabolites get released out into the system and go straight up to the brain and set off a drug or alcohol craving.   

It takes our body 3-5 years to clean up all these metabolites if we could stay totally clean off everything.  And in that period of time a person will have 100's and usually 1000's of cravings.  What we do here at Narconon is address the Biophysical part of the addiction and the mental and emotional issues.  We have a 76% Success Rate; most treatment programs have a 3-7% Success Rate.  The reason ours is so high is because we address the Biophysical 1^st and then the Mental and Emotional 2^nd. What we would do is bring a person in and put them on a strict regimen of vitamins, minerals and amino acids and then they would weigh in and do you vitals, then you will go in and out of a dry heat sauna just like at the health spa, as they go in and out of the sauna a person will drink approx. 2 gallons of water, well 2 gallons of water weighs 16 lbs, at the end of the day they will weigh out and do your vitals again and you will weigh out within a pound of what you weighed in that morning. 

This is how in a 30-45 sometimes 60 day period we will you accomplish what takes 3-5 years and that is to clean up the physical craving for the drugs and alcohol.  But this is only the 1^st part of the treatment then we will address the Mental and Emotional Issues through a set of classes or courses that are called Life-skill Therapy which means that we will teach you how to Control, Confront and Communicate with yourself, your environment and your surroundings.  So once your not physically craving the drugs and alcohol and you have handled the mental and emotional issues then you will be able to control your choices, confront life and communicate, set goals and accomplish them and remain alcohol & drug free.

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