People have a hard time understanding why loved ones suffering from alcohol dependence or drug addiction wait so long to enter alcohol and drug treatment.  A major reason for this is denial of reality.  As bad as things look to the outsider, alcoholics and drug addicts just don’t see it.

Denial should not be compared to a blindfold.  It’s more like blinders on a racehorse.  Alcoholics and drug addicts are well aware of the problems they face in life.  But they are incapable of accepting the consequences they suffer because alcohol and drugs are an important part of their lives.  As far as they are concerned, alcohol or drugs are a solution and far from a problem.

It comes from a belief that absent their calming substance things would be much worse, not better.  When a thought that problems stem from alcohol or drugs begin to enter their minds, it is quickly dismissed as preposterous.  There is a tunnel vision that temporarily pushes these thoughts out of sight along with all of the problems that need to be solved.

Even deeper in their psyche is an incapability to deal with emotions.  Denial protects alcoholics and addicts from feelings.  When they are confronted by a loved one, they will run to the comfort of alcohol or drugs to “clear their heads”.  The escape from emotions is a comfort.  In fact, it is usually the only comfort they have.  

This cycle is never-ending because alcohol and drugs are both the solution and problem for the alcoholic and addict.  But the solution illusion always wins in their minds.  Thus, they will not seek alcohol and drug treatment until problems are insurmountable or the family calls for an intervention.

Sadly, it takes a shock to the system to drag the alcoholic and drug addict into reality.  Once denial is shattered they may feel lost, so care must be taken to avoid provoking them back to denial.  The best bet is to be firm with the shock, but have loving arms to catch them when they fall.  Then immediately contact an alcohol and drug treatment center.

Drug-addiction.com, an informative website, posted an article a few years back that offers a glimpse at the problem of denial with the disease.  The portion excerpted below shows pertinent statistics, and the full article offers some additional insight.

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According to the results of the survey, of the 5.0 million people who needed but did not receive treatment in 2001, an estimated 377,000 reported that they felt they needed treatment for their drug problem. This includes an estimated 101,000 who reported that they made an effort but were unable to get treatment and 276,000 who reported making no effort to get treatment.

"We have a large and growing denial gap when it comes to drug abuse and dependency in this country," said John Walters, Director of National Drug Control Policy. "We have a responsibility--as family members, employers, physicians, educators, religious leaders, neighbors, colleagues, and friends--to reach out to help these people. We must find ways to lead them back to drug free lives. And the earlier we reach them, the greater will be our likelihood of success."

-- Source: http://www.drug-addiction.com/drugs_and_denial.htm --

Tarzana Treatment Centers in Los Angeles can help with intervention as part of our commitment to integrated behavioral healthcare in alcohol and drug treatment.  If you or a loved one needs help with alcoholism or drug addiction, please call us now at 800-996-1051 or contact us here.

Southern California Locations for Alcohol and Drug Treatment
Tarzana Treatment Centers has locations all over Southern California in Los Angeles County. Other than our central location in Tarzana, we have facilities in Lancaster in the Antelope Valley, Long Beach, and in Northridge and Reseda in the San Fernando Valley.

People who don’t suffer from drug addiction, and most who do, do not understand the process of this disease.  Even if they are curious, it seems like a daunting task to even begin learning about how the addicted brain works.  So it is fortunate that the potential cocaine vaccine is in the news because the information is currently widely available.

Many individuals are content with the knowledge that drug addiction is a physical and psychological disease that operates on obsessions and cravings, if that much.  When the disease hits home, though, that information just doesn’t seem enough.  By then their attention is focused on the visible problem rather than the processes that make it happen.

As interest grows among the general public, more will be written and reported about the cocaine vaccine.  Each new article reveals a piece of the puzzle that makes up the processes of the addicted brain.  This is important for those seeking understanding because the research is bringing many facts to light about the underlying disease of addiction in an easy-to-read manner.  

A basic understanding of the normal brain processes may be necessary in reading some articles.  But most articles on the subject are taking that fact into account and giving brief explanations.  So just starting to read articles about the cocaine vaccine should yield better understanding of the disease of addiction.

An article has been posted on Sciencedaily.com about computer models of cocaine addicts’ brains.  A portion is copied below.  It is a good example of an article that may seem complex, but is understandable and can encourage further reading.

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Glutamate is the major chemical released in the synaptic connections in the brain; the right amount present determines the activity of those connections. Using the computational model, MU researchers found that in an addict’s brain excessive glutamate produced in the pleasure center makes the brain’s mechanisms unable to regulate themselves and creates permanent damage, making cocaine addiction a disease that is more than just a behavioral change.

“Our model showed that the glutamate transporters, a protein present around these connections that remove glutamate, are almost 40 percent less functional after chronic cocaine usage,” Mohan said. “This damage is long lasting, and there is no way for the brain to regulate itself. Thus, the brain structure in this context actually changes in cocaine addicts.”

-- Source: http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/09/090922160104.htm --

Tarzana Treatment Centers in Los Angeles provides addiction education and medication assisted treatment as part of our commitment to integrated behavioral healthcare in alcohol and drug treatment.  If you or a loved one needs help with drug addiction or alcohol dependence, please call us now at 800-996-1051 or contact us here.

Southern California Locations for Alcohol and Drug Treatment
Tarzana Treatment Centers has locations all over Southern California in Los Angeles County. Other than our central location in Tarzana, we have facilities in Lancaster in the Antelope Valley, Long Beach, and in Northridge and Reseda in the San Fernando Valley.

Drug addiction is a disease that can result in death.  The subject is certainly not pleasant to discuss. However, in order to save lives we must face this fact.  More people need to be aware that drug treatment helps to prevent drug-related deaths.

Drug abuse and addiction results in death from several consequences.  Overdose is the obvious one.  These days it isn't just the addict who injected too much heroin.  Even those who use prescription drugs, like pain killers and benzodiazepines, ordered by their physician can accidentally overdose and be lost.

Stimulants like cocaine and methamphetamines affect the heart, causing possible heart attacks.  And the erratic behavior of these users can lead them to destructive activities that can cause serious injury and death.  The sad thing is that most of these users are seeking to be in that state of mind.

We've all seen individuals say they are okay to drive after an evening of alcohol abuse.  Driving under the influence of drugs is equally dangerous.  Drug users tend to actually believe they drive better on drugs, though, because of the false notion they are more attuned to things around them.  Sadly, DUI and other factors of drug abuse leads to lost innocent lives.

Drug addiction leads individuals to commit crimes that harm innocent bystanders.  The impaired mind of a drug addict only seeks to satisfy its need for more of the drug of choice.  It is selfish and lacks remorse if when life is lost in the pursuit of its needs.  This, above all other reasons, should persuade anyone of the urgency to get drug addicts into treatment.

Treatment helps drug addicts to stop using drugs and learn how to live productively without them.  When drug detox is complete, entering residential rehab or outpatient treatment gives addicts a chance to understand why they use drugs and what may trigger a relapse.  It is urgent that treatment is sought before a life is lost.

The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration has released a report from the Drug Abuse Warning Network (DAWN) about drug-related deaths in the United States.  A portion is below, followed by a link to the full report.

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DAWN is a public health surveillance system that monitors drug-related deaths referred to medical examiners and coroners in selected participating metropolitan areas and states.  Although the DAWN data cannot be extrapolated to the entire United States, the information can be helpful for analyzing the nature and scope of substance abuse-related deaths in the areas it covers.
 
For example, analysis of the 2007 DAWN Report reveals that among the 10 states participating fully with DAWN, rates of drug-related deaths ranged from a high of 21.0 deaths per 100,000 population in New Mexico to a low of 5.9 deaths per 100,000 population in Virginia.  The rate for the State of Oklahoma saw a 79 percent increase from 2006; while Vermont's rate dropped 12 percent. 
 
-- Source: https://dawninfo.samhsa.gov/pubs/ --

Tarzana Treatment Centers in Los Angeles provides medical detoxification, and residential and outpatient treatment as part of our commitment to integrated behavioral healthcare in alcohol and drug treatment.  If you or a loved one needs help with drug addiction, please call us now at 800-996-1051 or contact us here.

Southern California Locations for Alcohol and Drug Treatment
Tarzana Treatment Centers has locations all over Southern California in Los Angeles County. Other than our central location in Tarzana, we have facilities in Lancaster in the Antelope Valley, Long Beach, and in Northridge and Reseda in the San Fernando Valley.

Drug addiction is a complex term that has different meanings depending on who you ask. It is easier to answer the question “what is drug dependence”. Drug dependence refers to a state in which an individual uses a drug so frequently and consistently that it appears that it would be difficult for the person to get along without using the drug.

A physiological dependence implies that a person experiences physical symptoms of withdrawal. If a person spends a great deal of time and effort to get and use the drug, if they take more of the substance than he or she intended to, and they have tried to quit or cut down or control their use of substances without success, they meet the criteria for substance dependence. (Ksir, Hart and Ray: Drugs, Society and Human Behavior, 2006.)

In medical terminology, an addiction is a chronic neurobiological disorder that has genetic, psychosocial, and environmental factors and is characterized by at least one of the following: the continued use of a substance despite its negative effects on a person’s job, relationships and life, impaired control over the use of a drug (compulsive behavior), and using a drug for non-therapeutic purposes (i.e. craving the drug).

Deviant behavior is typically associated with addiction.  Most drug addicts will commit crimes on all levels in order to support their habits, from theft to prostitution, and some will even resort to murder.  An interesting note is that they tend to justify these behaviors to the point that they don’t even realize they are committing crimes.

How Tarzana Treatment Centers views addiction:
“We view addiction as a chronic, yet treatable, recurring disorder. Research indicates that both genetics and the environment can place an individual at risk for developing an addictive disorder, and having a co-occurring psychiatric disorder further increases this risk.

We are learning that the release of neurotransmitters to the reward center of the brain produces the euphoria associated with substance use, and that prolonged use can cause structural changes to parts of the brain, which may explain why addicts cannot return to occasional use even after long periods of abstinence. Many individuals with substance use disorders may require more than one episode of treatment, as is common with most chronic diseases.

There is overwhelming research evidence that shows that treatment does work, and that the length of time one stays in treatment and recovery activities is the best predictor of long-term positive outcomes. Also we view addiction as a disease that affects the whole family, and recognize that it is important to incorporate the family into treatment, in order to assist them with their own healing process.”

Tarzana Treatment Centers in Los Angeles provides treatment for drug addiction including medical detoxification for physical drug dependence.  If you or a loved one needs help with drug addiction, please call us now at 800-996-1051 or contact us here.

Southern California Locations for Alcohol and Drug Treatment
Tarzana Treatment Centers has locations all over Southern California in Los Angeles County. Other than our central location in Tarzana, we have facilities in Lancaster in the Antelope Valley, Long Beach, and in Northridge and Reseda in the San Fernando Valley.

Many people with chronic alcohol dependence or other drug addictions experience liver disease. This is no accident. The liver is used to digest food, absorb nutrients, and get toxic substances (like alcohol and drugs) out of your body. The liver is an important organ in the body; you only have one and cannot survive without it.  And with alcohol’s effects on the body, liver problems could just be the beginning.

Alcohol abuse is not the only way to damage your liver. Unprotected sex, sharing needles, prescription drug abuse and addiction, and getting tattoos or piercings from places that do not properly sterilize the needles also can put you at risk of liver disease and damage.

There are many forms of liver disease; the conditions listed below are most common among alcohol and other drug abusers.

Cirrhosis – scarring of the liver that is caused by having another liver disease (like Hepatitis), or by many years of heavy alcohol drinking. Cirrhosis is not curable, but there are treatments that can help slow the scarring.

Hepatitis C – a disease that is passed through blood-to-blood contact. It is caused by a virus that attacks the liver, causing the liver to become inflamed. There is a cure, but it takes months to complete treatment, has severe side effects, and does not work for everyone.

Hepatitis A – a disease that is similar to the flu.  You get Hepatitis A by eating food containing human waste. People rarely die from it, and there is a vaccine to prevent you from getting it.

Hepatitis B – a disease that is passed through body fluids during sex, through the breast milk of infected mothers, and through contact with contaminated blood. People can die from it, but there is a vaccine to prevent it.

The best way to prevent liver disease is to not abuse alcohol or use illegal drugs.  Only use drugs as prescribed by your doctor, or as indicated on over-the-counter packaging.  Never engage in unprotected sex (unless you and your partner are completely monogamous and have tested negative for all STI’s recently).

If you have not been vaccinated for Hepatitis A and B, talk with your doctor to see if it is right for you. There are treatments and some liver disease is reversible, so talk to your doctor about the choices that are out there.

For most information, check out the American Liver Foundation website: http://www.yourliver.org/learn.html.

If you or a loved one need help for alcoholism or drug addiction, and also suffer from liver disease, Tarzana Treatment Centers in Los Angeles can help.  As part of our commitment to integrated behavioral healthcare, our alcohol and drug treatment program includes primary medical care.  Please call us now at 800-996-1051 or contact us here.

Southern California Locations for Alcohol and Drug Treatment
Tarzana Treatment Centers has locations all over Southern California in Los Angeles County. Other than our central location in Tarzana, we have facilities in Lancaster in the Antelope Valley, Long Beach, and in Northridge and Reseda in the San Fernando Valley.

The term “drug detox” has more than one meaning in today’s society, which can cause confusion and real problems for those performing a web search.  In alcohol and drug treatment it is used to describe a safe and healthy way to avoid withdrawal symptoms through medical detoxification.  But it can also be defined as the means used to cleanse the body with the hope of passing a drug test.

The former will be discussed here.

Drug detox will occur any time a person ceases use of a drug.  Drugs are removed from the body at different rates depending on the drug and the metabolism of the individual.  But if that individual is addicted to a drug, therefore physically dependent, withdrawal symptoms will accompany the detox process.  In these cases, medical detoxification helps to minimize the effects of drug withdrawal and decreases the chances of relapse.

The drug addictions that most commonly require medical detoxification are heroin and other opiates, and prescription opioids and benzodiazepines.  The process begins with an assessment to determine a starting dose and treatment plan for each patient.  Doses are gradually tapered down each day in the drug detox center until the patient is drug free.

Detox is also available for methamphetamine addiction, although detox medications are not required to minimize withdrawal symptoms.  It is helpful, though, for medical and mental health professionals to monitor progress.

Tarzana Treatment Centers provides medical detoxification for adults and adolescents with any type of drug addiction.  Each patient is not only assessed and monitored by medical staff while in treatment, but is also assigned a primary addiction counselor who will guide them on the road to recovery.  Mental health professionals are available for those requiring ongoing therapy or medications.  Before detox treatment ends, patients are referred to residential or outpatient drug treatment for aftercare.

However defined, drug detox is good for the human body as long as the purpose is to remain abstinent from drugs.  If drugs are causing a problem in a person’s life, drug treatment is the solution.  And anyone with a drug addiction should seek medical detoxification.  Temporarily cleansing the body rarely results in a “clean” drug test, anyway.  

If you have questions about medical detoxification for a drug addiction, please call us at 800-996-1051 or contact us here.

Southern California Locations for Alcohol and Drug Treatment
Tarzana Treatment Centers has locations all over Southern California in Los Angeles County and Orange County. Other than our central location in Tarzana, we have facilities in Lancaster in the Antelope Valley, Long Beach, in Northridge and Reseda in the San Fernando Valley, and in Santa Ana.

Drug addiction affects all socio-economic classes and ethnicities.  With all we know about the disease, it is unfortunate that this fact continues to be ignored by the majority of the general population.  It is ignored because drug addiction has a stigma and unfortunate because good people get locked into a destructive cycle.

The faces of drug addiction are easily seen in the classic frame of “Skid Rows” in every major city.  The general term leads people to think of heroin, methamphetamines, cocaine, and other illegal drugs.  While these are all indeed a part of the problem, they should no longer be considered the major problem.  The effort to help these individuals needs to continue while more attention is paid elsewhere.

Prescription drug addiction has become a common issue at the workplace.  But two things keep it hidden from public view.  First, the drug addict is very secretive about needing a drug because it is considered a sign of weakness.  Second, if co-workers are aware of the drug use, they avoid confronting the addict because they don’t want to pry.

On the other side of stigma is marijuana addiction.  This drug has become more accepted in society, and therefore has lost much of the stigma attached to its use.  But it must be understood that social acceptance does not eliminate the fact that some individuals are addicted to marijuana, and more will addict to it.

As more people educate themselves about drug addiction, more addicts can get into drug detox and treatment and lives can be saved.  Drug addiction has the power to destroy the lives of those it affects and their loved ones.  

The following is from the National Institute on Drug Abuse website.  The full article, linked below, includes basic information about drug addiction.  

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What is drug addiction?

Addiction is a chronic, often relapsing brain disease that causes compulsive drug seeking and use despite harmful consequences to the individual who is addicted and to those around them. Drug addiction is a brain disease because the abuse of drugs leads to changes in the structure and function of the brain. Although it is true that for most people the initial decision to take drugs is voluntary, over time the changes in the brain caused by repeated drug abuse can affect a person’s self control and ability to make sound decisions, and at the same time send intense impulses to take drugs.

It is because of these changes in the brain that it is so challenging for a person who is addicted to stop abusing drugs. Fortunately, there are treatments that help people to counteract addiction’s powerful disruptive effects and regain control. Research shows that combining addiction treatment medications, if available, with behavioral therapy is the best way to ensure success for most patients. Treatment approaches that are tailored to each patient’s drug abuse patterns and any co-occurring medical, psychiatric, and social problems can lead to sustained recovery and a life without drug abuse.

Similar to other chronic, relapsing diseases, such as diabetes, asthma, or heart disease, drug addiction can be managed successfully. And, as with other chronic diseases, it is not uncommon for a person to relapse and begin abusing drugs again. Relapse, however, does not signal failure—rather, it indicates that treatment should be reinstated, adjusted, or that alternate treatment is needed to help the individual regain control and recover.

-- http://www.drugabuse.gov/Infofacts/understand.html --

Tarzana Treatment Centers in Los Angeles makes a daily effort to find treatment news articles that we can share with our readers in the alcohol and drug treatment community.  The external content was found among other articles of equal informational and educational quality.