DRUG TREATMENT: Questions Over Method
Jeffrey Gronstal, a Health Facilities Officer with the Iowa Department of Health, which licenses substance abuse programs, says Hardage's treatment program is not only unconventional, it's “scary.” “I'm not sure what exposure therapy means, in terms of …
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Fort Wayne Treatment Center Announces Adult, Adolescent Programs to Tackle …
A Fort Wayne treatment center is announcing that new adult and adolescent programs aimed at tackling substance abuse issues, mainly drugs and alcohol, are now available through Drug Addiction Treatment Centers. These programs expand upon the …
Read more on PR Web (press release)

Ky. Officials Announce Million for Drug Addiction Treatment
Over the next two years, $ 560,000 will be used to help create 14 drug-free homes for people completing and transitioning out of residential substance abuse treatment programs. The money will provide start-up costs and rental assistance. Residents are …
Read more on WSAZ-TV

Addiction comes in many shapes. Drug addiction and alcoholism are probably the first ones that pop into our mind when thinking about addictions but it also seems like any word in the dictionary can receive the ‘aholic’ termination in order to describe a person’s dependence on getting anything in between chocolate, shopping, and computer games.

For alcohol, AA (Alcoholics Anonymous) has become like an international trademark for addiction treatment. However, science and practice tend to have different views on the effectiveness of AA treatment and other 12-step approaches for addiction recovery. In the same time, a set of alternative treatment options – also referred to as non 12-step addiction treatment options – also become more and more popular these days and most of them tend to employ a more holistic approach. For instance, some of the alternative holistic treatments employ yoga or mediation. Another popular recent approach concentrates on the effects of diet and nutrition and the success rates of using those as part of an alcoholism treatment. Some addictions use an indirect approach of providing a well-balanced nutrition and increasing the strength of the patient with vitamins and minerals.

Addiction rehab centers know that AA might be effective in practice but they also know that there are other methods that might be more effective – ranging from medications, to motivation based approaches such as rewarding non-drinking or non-consumption behaviors or even using aversive conditioning in order to instill repugnance to one’s object of an addiction. An increased importance is given today to treating addictions in rehab centers with a patient centered approach, having the person first convinced of the benefits of being treated and then identifying together with the specialized personnel what are the approaches that best suit patient’s needs. These centers offer an entire list of 12-step addiction recovery approaches and non 12-step addictions recovery approaches in the same time.

Another important factor to consider is that employing a non 12-step approach not only opens the door to treatment opportunities one might fail to consider when looking only at AA and similar 12-step approaches; it also gives people more choices in terms of selecting the method that best fits their beliefs and values system, even in the case in which they don’t believe in a higher power force, which is generally part of the 12-step approach. Other benefits of considering non 12-step addiction recovery solutions come from the fact that these other options can ensure more privacy for patients, allow them to get treated on a one-on-one basis rather than by attending group meetings. One might not want or like to attend those AA-type meetings or one might simply not have a flexible schedule to dedicate specific meeting times to that. In any of these cases, there are plenty of non 12-step solutions that address such specific needs.

Moreover, the level of specialization of these alternative methods has reached a stage at which some of them are designed particularly for certain social groups such a women oriented programs or programs designed for people with type of sexual orientation.

No matter how small or large is the population targeted by a treatment, the bottom line is that one should be aware of all the treatment options and actively involved in deciding which one could bring the best results.

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Question by Zach: how do you use Total Eclipse Rely Detox to pass a urine test?
I bought total eclipse rely detox from GNC but it doesnt have directions on how to pass a urine test. and does it really work?

Best answer:

Answer by Gary Y
Nup. You can’t “detox” faster than by you body’s own natural methods. “Detox” is one of the biggest scams out there. It has no meaning outside of the clinical treatment for drug addiction or poisoning.

http://www.senseaboutscience.org.uk/index.php/site/project/14/
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Detoxification

Know better? Leave your own answer in the comments!

Elizabeth Vargas Returns to TV Post-Rehab, Says Hiding Alcohol Addiction …
20/20's Elizabeth Vargas is bravely opening up about her battle with alcoholism and her time in rehab. "On a Saturday afternoon I showed up for a 20/20 shoot and I was in no shape to do that interview," Vargas, 51, told Good Morning America's George …
Read more on E! Online

Free Drug and Alcohol Addiction Treatment? We Can Fix That!
Imagine a treatment for drug addiction and alcoholism that uses no drugs, requires no trained personnel, resources or insurance and makes no money for anyone. This “people's program” is the anonymous 12-Step groups which have quietly saved millions …
Read more on The Epoch Times (blog)

Ke$ ha's mom slams alcoholism rumors: Kesha has bulimia, not alcohol addiction
Ke$ ha's mom is furious with rumors that her daughter went to rehab for alcoholism, insisting Ke$ ha is suffering from bulimia — not alcohol or drug addiction. “That's a total lie,” said Pebe Sebert told Celebuzz. “The place she's at is an eating …
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Irving Treatment Center Launches Substance Abuse Program
An Irving treatment center is launching adult and adolescent programs aimed at tackling alcohol and drug addiction which are now available through Drug Addiction Treatment Centers. According to information released from the U.S. Department of Health …
Read more on PR Web (press release)

Question by Flower Player: what are some ways that people broke drug addictions historically?
I am doing a report but after tons and tons of research, I CANNOT FIND HISTORICAL DIAGNOSES FOR DRUGS, I am looking for ways that have been put out of practice, for example, one historical treatment for illness was “leeching” putting a leech on somebody, and letting them drink out all of the “bad blood”. Once again, I am looking for discontinued practices for breaking drug abuse.

Best answer:

Answer by Angela
Your search may have been futile, because for a long time, what we know as “drug addiction” wasn’t recognized as a mental or social problem.

Some other treatments you may want to look into though, is shock treatment. Also, I see in my psychology text book, that in ancient Rome, addiction (but also a number of other problems were treated by soaking the “patient” in a hot bath and cooling them off rapidly.

What do you think? Answer below!