Meth Detoxification – It Will Save You
The need for methamphetamine rehabilitation has increased and it has been rising for at least 10 to 15 years. The care of addicts has been threatened by deep cuts to bloated state and local governments during the past few years. Further, insurance is more difficult to obtain and for the young in particular. Those looking for treatment will have to be more proactive than they needed to be just a few short years ago.
Military Use
Methamphetamine use damages the lining of the human heart through inflammation and also corrodes the small veins and blood vessels that feed blood to the brain. The only question is which affect the addict will suffer first, a stroke or heart attack. During WWII, both the Nazis and Japan prescribed amphetamines to allow soldiers to fight for days without sleep while retaining alertness and strength.
Symptoms
The abuser of this drug typically seeks the ability to stay awake and at high energy for prolonged periods, typically days on end. He or she pays a high price for such wakefulness, including damaged skin. Cracked lips, blisters and sores are common. So are blood shot eyes and the persistent need to scratch oneself. That’s just the short-term damage.
Long-Term
Over time, the methamphetamines user can expect hallucinations, both visual and aural. These may not accompany the moment of use but may come at any time. The user can also expect the most familiar effects of meth abuse, which are extreme weight loss and the rotting of the teeth.
Emotional Addiction
Therapists have learned that in treating addicted patients, it isn’t enough to address only physical aspects of their addiction. They have learned that meth, the “party drug”, creates in its abusers an addiction to the lifestyle surrounding that abuse that is as significant as the drug’s pharmacological effects. This is an abuse that creates small, close-knit and mutually-reinforcing communities of abusers. Those within these communities grow attached to their late-night drug culture.
Negative Social Bond
For treatment to have lasting impact, it is advisable to physically move the patient out of town, beyond the reach of his or her drug culture. The social reinforcement needs to be addressed just as much as the withdrawal from the drug. Otherwise, experience has shown that progress will be slow and relapse highly probable.
Types of Therapy
Individual treatment is the best device for finding out the patient’s core reasons for being so disastrously drawn to methamphetamines. While each person is different, the range of possibilities is somewhat common to all addicts. Lack of self-respect, compulsiveness, a general fear of life and an excessive need to please others are some of these reasons. By contrast, meth addiction group counseling, which continues in the after-care stage, is the best device for identifying those events in life that might trigger a desire for the drug.