Addiction, as usually defined, is a physical dependence on a substance, in the case of drug addiction. The dependency is intense that without the drug the person might be in severe pain or dysfunctional. This is because the drug has already affected the chemical balance in the brain allowing the person’s system to crave for the certain drug in order to attain stability. This gets worse when the body starts to tolerate the drug that enters the system, thus, resulting to a higher amount requirement the next time the drug is taken to achieve the desired effect.
From its very definition, addiction is the situation of being enslaved to something that is psychologically or physically habit-forming, such narcotics, to such an extent that its cessation causes distress. This distress can differ in intensity from intense cravings to life threatening illness (depending on the drug), making it virtually impossible for an addict to give up without assistance. Because the majority withdrawal symptoms can be relieved immediately upon use of the drug that the body is withdrawing from, the desire to use that drug is exceptionally high in this period, often resulting in defeat of the recovery before it can even begin.
To treat addiction, it always starts with the recognition of it. The treatment process can then be carried on. Treating substance dependence means taking away the dependency on the drug. This would signify that the person had to stop taking the drug. However, inhibiting the body of an addict from taking in the drug would lead to withdrawal symptoms. It is never easy to deal with these symptoms. The severity of the symptoms depends on the kind of drug the person is addicted to. Detoxification should be done to stop pains of withdrawal symptoms.
Detoxification is a process of cleansing the toxins from the body. Relating this to, it is the removal of the drug residues from the body and controlling the symptoms of withdrawal. The detoxification process is only the first step to recovery. Taking away the toxins that have been controlling the body system of the addict should be done first before any behavioral based theraphy which would cure the causal factors of addiction.
Drug detoxification is referred to as the stage of withdrawal during which the person’s body eventually returns to balance after long-term use of an addictive substance. Depending on the addiction, the process will vary.
Detoxification can be for both inpatient and outpatient basis. Inpatient detoxification allows a close monitoring on the patient. Also, the contact to the substance of abuse could be avoided. Meanwhile, outpatient detoxification allows higher social support. Compared with inpatients, patients in outpatient theraphy keep greater freedom, continue with their day-to-day activities with fewer disruptions. However, with outpatient treatment, there is an higher threat of relapse since the patient is more likely to be exposed with the substance of abuse.
The process of drug detoxification seeks to lessen the severity of the trauma associated with the body’s withdrawal from dependence on a particular drug by medically alleviating and monitoring the intense physical symptoms associated with systematically inducing the withdrawal process. When the drug is emptied from the system and the pain and discomfort associated with ending its use have been alleviated, the other factors contributing to the addiction, such as the emotional and psychological issues, can be addressed.
Addiction is a very serious problem among the many people in all walks of life. More than intensive treatment, self-determination is also a requirement. The healing process is to be deal very hard everyday.
