Does Suboxone Rehab Offer Other Types of Treatment Besides Drug Therapy?
While opiate addictions can be one of the most difficult to overcome, different people nonetheless respond to the effects of addiction in different ways. Suboxone rehab, one of the newer medication-assisted therapies, developed out of a need to improve upon methadone’s treatment effectiveness. The pressing demand for available opiate addiction treatment options also created a need for easier access to medication therapies as opposed to the restrictions surrounding methadone treatment.
As with any form of medication-assisted therapy, Suboxone’s effects only address the physical aftereffects of chronic opiate addiction. For this reason, Suboxone rehab programs offer a range of treatment services designed to help recovering addicts overcome the psychological aftereffects of long-term drug abuse.
Suboxone’s Therapeutic Effects
Suboxone belongs to the Schedule III class of opiate drugs, which makes for a lower addiction potential compared to methadone’s Schedule II class designation. Chemically speaking, Suboxone contains two active ingredients: buprenorphine and naltrexone.
According to the U. S. Food & Drug Administration, buprenorphine produces effects similar to methadone, mimicking the effects of addictive opiate in the brain and thereby stabilizing chemical imbalances left behind from chronic drug use. Naltrexone’s purpose works to prevent the abuse of Suboxone by deactivating the drug’s effects in the event a person attempts to snort or inject it.
Suboxone can also be administered by authorized physicians on an out-of-office basis, which makes it easier to obtain needed treatment compared to the strict clinic attendance requirements that come with methadone treatment.
Suboxone Rehab Treatment Services
Chronic opiate addiction not only creates a state of physical dependency on opiates, but also reconfigures a person’s thinking, motivations and behaviors. In effect, the psychological dependency that develops out of chronic opiate abuse lies at the heart of the addiction problems.
Suboxone rehab treatment combines the effects of Suboxone with a range of behavioral-based treatment interventions in an effort to address both the physical and psychological effects of long-term addiction.
Individual Psychotherapy
Individual psychotherapy plays a central role in the Suboxone rehab process as this line of treatment addresses the thinking patterns and belief systems that support addiction-based behaviors, according to the Substance Abuse & Mental Health Services Administration. Different forms of therapy can be used to accomplish these ends, some of which include:
- Cognitive-behavioral therapy
- Motivation therapy
- Drug education and counseling
- Dialectical Therapy
Group Therapy
Group therapies are an essential part of addiction treatment in general as these settings enable recovering addicts to express the challenges they face in recovery with like-minded others. Therapy groups also provide an ideal setting for members to develop healthy communication and conflict resolution skills.
12 Step Support Groups
Over the years, the 12 Step model has become an integral part of drug treatment recovery in general. Twelve-Step support groups offer a long-term approach to treating opiate addiction and, ideally, should become a regular part of the recovering addict’s lifestyle.
These groups offer many of the same therapeutic benefits as group therapy. Twelve-Step support groups also incorporate a type of 12-step blueprint for personal development that helps a person learn to maintain a drug-free lifestyle on a day-to-day basis.
Considerations
Anyone recovering from chronic opiate addiction well knows how overwhelming the urge to use can get from one day to the next. The types of treatment offered through Suboxone rehab help you work through the mental processes that drive drug-using tendencies and develop the type of mindset that makes ongoing abstinence possible.
If you or someone you know struggle with opiate addiction or are having difficulty maintaining a drug-free lifestyle, please feel free to call our toll-free helpline at 888-646-0865 (Who Answers?) for further assistance.