Tag Archives: methadone benefits

Helping Skeptics Understand Methadone

When it comes to addiction, reactions and opinions are often intense. Addiction is a devastating illness that can rapidly derail a person’s life, and seriously impact the lives of those around them.

Sadly, addiction leads people to behave in ways that make no sense to their family, friends, and co-workers. Therein lies an important part of the problem. Family feel confused, angry, and fearful as their loved one tumbles down the hill of active addiction.

When it comes to something as perplexing as drug addiction, grasping for answers is an understandable reflex for family and friends. What family often don’t comprehend is the power of physical dependency to opioids and the severe sickness that results from opioid withdrawal.

Family and others incorrectly assume that mere “choice” is all that’s needed to overcome the addiction. When the addict fails to remain drug free, harsh judgment by others usually follows.

Halting withdrawal sickness is a paramount step for an opioid addicted person. This cannot be overstated. As long as a person is suffering from severe opioid withdrawal, their ability to think and “choose” logically is greatly impaired.

Statistically, individuals who utilize medication-assisted treatment (like methadone) are far more likely to avoid incarceration, a continued downward spiral, or death by overdose. Medication assistance successfully removes debilitating withdrawal sickness so that the addicted person can experience greater clarity of thought and the ability to make more sound decisions that lead to improved quality of life.

If you are a skeptic about methadone or suboxone, you may think “they’re just trading one drug for another”. This is not true. People, once therapeutically stabilized on methadone or suboxone, do not get high from the medication. Health generally improves, and the person is able to function much better on the job and at home. This brings hope. It offers a new opportunity for further recovery.

When you care about a person’s survival, one more chance to help them can be quite valuable. Don’t let judgment or excessive skepticism get in the way. Medication-assistance in opioid recovery is effective for many people, and it has been the life saving next step that some never got the chance to take.

Faces of Recovery

The faces of recovery are as diverse as you can imagine. Decades ago, there were common stereotypes of addicts as people who looked a certain way and likely came from a shady side of the tracks.

Today, we now understand that addiction has impacted nearly every family and community across the country. It has crept into mainstream life to such a large extent that the old stereotypes have faded away, and in their place are pictures of everyday people like the ones we know and love.

Opioid addiction is an illness that can be successfully treated. This new reality provides hope and assurance that nearly any person, with proper support and treatment, can successfully manage this illness and regain their life.

However, the odds are not good for individuals who stay in active addiction and who postpone their entry into professional care. With the widespread proliferation of fentanyl and other adulterated street opiates, the risks have never been greater.

In the United States, there are a significant number of methadone clinics, buprenorphine clinics, and qualified physicians who specialize in the treatment of opioid addition using medication-assisted approaches. For the vast majority of opioid addicted people, medication is key in helping them to prevent extremely diffcult opioid withdrawal.

Once withdrawal sickness is effectively eliminated, then counseling & support can help restore a person’s life and open up new paths to the future.

Methadone Clinics Offer Important Medical Service

methadone clinics medication assistanceThere are currently well over 1000 methadone clinics in operation across the United States and many more throughout the world. Methadone has been a leading treatment intervention for opioid addiction for more than 40 years. Methadone is an FDA-approved medication and it’s use in treating opioid addiction has been identified by SAMHSA as a best practice, evidence-based treatment approach.

Adding to the legacy of methadone as a successful treatment medium are the hundreds of thousands of individuals who have been able to totally eliminate the severe opioid withdrawal sickness that wrecked their lives. The value of this medical benefit is priceless.

The cost for participating in a methadone program varies from clinic to clinic and in part depends on whether the clinic receives any state funding or accepts Medicaid for payment. Many clinics operate as private practices funded primarily through patient self-payment. Private clinics often offer a substantial discount for patients that pay for a month of services in advance.

Due to methadone’s proven efficacy, many addicted people experience rapid relief from opiate withdrawal and find themselves eating and sleeping more normally, gaining weight, and able to work again. They are able to pursue other goals & responsibilities that had previously become too difficult in their active addiction.

Methadone is a powerful medication that must be taken as prescribed and in conjunction with good counseling. When a patient is willing to embrace medication-assisted treatment and to utilize it properly, recovery can happen. This life restoration process is demonstrated on a daily basis all around the country.

> Compare Different Opioid Addiction Treatments

 

Canadian Press Publishes Article on Benefits of Methadone

canadian-methadone-clinicsFurther validating the merits of opioid treatment using methadone is a recent article by The Canadian Press outlining the findings of Canada’s Medical Health Officer in British Columbia, Dr. Perry Kendall.

Dr. Kendall’s report documents that individuals in opioid substitution therapy are twice as likely to survive compared to those who obtain opioids illegally on the street. Those in opioid addiction therapy were also found to be much more cost effective to society (about $4200 per year for treatment) compared to those with untreated addictions whose costs are estimated to be $45,000 per year collectively in health complications, law enforcement involvement, and other social problems such as loss of income.

The province of British Columbia is currently treating over 15,000 residents for opioid addiction. Their health minister, Terry Lake, is quoted as saying that he was encouraged by the findings in the report and that he knows opioid substitution therapy is not only saving lives, but equates to significant savings for the Canadian healthcare system and society.

In a related story, youth struggling with opioid addiction are being helped in Canada by the increased availability of suboxone. Sean Morrison of the Strengths youth addiction services discussed the benefit that suboxone offers in eliminating opioid withdrawal symptoms and cravings so that young people can stabilize and focus more quickly on addiction recovery goals.

While opposition is still present in the USA from certain groups regarding the establishment of methadone treatment services near their community, the medical community and various treatment providers are increasingly able to demonstrate good outcomes with methadone and suboxone supported services. The science of addiction treatment using methadone and suboxone is powerful & compelling – thus legitimizing its increased availability to people who need it. Simply put, opioid substitution therapy saves lives and produces irrefutable medical and psychological benefits for those people struggling in addiction.