What Is Holistic Drug Treatment?

If you've looked at drug treatment options, you may have noticed a term, "holistic," that's sometimes used to describe a process. The idea behind holistic drug treatment is that many cases involving substance abuse or misuse arise from multiple factors. The goal of holistic treatment is to treat the person as a whole, taking into account addiction concerns in terms of both the mind and the body. Let's take a look at what you can expect from a holistic drug treatment center.

Is This the Right Approach?

One of the tenants of holistic medicine is that there isn't a magical silver bullet that can ever treat any one problem in all people. If you're looking for a doctor to instantly "fix" things, you may want to look elsewhere.

The logic behind holistic treatment for substance use disorders boils down to something that seems evident when you look at the data. Many individuals who've developed such disorders have reported mental and emotional health concerns, unstable family backgrounds, negative social influences, traumatic life experiences, and other problems that seem to precede the development of addiction cycles. At the same time, there is solid scientific documentation of the roles played by the body and brain chemistries in addiction.

Simply put, for many people, treating only one side of the equation means doing an incomplete job. This is why the whole of the person must be treated.

What Is Treatment Like?

Treatment plans will vary based upon someone's personal circumstances and the drugs that are involved. Patients are strongly encouraged to disclose their situations as fully as possible.

For example, someone who has been mixing cocaine use with opioids to level off the low they get from heroin requires a different treatment plan than a person who has been misusing painkillers. In that scenario, there would be a higher likelihood the person would require inpatient treatment at least for the period required to detox from cocaine use because cocaine withdrawal carries a noted risk of death.

Patients' family and social situations also dictate the direction of treatment. If a counselor is worried that family members, partners, or friends might encourage relapses, the patient may be directed toward a more supportive environment.

The goal is to find the right combination of techniques for you. This may include mental health counseling sessions, drugs to treat withdrawal symptoms, and group treatment. Ongoing concerns, such as pain management, may also have to be examined.

About Me

parental counseling to create a positive relationship

Growing up, I thought that our family was typical, but as I grew to be an adult and had a family of my own, I questioned a few of the things that my family had done growing up. As I struggled with my toddlers, I questioned my mother's version of correction. How do you get through to a toddler that what he or she is doing just isn't appropriate behavior? Where do you draw the line? Parental counseling helped me find my own style of parenting and taught me a lot of effective methods for correcting young children and creating a relationship that I am proud of.

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