A medication assisted treatment program is available to help people stop using addictive substances. Medication assistance is for both drug and alcohol addiction. Medication assistance is a safe way to stave off cravings while in the early recovery stages.
What is a Medication Assisted Treatment Program?
A medication assisted program utilizes medication, which means that the user is taking part in other measures such as behavioral therapies and support system building a part of their treatment. Medications take the edge off and help to control cravings and impulses to use while people are going through treatment for underlying disorders and learning to live a sober life.
During treatment, you use medication, and you will slowly stop using the medication as you grow, becoming more independent, and can calm compulsions and cravings on your own. You will want to keep an open conversation with your care providers about your medications, how much you are taking, how they make you feel, and how you wish to proceed as time progresses.
Medication assisted treatment is no longer sitting in line at the methadone clinic as it once was. Medication assisted treatment program (MAT program) is much more widely accepted than it has been in the past. Your primary caretaker can refer you to a prescribing physician if you are looking for medication assistance from opioids. The medications for this are regulated differently than other drugs, and physicians have to be specially approved to treat patients. This is true because the medication still gets users a bit high before it does its work and blocks further opioids coming into the system from having an effect.
A medication assisted treatment program in PA will look like some combination of the following:
- Medicine To Take Off The Edge And Control Cravings
- Counseling
- Behavioral Therapy
- Participation in Support Groups
What To Expect In A Treatment Program
When you first go in, you will probably detox, or you will have to detox at a different facility. Usually, at the detox, you will start medication assistance. Once you have passed this stage, you attend the program you have chosen. If you are going into residential rehab, you go there, the same goes for other inpatient or outpatient programs.
If you decide to use a support group only, be sure you get to as many meetings as you can make to start. You will need a lot of support even with the medication if you are going it alone.
- Detox
- Medication
- Program Enrollment/Admittance
- Therapy
- Behavioral Modifications
- Increased Confidence That You Will Not Use
- Weaned Off Of Medication Assistance
- Independent Sober Functioning and Living Recovery
If you really want to be in recovery and put your all into it, you can get sober and stay that way. Many people find that assistance with medication makes the early stages of sobriety much more comfortable, and they are more likely to follow through with their program than those that do not use medication assistance. You do not need to take part in a medication assisted program in PA if you do not want to, just know that it is there.
Where To Find Medication Assisted Programs
You can find these programs through your primary care doctor, the clinic, or a drug addiction treatment center. Medication assistance with detox and substance cessation has become more popular as people seek help for their addiction problems. The US government is responsible for making these programs available to the public.
Steps to Recovery in Pennsylvania offers medication assisted treatment programs. We also provide different levels of treatment and counseling to help you overcome your addiction. Give us a call at 267.719.8528 to find out more today.
