Can Meds Keep You Sober?

Medication constitutes a substantial part of current interventions for alcohol addiction, and any modern residential or outpatient treatment center will keep abreast of developments in this area. Several drugs are now used for people who suffer from alcohol dependency, and it is good to be informed about this drugs.

On top of that, it is important to find out if these meds can keep you sober. It does happen that some clinics will rely mainly on medication to treat alcohol dependence, but a holistic outpatient treatment center will always consider this merely part of an integrated and comprehensive suite of solutions.

Medication management is an important part of case management for any reliable outpatient treatment center. Several drugs have been in use as part of accepted therapy for alcohol dependence. A good residential or outpatient treatment center will have caring staff with expert knowledge of the specific medications for both detox and recovery.

Some drugs are used during the detoxification phase of treatment; these alleviate withdrawal symptoms such as anxiety and seizures or extreme tremors. Benzodiazepines, such as diazepam, are commonly used for this purpose.

A modern outpatient treatment center will know how to administer drugs used for the recovery stage, when patients need medication that will help them stay sober. Oral meds used for this purpose include Disulfiram (which causes a person to feel sick to his or her stomach upon drinking alcohol), Naltrexone (which removes pleasure from drinking), and Acamprosate (which reduces the craving for alcohol).

During the course of treatment, any addiction treatment facility worth its salt will always include an assessment of how alcohol dependent patients often suffer from deficiencies in electrolytes as well as certain vitamins and minerals. Usually, an outpatient treatment center will make sure that a patient has sufficient thiamine for the prevention of Wernicke-Korsakoff syndrome.

An outpatient treatment center that keeps up with the latest trends in the treatment of alcohol dependence will enable its patients to keep sober. Medication plays an important role in detoxification and recovery, but only a holistic approach can help patients sustain the gains they acquire during intensive therapy. As patients become more independent, they can drift away from the realities learned from treatment.

This is why a good outpatient treatment center will make sure that their patients are always ready to use the relapse prevention tools learned during their struggle for sobriety. Meds alone will never keep an alcohol dependent person sober. Sobriety can only be sustained with a strong aftercare program that will continue to nurture the whole person.