Substance Abuse Treatment

What is substance abuse treatment?

Substance abuse disorder is a chronic disease that typically requires medical treatment. Much like a doctor prescribes medication to help you manage high blood pressure, the team at 90265 Medical Group prescribes medicine to treat substance abuse, including:

• Suboxone®
• Sublocade™
• Vivitrol®

These medications reduce your withdrawal symptoms as well as the mental urges to use drugs or alcohol. Sublocade and Vivitrol are used for long-term maintenance and to reduce your risk of relapse.

90265 Medical Group offers only medical care for substance abuse. Their outpatient substance abuse treatment programs are designed and delivered by board-certified addiction specialists. 

What should I expect during substance abuse treatment?

90265 Medical Group begins by providing a psychiatric evaluation to assess your condition and substance abuse disorder. Based on your evaluation, they create a customized treatment plan to address your specific needs. 

In general, medical treatment for addiction follows a certain pattern, although your progression through treatment is unique. 

You need to be in the early stages of withdrawal when you start medical substance abuse treatment. Most medications for substance abuse work because they’re stronger than other drugs and fill your brain receptors, which stops your withdrawal without causing a high. 

If you start treatment before you reach the withdrawal stage, the medication can push the drugs out of the brain receptors, but there might not be enough to fill them, which would create severe withdrawal symptoms.  

During your first treatment, you can expect to spend around two hours in the office. Your provider uses this time to determine the correct dosage of your medication and fine-tune your treatment plan. You have frequent appointments during the beginning of your recovery, and as you get better, your doctor starts to taper your prescription. 

There’s no set timeline for substance abuse treatment — your doctor creates a fully personalized plan that lasts as long as necessary.

What are the warning signs of substance abuse and addiction?

While no one starts to use drugs or alcohol to become addicted, many Americans end up dependent on substances. Some of the common signs of addiction include:

• Feeling like you need to use the substance
• Having intense urges or cravings for a substance
• Needing greater quantities of the substance to achieve the same effects
• Doing things you wouldn’t normally do to ensure you can get the substance
• Trying to stop using the substance on your own but failing

If any of these symptoms sound familiar, contact 90265 Medical Group today. Call the practice or schedule an appointment online to start your personalized substance abuse treatment plan.