There’s a misconception that Rapid Detox is a quick fix for treating addiction. However, this practice is actually harmful and extremely risky for recovery.
Rapid detox is advertised as a painless method of detox that allows an patient who has a substance use disorder to withdrawal effortlessly. The rapid detox process entails sedating patients with general anesthesia while an opiate blocker — such as naltrexone — is administered to force the body to begin detoxing.
Upon waking, patients are told they are fully detoxed, but their bodies are still processing through withdrawal. Thus, they’ll go home following this treatment experiencing things like nausea, strong cravings, and pain.
“All of those programs offering a quick fix to detoxification are dangerous. Recovery from an opioid dependency takes planning and structure,” says Dr. Negrini.
The goal of getting treatment is to prepare for life in recovery.
This is especially the goal at OARS. Weaning too quickly off opioids can lead to a high risk of failure and drug use relapse. Treatment includes using Medicated Assisted Treatment with a fully planned weaning schedule in conjunction with counseling and behavioral modifications. MAT, the weaning schedule, and counseling is key to helping you in your recovery.
Each patient is at a different place in their recovery, so everyone is going to need different treatment. On top of Medicated Assisted Treatment and the weaning schedule, family history, previous treatment, and more is also taken into account for treatment.
In order to beat your addiction, it’s important to look at the whole picture of you instead of just treating your addiction.