Addictions Therapist

There are two main drugs being used in heroin addiction treatment today. The first is methadone and the second is buprenorphine. When you are looking for an option on heroin addiction treatment, it is important to find out what kind of drug they will use for the treatment. This is important for the following reasons:-

1. The cost of the treatment will depend on the medication used,

2. The speed of the recovery according to the patient’s condition will depend on the medication used and

3. The intensity of the treatment will depend on the medication used.

Since different patients have different kinds of requirements and preferences, a treatment pattern that will be suitable to one might not be suitable to another person. Hence, it is wise that you find out whether methadone or buprenorphine will be used in the center you are choosing. You must educate yourself on how these medications work and make your decision on that basis. Remember that both have their pros and cons.

Here we check out some details on methadone and buprenorphine, both of which are used widely in the heroin addiction treatment in the US, albeit in different ways and with different kinds of effects on the patients.

Methadone Heroin Addiction Treatment

The first noticeable thing about methadone is that it is also an opiate just as heroin is. The principle of the treatment is this: when methadone is introduced into the system, the person will lose the craving for heroin, because another opiate is taking its place. As long as the patient is kept up on methadone treatment, the person will not want heroin that drastically. This is a great way to allay the temptation in the patient’s mind for heroin, which helps in their detoxification.

Slowly, as the person begins to lose the urge for heroin, the need for methadone will not be felt so direly. This is when the amount of methadone can be reduced. Usually, doctors will reduce the amount of methadone that is being administered to the patient gradually as the person starts coming out of the need for heroin.

However, there are several cons in methadone treatment. One of them is that methadone is a habit-forming substance in itself. It can happen that the patient loses his or her urge for heroin but gets hooked on to methadone. When that happens, it will become difficult to get the patient out of the methadone dependency. The doctors will have to use a very careful pattern of methadone reduction so that the person can be brought out of the methadone treatment without any drastic side effects.

Methadone also reacts with some prescription drugs that the person might be using. Some of these reactions can be fatal. For that reason, it is important to constantly supervise the patient when he or she is on methadone treatment. This is a drawback in the methadone treatment; most centers will not want to provide this treatment on an outpatient basis.

Hence, the methadone heroin addiction treatment, though used for about thirty years in the US now, has some disadvantages. It is a very serious kind of treatment and needs constant vigilance. It is this seriousness of the treatment that has made people veer towards other methods of treatment such as buprenorphine.

Buprenorphine Heroin Addiction Treatment

Buprenorphine is a fairly new medication used in heroin addiction treatment in the US. Its popularity has increased only in recent times, though it has been in use since about ten years. Recently, the FDA approved two medications containing buprenorphine for heroin treatment. These are Suboxone and Subutex. The introduction of these two drugs for heroin treatment has been met with favorably and it is a very good option of methadone.

Actually, buprenorphine is also an opiate and works principally in the same manner as methadone. It also attacks the same regions of the person’s brain as heroin does and replaces the heroin craving for a buprenorphine craving. But there is a major difference in buprenorphine and methadone. That is, buprenorphine is not half as addictive as methadone is.

This is where the treatment with buprenorphine proves to be more convenient. Doctors don’t have to worry about dosage as much as they have to with methadone. Buprenorphine is also safely provided in outpatient heroin treatment programs. In fact, it is right to say that outpatient methods of treatment for heroin addiction are possible only because of the presence of buprenorphine and its derivatives.

If you are looking for a medication for heroin addiction treatment, learn about buprenorphine and methadone well and then make your decision. Do not hesitate to ask a substance abuse counselor if you want to know better.

Methadone is definitely the most popular medication used for heroin addiction treatment in the United States today. This medication has been in use since over three decades and still remains widely used, despite the emergence of the more convenient buprenorphine in recent times. When it comes to opiate addiction treatment, which includes heroin and morphine, methadone is the drug of choice in most treatment centers of the nation.

Let us understand the method of addiction treatment for heroin using methadone.

How does Methadone act in Heroin Addiction Treatment?

Methadone is an opiate just like heroin is. When the person is provided a dosage of methadone, the substance will act on the same centers of the brain that heroin does. For that reason, the person will feel a tremendous reduction in the craving for heroin. As long as the person is on methadone treatment, there will be no craving for heroin felt.

Hence, the main principle of using methadone for heroin addiction treatment is to mitigate the person’s craving for heroin, which in turn can help the person come out of the heroin dependency. Effectively, the person’s craving for heroin is replaced by a regular and controlled usage of methadone. For this reason, methadone treatment is usually called as methadone maintenance treatment because it maintains the craving for heroin at a particular level and then gradually diminishes it.

Another that it does, apart from reducing the person’s craving for heroin, is that it effectively blocks the high that heroin can produce. Hence, when a person uses methadone, they will not be able to feel the euphoria created by heroin even if they use the drug. This can help them overcome the temptation for using the substance completely.

However, it must be remembered that methadone is an opiate itself. For that reason, there is a very strong chance that methadone can cause an addiction for itself in the person. In fact, this is supposed to happen because this is the entire premise of the heroin treatment. That is the reason methadone treatment is supposed to be given in a controlled manner and only by a treatment provider who is well experienced in the methadone treatment. The addiction for methadone remains, but the intense urge for heroin is slowly phased out with the methadone treatment.

What is the Dosage of Methadone used in Heroin Addiction Treatment?

The dosage of methadone might depend on the nature of the person’s addiction and from one treatment center to another; however, the general dosage that is prescribed to the person is once a day. When it is taken once, the dosage is enough to repress the effects of heroin withdrawal for about one day. That means, within this period, the person will not feel the craving for heroin. Being a maintenance medication though, methadone will need to be taken the next day around the same time again or the person may again start feeling the effects of withdrawal.

Gradually though, this dosage is lowered. The patient is constantly monitored during the entire length of the methadone treatment to check how the person is responding to the treatment. As the person’s craving for heroin reduces, slowly the amount of methadone that is provided to the patient is also lowered. This is brought down marginally at first and when the person comes to a stable level, that amount of methadone dosage is maintained for the further course of the treatment. However, it will be a long time before the medication of methadone is completely stopped for the person.

Why is Methadone always provided in an Inpatient Treatment Program?

Methadone is an addictive substance. That is one reason why its treatment should always be monitored. If not, there is a chance the person will develop an inclination for using methadone for recreational purposes. The second reason is that methadone can react drastically with some other prescription drugs that the person might be using. In some cases, this interaction can have fatal repercussions. In order to avoid such drastic eventualities, it is necessary to constantly monitor the methadone treatment.

Methadone treatment for heroin addiction is a very sensitive form of treatment with many chances of going wrong if the right kind of care is not taken. That is why this treatment is always provided in an inpatient detox program so that the progress of the treatment can be monitored. In some people methadone is contraindicated, such as in pregnant women. Such points also need to be taken into consideration.