An addiction to narcotics drugs can be one of the most debilitating experiences in a person’s life. The risk of contracting diseases, the high rates of mortality and the propensity towards criminal behavior to support a narcotics habit can drive most anyone to rock bottom over time.

Narcotics addiction treatment offers the type of medical treatment and social supports needed to help a person overcome addiction to these drugs. Because of the overpowering effects of narcotic drugs, without proper treatment, the likelihood of beating an addiction is remarkably slim.

Narcotics Addiction

Whether a person’s drug of choice is heroin, morphine, Vicodin or OxyContin, the effects on the mind and body remain the same. Narcotics drugs train the brain and body to become dependent on the drug’s effects. Over time, the overpowering effects of narcotics can easily overwhelm a person’s will to stop using no matter how much he or she wants to stop. The withdrawal symptoms are, more oftentimes than not, too much for a person to handle.

Narcotics addiction treatment options include:

• Help with getting off the drug
• Ongoing therapy to address any underlying issues driving the need drugs
• Medication treatment to help a person stay off narcotics
• Peer supports to help maintain abstinence

Without narcotics addiction treatment, a person greatly increases the risk of relapsing, which can be life-threatening in many cases. In 2009, as many as 14,800 people died from prescription narcotic drug overdoses, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. This number doesn’t include fatalities caused by heroin or other illegal narcotics-related overdoses.

Levels of Care

Narcotics addiction treatment options are designed to treat all stages of addiction from the most severely addicted to those who may only require follow-up care. Most narcotics addiction treatment programs offer one or more levels of care, some of which include:

• Detoxification
• Inpatient treatment
• Outpatient treatment
• Aftercare

Detoxification programs are designed to help ease a person’s withdrawal symptoms under supervised medical care. Inpatient treatment provides round-the-clock care through medication, psychotherapy treatment and peer supports. Outpatient narcotics addiction treatment offers support group and psychotherapy services according to a pre-determined treatment schedule.

Someone who’s used narcotics for years would best benefit from inpatient treatment after completing a detoxification program. For those who’ve entered a brief relapse phase or just completed an inpatient program, outpatient treatment may provide the best option. Aftercare treatment offers social support services to help recovering addicts remain drug-free on a long-term basis. Someone who’s been in recovery for years would most benefit from an aftercare program.

Medication Treatments

Medication options for narcotics addiction treatment are all but essential to a successful recovery process. As withdrawal symptoms can stay with a person long after he or she has stopped using drugs, medication treatments work to ease withdrawal symptoms on a long-term basis.

Two commonly used medications for narcotics addiction treatment include methadone and buprenorphine. Both medications mimic the effects of narcotics, which keeps the body from going through withdrawal. While methadone has been used as a traditional treatment for decades, buprenorphine has also been found to be an effective medication for narcotics addiction treatment.