Meth Addiction
If you or a loved one is struggling with methamphetamine addiction, help is available to support your recovery.
Methamphetamine, also known as crystal meth, is a stimulant drug that affects the central nervous system. It is extremely addictive and can produce a significant number of severe health risks. It can be smoked, snorted, or injected. At Next Step Recovery in Asheville, NC, we provide meth users with addiction treatment options to reach long-term, lasting sobriety.
What is Meth Addiction?
Meth addiction is an impulsive dependency on methamphetamine. This disease results from physical, mental, and emotional conditions that support drug use. Meth use creates very intense highs for short periods of time, followed by a “crash” feeling which involves difficulty sleeping and depression. People tend to use meth again very quickly to feel that same high rather than feeling depressed. However, this ultimately creates a constant pattern of use, along with extreme ups and downs, making meth extremely addictive.
Meth addicts might binge on meth often to avoid feeling sick, skip meals and avoid sleep in order to use the drug, experience tooth decay or mouth sores, and often feel agitated or depressed.
Managing this addiction with rehab and proven sobriety methods is the best way to reduce damage to your health and lifestyle.
What Causes Meth Addiction?
Meth addiction is typically influenced by deeper issues with your well-being. Meth itself is highly addictive since it produces an intense dopamine release. This dopamine high inflates further as you feel relief from underlying conditions. Among the many root causes of meth addiction, some can include:
Social Factors: Being around others that use meth might encourage or enable your own drug abuse. Your environment is influential in youth and as well as childhood.
Genetics: The risk of addictive behaviors can be passed down through the family as well. If you have relatives that have an addiction, you might be at a higher risk of one as well.
Physical Dependency: Meth can very quickly escalate your body into a state that requires the drug to feel normal. This is a top concern around meth abuse.
Co-occurring Disorders: Untreated mental disorders are common with addictions to drugs like meth. Conditions like depression can trigger self-medication with drugs.
Coping with Stress: Even conditions like anxiety or mood disorders can lead to self-medicating. But this temporary remedy can quickly escalate out of control. As you continue to use, you can develop a complex dependency on meth. Attempting to quit meth without treating these issues can easily lead to relapse.
Professional diagnosis of addiction and all other concerns is essential to your recovery.
Symptoms of Meth Addiction
The symptoms of meth addiction often include:
- Intense itching
- High body temperature
- Dry mouth
- Headaches
- Insomnia
- Hallucinations
- Paranoia
- Irritability
- Aggressiveness
- Secretive
- Erratic movements
- Self-isolation
- Distrust of others
- Strained relationships
The above symptoms and behaviors can be indicators to the user or loved ones that there is an ongoing issue around meth addiction. Other signs might include paraphernalia such as glass pipes, blackened tin foil strips, and syringes.
Long-Term Effects of Meth Addiction
Similar to other depressants, the side effects and symptoms of benzodiazepines often center around drowsiness, slower reactions, and cognitive impairment. The most frequently reported side effects of benzodiazepine use include the following:
- Light-headedness
- Mental confusion
- Increased anxiety
- Sleep disturbances
- Muscle weakness
- Dry mouth
- Blurry vision
- Dizziness
- Memory impairment
- Unsteadiness
- Constipation
- Nausea
In addition, those who regularly take benzodiazepines have an increased likelihood of experiencing an accident or injury.
Meth Withdrawal Symptoms
Withdrawal symptoms from meth can be severe and cause serious health effects without medical supervision. Meth withdrawal symptoms can include:
- Fatigue
- Anxiety
- Irritability
- Chills
- Dehydration
- Intense cravings
- Lack of energy
- Extreme fatigue
- Excessive sleeping
- Psychosis
- Suicidal thoughts
Outpatient Meth Addiction Treatment
At Next Step Recovery, we offer several outpatient treatment options for meth addiction. Each treatment program is tailored to fit the individual needs of our clients.
Intensive Outpatient Program
At Next Step Recovery, our Intensive Outpatient Program (IOP) works with patients as they transition from medical detox to a three or five days per week program that offers comprehensive support to prevent relapse. IOP includes individual counseling, intensive group therapy, and 12-step immersion education to provide patients with the tools needed to live a sober life free of meth.
Substance Abuse Comprehensive Outpatient Treatment (SACOT)
Through Next Step Recovery’s Substance Abuse Comprehensive Outpatient Treatment (SACOT) program, patients spend five days each week receiving a wide range of evidence-based therapies.
The effective therapy modalities offered through SACOT include cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT), dialectical behavior therapy (DBT), individual and group therapies, educational courses on preventing relapse, periodic evaluations, and much more.
Dual-Diagnosis Treatment
Next Step Recovery’s dual diagnosis treatment focuses on the psychiatric conditions that lead to meth addiction. Clients are provided with tools via behavioral therapies to manage their mental health free of meth and other substances. Each patient’s individualized treatment plan targets their specific medical concerns/mental illness and creates a path for recovery.
In addition to offering addiction support, we provide patients with relaxation techniques to manage anxiety disorders, sleep hygiene techniques for insomnia, and other tools to thrive without prescription medications. Each patient’s individualized treatment plan targets their specific medical concerns and creates a path for recovery.
Overcome Your Meth Addiction
Our experienced, compassionate team at Next Step Recovery in Asheville, NC is here to help you overcome your meth addiction. Get started with your new life free from meth by filling out our online contact form today.
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Get the Help You Need to Conquer Benzo Addiction
When the challenges of overcoming benzodiazepine addiction seem overwhelming, the professional team at Next Steps Recovery is here to help. Patients in and around Asheville, NC, can benefit from our skilled, comprehensive care to conquer addiction.
Begin your new life free from benzo addiction by filling out our online contact form today.
Medically Reviewed By Susan Stader MS, LCMH, LCAS, CCS
Susan Stader is the founder and director of Next Step Recovery and NSR of Asheville, an Intensive Outpatient Program and a Long-term Extended Care program in Asheville, NC. She received her Master’s in Community Counseling in 2004 at Western Carolina University and went on to get her licensure in addictions and mental health counseling. Susan believes that treatment should be gender-specific and offered in a small setting. Small recovery communities, such as hers, are more intimate and effective in overall client satisfaction and care.
Reach Out Today
Recovery is a lifelong journey, but you don’t need to take it alone. At Next Step Recovery, we give you the tools and support you need to get through early sobriety and find lasting healing. It is our goal to empower our patients to be their best selves and live the life they deserve.
If you have any questions about our programs, methods, insurance, or anything else, reach out to us today. We look forward to helping you to get started along the road to recovery!
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