Here are the answers to some of the frequently asked questions about the heroin detox treatment in Connecticut. These are the questions that most people who are looking for this kind of treatment have, and their answers.
Q1. What is the main intention of a heroin detox treatment in Connecticut?
The primary purpose of the heroin detox treatment in Connecticut is to cleanse the body from the various toxins that the addiction might have accumulated in it. This is done by making the person abstain from the substance. Within a short time, the abstinence will bring about withdrawal effects. This is where a secondary intention of the heroin detox treatment comes in. The treatment providers will try to provide a medicinal therapy in order to completely remove the withdrawal in the patient. The detox treatment is only said to be over when the patient has been completely pulled out of the withdrawal that has been caused due to the abstinence from the heroin they are addicted to. For the long term, the purpose of the detox treatment is to keep the person abstinent from the substance and ensure that there are no cravings produced for it again, which ensures that the patient doesn't fall into a relapse.
Q2. How does methadone act for heroin detox treatment?
Methadone is an opiate like heroin itself. It is used to reduce the temptation that the person has for heroin. Strange though this may sound, this is the method in which the program works. Heroin, being an opiate, can be weaned away only when another opiate is introduced into the body and methadone fits the bill quite nicely. As long as the patient is kept on a maintenance medication with methadone, they will feel a reduction in their craving for heroin, and as this craving diminishes, the amount of methadone provided to the patient can be gradually reduced. This is not done all at once; rather it is done quite slowly, because methadone can produce withdrawal effects of its own.
That is the reason why methadone treatment always needs to be provided under strict medical supervision. Methadone is a habit forming drug and reducing its amount drastically can cause withdrawal. Also, methadone can react with some other substances that the person is consuming. Hence, medical care in an inpatient treatment setting becomes very important.
Q3. Are there any alternatives to the methadone treatment that is provided for heroin detox treatment in Connecticut?
Quite recently, the FDA has approved another substance for heroin addiction treatment in Connecticut. This substance is buprenorphine. Buprenorphine is also an opiate like heroin and like the methadone that is used for heroin treatment, but it is becoming more popular than methadone nowadays. The main reason is that buprenorphine is not as habit-forming as methadone is. While methadone needs to be provided in a carefully planned out medical routine with constant supervision, buprenorphine is not that drastic a form of treatment. Buprenorphine treatment can be provided on an outpatient basis also. This treatment can be altered in a more flexible way than methadone can be. For these reasons, buprenorphine is becoming quite widely accepted in the heroin detox treatment in Connecticut.
However, most treatment centers do not have the buprenorphine treatment yet. You will need to check out in advance whether the treatment is present or not. Asking a counselor for heroin addiction treatment in Connecticut will help, and you can also find out which centers provide buprenorphine treatment by visiting the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration website.
Q4. How long does a heroin detox treatment in Connecticut last?
This actually depends on the condition of the patient who is undergoing the treatment. In most cases, the patient will be out of the heroin detox within seven to ten days. That is, this is the period within which the patient will be able to overcome most of the withdrawal pangs provided a maintenance medication has been kept up. However, for people whose addictions have been long running and for complicated cases such as people who are dually diagnosed with a mental condition also, the detox treatment can go on quite long. There have been some detox treatments for heroin addiction in Connecticut that have gone on for a whole month even.
Basically, the length of the detox treatment is quite unpredictable. People who seem to be relatively less addicted to heroin could have longer periods in detox and vice-versa. This is because the length of the treatment also depends on the physical condition of the patient and their determination to get out of the addiction.