What You Need to Know about Medication-Assisted Treatment for Opioid Addiction

What You Need to Know about Medication-Assisted Treatment for Opioid Addiction Medication-Assisted Treatment (MAT) is one of the most under-utilized tools we have to fight our country’s ongoing addiction crisis. Ideally, this intervention employs specific pharmaceutical drugs combined with counseling and behavioral therapies, but its true power is often obscured by misunderstanding. Effective use of MAT can make the difference between a long, healthy life and an untimely death by overdose. Here’s what you need to know about MAT and why people battling addiction should consider it. Decades of research shows that properly administered MAT is a safe, effective treatment option for substance abuse, increasing the likelihood that people in recovery from an opioid addiction will stay sober and in treatment longer than peers who don’t utilize MAT. The National Association of State Alcohol and Drug Abuse Directors (NASADAD), World Health Organization (WHO) and the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) all strongly support access to MAT for drug abuse. MAT is most useful when combined with intensive one-one-one psychotherapy, group support, and complementary therapies. The way in which MAT affects the brain effectively gives the addict breathing room and time to address the underlying causes of their addiction. MAT allows the addict to focus on their recovery instead of being compelled to use by co-opted neurological processes. MAT is a tool to be used in reaching that goal of...
Source: Cliffside Malibu - Category: Addiction Authors: Tags: Richard Taite Source Type: blogs