Get Help Now!
Call 1-866-693-4654
Get Help Now!
Don't wait for things to get worse! Get the help you need now. There is always hope, even if you have been in treatment before and have relapsed many times.
Call our help line at 866-693-4654 and let us help you assess what you need to get out of the bad situation you or your loved one is in and to begin moving into a new life.
Additional Resources
Our trained addiction counselors are available to you 24-7 to help with Alcohol and/or Drug Detox, Residential Inpatient, and Interventions. Please call us and let us help you!
We understand that addiction recovery means recovery of the Body Mind And Spirit. We want to help you to live a happy joyous and free life and to move beyond the hold of addiction.
Please don't wait!
Please don't wait for things to get worse or thinking you can do this yourself! Addiction recovery requires a team and we want to help you to find the best team for your unique situation and needs.
Won't you please call us and allow us to help you become the person you want to be! No one is a lost cause or beyond help, everyone can move past their addiction with the help of professionals who know what needs to be done.
Why Wait?
Many people think about calling and getting help but always put it off and don’t pick up the phone. Why wait, why not call us right now so the together we can begin the road to recovery for you or your loved one. Sadly, with addiction, waiting is likely to cause the situation to get worse. Please allow our trained experts to listen to your situation and help you get the resources you need.
Get Your Dreams Back!
Many people who have called our help line talk about finally being excited by their future and “getting their dreams” back. That’s really what addiction recovery is all about moving out of the darkness and misery of addiction and into the light and a better life to come.
Questions You May Have About Addiction
What is drug addiction? Drug addiction is a chronic brain disease. Addicts crave more and more drug, as they are captivated by its effects. The structure and function of the brain are changed with repeated use, and over time the act of using drugs is no longer voluntary and no longer for pleasure. Addicts self-medicate to feel “good” or feel “normal” They experience intense craving for the drug and even after treatment, relapse is possible.
Can I be cured of drug addiction? The short answer is no. However, like diabetes, heart disease and other chronic diseases, drug addiction can be managed.
If I do become addicted, is there hope? Yes. The advance in treatment options has given new hope, new alternatives and new motivation to thousands of addicts. The availability of treatment in this country is ample. People can call a local hospital, treatment center, or their own doctor to get information. Moreover, there are support groups in every community to assist in helping a person through the recovery process.
Why is it hard to stop using? The changes in brain chemistry that cause the intense craving do not just go away when a person stops using. Treatment is necessary to assist where mere willpower cannot go alone. Sometimes medications are called for, not only to help with drug withdrawal, but with coping with the cravings. The medical intervention is designed to help addicts cope with the disease and regain their control.
What happens to the brain when people take drugs? Drugs change the brain’s communications system. Drugs impact the brain’s normal chemical makeup in two ways. Drugs can mimic the brain’s natural chemical messengers and/or they can over stimulate the brain’s natural “reward system.” For example, marijuana and heroin are drugs that share a similar structure to the brain’s chemical messengers, called neurotransmitters.
Because the structure is similar, marijuana and heroin can “fool” the brain’s chemical receptors and cause nerve cells to send abnormal messages. Other drugs, like cocaine or methamphetamine, will cause nerve cells to over release natural neurotransmitters and prevent the brain from recycling these natural brain chemicals. This causes an unusually greater message to be carried, and in the end, it changes normal brain communication.
How does the brain get fooled? When a person uses repeatedly, over time the brain will begin to think that the surge in dopamine, caused by the drug, needs to be regulated, so it will produce less dopamine. With less dopamine receptors in the circuit, the reward is lowered. The drug doesn’t work as well, and so the user is compelled to keep abusing drugs to try to gain the same effect. They will use larger amounts of the drug. This tolerance to the drug is dangerous.
Why is tolerance to a drug dangerous? As the user needs more and more drug to achieve the same pleasurable effect as before, and slips into addiction, the brain is fooled into thinking a certain amount of drug is needed to feel normal. At some point, overdose is possible, if not probable. Let’s say a person goes into treatment and the brain’s natural chemical balance is restored, then he/she uses again at the same level they did before, the results can be overwhelming. Overdose occurs, even though they could tolerate the same amount before.
What chemistry changes in the brain? When people become drug dependent it is because the reward circuits in the brain have been altered. Neurotransmitter glutamate impacts the reward system and the brain’s ability to learn. When glutamate levels are manipulated, the brain wants to make an adjustment and this can effect it’s ability to learn.
Cognitive function is lessened by drugs of abuse, which cause a decline in unconscious learning. This unconscious learning, such as the need to eat when we are hungry, is why people have such strong cravings for the drug. These cravings may be triggered by seeing somebody they know, or being in a familiar place. If you see a McDonald’s do you feel hungry? That “craving” is magnified dramatically in a drug-altered brain.
Drug addicted people experience diminished ability to learn, make decisions, formulate proper judgments, and have less ability to control their behavior.
Why do some people become addicted and others do not? You cannot point to any one thing that determines why someone becomes addicted. A person’s biology may explain why one person gets hooked right away and another can abuse drugs, yet not develop dependence. This genetic component to drug abuse and addiction is strong, because if a person’s parents abuse drugs, they have a higher chance of repeating that family behavior.
Environment is important, especially as it relates to the person’s sense of well-being. Drugs are an escape from reality. A person’s psychological makeup is a contributing factor, as self esteem plays a role. Do the drugs make a person feel better about themselves, if only for a short period of time? Does a person suffer from any mental disorder, like depression? Their age is a factor.
The earlier a child experiences drugs and alcohol, the more likely they are to develop addiction disease. The child’s brain is still developing and decision making functions of the brain have not reached their full capacity. Young people are especially vulnerable.
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- Matthew 7:7-8
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