Medication-Assisted Treatment in Galloway, New Jersey

Why Medication-Assisted Treatment Is Important in New Jersey

Although New Jersey offers several options for addiction treatment, the state struggles with drug and alcohol abuse.

In 2018, there were 2,900 reported drug overdose deaths in the northeastern state. Of these deaths, 90 percent involved an opioid drug, showing that, like the rest of the United States, New Jersey is suffering from a severe opioid abuse epidemic.

This problem is slowly growing. In the first six months of 2021, 1,626 New Jersey residents died from drug overdoses, so as many as 3,250 people could die in the entire year. This makes access to Medication-Assisted Treatment more important than ever before.

New Jersey’s Division of Mental Health and Addiction Services (DMHAS) promotes and administers MAT therapies throughout the state to combat the epidemic of drug abuse, especially opioid addiction. Evidence-based treatment using maintenance medications improves outcomes for those overcoming an addiction. Boca Recovery Center is one of the institutions that provides this care in New Jersey.

MAT Treatment Options at Boca Recovery Center in Galloway, NJ

Boca Recovery Center provides Medication-Assisted Treatment to support the addiction recovery process for people overcoming opioid, alcohol, or nicotine addictions.

Psychotherapy is the cornerstone of addiction treatment, helping individuals recognize compulsive and problematic thoughts or behaviors and begin learning new habits. However, people struggling with ongoing physical and mental health difficulties due to residual, painful withdrawal symptoms are at higher risk of relapse and struggle to focus on psychotherapy.

MAT can control withdrawal, making it a crucial component to supporting a full recovery process.

The MAT Process & Medications Used in Treatment

MAT starts with ending substance abuse. This can occur either at home, with a doctor’s supervision, or at an inpatient treatment program with medical supervision.

Once the final dose of the drug metabolizes out of the body, early withdrawal symptoms will begin, which is when your doctor will administer the first dose of MAT. Reducing cravings and withdrawal symptoms with a stabilizing prescription medication allows you to reach physical equilibrium, so you can begin other important components of addiction treatment.

You may take this prescription for several weeks or months. This is part of the sustained recovery process, helping you learn to avoid compulsive substance abuse behaviors, manage underlying or co-occurring conditions, and build a sober lifestyle.

Different medications are used to treat different types of substance use disorders in an MAT program.

Alcohol: Using medications to manage alcohol withdrawal is increasingly common, as it can reduce the risk of delirium tremens or seizures associated with alcohol withdrawal. These are the three most common medications:

1. Acamprosate: This is a medication prescribed to those who are in treatment and are no longer drinking. It can help prevent relapses back into alcohol abuse, although it does not reduce withdrawal symptoms. Those symptoms should be monitored in a medically supervised detox program.
2. Disulfiram: This medication is not prescribed as widely since the effects associated with relapse can be physically dangerous. This medication does not stop withdrawal symptoms either, and it should only be prescribed to people who have gone through withdrawal.The drug causes nausea and vomiting if someone relapses back into alcohol abuse. This can lead the person to associate drinking with feeling ill, which can stop compulsive substance abuse.
3. Naltrexone: This is currently the most widely prescribed maintenance medication for ending alcohol use disorder. This medication is prescribed after detox has been completed, but it can help reduce some cravings for alcohol as well as related sedatives.The drug also blocks pleasant sensations associated with drinking. As a result, the individual drinks less if they relapse and stops associating feeling good with alcohol consumption.

Opioids: MAT is widely used to support overcoming opioid use disorder. These medications help people avoid intense cravings that are associated with opioid detox, which can linger and sometimes feel like physical pain after the person is no longer physically dependent on narcotics. There are three drugs that are used in opioid MAT.

1. Methadone: This opioid agonist binds to opioid receptors in the brain for several hours or days, reducing cravings and the risk of abusing other narcotic drugs. This is one of the first medications approved to slowly manage opioid withdrawal, particularly in people who abuse heroin for years.However, methadone itself can be addictive. It is not considered the optimal treatment for opioid use disorder in the 21^st
2. Buprenorphine: This chemical is a partial opioid agonist, meaning it binds to opioid receptors and can reduce pain or cravings for as long as methadone, with much less potential for abuse. In people who struggle with opioid addiction, buprenorphine-based medications like Suboxone do not cause intoxication, although they can help the person feel normal.Buprenorphine is so effective that it can be prescribed for outpatient use, allowing more people access to MAT while being able to maintain personal and professional responsibilities.
3. Naltrexone: Like alcohol, naltrexone blocks pleasurable sensations associated with getting high on opioids.Since this medication blocks opioids from being effective, it is important to prescribe it after a person on other types of MAT has completely tapered off. It can work against medications like Suboxone in treating opioid use disorder.

Nicotine: Smoking cessation has been found to benefit from maintenance or tapering medications, many of which are available over the counter, though others are available by prescription. Some of these drugs include Chantix (varenicline) and Zyban (bupropion, formerly Wellbutrin).Although poisoning from tobacco or nicotine products is much less rare and harmful compared to opioids or alcohol, nicotine is closely linked to a higher risk of cancer, heart disease, and death. Because of this, ending abuse of this substance is important.

Boca Recovery Center Offers Medications, Counseling & More for Galloway, NJ

Many private and nonprofit treatment programs, as well as physicians’ offices, provide MAT to people who need this approach to ending addiction. However, few programs include several steps to ensure you get personalized treatment.

For example, Alcoholics Anonymous (AA) and Narcotics Anonymous (NA) both provide important mutual support groups for people overcoming addiction to drugs like alcohol or opioids, but they do not provide MAT. Your insurance provider might be able to help you find MAT in Galloway, NJ, but that program might not provide inpatient treatment options and the medical staff to diagnose you if you need more than outpatient support.

Boca Recovery Center provides several levels of treatment, from standard outpatient to residential treatment.