Information About Drug Addiction

Drug addiction is defined by the American Medical Association as a chronic medical disease. Just like any chronic disease, those who suffer from drug and alcohol addiction are prone to relapse throughout their lives, and any successful treatment is a multi-phase process that addresses more than just the physical nature of the problem.

Drug addiction is also defined in the gold standard of the psychological profession, the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, 4th edition, Text Revision (DSM-IV-TR), as a "disorder related to the taking of a drug of abuse (including alcohol), to the side effects of a medication, and to toxin exposure." Whether your addiction began with drinking, experimenting with illegal drugs or with a prescription from the doctor to manage pain or anxiety, every path to drug addiction ultimately ends the same way: with a need for comprehensive alcohol and drug detox and treatment like the one provided by The Canyon.

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Types of Drug Addiction

According to the DSM-IV-TR, there are two basic types of drug addiction: drug use disorders and drug-induced disorders. Dependence upon and abuse of drugs and alcohol both fall into the category of drug use disorders. Drug-induced disorders include both the physical and mental disorders that occur as a result of drug use and addiction. Medical issues like liver damage and heart disease and psychiatric disorders like schizophrenia and bipolar disorder are just a few of the disorders that are commonly experienced during and in the wake of drug addiction.

Whether you suffer from drug abuse, drug dependence or mental and psychological disorders caused by drug use and addiction, The Canyon can help you by designing an inpatient or outpatient treatment plan that addresses your specific needs and issues.

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Terms Associated With Drug Addiction

There are a number of terms that are associated with drug addiction, the definitions of which will help you learn more about the disease affecting you or your loved one. Some of the most common include:

• Drugs-When "drugs" are referred to at The Canyon, usually in association with aspects of addiction, the term includes any substances or medications that cause intoxication in moderate doses and overdose in large doses. These include alcohol, marijuana, cocaine, heroin, prescription opiates, prescription benzodiazepines, crystal methamphetamine, LSD, ecstasy, and other club or experimental drugs, and regular use at any dose is toxic physically, mentally and socially.
• Drug use disorders-Whether you're taking a prescription, drinking alcohol or experimenting will illegal substances, the intoxication as well as the physical and mental illness that take hold as a result are drug use disorders.
• Drug abuse-When you use drugs or alcohol in a pattern, whether it's regular use or binge use, despite the negative financial, physical, mental, spiritual, emotional and social consequences, your substance use is termed abusive.
• Drug addiction-Characterized by the physical dependence upon the regular use of a drug or alcohol, addiction occurs when your body exhibits withdrawal symptoms when you stop taking your drug of choice. Tolerance to that drug or alcohol rises steadily, requiring that you take more and more of it just to feel "normal" and avoid physical illness associated with detox.
• Drug detox-When you stop taking your drug of choice after a period of regular and steady use, your body automatically experiences detox when you stop providing a regular replenishment of the substance. Characterized by intense withdrawal symptoms, detox can be very painful and, in some cases, life threatening.
• Drug withdrawal-Different depending upon what type of drug or alcohol you are dependent upon, how long you have been using and your physical tolerance, withdrawal symptoms vary but manifest when you stop or significantly reduce your intake of that substance. Withdrawal symptoms are physical, mental, psychological and emotional and devastating.

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Drug Addiction Treatment at The Canyon

At The Canyon, we are a certified drug addiction treatment program with a focus on treating those who suffer from co-occurring disorders that are mental and psychological in nature whether or not they were caused by drug use and abuse. With a multi-faceted Healing Life Program, we address the many needs of those who are struggling with kicking their addictive habits and help them to heal physically after the toxic abuse as well as spiritually, while teaching them the skills they will need to maintain their new abstinent behavior when they return home.

If you have questions about drug addiction or the treatment available to you at The Canyon, give us a call and contact us today at .

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