A3 Verified – KLEAN West Hollywood

February 5th, 2012

The A3 Rehab-Finder is happy to announce the full verification of The KLEAN Treatment Center in West Hollywood (call them at 323-391-4032).

The KLEAN Center is a licensed residential treatment facility and detox working with those suffering from alcohol and drug addiction as well as related co-occurring disorders. KLEAN’s clients receive the best of care with three weekly individual sessions with licensed staff including a psychiatrist, psychologists, and other clinical staff. For clients interested in the program, KLEAN offers a variety of residential treatment and aftercare alternatives including, Intensive Out Patient (IOP) treatment, alumni networking and a family education program. KLEAN’s mission is to create a safe environment, provide each resident with a unique continuum of care, and ensure a healthy transition into a sober life.

Nestled in the heart of West Hollywood, KLEAN is an urban sanctuary. Clients live in beautifully decorated private and semi-private cottages with no more than two people per room. KLEAN even allows clients to bring their pets along onto their dog friendly grounds!

During the day, KLEAN clients attend psycho-educational groups led by prestigious clinicians and group facilitators. KLEAN’s groups are grounded in evidence-based modalities, including cognitive-behavioral, psycho-dynamic, motivational interviewing, and somatic experiencing.

Each KLEAN client is assigned a case manager, a licensed clinician who provides them individual counseling sessions, as well as contact with referral agent, family members, physicians, and more. In addition, clients receive a weekly counseling session from our Director of Recovery Services.

KLEAN also places an emphasis on spirituality, through daily reflections and meditation, yoga and other health-wellness activities.

The KLEAN Center is an excellent place to get well mentally, physically, and spiritually, and now as an A3 verified provider treatment seekers can rest assured that Klean’s programs, facilities, and clinicians are able to provide the high quality of care they expect and need.

Posted in:  Education Tags: center, clients, klean, klean treatment center, residential treatment, treatment

Naltrexone the addiction cure?

January 23rd, 2012

CNN released a news article a little while back titled “With anti-addiction pill, ‘no urge, no craving‘” that seems to suggest that a cure for addiction has been found. As usual, news reporting on these sort of topics revolves around a kernel of truth, with nice window dressing an a serving of embellishment.

While naltrexone, and topiramate, have been shown to improve outcomes in addiction treatment, they have by no means revealed anything that would warrant giving them the title “anti-addiction pills.”

Indeed, there are now a few different preparations of Naltrexone, including a long acting version called Vivitrol that while relatively expensive, has been shown to be relatively effective at cutting relapse rates for both alcoholics AND heroin (or opiate addicts). Note the difference though here between my language and that used by CNN; Naltrexone has been shown to reduce relapse rates, not eliminate them, and current research seems to show that it is most effective only for specific groups of alcoholics who have a specific type of Mu opioid receptor.

As the article points out, a combination of therapies, including behavioral therapies, medications, and social-support, are still the best option when it comes to addiction treatment.

We’re a long way off from finding anything that can be considered a cure for addiction, no matter what some treatment centers like to claim, but these pills should help us stem the tide while we keep looking…

Posted in:  Education, Medications, Opinions, Treatment Tags: addiction, addiction cure, addiction pill, alcoholics, anti addiction, CNN, cure, cure addiction, heroin, mu, naltrexone, news, opiate, opioid receptor, pill, relapse rates, topiramate, treatment, vivitrol

Recovery = Abstinence… Or not

December 25th, 2011

The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) just release a new definition of “recovery” from mental health and addiction:

A process of change through which individuals improve their health and wellness, live a self-directed life, and strive to reach their full potential.

I’ll give you 10 seconds to find a key missing ingredient in this definition of recovery without peeking at our title. Hey! No Looking!!!

The definition calls recovery a process the provides improvements in well-being and that allows people to gain control of their life. It seems that abstinence is simply nowhere to be found in this new SAMHSA definition.

I have no doubt that some people will be upset about the decision not to include abstinence in the definition of recovery, but I won’t be one of them. I’ve been saying that we should be moving to a different definition, one that focuses on improvement in quality of life, as the basis for whether someone is in recovery or not. You see as far as I’m concerned it doesn’t matter whether a person is using any substances – all I care about is the impact of such use on their well being, their “quality of life.”

We’ve already written a few article on All About Addiction making this exact point (see here and here for some examples) and there have been some addiction researchers calling for the same when measuring success in addiction treatment research (see here and here).

Most addiction treatment research simply measures abstinence when individuals finish treatment (especially outpatient treatment) and then maybe 6 or 12 months later. But as the research I linked to earlier shows, there are a whole slew of people who are not abstinent a year after their release from addiction treatment but are without a doubt involved in recovery: Their substance use is either fully under control or is at least producing much less of a problem than it had before. As far as I’m concerned that is a success, and if the use begins being troublesome again, then it is possible that more treatment, and perhaps complete abstinence, is necessary.

This whole thought process can easily lead us right down the harm reduction, substitution therapy, and legalization argument rabbit hole, and I’m all for that discussion. I’m also sure that I will once again get some more hate-mail from readers who think I’m being irresponsible by suggesting that people who have at one point had trouble with substance abuse may be able to use anything (even substances that were not their drug of choice) ever again. They’ll accuse me of being responsible for those who decide to try such methods and fail while taking absolutely no responsibility for the countless who try their approach and relapse. Fortunately for me I’ve learned to ignore those emails.

Posted in:  Education Tags: 12 months, addiction, definition, definition recovery, recovery, SAMHSA, substance abuse and mental health services administration, treatment

Addiction recovery help by replacement

December 20th, 2011

contributing author: Katie McGrath

It’s easy to see why some people search for ways to escape their everyday life. Daily obstacles and challenges are common, and sometimes, life can seem like a difficult, if not impossible, test of wills. Addiction recovery help is about finding another option.

People turn to many different coping methods, including addictive behaviors such as drinking alcohol, using drugs, or gambling (1). But many other behaviors that aren’t considered as deviant as those just mentioned can also develop unhealthy patterns, including excessive work, promiscuous or risky sex, and high adrenalin activities like car and motorcycle racing, skydiving, rock climbing, and other forms of “extreme sports.”

In fact, researchers have found that drug users and extreme sports atheletes rationalize their respective involvements in very similar ways (2).

Unfortunately, if the activities are used for escape, people usually find the relief they get to be temporary. When the “high” is finished, they find their problems alive and well as life comes back at them full-force. A temporary distraction, no matter how exciting or effective (like extreme sports, alcohol, or drug use) is just that – temporary.

The idea of “switching addictions” has come up in psychological research in the past (4). The question is: Can addicts substitute their choice addiction for a behavior that is actually beneficial?

Some research suggests that they can.

Activities like exercise (running, yoga, and such), art (painting, photography), and other hobbies (such as gardening), may provide a source of comfort for drug users looking for a way to “fill in” the void left by drugs and/or alcohol. Each of these activities may provide the repetitive, mindful, pursuit that people who are prone to addiction may seek without many of the harms and dangers.

When I stopped getting high, one of the hardest things was figuring out what to do with my free time that didn’t involve using drugs. It was what I was used to doing when I was happy, sad, or bored. Now, I would be all those things, but the drugs weren’t there. It took me more than a year to get comfortable with movies, the gym, and books as replacements for what I knew how to do best – using drugs.

In future posts, we’ll go over some specific ideas for changing behavior that may be useful for addicts trying to stop. We’ll also suggest specific strategies to keep from developing unhealthy habits even in these new, more constructive habits, while keeping them long-term. Addiction recovery can be tough, but actively replacing activities can help.

Question of the day:
If you’ve quit drugs or other addiction, do you have any suggestions regarding new habits you picked up that helped you in developing a new, healthier life?

Citations:

1. Hart, A. D. When coping becomes addiction.

2. Larkin, M., Griffiths, M. D. (2004). Dangerous sports and recreational drug-use: Rationalizing and contextualizing risk. Journal of Community & Applied Social Psychology, 14, pp. 215-232.

Posted in:  Education, For addicts, Positive addictions, Tips, Treatment Tags: addiction and recovery, addiction recovery, addiction recovery help, addictions recovery, extreme sports, Positive addiction, recovery help, running, sex addiction, sex addiction help, treatment, yoga

Evolution of Addiction Treatment – California learning

December 1st, 2011

Addiction conferences are getting more and more common, and quite a few nowadays showcase the talents of some very knowledgeable, and renowned, addiction experts. Coming from the academic side of things, I’ve been to conferences held by the American Psychological Association, the American Public Health Association, the Society for Neuroscience, and the College on Problems of Drug Dependence.

When it comes to more clinical, or addiction treatment oriented, conferences, I think our readers would be hard pressed to find a better conference than the Evolution of Addiction Treatment conference about to take place at the Westin Hotel by the Los Angeles airport in just over a week (December 8th-11th). Some of the biggest names in addiction research and addiction treatment will be there including Drs Allen Berger and David Mee-Lee who have both contributed greatly to the field of addiction during their decades of work. The conference would be worth it even if they were the only ones speaking.

But they’re not. There are literally dozes of speakers and 3.5 full days of amazing talks. If you decide to go, we even arranged for a discount for you by entering the code “AAA10″ before you pay. We’ll have a little booth set up in the hall if you want to come by and say “hi” but more than anything, we’d love for you to have the opportunity to learn as much as you can about addiction and addiction treatment options so that you can continue to carry the message that there is more than hope, there’s treatment that works!

See you there!

Posted in:  Education, Links, Treatment Tags: addiction, conference, conferences, evolution of addiction treatment, treatment, Treatment

A3 Verified Addiction Treatment: Promises West Los Angeles and Malibu

November 10th, 2011

From the mechanic who fixes your car to the teacher who educates your children, we don’t entrust our money, our possessions or our family to service providers without some assurance that these are trained, capable professionals. So when it comes to one of the most important decisions you will ever make, choosing an addiction treatment and rehabilitation service, why would you ever choose an unverified service?

The All About Addiction (A3) Verification process gives treatment seekers the peace of mind of knowing that the facilities and individual specialists used by a rehab center are safe, board certified, and in full compliance with state standards. It also assures you that they are truly equipped to carry out the addiction treatment services they are advertised to specialize in.

A3, operated by California Treatment Services, LLC (CTS) is an unbiased research-based organization dedicated to helping individuals find the most appropriate treatment for their needs. Our verification process uses proven tools to make certain that each provider is only matched with the clients it is best suited to serve. By using our All About Addiction Rehab Finder tool, you’re not only getting fast, accurate matches to treatment centers that meet your specific needs, you’re also getting results that give preference to verified providers, further assuring you that these facilities are universally recognized for their standards and practices.

Today it gives us great pleasure to announce the full verification of Promises: Addiction Treatment Center in West L.A. and Malibu.

Promises West Los Angeles

Promises West L.A. is a world-renowned drug rehabilitation and addiction treatment center located in the center of one of the most convenient and desirable areas of West Los Angeles. Whether a client’s needs include medical detox, residential or outpatient addiction treatment, or extended care, Promises West L.A. is fully equipped to deliver comprehensive, highly individualized treatment.

At Promises, the certified, expert staff is equipped to treat not only the disease of addiction, but all issues that contribute to addictive patterns and co-occurring disorders such as depression, trauma and more. Clients have the opportunity to practice their new skills in a structured and supportive real-world setting as they make a gradual transition back into society.

Promises Malibu

Promises Malibu is one of southern California’s premier drug rehabilitation centers, and the originator of the Malibu Model of addiction treatment. High atop the mountains overlooking the Pacific Ocean, Promises Malibu delivers cutting-edge addiction treatment in one of the world’s most luxurious settings. Featuring gourmet, chef-prepared meals and resort-style accommodations within a gated community, Promises Malibu is the preferred recovery destination for clients seeking the utmost in privacy and comfort.

Promises Malibu has an unparalleled reputation for sophisticated care and exceptional service. Grounded in the 12 steps as well as the latest scientific research, addiction treatment at Promises Malibu addresses co-occurring disorders such as depression, anxiety, and cross addictions. Treatment is guided by some of the country’s leading addiction specialists and features a wide variety of programs to meet every need, including detox, residential drug rehab, outpatient treatment, extended care and sober living environments.

If you have any questions, need more information, or want to enroll as a Verified Provider, please email info@allaboutaddiction.com or call us at 323-592-9591. We’d love to hear from you, and are excited to add you as part of the growing A3 family.

Posted in:  Education Tags: 12 steps, addiction, addiction treatment center, malibu, promises, promises malibu, promises west, treatment, west los angeles

New drug testing technology? Cocaine and saliva

October 30th, 2011

A recent development (check it out here) might lead the way to a quicker, more easily administered drug test. Instead of the lab analysis of urine, blood, or other fluids, this recent technology might allow first responders, such as EMTs, to assess a person’s exposure to drugs (prescription and otherwise) by simply dipping this device (think pregnancy test) into their saliva.

As of right now, the researchers have been able to demonstrate the success of the technology with cocaine, but it shouldn’t be too long before they can provide similar devices for many different drugs.

Now, it’s true that I usually focus on abused drugs in this blog, but this technology could help medical professionals identify dangerous drug interactions common to many prescribed, properly taken, medications. Given the huge increases in prescription medication abuse in the United States, that could be extremely useful and might save some of the 12,000 lives annually lost to accidental overdoses.

Maybe when these devices get cheap enough they can be used in addiction treatment centers to provide more immediate testing results.

Who knows, one day, the technology might be widespread enough to make home drug-testing a simple reality. Whether that’s a good or bad thing should probably be left to another post…

Posted in:  Education Tags: cocaine, devices, drug, drug test, Drugs, emergency, EMT, Medications, prescription, prescription drug abuse, rehab, saliva, technology, treatment