Treatment Philosophy
People use drugs (including alcohol and tobacco) for various reasons:
- to add transient pleasure to life
- to self-medicate emotional problems
- to manage daily stress and chronic pain conditions, or
- to compensate for poor self-esteem and insufficient love.
Although it is true that the threshold between drug use and abuse differs between people and families depending upon genetic and environmental factors, a genetic tendency does not mean that people must become or remain addicted. People can learn to use their existing tools and strengths to cope. Our purpose at Private Clinic North is to point our patients in the direction of better health and freedom from the enslavement of addiction. We also work with our patients to insure they have the proper tools for successful management of their condition.
Methadone maintenance is a medical treatment in response to a medical problem. As with many other medical problems, the length of time people will need to remain in treatment depends on several factors:
- Biochemical condition of the brain
- Past psychological trauma, coping skills, needs, expectations, and withdrawal fears
- Medical realities concerning your body and your physical health, and
- Motivation.
For some patients, methadone maintenance is a life-long need. For others, it can be used to taper until an opiate-free life is once again achieved. The decision to taper from methadone maintenance to abstinence is a serious commitment and represents only one of many available options. Our staff is dedicated to assist patients in making their treatment decisions successful ones.
