Holistic Methods For Drug Withdrawl

While doctors, hospitals and treatment centers ( with an assist from the big pharmaceutical companies) continue to prescribe and administer a plethora of synthetic medication from Buprenorphine to Phenobarbital to benzodiazepenes, a growing amount of scientific evidence and clinical experience show there are many natural methods of detoxification from drug addiction. A number of the following therapies have achieved success in overcoming addiction:
1. Vitamin C Therapy
According to Dr. James Howenstine,  “drug addiction is easy to cure” (http://www.newswithviews.com/Howenstine/james66.htm). The protocol begins with 20 to 85 grams of vitamin C daily, combined with various nutritional supplements. This continues for 4 to 6 days as the vitamin C dosage is lowered to 10 to 30 grams. Dr. Howenstine reports that “addicts taking methadone, heroin, and morphine are withdrawn without any symptoms, and that “well-being is restored in 12 to 24 hours.”
2. Lithium Orotate
Defying conventional wisdom, Lithium needs to be thought of as more than merely a pharmaceutical prescribed for bipolar disorder and depression. Lithium is a natural mineral that is widely considered to be an important  nutrient in the human diet. The form of lithium usually given to those with so-called “mental illness” is lithium carbonate, administered in doses high enough where there is a problem with toxicity. Lithium orotate, on the other hand,  has been found to be a much more systemically available compound. This is so much so that it is available as an over-the-counter supplement. A proponent of lithium orotate, Dr. Andrew Wright, used to routinely monitor his patients for signs of toxicity, but stopped after he never found a single problem (see “Lithium, The Misunderstood Mineral” - http://tahomaclinicblog.com/lithium-the-misunderstood-mineral-part-1/)  Dr. Wright states:
“In 30 years of nutritionally oriented practice, I’ve been told by many alcoholics and their relatives that low-dose lithium can be very helpful for both alcoholism and associated mood disorders. For “practicing” alcoholics, I recommend a trial of lithium orotate, 10 milligrams three times daily (along with diet advice, niacin, glutamine, and other supplements). I ask recovering alcoholics to try 5 milligrams, three times daily (occasionally more). The majority of these patients report improved mood and decreased desire for alcohol after about six weeks using lithium therapy.”


An article in the British Journal of Addiction stated “both controlled and uncontrolled experiments show that symptoms of both alcoholism and affective disturbance are reduced in patients treated with lithium.”
There are almost endless benefits to this supplement aside from treating addiction. I just have to mention one more fascinating bit of research. A study showed that in 27 counties in Texas that contained lithium in their drinking water, the incidence of homicide, rape, burglary, and suicide, as well as other crimes and drug use, were significantly lower compared to counties that did not have lithium.
3. Insulin Potentiation Therapy (IPT)
IPT is a virtually unknown therapy with nearly endless applications, though it is usually used as an effective cancer treatment. It delivers a low dose of chemotherapy along with insulin. It turns out the insulin will make the drugs selectively enter cancer cells. This therapy kills even more cancer cells than standard chemotherapy with little or no side effects.
Dr. Jean-Claude Paquette, one of the pioneers of IPT, reported a number of successes with treating drug addiction. These include 30 patients who quit smoking after just one treatment. The exact mechanisms of why it works are still not well understood, but some how insulin allows for rapid detoxification of the entire body, while avoiding withdrawal symptoms or craving. Some other IPT physicians have also noticed this effect.

4. Hyperbaric oxygen
Hyperbaric oxygen is a therapy where someone lies down inside a sealed chamber, and is exposed to oxygen at higher than normal pressures. A study of 340 addicts treated with this therapy reported that many experienced “tranquilizing or bioenergizing effects” and that there was an “accelerated reduction of psychoneurological and somatovegetative disorders” resulting in a 50% reduction in treatment duration.
(http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/7653862)
5. Amino Acid Therapy
Amino acid therapy has an anecdotal success rate of 70% in the U.S. A number of individual amino acids such as glutamine have been demonstrated to help addiction, so it isn’t any stretch of the imagination to think that giving a broad array of amino acids can be beneficial. Amino acids are converted into neurotransmitters and help repair damage to the brain. Taking multivitamins may also help ensure that amino acids are metabolized for this purpose, as opposed for other uses in the body.
Cameron McIntyre, a naturopathic doctor practicing in Vancouver, B.C., explains that drug abuse damages neuroreceptors in the brain. That damage then makes a person more susceptible to addictive tendencies, reinforcing the cycle of drug abuse. Amino acids then repair damaged proteins in a drug user’s brain, “basically giving the brain the chemicals that it is craving, but in a healthy way.”
(http://www.straight.com/article-118344/amino-acid-therapy-claims-massive-success-in-treating-drug-addiction)
6. N-Acetyl-Cysteine
NAC is a modified amino acid that a number of studies suggest may help cocaine addiction. One study showed a significant reduction in craving and likelihood to scan the internet for cocaine-related news within just 2 days.
(http://www.naturalnews.com/022492.html)
7. Exercise
An interesting animal study shows exercise may help drug addiction. One group of rats was placed in cages with running wheels and got plenty of exercise. Another group of rats got no exercise at all. Afterwards, all the rats were connected to infusion pumps that would provide a dose of cocaine if they pushed a lever in their cage. The number of pushes required to get a dose increased each time. Fit rats gave up after pressing the lever around 70 times, whereas unfit rats did not give up until around 250 times.
(http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2613778/)
8. Magnesium
In a 2003 study, a group of 12 addicts were either given magnesium or a placebo. Urine samples were taken twice a week for 12 weeks. Those taking magnesium had drugs in their urine only 16% of the time whereas the placebo group had drugs in their urine 48% of the time. Cocaine craving scores were also 78% lower in the magnesium group. (http://www.naturalnews.com/022492.html)

Holistic Medicine vs. Drug-Based Medicine: The Honest Truth

First of all, it’s important to define exactly the meaning of the term “Holistic.”

Strictly speaking, Holistic health, otherwise known as alternative medicine, believes that all aspects of people's needs - psychological, physical and social should be considered as a comprehensive approach to treatment.

There are a number of separate disciplines within alternative medicine, including but not limited to:

• natural diet and herbal remedies
• nutritional supplements
• psycho-spiritual counseling
• meditation
• acupuncture
• homeopathy
• crystals

Moreover, it is a widely held belief that the spiritual aspect affects overall health and is integral to a person’s well-being.

Holistic medicine is also viewed as a team approach, involving a cooperative relationship among all those involved, leading towards optimal attainment of the physical, mental, emotional, social and spiritual aspects of health.

It also emphasizes the need to look at the whole person, including analysis of physical, nutritional, environmental, emotional, social, spiritual and lifestyle values. It encompasses all stated modalities of diagnosis and treatment, including drugs and surgery if no safe alternative exists. Finally, it focuses on individual education and personal responsibility and efforts in order to achieve balance and well being.

Following detoxification, standard drug and alcohol residential treatment more often than not includes extending the use of a variety of medications.

First, though, what is a residential treatment center?

A residential treatment center, or RTC, sometimes called a rehab, is a live-in health care facility providing therapy for a combination of substance abuse, mental illness and/or other behavioral problems. Generally, residential treatment is considered the "last-ditch" approach to helping a child, friend or other loved one suffering from severe problems. RTC’s vary widely in price depending upon their location and the services offered. Monthly fees range from no-cost in some nonprofit facilities to as high as $100,000 per month for what is often referred to as “high-end treatment.” These are self-described “luxury” facilities specializing in clientele who are often celebrities, professional athletes, top corporate executives or members of extremely wealthy families who wish to keep a low profile. These facilities also offer lavish amenities in order to justify the expense.

No matter what the price point, however, these facilities generally tolerate and often encourage the use of various medications during the client’s stay. These could include anything from psychiatric medications like Celexa for depression, Lithium and Lamictal for Bipolar Disorder to various highly addictive benzodiazepenes (Xanax, Atavan, Valium) for anxiety. In some cases, medical doctors continue to prescribe drugs like Suboxone for maintenance even after detoxification has been completed.  Many practitioners of holistic medicine see this as a very dangerous precedent and nothing more than a band-aid approach to freedom from substance abuse. This standard medical model approach that has been used for years has generally involved a combination of the aforementioned medication along with cognitive behavioral techniques, repeated psycho educational groups on a daily basis and 12 Step group meetings. Many people have been helped by this protocol, but many more continue to relapse. Some never get sober; some die and countless others return time and time again to the same programs, hoping against hope that this time they will somehow achieve different results. While 12 Step programs by themselves have helped countless alcoholics and addicts for over 70 years, it is the only program that emphasizes spirituality and growth and for many, especially the chronic relapsers, that isn’t enough.  As a result, a few alternative treatment facilities have begun to come into existence.

One of these facilities is REBOS Intensive Outpatient Services in Los Angeles, California (http://livingrebos.com/), which describes itself as a “Holistic Alcohol and Drug Program.” Its founder and CEO, Ross Remien says, “Holistic, to me, is a smoother and more natural way to approach a goal or opportunity that involves a team of people helping you to create the person you’ve always wanted to be.” A big part of the approach, according to Ross, is “having trained therapists walk through struggles, triumphs, success and failures with the patient in a way that is more like going with the flow and personal rhythm of the individual rather than forcing something upon them.”  Remien sees Holistic treatment as “a more down to-earth method of achieving a goal, be it physical, mental or spiritual.” That process is coupled with a concentrated effort to assist the patient in discovering his or her true potential through a combination of the following:

·         Introspection

·         Spiritual awareness

·         Psychotherapy

·         Drug counseling

·         Hypnotherapy

·         Group processing

·         Visualization

·         Career and Life Coaching

This illustrates the Holistic approach, whereby treatment is a process containing many elements offered by The Whole or team who form an integral bond– all working for one common purpose - the well-being of the patient.