Doing NADA About Addiction? Acupuncture Can Help!
It’s overwhelming when you confront the challenges of beating an addiction. You may be wondering just what a residential drug rehab clinic can offer beyond the regular series of group and individual counseling sessions that you already know about. A good clinic presents you with options such as acupuncture, which has proved itself as effective in controlling addictive behaviors so that you can get your life back to normal.
The National Acupuncture Detoxification Association—NADA—has instituted a regular protocol for licensed acupuncturists to utilize in the treatment of addictions, trauma, behavioral health, and mental health disorders. Once you begin treatment at a licensed drug rehab clinic, engaging yourself in adjunct therapies such as yoga or other movement classes as well as acupuncture and other treatments will ensure that you take the right road to recovery.
If you’re like most people, you’ve never considered acupuncture before. You may be picturing yourself lying on a treatment table with tiny pins sticking out in myriad directions from all over your body. That’s not how therapeutic acupuncture works! It’s been successful in addiction treatment at least since the 1970s. Here’s what to expect:
The acupuncturist will begin by making certain that you are choosing this treatment option. He or she wants to make certain that you can enter a zone of peace that is conducive to good emotional receptivity. You will be able to consider your own inner strengths.
Next, think what you know about why the use of your substance of choice is so compelling. You’ve probably heard that these drugs, including alcohol, stimulate neural activity, releasing endorphins in the brain’s pleasure center. It’s why addiction is so hard to beat—because the drugs you’ve been taking fit the exact receptors in your brain associated with that pleasure/reward response. The use of acupuncture in treatment at a residential drug treatment clinic also stimulates endorphins, and so you can expect to experience the same type of pleasure/reward sensation.
Initially the acupuncturist will work on your outer ear, called the auricle. It contains five spots that will, when activated, help you to make it through your cravings. You will be able to work on recovery without the use of any drugs. No matter what you’ve been using –alcohol, heroin, cocaine, opiate pain killers, methamphetamine, marijuana, or whatever—success with acupuncture within the setting of a residential drug rehab clinic has been documented.
Most acupuncturists will let you choose whether to sit up or lie down during treatment. The needles are sterile, one-use instruments. Once those points within your auricle are activated, you will experience a feeling of calmness and peace. Three of the five acupuncture points specifically help your lungs, liver, and kidneys to become stronger and better functioning. Overall, acupuncture will help you deal with the traumas or emotional upheavals that may have contributed to your drug or alcohol use.
Why wait to begin treatment? Addiction medicine now includes so many therapeutic options, unlike the days when someone was tossed in a jail cell to quit cold turkey. In the setting of a licensed, certified residential drug rehab clinic, addiction treatment professionals can help make every step of your way a little easier to accomplish.
