When it comes to treating addiction, a comprehensive approach is essential. Addiction is a chronic, often relapsing brain disease. So many factors contribute to how a person develops addiction and how addiction changes that person’s overall brain health and functioning. Therefore, there is no easy fix, nor a one-size-fits-all approach that works. BUT, addiction is a treatable disease, and a person can go on to lead a truly healthy, joy-filled life by treating their disease.

Today’s guest author, Anna Ciulla, shares her expertise on treating addiction with a comprehensive approach and what that approach entails.

Anna is the Chief Clinical Officer at Beach House Center for Recovery. She oversees the supervision and delivery of client care, including the programmatic daily operations of our clinical, behavioral, nursing and medical departments. She has an extensive background in psychotherapy and clinical management, including more than 20 years of experience helping individuals and families affected by addiction and co-occurring disorders find recovery. You can learn more about Beach House’s rehab and addiction treatment programs and Anna’s work by visiting their website.

Why a Comprehensive Approach to Treating Addiction Is Essential by Anna Ciulla

Anyone who has ever suffered from drug or alcohol addiction — or watched a loved one struggle with substance abuse — has probably wished there were a simple way to cure addiction. But the truth is that there is no “cure-all” pill for addiction. Some medication-assisted treatments (MATs) can help curb cravings for certain drugs of abuse, but these only address the physical symptoms of an addiction— not the emotional, psychological and behavioral strands that interweave with physical issues and form an addictive pattern of substance abuse.

Addiction is a complex disease because its causes are complex, involving the mind, body and spirit. The best treatment approach is a comprehensive one that combines the best that medicine and clinical therapies have to offer with healthy lifestyle changes that support the long-term arc of recovery.

In addition to MAT and/or other medications, the following components help to support long-term recovery, based on what we now know in the field of addiction treatment.

Nutrition and Supplements

Drugs and alcohol, when taken habitually and in excess, can lead to severe malnourishment, robbing the body of key nutrients that are essential to mental and physical health. The metabolism of these substances of abuse actually gets in the way of the body’s ability to absorb key proteins and vitamins that are vital to healthy functioning. Research shows, for example, that heavy alcohol consumption:

• Adversely impacts diet – someone suffering from full-blown addiction will be thinking much more about their next drink than when and what to eat.
• Interferes with the metabolism of food nutrients consumed.
• Leads to severe deficiencies in key vitamins like vitamins A, B_1, B_2, B_6, and C.

One goal of rehab is to help clients build back these critical nutrients. This involves introducing them to the practice of a healthy, daily diet consisting of three well-balanced meals a day and key supplements to support the recovery of both brain and body.

Exercise

The many mental and physical benefits of exercise help to explain why so many treatment centers now have on-site gyms that clients are encouraged to make use of regularly, if not daily. Here are some of the findings that help to show how regular exercise can boost addiction recovery:

• Vigorous cardiovascular exercise has been shown to reduce cravings for cocaine (according to research cited by the National Institute on Drug Abuse) and cannabis (in a study by researchers at Vanderbilt University), among other drugs.
• Vigorous exercise also reportedly increases the production of “feel-good” neurotransmitters in the brain, (which at low levels are linked with poor mood and depression), and can restore mental health. This fact is particularly promising for people in early recovery, for whom symptoms of anxiety and depression and other mood problems often come with the territory of early abstinence from one or more drugs.
• A 2009 study in the Journal of Health Psychology found that people with low self-esteem who exercised gained greater self-confidence— not because of how well they ran or how much they benched, but purely because they exercised. (It may go without saying that people in early recovery need to be encouraged to develop their self-confidence and self-efficacy, which are often the first things to go in active addiction.)

Behavioral Therapies for Addiction

A number of behavioral therapies have proven effective at boosting treatment outcomes for people with substance use disorders (SUDs). Cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT), for example, teaches people how to change their thoughts and feelings in response to addiction triggers so that they are able to replace an old behavioral pattern (like drinking or drug using) with a healthier behavior. Dialectical behavior therapy (DBT) is a form of CBT that focuses on helping clients develop better emotional self-regulation and has been used with success to treat SUDs.

Behavioral therapies can also include family and group counseling sessions that help clients develop healthier interpersonal skills and relationships and a stronger support system — all of which are indispensable for recovery.

There is no magic pill for addiction. However, a comprehensive treatment approach that includes healthy nutrition, regular exercise, behavioral therapy in one or more settings, and potentially medication, has helped many people make a successful comeback from substance abuse. The same can be true for you or someone you love.