Evidenced-based treatment for addiction

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 Methadone is a long acting, synthetic full opioid agonist used for opioid addiction since the 1960s.  Methadone tricks the brain into thinking it is still getting the problem opioid. The person taking the medication feels normal, not high, and withdrawal does not occur. Methadone also reduce cravings. 
Therapeutically appropriate doses of Methadone produce cross-tolerance for short-acting opioids, thereby suppressing withdrawal symptoms and opioid craving as a short-acting opioid is eliminated from the body  Extensive bioavailability and long half-life, an adequate daily oral dose of methadone suppresses withdrawal and drug craving for 24 to 36 hours in most patients who are opioid addicted.
 

 Buprenorphine is a long acting, semi-synthetic partial opioid agonist with a strong affinity for the same receptors in the brain that opioids attach to.  Buprenorphine can reduce and cravings and eliminate the euphoric effect of opiates and opioids.
 At low doses buprenorphine produces sufficient agonist effect to enable opioid-addicted individuals to discontinue the misuse of opioids without experiencing withdrawal symptoms.   The agonist effects of buprenorphine increase with increasing doses of the drug until it reaches a plateau and no longer continues to increase with further increases in dosage. This is called the "ceiling effect."  

Colorado Addiction Treatment Services prescribes medications including naltrexone, acamprosate, topiramate and gabapentin to treatment alcohol use disorder.  Research has shown that these medications, coupled with cognitive behavioral therapy, can reduce consumptions and cravings and prolong abstinence.

Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) is a short-term, goal-oriented psychotherapy treatment that takes a hands-on, practical approach to problem-solving. Its goal is to change patterns of thinking or behavior that are behind people's difficulties, and so change the way they feel.  At CATS, individuals learn actual skills that can help them focus on solving specific problems. If someone is stuck on a problem in the present, such as conflicts in the workplace, a cognitive approach offers ways to get unstuck.

Motivational interviewing (MI) is a goal-oriented, client-centered counseling style for eliciting behavior change by helping clients to explore and resolve ambivalence. Compared with non-directive counseling, it's more focused and goal-directed. The examination and resolution of ambivalence is a central purpose, and the counselor is intentionally directive in pursuing this goal. CATS addiction counselors communicate compassion, acceptance, partnership, and respect. 

Colorado Addiction Treatment Services offers individual and group counseling sessions for opioid and alcohol addiction.