Medication-Assisted Treatment (MAT)
Sometimes You Need a Hand to Pull You Out of the Darkness!
MAT is the use of FDA-approved medications along with behavioral health therapies in treating opioid or alcohol addiction. The drugs typically eliminate the cravings for a substance, reduce withdrawal symptoms and block intoxicating effects. MAT is a safe and effective way to overcome substance abuse issues, particularly opioid use disorders, with little or no side effects.
Medication-Assisted Treatment Therapy Q&A
MAT is carefully administered, scientifically valid use of prescribed medicine to treat the chronic disease of addiction. MAT allows people to function normally, while substance abuse does not.
Studies of areas where MAT is not an option have shown higher rates of relapse and overdose deaths. And research involving a prison introducing MAT showed a 61 percent drop in the overdose death rate of prisoners. Any way to break opioid dependence is preferable to a life of addiction.
If someone begins MAT relatively early in their addiction, a slow tapering off may be successful. Long-term drug abuse may introduce permanent changes in brain chemistry and require long-term treatment programs, much like any other chronic disease.
MAT is like any prescription medication for a chronic disease. MAT programs use medications that are safe, controlled and effective. With proper use and professional supervision, these medications do not cause intoxication or compulsive drug-seeking behavior.
Our MAT program involves counseling and facilitates participation in 12-step programs. There is nothing in 12-step philosophy that prohibits prescription medications for addiction.
- Suboxone—an oral medication combining buprenorphine and naloxone that reduces cravings and withdrawal symptoms while blocking the intoxicating effects of opioids.
- Sublocade—a monthly injection that slowly releases buprenorphine, which helps block the effects of opioids and reduce cravings and withdrawal symptoms.
- Naltrexone—an oral medication that binds and blocks opioid receptors in the brain to reduce cravings and block intoxicating effects.
- Vivitrol—a monthly shot that blocks the effects of opioids, typically used after someone has completed detox.
MAT Can Free You From Addiction
MAT, combined with counseling, behavioral health services and 12-step programs, is a proven method to achieve long-term recovery and live a life free from alcohol or opioid addiction. Real-world benefits of MAT include:
- Improving survival rate
- Increasing retention in treatment
- Decreasing illegal opiate use and other criminal activity accompanying substance use disorders
- Increasing employment rates
- Improving birth outcomes for pregnant women with substance use disorders
IHC is not just an opioid treatment clinic. We have a full range of mental health services and can offer treatment for substance abuse and mental disorders. However, our staff is well versed in the treatment of opioid use disorders. Make an appointment today to find out if MAT for opioid treatment or alcohol addiction is the right choice for you.