Mephedrone Treatment and Rehab

Mephedrone Info

• Mephedrone Addiction and Abuse
• Mephedrone Symptoms and Warning Signs
• Mephedrone Treatment and Rehab
• Mephedrone Withdrawal and Detox

If you or a loved one are looking to break free from addiction to or dependence on mephedrone, there are treatment options and dedicated rehab centres available to help you. Addiction to mephedrone is treatable, and many addicts have found their way to recovery by seeking professional help.

Mephedrone – commonly known as ‘meow meow’, ‘bubbles’, ‘MCAT’, ‘drone’, ‘meph’ and ‘4-MMC’ -is a relatively new stimulant, synthesised with a combination of the amphetamine and cathinone classes of drugs. Being a combination of these drugs, mephedrone is classified as a psychoactive stimulant.

Amphetamines are central nervous system stimulants, responsible for enhancing certain psychological activities and altering the brain’s chemistry. Cathinone also has similar effects to amphetamines and is sourced from the Khat plant in East Africa.

The combination of these drugs in mephedrone induces ‘highs’ similar to what can be achieved through the ingestion of ecstasy (MDMA), amphetamines and cocaine. Mephedrone is often used for recreational purposes and partying and can be addictive, as it is a psychoactive drug. Although there is no research backing its addictive qualities, users tend to depend on the drug for the recreation of its energetic feelings and excitement.

The effects of mephedrone vary from person to person. Generally, the drug is known to cause harmful effects. According to a British Journal of Pharmacology study, the use of mephedrone involves similar hazards and feelings to MDMA, but mephedrone poses potentially more severe, negative effects.

Users have reported that taking the drug gives them feelings of euphoria, excitement, increased alertness, high libido and restlessness. Adverse effects include profuse sweating, panic attacks, nausea, heart palpitations, hallucinations, headaches and paranoia, all of which are expected of the drug, given its similar properties to amphetamines.

We understand that mephedrone can act as a close substitute to other addictive drugs, and that you want to escape addiction. That is why we have in place a competent system which can provide the help you need. So, contact us now to get help.

Understanding treatments for mephedrone addiction

There is no standard treatment plan specifically developed for mephedrone addiction and dependence, due to the limited scientific knowledge of the substance. However, traditional treatment plans and protocols for other psychoactive drug addictions can be helpful. It’s important to know that you can break free from the grip of addiction with the treatment plans that are currently available.

Like other recovery processes and treatments, a plan will be devised based on your individual needs. Even though the traditional procedure for treating psychoactive drug addiction is to be followed, your treatment plan will strictly be based on a personalised approach. You’ll go through detoxification, rehab and aftercare.

Individual therapy sessions will be conducted to provide one-on-one lectures on how to combat addiction to the substance. Group therapies will also be arranged to give you a sense of camaraderie, so you can understand that you aren’t alone in the fight for freedom from addiction.

You will undergo your treatment in an inpatient facility as a residential patient or visiting patient in an outpatient rehab clinic. The kind of rehab centre you go to will largely depend on the severity of your addiction, as well as your particular needs and situation.

Mephedrone addiction rehab

Rehabilitation for mephedrone addiction is a lifelong commitment that creates a pathway to overcoming your issues with addiction. Some techniques applied in rehab include Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT), individual and group counselling, motivational therapy and 12-step therapy.

You will either go through rehab as a residential patient in an inpatient facility or as an outpatient – or a mix of both, depending on the treatment plan devised by your health professional.

Outpatient treatment

Outpatient treatment involves being treated as a visiting patient. You will visit the rehab centre based on scheduled appointments on a daily, weekly or monthly basis, depending on your treatment plan and particular needs. During detox, you may be required to undergo constant monitoring in case any complication arises.

Taking the outpatient route during your recovering is ideal if your health professional believes your addiction can be handled without constant observation. It’s also ideal in the sense that you will receive extra emotional support from your loved ones, and may not necessarily have to pause your regular activities like work or school.

However, if you don’t respond well to treatment, your doctor may recommend an inpatient treatment or revise your treatment plan. Outpatient treatment usually takes longer than inpatient treatment, due to the fact you won’t be under constant supervision.

During detox, your body will go through withdrawal, as it has now been denied the substance it has grown to rely on to function properly. Withdrawal involves bouts of mild to severe symptoms, which can range from mildly uncomfortable to painful.

Going through detox in an inpatient facility with 24-hour surveillance will increase your chances of success and mitigate your withdrawal symptoms. Medications such as anti-convulsants, anti-depressants and other psychoactive pharmaceuticals may be administered to achieve this. Detoxing under professional medical surveillance is the safest way to go.

Your treatment doesn’t end with detoxification, as a treatment plan will be designed to fit your personality, so you can go through rehab comfortably.

Comprehensive treatment plan for mephedrone addiction

Your recovery to mephedrone addiction largely depends on the kind of treatment plan you undertake. When you meet your doctor, expect a treatment plan to be drawn up after you’ve gone through an interview session and thorough assessments.

Ideally, every treatment plan begins with detox, where you’ll be monitored round-the-clock in a medically controlled environment. After detox, you’ll transition to rehabilitation, which involves a therapeutic programme that is part of your general treatment plan. Rehab aims to address certain behavioural tendencies toward mephedrone. It’s also geared towards enabling you with the necessary skills for combating addiction and making the required lifestyle changes.

A comprehensive treatment plan will also treat the health effects that occurred during abuse of the drug. This way, the healing process will not just help overcome your addiction, but also address other co-existing psychological impairments that the drug may have caused.

Counselling services

You’ll be required to go through extensive counselling in order to restore your psychological balance and sense of well-being. General treatment is most effective when it is streamlined to address every aspect of your life, including your mental health, level of substance abuse and social and environmental concerns, as well as any pre-addiction mental conditions.

Individual, group and other forms of counselling services are made available in treatment programmes for mephedrone addiction and abuse. Through these counselling services, you’ll be trained to improve communications and relationships, make positive lifestyle changes and understand how mephedrone works and the dangers of going back to the drug.

12-step groups

The programme goes on to help participants address certain behaviours and come to terms with their previous faults. The final step of the programme involves extending help to other struggling addicts.

You will be put you through the twelve-step programme if your doctor believes (after your assessment) it is required. The programme is available in most rehab centres, but you can access it within your community.

Behavioural therapies

A number of behavioural therapies are available for treating stimulant abuse and dependence. These therapies are implemented through different approaches, based on the unique needs of whoever is being treated. Behavioural therapies aim to address the behaviours of addicts towards the substance they are abusing.

Certain behaviours manifest as a result of substance abuse. When you use a stimulant like mephedrone for a while, you begin to exhibit some unpleasant behaviours, such as paranoia and irritability. These behaviours occur due to the feelings created by the drug, which reinforces use of the substance to continue, despite the negative effects.

To address this, your therapist, in conjunction with yourself, will come up with a plan to promote change in your behaviour, your assertive communication skills, your stress management and ability to note unwanted behaviours and avoid them.

Motivational therapies

Also called Contingency Management, this form of therapy is specifically used to treat substance abuse, especially in the case of addiction to stimulant drugs. It involves rewarding addicts with tangible, valuable and wanted incentives for meeting desired accomplishments. Commonly, the desired accomplishment is maintained sobriety, and the rewards help improve good behaviours, build new ones and create a winning mentality towards abstinence.

Rewards awarded to addicts for accomplishing certain goals include vouchers that can be used in exchange for items that support recovery, and prizes that include tangible materials, rather than vouchers. These prizes and vouchers start out with low value, but build up over time, as the addict progresses.

You will normally be put through motivational therapies during rehab, where you’ll be awarded prizes and medals as you progress. At some point, you’ll also feel an inner sense of joy and pride when you see how far you’ve come in your battle with addiction.

Multidimensional family therapy

Young people – especially in their adolescence – make up a large majority of stimulant abusers. Though mephedrone (being relatively new) may be abused mainly by adolescents, its popularity in the UK almost rose to almost epidemic proportions a few years ago. For this reason, multidimensional family therapy – developed to address addiction in adolescents and disruptions caused to the family dynamic – is ideal for treating mephedrone addiction in adolescents, teens and other young adults.

Individualised treatment plans

An individualised treatment plan involves a holistic treatment process, designed to suit the unique needs of any addict. Your state of addiction is distinct from that of other addicts. Everyone struggling with addiction is fighting an individual battle. Withdrawal symptoms, addiction, usage and effects vary from individual to individual, which is why personalised treatment plans are drawn up to suit the conditions of each addict.

To maximise your chances of successful recovery, you’re expected to go through a treatment plan developed just for you. It should address your social and environmental needs, your medical history, the state of your physical and mental health, your level of mephedrone dependence and even your financial status.

You’ll find that some treatment phases are more difficult than others. In any case, with a firm resolve and the assistance of your therapists, you’ll come through safely. You should also understand that your treatment stages will be aligned to blend into an individualised recovery plan, designed by your doctor.

Step 1: Intake

When you arrive at the facility, this is the first process you’ll go through before your admission. Your doctor will ask you some questions about your family medical history, if you have any allergies, how long you have used mephedrone and the symptoms and effects you’ve been experiencing over time. You’ll also be put through some tests to determine the amount of drugs in your system and other substances that may disrupt the treatment process. You may also undergo a mental assessment and assessment of your physical condition.

These processes are required to devise a treatment plan that will work perfectly for you. It will determine how long you will spend in the facility, the kind of therapies to undergo, and if you require inpatient treatment at all.

Step 2: Detox

Detox is the first stage of your treatment proper and one of the most difficult. This is where the symptoms of withdrawal come into full force. The first few hours will be the hardest, as your psychological cravings for the drug will come to the fore. Symptoms will begin to subside after the first few days, but may still induce extreme discomfort. Depending on the level of your addiction, your withdrawal symptoms could range from mildly distressing to extremely painful.

Due to the unpleasant challenges of detox, you’ll be monitored round-the-clock by medical experts to help manage your distress and discomfort. To keep you from harming yourself and those around you, medications may be administered when the severity of your withdrawal symptoms begin to rise.

Step 3: Rehab

You will transition to rehab once your detox is over. This stage mainly consists of different forms of psychotherapy and counselling services. The therapies you will go through during rehab are those recommended by your doctor that fall in line with your individualised treatment plan.

Rehab is typically a blend of group and individual therapy sessions, as well as some vocational activities in most cases. Therapies, which are largely based on clinical, psychological and behavioural counselling, aim to teach skills which help you make ideal lifestyle and behavioural changes, as well as cope with stressful situations that may otherwise lead to another cycle of mephedrone addiction.

They also help you notice and avoid situations that could potentially lead to relapse.
You may be allowed to undergo rehab as a visiting patient, attending therapy sessions with your counsellor or group on an appointment basis, depending on the rate of your recovery and treatment plan.

Step 4: Aftercare

When rehab is done and you’re cleared to leave the facility, you’re faced with a new challenge: returning to the outside world. Your treatment – all the way from intake through to rehab – does not confer on you an immunity to relapse. Rather, it arms you with relapse-prevention and coping skills. Those you have acquired will be put to test in real life situations, when you walk out the doors of the rehab centre.

Staying sober is a life-long battle. As humans, we are prone to making the wrong choices in our weakest moments. This is why an aftercare programme is included in your general treatment plan to help when you feel low and are susceptible to various relapse elements, like stress and peer pressure.

You can also get help on your own through support groups, friends and family.

FAQs

What happens after treatment?

After treatment, you are expected to remain healthy and maintain sobriety. Continue to ask for help whenever you feel low, and schedule appointments with your counsellor from time to time. The battle to an addiction-free life is a long one, but one that you can overcome.