LATEST ADVANCES IN TREATMENT OF ADDICTION

Here is the story of a Heroin addict. Read on…..

26 years old Rikky (Name changed for reasons of confidentiality) came to the clinic with his parents stating that he had been abusing drugs since the past 10 years. He had always been a brilliant student in school. Then, his brother’s friends initiated him into occasional marijuana smoking. He would have it over the weekends while partying with friends but slowly he started to take it alone as well. The habit grew and he found himself smoking greater amounts of marijuana every day.

Soon, however, he stopped getting a kick with Marijuana and so, he tried Smack (Brown Sugar) on the recommendation of one of his friends. And that was the beginning of his rapid downward spiral. He began to do Heroin regularly. He would chase it, smoke it in a cigarette or inject it depending on the quality of the drug he could lay his hands on. When he could not arrange money to score, he would take substitutes like Cough Syrups, Buprenorphine, pain-killers and sometimes, even Opium. He became aloof and withdrew from his friends and family. His would bunk college, miss tuitions. His parents noticed that he would stay awake the whole night and sleep during the day. He would not eat well. Often, he would be in a foul mood and get aggressive with them on matters related to money, studies and career. He started lying and stealing to support his habit. He even resorted to drug peddling to make ends meet. Rikky reported feeling depressed most of the times, with intense feelings of hopelessness. He had tried to quit on his own on several occasions but each time relapsed almost immediately. He said that he could not bear / tolerate the intense pain of the withdrawal. On eleven occasions, he was forcibly admitted to a Rehab clinic but every time after discharge, within a couple of weeks, the severe discomfort and craving would make him relapse. In fact, he confessed that a few times, the drug would be available inside the Rehab itself and he would happily stay on there. He was desperate to break out of the vicious loop of addiction, but didn’t know how.

After he came to us, he was told that he would need to be hospitalized for twenty-four hours. The Heroin was removed from his body through a procedure called Ultra Rapid Opiate Detoxification (UROD), which was carried out under light sedation. The UROD procedure is carried out using Dr. Chugh’s Protocol. Dr. Chugh pioneered this treatment protocol in India a few years ago. UROD hastens the withdrawal period, which makes it a short, relatively painless and comfortable experience for the patient. After the body had been detoxified, to prevent a relapse, a long-acting Naltrexone implant was put in him through minor surgery under local anesthesia. Naltrexone, the treatment of choice for Addiction, works in two ways. First and foremost, it creates a kind of chemical wall around the brain and blocks the euphoric effect that a patient would experience with drugs. As a result, the brain begins to accept the fact that there is no point taking something that isn’t giving a kick. It also starts to promote healing, thereby decreasing craving for the drug. This is the key to preventing a relapse. The combination of UROD with a long-acting Naltrexone Implant has helped hundreds of thousands of drug addicted individuals all over the world in the last few years.
After his discharge, Rikky started to come to the clinic regularly for his counseling sessions. The sessions focused on helping him to deal with psychological and social impact of drugs and how to once again live a healthy drug free life.

He has been living a drug free, clean life for almost 2 years now with renewed self - confidence and happiness. And swears by the Naltrexone Implant!

ADDICTION IS COMMONER THAN YOU THINK....... Please SHARE this if you LIKE it so that others may read and benefit. Thank you.

Dr. Sanjay Chugh

Senior Consultant Psychiatrist
S-132, Greater Kailash Part 2, New Delhi - 110048 (INDIA)

Email Ids: doc@drchugh.com ; drchugh@gmail.com
Tel.: +91-9811079401 / +91-11-41436012 / +91-11-41436013
Fax : +91-11-29219820