Drug & Alcohol Rehab in Canvey Island

Despite being separated from Essex by a series of waterways, the town of Canvey Island is still very much connected to the addiction problems affecting the mainland.

In the county of Essex, victims of Substance Use Disorder (SUD) struggle daily: faced with the social, economic, and health-related impacts of their condition.

According to the Essex County Council JSNA [1], the proportion of people dependent on opiates and/or crack cocaine who are in treatment decreased by a rate of 12.6 between 2016 and 2020.

This figure is particularly concerning when it’s noted that England had a decrease of just 3.73 during the same period.

Moreover, while there has been a reduction in hospital admissions for drug poisoning in Essex, the rate of substance-related mortality remains worrying.

Between 2018 and 2020, 3.5 people per 100,000 died as a result of drug misuse, with the nearby area of Tendring recording a mortality rate of 8.8 per 100,000 in 2020.

Clearly, many individuals struggling with drug addiction require the assistance of a drug and alcohol rehab in Canvey Island, but this isn’t the only type of substance addiction affecting the area.

The Local Alcohol Profiles for Essex [2] reported that in 2020, there were 506 deaths attributed to alcohol-related conditions and a further 136 counts of alcohol-specific fatalities.

Local hospitals have also been impacted by the area’s influx of Alcohol Use Disorders. In 2020-2020, there was a staggering 5,220 admissions due to alcohol-specific conditions and a further 180 admissions among the 18s demographic.

Start your recovery journey today by calling our expert team to access drug & alcohol rehab in Canvey Island on 0800 088 66 86

What is Drug and Alcohol Addiction?

The state of being addicted describes the harmful relationship between an individual and any addictive activity, object, or in this case, substance.

While many people assume that victims choose to take a substance repeatedly, those who are battling addiction cannot stop engaging in this destructive behaviour.

To prevent stigma, experts are encouraging people to use the term Substance Use Disorder (SUD) [3] rather than addiction.

Despite detrimental consequences, SUD sufferers are compelled to seek out substances due to neurological disruption.

Alongside various social, environmental and hereditary factors, addiction is caused by changes to the brain’s reward and reinforcement centres [4].

While substance-induced brain changes are reversible with treatment at a drug and alcohol rehab in Canvey Island, they are intensely distressing.

Drug and alcohol use leads to increased levels of the neurotransmitter dopamine, which is connected to feelings of pleasure and euphoria.

Therefore, the brain will learn to equate substance use with the release of dopamine and train itself to seek out this reward above all else.

With increased substance use, further changes occur in the prefrontal cortex that rewires the brain to search for cues relating to drugs and/or alcohol.

This leads to debilitating cravings, further substance use, and increased tolerance. While the brain decreases its sensitivity to a substance’s effects, the intense urge to consume the substance in larger quantities grows.

Increased tolerance and cravings are just some symptoms of SUD outlined by the DSM-5 [5] criterion. Often described as the gold standard text on mental health disorders, the DSM-5 provides 11 key symptoms of addiction, including advice on how to spot the main behavioural, psychological, and physical red flags.

Symptoms are divided into four categories: impaired control, risky use, social problems and physical dependence. Within these brackets are specific examples, such as neglecting responsibilities, giving up once-loved activities, and being unable to quit.

Another key element of the criteria is the emergence of withdrawal symptoms: often cited as the biggest recovery obstacle.

Do Withdrawal Symptoms Require Treatment?

Aversive symptoms [6] are often experienced when SUD victims try to stop taking drugs or drinking alcohol regularly. These are known as withdrawal symptoms, and will start after an active substance has cleared from the body.

This can be as little as a few hours post-use, or days following last consumption depending on the substance’s half-life.

Quitting substances causes the brain’s nerve pathways to suffer as they go through a period of adjustment: producing various mental and physical symptoms.

The severity of someone’s symptoms and how much disruption they cause to their well-being depends on the substance potency, how long they’ve been addicted, and how much of it is present in their system.

Many substance use disorders cause withdrawal symptoms [7] that, while not life-threatening, cause enough discomfort to threaten relapse, and so require treatment at a drug and alcohol rehab in Canvey Island.

In many cases, quitting substances without help can set off depression, anxiety, and bouts of agitation or restlessness. In addition to psychological discomfort, physical symptoms range from tremors, shaking, and sweating, to vomiting, diarrhoea, and severe abdominal cramps.

For individuals addicted to central nervous system depressants such as alcohol or benzodiazepines, withdrawal can be medically dangerous.

Essentially, as their nervous system leans to function normally again, it becomes overstimulated: causing complications such as Delerium Tremens, severe anxiety, shaking, and seizures. This may even lead to further life-threatening risks such as cardiac arrest.

Because it’s difficult to predict whether or not someone will experience complications, it’s advised that those addicted to alcohol, benzodiazepines, or indeed any substance seek medical support during their detox.

At a drug and alcohol rehab in Canvey Island, detox involves highly individualised care that puts the needs of each patient first.

Most customised detox strategies in rehab will involve some level of medical support, otherwise known as Medication Assisted Treatment (MAT).

In MAT programmes, professionals prescribe certain medications to help patients overcome withdrawal symptoms and stabilise fully to allow further treatment. Examples include the use of buprenorphine to help opiate users avoid severe withdrawal, and naltrexone to ease alcohol cravings.

Start your recovery journey today by calling our expert team to access drug & alcohol rehab in Canvey Island on 0800 088 66 86

How Do I Enter a Drug and Alcohol Rehab in Canvey Island?

While there’s no single pathway out of addiction and into recovery, accessing the expertise of a drug and alcohol rehab in Canvey Island is a great way to begin the journey to lifelong sobriety.

With this being said, the process of finding a suitable clinic, navigating the health consultation, and choosing a treatment programme can be a lot to handle. Thankfully, those considering rehab can access our free, fully personalised referral procedure.

Here at Rehab Recovery, we’ve partnered with clinics in and around Canvey Island that meet Care Quality Commission standards and offer science-backed treatments.

As soon as you’re ready to explore these options and find the best fit for your needs, simply call a member of the team on 0800 088 66 86 [8].

Our lines are open all hours of the day, and you’ll be greeted by a sympathetic member of our admissions team.

They’ll start by asking some basic questions surrounding your reasons for calling, your current substance-use problem, and whether you’ve considered or received treatment before.

If our team believes that you’re suffering from an active addiction and require residential treatment, we can organise a health screening to understand more about your unique situation.

Each pre-admissions assessment is conducted by one of our in-house consultant psychiatrists over the phone and lasts for a maximum of 30 minutes.

To ascertain which drug and alcohol rehab in Canvey Island would be optimal, they’ll ask you a series of questions relating to your physical and mental health.

During our treatment matching process, you’ll also be asked about your substance use history, living situation, and any other personal issues that could affect your recovery. You can rest assured that any information you feel comfortable sharing is protected under our promise of 100% confidentiality.

Once you’ve completed this assessment, we’ll present a carefully thought-out selection of clinics in your area. Whichever rehab centre you choose to attend will address every facet of addiction recovery: helping you detox, prevent relapse, and address the deep-rooted causes of your condition.

Start your recovery journey today by calling our expert team to access drug & alcohol rehab in Canvey Island on 0800 088 66 86

Comorbidity Treatment at a Drug and Alcohol Rehab in Canvey Island

Part of rebuilding a life outside of addiction that’s meaningful and rewarding is tackling any co-occurring disorders [9]. The presence of a mental illness alongside substance addiction is relatively common: with 50% of all clients entering treatment doing so with a dual diagnosis.

As such, each drug and alcohol rehab in Canvey Island is equipped with the specialised staff and therapeutic measures needed to treat comorbid mental health conditions.

It’s an unfortunate truth that substance misuse temporarily eases the symptoms associated with mental disorders, which is why many people use a wide range of substances to self-medicate.

As substances become a crutch for individuals to lean on during periods of depression and anxiety, addiction grows and both conditions feed off one another.

Psychiatric disorders can also arise from ongoing substance use in individuals without a prior history of mental illness. Substance abuse changes the brain’s chemical processes over time, which can lead to conditions such as psychosis arising from drug addiction.

While co-occurring disorder treatment is administered in a variety of ways, the most important way of ensuring longevity is to perform integrated treatment via inpatient programmes.

This means receiving targeted, personalised treatment for both disorders at the same time at a renowned treatment centre or outpatient clinic.

Treatment at residential rehabs will look different for each patient, but the overarching goal is to help individuals manage their mental symptoms while maintaining sobriety.

Commonly implemented methods include CBT, DBT, motivational therapy programmes, and groups that connect patients with other individuals working towards complete abstinence.

Therapeutic Strategies at a Drug and Alcohol Rehab in Canvey Island

With the correct therapeutic treatment in residential settings, SUD victims have a higher chance of living a full life free from substances, with many people achieving sobriety after undertaking therapy [10].

At a drug and alcohol rehab in Canvey Island, therapies are integral in helping patients navigate their recovery: allowing them to build coping strategies, heal from trauma, and adopt healthier life skills.

Treatment options that optimise recovery success rates include:

Cognitive Behavioural Therapy [11] (CBT): This traditional form of behavioural therapy is practical in its approach: using theories of cognition and behaviourism to change the way someone’s thoughts are wired. CBT theorises that our feelings, thoughts, sensations and behaviour are interconnected and that just as substance use is integrated into this web, it can be removed. At a drug and alcohol rehab in Canvey Island, CBT attendees learn to notice and change problematic thinking styles and learn better ways of coping based on this.
Dialectical Behavioural Therapy [12] (DBT): This present-orientated psychotherapy is an offshoot of CBT that focuses more on achieving emotional stability. Rather than living in the past and ruminating over the negative feelings that have been feeding into their SUD, DBT offers patients a way to move forward. Addiction counsellors place a strong emphasis on teaching patients how to heal from trauma, manage distress through mindfulness, and emotionally regulate.
Holistic Therapy [13] (HT): Using natural methods to treat all elements of someone’s health, Holistic Therapy is often a welcome addition to treatment plans at a drug and alcohol rehab in Canvey Island. HT programmes are designed to be relaxing, gentle, and mindful in how they’re carried out to offer patients various mental and physical benefits. Examples include music therapy, art therapy, yoga, nutrition therapy, and acupuncture.
Family Therapy [14] (FT): Sadly, many family members of an addicted individual find it difficult to maintain a healthy relationship with that person: leading to mistrust, conflict, and emotional turmoil. That’s why many rehab clinics propose FT programmes to help SUD victims reconnect with loved ones. Participants have the chance to learn more about SUD courtesy of addiction specialists, practice self-care, and help their loved one in their addiction recovery journey.
Motivational Interviewing (MI) [15]: MI is a counselling method that takes into consideration how difficult it is to decide to enter treatment. When tackling aspects of addiction, many patients suffer from periods of low self-esteem and ambivalence towards change, which is where MI techniques come in. Sessions consist of informal chats with a counsellor that allow clients to discuss what motivates them, and the values they hold dear.