Ritalin Addiction Treatment

by | Mar 6, 2017

Addiction to the Drug Ritalin

The drug Ritalin is gaining wide recognition as it is abused by most students who want to stay wide awake for several hours. Their tolerance is usually increased leading them further to hallucinations, headaches and convulsions. To know more about the drug Ritalin and addiction, read on more about it below.

What is Ritalin?

Ritalin, a drug effective in the treatment of ADHD, is used and abused by students who want to get good grades on their school work. Its generic name is methylphenidate and it is considered to be a more potent psychostimulant. It helps improve the efficacy and neurotransmitters levels found in the brain.

In addition to that, it is used in maintaining/ increasing attentiveness and in treating Narcolepsy. This helps fight exhaustion, treat obesity, treat depression and enhance concentration.

In the United States, it is prescribed as a psychostimulant but is one of the most abused drugs. It is not usually synthesized but is stolen. It is usually stolen in America. It also comes in various forms like liquid, tablets, patches and capsules. It is also usually ingested orally, by injection and inhalation.

Ritalin addiction is usually increased after it was injected or inhaled. Usually, the effects are felt quicker in a range of five to ten minutes after inhaled and ten to fifteen seconds after injected. It is also simply intensified in the long period of hours. Some symptoms are usually felt by a user.

Other names of drug Ritalin include Vitamin R, Kiddie Coke, Poor Man’s Cocaine, Smarties, R-ball, Kiddie Cocaine, Rids and Diet Coke.

Significant Information

Ritalin is not suggested to be taken if one has tics, severe anxiety, Tourette’s syndrome, agitation and tension. If ever a person has taken an MAO inhibitor in the past fourteen days like linezoid methylene blue injection, isocarboxazid, rasagiline, phenelsize, tranylcypromine, selegiline and more, the drug Ritalin should never be taken.

Since this drug may be taken out of a habit, this must never be shared with others as this only poses drug addiction or drug abuse. The use of Ritalin only causes serious effects in the heart and death.

Ritalin Abuse and Addiction

If you believe that someone has an issue with Ritalin addiction, there is a need to first understand the symptoms and the signs that are as follow:

  • Agitation
  • Fatigue
  • Feeling faint/Dizziness
  • Depression
  • Pupil Dilation
  • Reduced weight loss and appetite
  • Headaches
  • Insomnia
  • Sweating
  • Impaired vision
  • Fast Heart Rate
  • Stomach Pain
  • Stunted Growth
  • Cardiac Arrhythmia
  • Chest Pain (Angina)

Effects

The addiction to Ritalin has its negative effects. The effects could create an impact in the lives of people. These usually negatively impact their personal, psychological and physical lives. The harmful effects brought by Ritalin addiction include the following:

Physical Effects

  • Alopecia
  • Abdominal Pain
  • Angina
  • Pupil Dilation
  • Dizziness
  • Tachycardia
  • Nausea
  • Headache
  • Diaphoresis or Sweating
  • Libido decreased or increased

Psychological Effects

  • Depression
  • Hearing Voices
  • Paranoid Delusions
  • Euphoria
  • Severe Anxiety
  • Urges of Harming Oneself
  • Dysphoria
  • Anger
  • Irritability
  • Confusion
  • Grandiosity
  • Increased Aggression

Personal Effects

  • A Ruined Career
  • Loss of the Family
  • Important Relationships Lost
  • Loss Of the Money
  • Stops Getting Interested in Doing Enjoying Activities
  • Spends a lot of Time Alone

Ritalin Withdrawal

People are more prone to developing addiction towards the drug Ritalin. The sad thing is that the ending is a lot more difficult. If this is discontinued, withdrawal effects would simply occur. Among the symptoms of withdrawal that can be felt include disturbed sleeping patterns, extreme fatigue, irregular heartbeat rhythms, depression.

Even if the withdrawal is not believed to be life threatening, users may still get back to using and abusing drugs brought by intense discomfort. In regard with the severity, it could likewise be connected to the time period that the drug was abused, including the quantity used, dosage frequency, dosage strength and use of cross-tolerant or cross-dependent drug.

 

Ritalin Abuse Statistics

It is by far emphasized that Ritalin addiction is more of a common issue due to the ADD and ADHD diagnoses every year; the availability of Ritalin. The statistics below will help you know more about the problem:

  • 11 percent of children living in the United States had gone through a diagnosis of ADHD in the year of 2011.
  • The PATS or Partnership Attitude Tracking Study has discovered that one point three million of teenagers are using Adderall or Ritalin in the past thirty days.
  • Based on the DAWN report released by SAMHSA, the visits of those people who have ADHD complications reach 13,379 in the year of 2005 to 31,244 in the year of 2010.

Where the Drug Ritalin is obtained?

People who fall in the age of twenties obtain the stimulant medication despite not having a doctor’s prescription. This paved way for the misuse and abuse of the drug that young people are also exposed to this.

According to a survey released by Recovery Brands in 2016, it revealed that sixty-three percent of young people between the age of eighteen and twenty-eight obtained the stimulant in the treatment of ADHD. Almost twenty percent of them get a hold of it via family member, dealer or other students.

Nevertheless, those who have been approved of the medications can help in tracking the ADHD stimulants. This way, college students will be protected from the consequences and misuse of substances.

What Treatments are there for Ritalin Addiction?

In an effort to put a stop to addiction to Ritalin, people must accept the fact that it can become difficult and complicated. It could really be a tough road along the way and a hard battle as well. For a particular person who wants to end up dependency to Ritalin, one must keep on working overcoming the difficulties throughout the journey. In addition to that, one must seek assistance and help from family and friends, a treatment facility and a licensed psychologist.

In the event that you have become addicted to it and you want to finally get out, start by accepting your Ritalin addiction. Actually, this is the very first step involved in controlling your life. It is true that addiction has its power over your own life. There will also be a lot of things that could be lost along the way because of Ritalin addiction. There will also be things that could be lost by your family like quality bonding and time together.

Therefore, there is a need to begin it with seeking the help of a rehabilitation center. If your family member, or if your friend has been addicted to Ritalin, speak it with them. Address the sadness and the pain that has been experienced and do it in a safe and gentle manner. You have to take note that the drug Ritalin is in effect that one may not be in control of his or her set of actions. You need to make them understand that you really care. You need to give your one-hundred percent support in this complicated time.

Treatment Plan Intended for Ritalin and Addiction

A treatment program or a treatment plan must be implemented in overcoming Ritalin addiction. This will involve a team of closest members like loved ones, support group, friends, and an addiction/detoxification center. The success will also depend on the four aspects that will work as one team.

  • Consult a licensed therapist- The presence of a licensed therapist will help bring out personal interaction. This will finally beat the addiction to Ritalin because of a designed rehabilitation plan. One will also help in the admission of a person to a treatment facility.
  • Seek the Help of Loved Ones- Healing has its main role in family and friends. When healing and recovery becomes difficult, they are the ones to inspire and bring hope.
  • Look for a Treatment Facility- A detoxification program will help in working all throughout the psychological and physical withdrawal symptoms. They may make use of different treatment strategies valuable in handling co-occurring addictions.
  • Support Group- The help of a support group is indeed significant. This is in a way that it provides guidance and accountability. The group will offer assistance especially when it comes to facing consequences and trials. The prevention of relapse is also made successful provided that there is a group to offer some help. The group will also help maintain abstinence.

The Treatment Levels of Ritalin

There are many treatments that have been designed in handling and managing Ritalin addiction. These also differ in their acuteness. The intensity and level of treatment will depend on the severity of addiction. It will also be influenced by co-existing disorders and drug abuses. Thus, it is significant to get help from a rehab facility for the recovery. They will be ready to provide the following treatment levels:

  • Hospital/Inpatient Treatment- The care will usually be offered twenty-four hours every day in such a hospital setting. This is also in the event that a patient demands medical stability at the soonest possible time. This will also be conducted in a hospital environment before the continued recovery.
  • Residential Treatment Center– This facility offers a patient an overnight stay that could last for about thirty to ninety days. The living care will help direct the attention towards Ritalin addiction. This will also deal with drug dependence or co-occurring disorders.
  • Partial Hospitalization Level of Care (PHP)- This is the care usually conducted in a hospital, residential center with individual and group therapies. The session will usually be held 5 days a week in the afternoons or mornings.
  • Intensive Outpatient Treatment Level or the (IOP)– This is the outpatient care that brings out individual and assistance services. Nevertheless, this does not implement the use of detoxification. The daily routines of a patient will be maintained while the sessions will be conducted during the mornings and the afternoons.
  • Outpatient Care-This is an outpatient care that is similar with IOP only that it is intense. A patient will have fewer limits but will usually include group sessions and individualized treatments.
  • Support Groups- Support groups will be there to offer direction and supervision that helps prevent relapse. They also mainly offer patient acceptance without condemning them.

Therapy Types for Ritalin Addiction

There are no known pharmacological treatments for Ritalin Addiction. Nevertheless, there are lots of psychological healing techniques that can be used. A rehabilitation program will help implement different combinations of modification therapies. This will also concentrate on the key mental components of dependency. The therapies to be used will include the following:

  • Cognitive Behavioral Therapy– This mainly focuses on the maladaptive thought patterns with the main purpose of influencing the conduct of a patient with a constructive approach. This will help replace the negative coping skills with the positive coping skills.
  • Dialectical Behavioral Therapy- This will usually incorporate IPT and CBT behavioral therapies that help a patient be in control of his or her emotions. Stress management techniques and mindful awareness will be combined prior to this treatment.
  • Interpersonal Therapy- This will focus on the societal functions and interpersonal relations emphasizing a short-term psychotherapy. This will help a patient in finding ways of handling concerns and crisis. This will involve four significant elements like role changes, role disputes, unresolved grief and relationships shortcomings.
  • Supportive Programs- These programs highlight a twelve-step model that is the same as AA or Alcoholics Anonymous and NA or Narcotics Anonymous. Group therapy, family therapy, support groups and more are also some examples.
  • Acceptance and Commitment Therapy- This treatment uses acceptance and mindfulness approaches combined in several ways with strategies of behavior-change and commitment. This will help enhance the mental flexibility and emotional flexibility of a patient.

Be more committed to determination, dedication and sacrifice for the success in drug dependence. This will simply be a journey filled with disappointments and triumphs! Call Broadway Treatment Center now for drug Ritalin addiction treatment and recovery! We are standing by 24 hours a day, seven days a week, call 714-443-8218.