Post by Aurore Francois on Jun 10, 2016 5:47:47 GMT
The dual diagnosis withdrawal training workshop provided numerous insights of: drugs, their effects and management techniques. The training explored what is a drug; namely: a medicine or substance which has a physiological affect when injested or introduced in the body. As well as the CNS classifications; that is: stimulants, depressants and hallucinogens. Stimulants include: methamphetamine, cocaine, nicotine, caffeine, pseudo ephedrine. This classification of drugs tends to speed up the activity of a person's CNS including the brain. and makes a person feel more alert/energetic after using. Depressants include: alcohol, benzodiazepines (valium, diazepam) opioids and volatile substance. This classification of drugs tends to slow the activity of the CNS and has a more relax and sleepy effect. Hallucinogens include: LSD, mescaline, psilocybin (magic mushroom). This classification of drugs alerts user's perception by distorting messages carried in the CNS and results in extreme changes in mood/personality. The risks and effects of the drugs were also discussed. These are: tremors, sleeplessness, sweating, child, risky behaviours, suicide, altered reactive time, fluctuating moods, affect dopamine, psychosis, aggression and overdose. It's very important to understand which drugs are used and their signs and symptoms so that health professionals can anticipate and implement the right line of treatment for individuals.
Numerous techniques to manage substance use were considered during the training. There was an emphasis on: the harm minimisation policy, stages of change, screening and assessment, management of cravings and withdrawals. The harm minimisation policy considered three areas and interventions to prevent and reduce harm; that is:1) harm reduction- needle syringe services, methadone maintenance, counselling, drug and alcohol testing, health promotion, emphasising costs, education/training; 2) demand reduction- drug and alcohol testing, media campaigns, community development projects, employment controlling factor; 3) supply reduction- restriction of licenses, significant law enforcement, border security, age limits, media campaigns, screening. There was a discussion on the stages of change and the forms of interventions that could applied; specifically at: i) pre contemplation -the person is not concerned about use and the focus for staff should be on education ii)contemplation -the person is aware of the problem but not committed and the focus for staff should be on awareness iii) preparation -the person is wanting to change and committed and the focus for staff is on harm minimisation iv) action -there is active modification of behaviour and the focus for staff is on different techniques iv) maintenance -the person seeks to successfully avoid temptation and the focus for staff is ongoing support, v)relapse -the person returns to old patterns and the focus for staff is ongoing support. Appropriate screening and assessment was examined. Specifically: determine whether the assessment is needed, quick, efficient, short, sharp, objective, yes or no questions, evaluate the pressure of the problems, identify little or no special need, and consider the reliability of the screening. Assessment: takes a little longer, involves interviews, is subjective, entails gathering details, assessing severity and confirming whether a condition is present.
Methamphetamine was explored and cravings/triggers were identified. A video of peoples' experiences of using methamphetamine was shown; in particular the stimulus effect followed by depression. First time users experienced a strong hit and the stimulant turned the lower part of the brain into a go sign all the time. There was a cycle to substance use: trigger->thought->craving . Triggers could be: external/internal, people, places, things, times, emotional states. For example: other users, friends, family members, environment, streets, music, CDs, needles (having blood tests), christmas, new year, anniversaries, birthdays, emotional states (being sad or relationship problems). It's important for health professionals to have a conversations with clients about the cycle and to explore the triggers so that they can have a plan to avoid the triggers. In particular, unpack with clients what has set them off and what they have used to manage the triggers in the past. Some techniques for dealing with cravings were: delay, deep breathe, dispute, distract, describe, drink water, discuss, detour/depart.
The management of substance use requires staff to provide appropriate care during the phases of withdrawal. Someone who presents with methamphetamine use will need to rest; there is an initial overstimulation of 8 hours after use. Staff should try to get clients to sleep and offer sleeping tablets as a first line of treatment. Clients will subsequently experience a cycle of: crash, withdrawal and extinction. Approximately 12-24 hours after use the client will experience: exhaustion, fatigue, agitation, irritability, depression, muscle ache and sleep disturbances. Withdrawal typically commences 2-4 days after last use and clients show signs of strong cravings and fluctuating mood/energy levels. Extinction occurs within weeks to months and clients feel a gradual resumption of normal mood with episodic fluctuations in mood and energy levels. There are psychotherapies, medications and other forms of interventions that may be used to manage the phases of withdrawal. These are: crisis interventions, overdose response, benzodiazepines, anti-depressants, anti-psychotics, CBT, motivational interviewing, ACT/Mindfulness, DBT, NA/AA, SMART recovery, collaborative therapy, methadone, opiate replacement therapy, AWS, health promotion, harm reduction and community development.
Numerous techniques to manage substance use were considered during the training. There was an emphasis on: the harm minimisation policy, stages of change, screening and assessment, management of cravings and withdrawals. The harm minimisation policy considered three areas and interventions to prevent and reduce harm; that is:1) harm reduction- needle syringe services, methadone maintenance, counselling, drug and alcohol testing, health promotion, emphasising costs, education/training; 2) demand reduction- drug and alcohol testing, media campaigns, community development projects, employment controlling factor; 3) supply reduction- restriction of licenses, significant law enforcement, border security, age limits, media campaigns, screening. There was a discussion on the stages of change and the forms of interventions that could applied; specifically at: i) pre contemplation -the person is not concerned about use and the focus for staff should be on education ii)contemplation -the person is aware of the problem but not committed and the focus for staff should be on awareness iii) preparation -the person is wanting to change and committed and the focus for staff is on harm minimisation iv) action -there is active modification of behaviour and the focus for staff is on different techniques iv) maintenance -the person seeks to successfully avoid temptation and the focus for staff is ongoing support, v)relapse -the person returns to old patterns and the focus for staff is ongoing support. Appropriate screening and assessment was examined. Specifically: determine whether the assessment is needed, quick, efficient, short, sharp, objective, yes or no questions, evaluate the pressure of the problems, identify little or no special need, and consider the reliability of the screening. Assessment: takes a little longer, involves interviews, is subjective, entails gathering details, assessing severity and confirming whether a condition is present.
Methamphetamine was explored and cravings/triggers were identified. A video of peoples' experiences of using methamphetamine was shown; in particular the stimulus effect followed by depression. First time users experienced a strong hit and the stimulant turned the lower part of the brain into a go sign all the time. There was a cycle to substance use: trigger->thought->craving . Triggers could be: external/internal, people, places, things, times, emotional states. For example: other users, friends, family members, environment, streets, music, CDs, needles (having blood tests), christmas, new year, anniversaries, birthdays, emotional states (being sad or relationship problems). It's important for health professionals to have a conversations with clients about the cycle and to explore the triggers so that they can have a plan to avoid the triggers. In particular, unpack with clients what has set them off and what they have used to manage the triggers in the past. Some techniques for dealing with cravings were: delay, deep breathe, dispute, distract, describe, drink water, discuss, detour/depart.
The management of substance use requires staff to provide appropriate care during the phases of withdrawal. Someone who presents with methamphetamine use will need to rest; there is an initial overstimulation of 8 hours after use. Staff should try to get clients to sleep and offer sleeping tablets as a first line of treatment. Clients will subsequently experience a cycle of: crash, withdrawal and extinction. Approximately 12-24 hours after use the client will experience: exhaustion, fatigue, agitation, irritability, depression, muscle ache and sleep disturbances. Withdrawal typically commences 2-4 days after last use and clients show signs of strong cravings and fluctuating mood/energy levels. Extinction occurs within weeks to months and clients feel a gradual resumption of normal mood with episodic fluctuations in mood and energy levels. There are psychotherapies, medications and other forms of interventions that may be used to manage the phases of withdrawal. These are: crisis interventions, overdose response, benzodiazepines, anti-depressants, anti-psychotics, CBT, motivational interviewing, ACT/Mindfulness, DBT, NA/AA, SMART recovery, collaborative therapy, methadone, opiate replacement therapy, AWS, health promotion, harm reduction and community development.
insert quote here
insert quote here
insert code here