Prescription drugs are among the most commonly misused substances in the United States. In 2021 alone, the National Institute on Drug Abuse found that over 14 million Americans claimed to have misused prescription drugs at some point in the previous year. The report also indicated that dependence on prescription drugs can form incredibly fast, often leaving people feeling powerless and afraid in the face of their new addiction.1
However, this doesn’t mean a prescription drug dependency has to take over your life. With the help of effective treatments like holistic detoxification, you can help release your body and mind from the grip of prescription drugs.
Holistic detoxification offers an entirely new, substance-free option for those who want to take control of their lives once again. Holistic detoxification can help you cease prescription drug use, begin to reverse the damage caused and aid in your journey toward recovery.
Even if you are not currently dependent on prescription medications, certain environmental, dietary, and pharmaceutical toxins may be wreaking havoc with your physical and mental health.
Learn more about how holistic detoxification may be beneficial to you.
Understanding Holistic Detoxification
Many people are hesitant when they hear the term “detoxification.” This is because the detox necessary before a typical SUD treatment program can be a daunting process, especially for those who have developed long-term dependencies. However, holistic detoxification is much different than that experienced before your average substance use disorder program. The ultimate goal of holistic detoxification is to not only naturally release your mind and body from the hold of chemicals like prescription medications and environmental toxins but also address the chemistry behind the root causes of things like mental and physical health symptoms and drug dependency.
Holistic detoxification aims to address the mental and physical symptoms of withdrawing from chemical manipulation of the body through the use of organic, medication-free therapies. By gently cleansing your body of the different substances that have built up over the years, you’ll begin to feel a natural balance restored throughout your body and mind. This makes it easier to tackle any withdrawal symptoms and helps you feel more confident in your mind’s and body’s strength. Holistic detoxification prioritizes all-natural strategies that push your body to remove toxic substances and learn how to operate without them. This way, you’re not detoxing from one substance just to add another.
Common Procedures Used During Holistic Detoxification
Alternative To Meds Center offers holistic detoxification services that include a collection of comprehensive, patient-focused treatments. Some of the most common procedures you may experience while taking part in holistic detoxification include:
Tapering of Medication With Adept Medical Assistance
The first step of any effective detoxification program is tapering you off any medications that may be causing dependency, physical symptoms, mental health symptoms, or other issues. This is not a simple process and requires consistent medical oversight to ensure that you receive the care they need. The specialized medical personnel at Alternative to Meds Center are experienced in aiding people through the detoxification process by using holistic methods — methods that address all parts of a person, including physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual aspects. This allows them to help you naturally cleanse your body of toxins and proceed with medication-free care.
All-Natural Pain Management
Many drug dependencies begin with a simple pain management prescription. Unfortunately, tolerance to painkillers like opioid medications can increase quickly, leading to dependency sometimes within weeks. Because the aim of holistic detoxification is to help someone cease taking medications permanently, you will learn holistic remedies to manage any pain you experience during the withdrawal process. If you suffer from chronic pain, your treatment will focus on all-natural pain management that steers you away from additional medication use. Holistic pain management treatments can include exercise, physical therapy, yoga, therapeutic massages, and more.
Peer Meetings and Support
Recovery can feel impossible if you don’t have the right support system. There are two primary forms of support that are essential while recovering, including support from those who love you and support from people dealing with similar struggles. That’s why Alternative to Meds Center also prioritizes peer support during the holistic detoxification process. By having the opportunity to talk to people who know how you feel, it can be immensely easier to work on yourself, feel motivated, and stay on the road to recovery.
One-on-One Counseling and Therapy
While counseling may seem like a generic method of treatment that recovering individuals “have to do,” it is one of the most beneficial aspects of any recovery program. Prescription medications, substance use disorder, and environmental toxins can have a massive impact on your mental health, and without adequate counseling, relapse can be more challenging to avoid.8 At Alternative to Meds Center, therapy services are not only effective but founded on holistic principles. This helps you form healthy coping mechanisms and learn how to live a healthy life free from substance use, prescription medications, and more.
Residential Treatment
Residential treatment centers are often recommended for those who are looking to begin a journey of recovery from substance use disorder, cease prescription medication use, and even those who have experienced long-term exposure to environmental toxins. This is because residential treatment centers offer a safe, stable environment where all have access to professional support, various therapies, and medical care around the clock. Holistic residential treatment centers allow you to experience holistic detoxification naturally while under the supervision of experts. Then, you can build the toolkit you need to recover without medication. Alternative to Meds Center prioritizes the individual needs of each person, creating a personalized treatment plan that is tailored to your situation instead of a general “one-size-fits-all” approach.
How Do You Complete a Holistic Detoxification From Prescription Medications?
Because prescription medications are often designed to stay in the system and exert their effects on a continuous basis, increased tolerance, a risk for dependency, and the associated physical and mental symptoms can develop quickly. For example, once the brain and body become accustomed to functioning in the presence of a particular chemical, they begin to become more tolerant of that substance. This means that it takes more of that substance to provide the same effects that you once felt when taking smaller doses.
The longer you are regularly exposed to any substance, the longer it stores itself throughout your body and the higher your tolerance becomes. Thus, it can take weeks to remove the toxins that have accumulated. This is because toxins may store themselves in the liver, kidneys, lungs, digestive tract, and even the skin. Fortunately, holistic detoxification helps your body to naturally eliminate toxins permanently.
While this is a complex process that varies for everyone who goes through it, you can expect the general holistic prescription drug detox to follow these steps:
Medication Tapering – The goal of holistic detoxification is to make addressing withdrawal symptoms as comfortable as it can be. To start off the process, a medical professional will aid in slowly weaning you away from the medications or other substances causing the issue.
Medical Check-Ins – Once you begin holistic prescription drug withdrawal, you’ll experience frequent medical check-ins to continue to address your physical health.
Counseling and Coping – When you begin feeling better, you can start counseling and determine how to form healthy, holistic coping mechanisms. You’ll slowly learn how to live without prescription medications and the other substances you’ve been exposed to and feel your body and mind restored naturally.
15 Years Experience by Professionals Who Understand Your Journey.
To encourage comprehensive healing of the mind and body, Alternative to Meds Center offers a variety of holistic detoxification therapies. The following are some of the natural therapies the center provides to help you feel your best during recovery:
Acupuncture
Acupuncture is a well-known form of Chinese medicine that dates back hundreds of years. Because it helps to relieve pain and ease stress and anxiety, it has become a popular tool for individuals recovering from drug dependencies.2 It has been found that when the needles are inserted at vital points of the body, your body can release helpful hormones and other neurotransmitters that ultimately promote its natural detoxification responses.3 Acupuncture is a holistic therapy that can help the body relax, even when the mind cannot.
Massage Therapy
Massage therapy holds myriad benefits that often go unmentioned. In addition to being a powerful stress and pain reliever, massage therapy is one of the best ways you can practice self-care. Through the manipulation of stressed tissue, frequent massages can help people who deal with chronic pain and may even reduce its intensity.4 Massage therapy is recommended for anyone trying to heal their body naturally and is especially helpful for individuals recovering from toxic buildup and SUD.
Sauna Therapy
Sauna therapy, like massage therapy, is a powerful relaxation tool that is encouraged during the holistic detoxification process. It can be considered a form of “sweat therapy,” where your body sweats for an extended period of time to push toxins toward their release points. Using saunas regularly has been proven to reduce stress, fight chronic pain, and even combat cardiovascular diseases.4
Ionic Foot Baths
An ionic foot bath is very different from your average pedicure-adjacent foot soak. During an ionic foot bath, the water is charged with positive and negative ions that create a small current. This current may help draw toxins from your body and relieve stress, much like the sauna therapy mentioned earlier.6 Ionic foot baths are often recommended for those who can’t sit through sauna therapy but are looking for similar effects.
Physical Therapy and Exercise
Exercising regularly is fundamental to keeping the body healthy and the mind clear. However, it also helps to rid your body of toxins and promotes natural detoxification via sweat and other forms of elimination. For those who have chronic pain or struggle to exercise for long periods, Alternative to Meds Center also offers physical therapy during the holistic detoxification process. This way, you can still promote natural detoxification through movement.
Nutrition Planning
The food you eat impacts your physical and mental health significantly. Many people have no idea how many toxins they put in their bodies just through the food they consume. By creating a nutrition plan that prioritizes your body’s needs, you can help your body feel great and help it heal at the same time. There are also foods that you can eat to promote natural and holistic detoxification. The nutrition experts at Alternative to Meds Center can form a nutrition plan that helps you eat the right foods and cleanse your body.
Supplement and Enzyme Guidance
While most people are aware that eating right and exercising can help their body stay healthy, supplements are another important factor that is often forgotten. Taking certain supplements and enzymes can promote your body’s natural detoxification responses and help to get rid of the toxins that are still left in your body. For example, vitamin C is an antioxidant known to prevent cell death and has been found to help promote the body’s detoxification response.7 Alternative to Meds Center encourages all people to take supplements to ensure their bodies are receiving the right nutrients while they undergo holistic detoxification.
Don’t Wait to Take the Next Step in Your Recovery
Everyone deserves the chance to regain control of their life and eliminate the negative symptoms caused by toxin overload. Alternative to Meds Center can help you heal from toxin overload due to prescription drug dependency, drug or alcohol use, or even environmental toxins with holistic detoxification. We know that asking for help can be daunting, which is why we at Alternative to Meds Center are dedicated to personalized treatment to help you heal on your own timeline.
If you have been struggling with the effects of toxin buildup and are looking for a natural solution, holistic detoxification might be right for you. Contact Alternative to Meds Center to talk to our compassionate staff to begin your recovery journey.
2. Roh, H. S., Park, B. R., Jang, E. Y., Kim, J. S., & Gwak, Y. S. (2018). Acupuncture on the Stress-Related Drug Relapse to Seeking. Evidence-based complementary and alternative medicine : eCAM, 2018, 5367864. https://doi.org/10.1155/2018/5367864
3. Gupta M, Gokarakonda SB, Attia FN (2023). Withdrawal Syndromes. StatPearls [Internet]. Treasure Island (FL): StatPearls Publishing. Retrieved August 23, 2023, from https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK459239/
4. Crawford, C., Boyd, C., Paat, C. F., Price, A., Xenakis, L., Yang, E., Zhang, W., & Evidence for Massage Therapy (EMT) Working Group (2016). The Impact of Massage Therapy on Function in Pain Populations-A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of Randomized Controlled Trials: Part I, Patients Experiencing Pain in the General Population. Pain medicine (Malden, Mass.), 17(7), 1353–1375. https://doi.org/10.1093/pm/pnw099
5. Hussain, J., & Cohen, M. (2018). Clinical Effects of Regular Dry Sauna Bathing: A Systematic Review. Evidence-based complementary and alternative medicine : eCAM, 2018, 1857413. https://doi.org/10.1155/2018/1857413
6. Kito, K., & Suzuki, K. (2016). Research on the Effect of the Foot Bath and Foot Massage on Residual Schizophrenia Patients. Archives of psychiatric nursing, 30(3), 375–381. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.apnu.2016.01.002
7. Miranda, C. L., Reed, R. L., Kuiper, H. C., Alber, S., & Stevens, J. F. (2009). Ascorbic acid promotes detoxification and elimination of 4-hydroxy-2(E)-nonenal in human monocytic THP-1 cells. Chemical research in toxicology, 22(5), 863–874. https://doi.org/10.1021/tx900042u
This content has been reviewed and approved by a licensed physician.
Dr. Samuel Lee
Dr. Samuel Lee is a board-certified psychiatrist, specializing in a spiritually-based mental health discipline and integrative approaches. He graduated with an MD at Loma Linda University School of Medicine and did a residency in psychiatry at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center and University of Washington School of Medicine in Seattle. He has also been an inpatient adult psychiatrist at Kaweah Delta Mental Health Hospital and the primary attending geriatric psychiatrist at the Auerbach Inpatient Psychiatric Jewish Home Hospital. In addition, he served as the general adult outpatient psychiatrist at Kaiser Permanente. He is board-certified in psychiatry and neurology and has a B.A. Magna Cum Laude in Religion from Pacific Union College. His specialty is in natural healing techniques that promote the body’s innate ability to heal itself.
Lyle Murphy is the founder of the Alternative to Meds Center, a licensed residential program that helps people overcome dependence on psychiatric medication and addiction issues using holistic and psychotherapeutic methods.
Medical Disclaimer: Nothing on this Website is intended to be taken as medical advice. The information provided on the website is intended to encourage, not replace, direct patient-health professional relationships. Always consult with your doctor before altering your medications. Adding nutritional supplements may alter the effect of medication. Any medication changes should be done only after proper evaluation and under medical supervision.
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