So, you’ve made the decision to get sober. A cautious congratulations to you, friend, and now a piece of hard won advice: get all the support you can, and fast, because the hard work is just beginning.

Fighting off cravings for alcohol or drugs, especially opioids, can be psychologically, physically, and emotionally draining.

One approach, which is gaining wide support in the recovery community, is Medication Assisted Treatment (MAT). MAT simply refers to a form of outpatient addiction treatment that allows the substance user to treat their cravings through targeted medicine. There are various options available to those seeking alcoholism help and treatment for their opioid addiction, including Naltrexone, an FDA approved, non-addictive treatment that medically removes the desire to drink and use for months.

Easier than an oral medication, this form of MAT is administered via a small, sub dermal Naltrexone implant. In other words, it’s a medicine that is implanted directly under the skin, and it effectively eliminates cravings. While this may sound like something from a creepy sci-fi flick, the reality is that MAT implants actually work—to the tune of 85% success when coupled with therapy and counseling. Why so effective? Because you can finally break free from obsessions and cravings and skip right to the good stuff—learning the skills you need to analyze your triggers to use, fully recover, and get back a life worth living.

Many users report preferring an implant to daily oral meds (oral Naltrexone has a 90% failure rate) because the risk of medication diversion or improper self-administration goes right out the window. It’s a set-it-and-forget –it solution for your physical system, which gives you the relief you need to attend to your emotional and psychological systems. Doing the work of figuring out why you picked up in the first place is hard enough—don’t make it harder by putting your body through physical cravings and temptation as well.

The other cool thing about MAT? It’s cheaper than inpatient treatment, and far less disruptive to your daily life. If you know you can’t get time off from work, or simply don’t want to disclose your substance use disorder to your employer, pursuing a residential program just isn’t in the cards. And, even if you can afford to do a full on 30 or 60 day program, it can sometimes feel like a setup to get sober in a sterile, secluded environment. Pursuing MAT in combination with personalized 1:1 counseling makes for a comprehensive outpatient treatment that allows you to keep moving forward with the positive aspects of your daily life, while dropping out all the negatives that came with heavy use.

Whether you’ve been plagued by addiction to painkillers like hydrocodone, oxycontin, oxycodone, street drugs like heroin, or, if you’re searching for the right outpatient alcohol treatment, consider making Medication Assisted Treatment a part of your plan.

If you’ve tried and tried and tried to get sober, consider trying something that actually works. Contact igotsober today at 402.552.8890 to learn more about how to start treatment with the Naltrexone implant. We offer comprehensive recovery solutions for alcohol and drug users in the Omaha, Nebraska area, and we’d love to help you get on a better path. Addiction treatment is evolving, for real.