Medicine understands addiction to be a brain disease. Drafting a substance abuse definition, experts suggest that its chronic nature puts it on par with asthma or heart disease. This understanding means that there’s no cure for addiction, but it can respond well to treatment. But what does this mean for the woman who’s dealing every day with compulsive drug cravings? If you or a loved one has a substance abuse problem, it’s essential to know that you’re not alone. Contact the experts at Soledad House today to get in touch with our women’s treatment center, where you’ll meet other women who share your struggle.
Recognize the Addiction Crisis among Women
The National Institute on Drug Abuse explains that alcohol affects women differently than men. To avoid alcohol use disorders, experts counsel women to drink no more than seven alcoholic beverages a week. This figure represents half of what men may ingest. Suffering from the disease also carries a 50% higher fatality risk.
Female drug users make up the majority of opioid addiction sufferers. For this drug, the death risk is highest for those between the ages of 45 and 54. Across the board, research shows that drug use affects women differently than men. Medical experts adjusted the understanding of addiction to factor in these differences — but few women know about them.
Why Women Use
Although society tells you that you can have it all, the reality looks different. The stress of raising children, holding down one or more jobs, getting an education, and paying the bills takes its toll. You’re exhausted, trying to catch up, maintain a social life, and end up dropping balls left and right. In the beginning, the substance was a pick-me-up and de-stressing agent.
Over time, it has become your worst nightmare. It’s holding you back. Drugs threaten to undo everything you’ve worked so hard to achieve. Finally, they no longer relax you; instead, the chase after the next fix depresses and stresses you even more.
What the Substance Abuse Definition Means for You
Having an addiction determines the course of your day. What experts call an overwhelming craving translates into desperate drug-seeking behavior in real life. You accept substance-related legal problems and can’t fight the development of interpersonal difficulties if it means getting another fix. You’re running in a vicious cycle that seems to be without an exit.
But this is where you’re wrong. No matter how many drugs you’re using or how long you’ve been abusing them, there’s a way out. Women’s only treatment gets you the help you need to overcome drugs or alcohol. Examples of modalities within this specialized treatment setting include:
- One-on-one as well a group therapy to discover your reasons for turning to drugs in the first place
- Relapse prevention education and training that gives you a new vision for your future
- Family program participation opportunities to heal relationships that drug use adversely affected
- Personalized treatment plans that emphasize recovery in a nurturing environment exclusively for women
- Spiritual activities that highlight ways of enjoying life without using
Learn More about Soledad House
When you’re ready to overcome any type of addiction, the all-female environment at Soledad House is here to welcome you. You’ll begin with detox to help relieve withdrawal symptoms. Once this is complete, the facility accommodates residential stays, extended care, sober living setups, and aftercare programs. You don’t have to sacrifice another day of living to a substance. At Soledad House, we treat a wide range of addictions, and our kind and compassionate staff members want to help you. Contact us at 866.314.3222 today for immediate assistance and to learn more about the substance abuse definition.
