Well, this kind of pissed me off.
On the other hand it really shouldn't. Look, the relapse rate of cocaine addicts is in the range of 94% to 99%.
Surprised?
You really shouldn't be surprised, I've known these facts since my first go-round in a hospital short term rehab. Actually it was more of an alcohol detox ward, but us hapless crackheads were welcomed as long as we had good insurance.
Despite the incredible odds against using again, there are those who have stopped. I know a few who managed a year or more. I also know way many more who can't put a week together without a hit. Treatment or getting into a rehab of some sort at least offers some refuge from crack hell.
Now this little fact pops up.
The professionals have tools that at least predict those who'll get through the entire treatment process. At least those who can get through treatment successfully have a better shot at gaining some straight time. The Stroop Test, which you can learn more about by clicking the title, is a predictor which shows which patients are more likely to drop out of treatment.
I do have a few questions.
If someone takes that test and is shown to be a likely candidate to not successfully finish treatment are there alternate methods that might increase their chances of at least short term success?
Do the treatment professionals just cross their fingers and hope for the best in the one size fits all treatment models in existence today?
Are there options available to the patient as well as the counselors and therapists to improve the addicts chances in this game where the odds are tilted in favor of the crack?
If there are not alternative treatments at this time, is any kind of research being done to improve our odds?
If you have some answers, let me know. Then I'll let others know so that shortly we all will know. You know?
With all that said, even "successful" completion of treatment is not a a guarantee of continuing abstinence. Unless some meaningful answers are formulated then that future vaccine being developed in some lab some place may be our only hope.
"If someone takes that test and is shown to be a likely candidate to not successfully finish treatment are there alternate methods that might increase their chances of at least short term success?"
ReplyDeleteThat's the idea, anyway. For now, it would be a matter of deciding, for example, that maybe a person who scores low on the Stroop test might be a candidate for residential treatment rather than, say, just NA or going it alone. As you point out, the failure right is absurdly high right now, leading to your next good question:
"Do the treatment professionals just cross their fingers and hope for the best in the one size fits all treatment models in existence today?"
Uh, yes. But that is actually starting to change. The big push is matching different styles of treatment to different kinds of people. But so far no huge breakthroughs on that front.
"If there are not alternative treatments at this time, is any kind of research being done to improve our odds?"
Lots and lots of scientific research, more than ever before in history. However, these stimulants, cocaine and speed, are proving to be the toughest drugs for finding new treatments. I think an anti-craving medication or vaccine might be the hope of the future. But right this minute, there is no magic bullet.
While years of 12 step hoohaa ground into me that there was no "Magic Bullet," I still hold onto some hope of something short of a frontal lobotomy will help.
ReplyDeleteThank you.
I will pass your comments onto some friends who are in the recovery business.
They hold onto some hope for Erie Crackhead as well.