A lack of national standards and less than optimal oversight of many inpatient, opioid addiction rehabilitation programs is raising questions about the level of services, personnel, and quality of care many patients are receiving.
Managed Healthcare Executive – Health Management
Tag Archives: Addiction
Graphic pictures reveal the horror of eczema sufferer ‘skinned alive’ by addiction to steroid cream – The Sun
The Sun |
Graphic pictures reveal the horror of eczema sufferer 'skinned alive' by addiction to steroid cream
The Sun AN artist suffered withdrawal symptoms that left her “looking like a burns victim” and in too much pain to wear clothes after becoming addicted to steroid cream for eczema. Juli-Anne Coward has spent decades battling topical steroid cream withdrawal … Woman 'skinned alive' with oozing boils and raw patches after dangerous 30-year addiction to steroid cream Herefordshire woman has overcome steroid cream addiction | Daily … |
Graphic pictures reveal the horror of eczema sufferer ‘skinned alive’ by addiction to steroid cream – The Sun
The Sun |
Graphic pictures reveal the horror of eczema sufferer 'skinned alive' by addiction to steroid cream
The Sun AN artist suffered withdrawal symptoms that left her “looking like a burns victim” and in too much pain to wear clothes after becoming addicted to steroid cream for eczema. Juli-Anne Coward has spent decades battling topical steroid cream withdrawal … Woman 'skinned alive' with oozing boils and raw patches after dangerous 30-year addiction to steroid cream Steriod cream addiction has left woman, 50, 'looking like a burns victim' and in too much pain to wear clothes |
Histamine-dopamine interaction linked to addiction, compulsive behaviour
Research tells us histamine is linked to a number of compulsive behaviours that depend on dopamine reward. That’s alcoholism, drug abuse, and although it’s not mentioned in the studies I’ve read, possibly gambling. References always at the bottom of post.
According to the UN world drug report, over 200 million people use illegal drugs yearly, and 200 thousand of them will die from it. An additional estimated 18 million suffer from alcohol addiction.
Histamine is involved in a number of brain functions like arousal, sleep regulation, body temperature, pain perception and appetite. Histamine can contribute to, or cause symptoms of, depression, anxiety and schizophrenia.
Histamine receptors are found in the brain, heart, stomach, breasts, and all over the body. Receptors allow histamine to “bind” to that area. It’s this binding that allows the body to maintain a number of needed functions, but it’s also what causes symptoms.
There are four histamine receptors we know of. Activating the H3 receptor regulates the release of histamine (this is good) but it also inhibits the release of neurotransmitters including acetylcholine, glutamate, GABA (the chill out chemical), noradrenaline and dopamine.
Researchers have long known that the abuse of drugs or alcohol can affect brain dopamine levels, and there’s now a growing understanding that histamine plays a role in addiction.
A number of studies have shown that the brain histamine content of rats that liked to drink alcohol was higher compared to controls. Alcohol consumption of these rats was reduced by giving them a medication that blocks the H3 receptor.
Studies also tell us that both cocaine and methamphetamines (MDMA is one of the latter) significantly raised brain histamine levels in animals, especially in the amygdala.
Though I’ve long known of this link, I was surprised to read today that women have higher brain histamine levels, which is actually not that surprising given that one of histamine’s roles is to regulate the stress response.
Other scientists have discovered that histamine is involved in appetite and food anticipation responses, as well as in how we consume food. Which would be why histamine can control appetite in times of stress, or adaptive anorexia as the researchers call it, which leads us to the finding that anorexia patients have also been found to have higher brain histamine levels.
This doesn’t mean that high histamine levels make you crave alcohol and drugs. It’s not that clear cut despite all the latest findings.
I’ve certainly noticed in the past that once I eat higher histamine for a few days I feel like I’m on a high of sorts and I wanted it to continue, by ingesting more histamine. That no longer happens thankfully. It was difficult putting myself back together physically and emotionally after a three week histamine bender.
But it’s not just that. Before sorting out my diet, my appetite knew no bounds, and I put on an incredible amount of weight because I just couldn’t stop myself. The hunger was so awful that I would wake up a number of times and head to the fridge to gorge myself. I’ve even woken up to find food in bed with me (but that’s probably more to do with the Ambien I was prescribed for years before understanding the role of histamine in my psych misdiagnoses).
Even worse is that while not an alcoholic, I did grow up in a resort town (think something like Cancun) where my friends and I began ingesting copious amounts of alcohol nightly for the three months of summer vacation and then every weekend till I became a journalist. Unfortunately covering war zones makes for heavy drinkers but I finally cut alcohol down to a reasonable amount once I left journalism and buckled down to get healthy.
Once my moods stabilised thanks to the diet changes and presumably less histamine driving my compulsive reward seeking behaviour in alcohol, it seemed that the perpetual hangover was no longer worth it.
So how do we get a boost from the feel good brain chemical dopamine without engaging in addictive behavious?
Boosting dopamine naturally
Eat protein rich foods. I would go for grass fed and finished proteins if possible to minimise inflammation
DHA rich frozen at sea or fresh salmon or a good vegan DHA/EPA supplement
Oregano
Magnesium can help increase dopamine
Folate rich foods (like greens) are needed to produce dopamine
Blueberries
Almonds
Eggs: uncooked egg white is considered high histamine, some who can’t tolerate chicken eggs do well with duck (please check with your doctor)
Lifestyle
Meditation, exercise, massage and stress relief all work wonders
Avoid
Alcohol
Caffeine
Processed sugar
It’s finally here! Man Food – a high nutrient antihistamine and anti-inflammatory ingredient filled book geared towards guys, women who love to work out, yoga like they mean it, or just load up on healing nutrients. Features my personal shopping list of antihistamine and anti-inflammatory foods.
The Anti-cookbook and all liquid Anti-Detox Book, don’t treat any conditions, but feature a plethora of the high nutrient antihistamine and anti-inflammatory ingredients that have been instrumental in helping me feed myself on a limited diet. The Anti-cookbook features a four page list of antihistamine and anti-inflammatory foods and comes in regular and Paleo.
—-REFERENCES—-
Ellenbroek, B. A. “Histamine H3receptors, the complex interaction with dopamine and its implications for addiction.” British Journal of Pharmacology 170.1 (2013): 46-57. Web.
“Histamine Affects Alcohol-related Behavior.” ScienceDaily. ScienceDaily, 29 June 2009. Web. 16 June 2017.
White, T. “Histamine in the Brain.” Histamine and Anti-Histaminics (1966): 789-96. Web.
Ito, Chihiro, Kenji Onodera, Eiko Sakurai, Mitsumoto Sato, and Takehiko Watanabe. “Effect of Cocaine on the Histaminergic Neuron System in the Rat Brain.” Journal of Neurochemistry 69.2 (2002): 875-78. Web.
“Histamine and motivation (PDF Download Available).” N.p., n.d. Web. 16 June 2017.
Jabr, Ferris. “How the Brain Gets Addicted to Gambling.” Scientific American. N.p., n.d. Web. 16 June 2017.
“54 Natural Supplements, Agonists and Drugs to Increase Dopamine (and 12 things to AVOID).” Selfhacked. N.p., 31 May 2017. Web. 16 June 2017.
The Fight To Stay Sober: Why You May Not Want To Battle Your Addiction On Your Own
Addiction – no matter what it is that you are addicted to – can be a very hard thing to beat on your own. There are many factors that play into why it is such a tough road for people to travel on their own. Knowing why it is best to stay at an in-patient facility and then make use of various types of assistance once you are released from there is crucial to your recovery. This way you will be less likely to try to recover “your own way,” which has proven time and time again to be a bad route to go as it generally leads to terrible relapses.
Getting Through The Withdrawal Symptoms
The exact withdrawal symptoms that you are going to experience will vary depending on the type of substance that you are addicted to. It could be anything from irritation and insomnia to night sweats and uncontrollable diarrhea. Either way, most people would agree that it is not a pleasant experience to go through, especially on your own.
This is why it is so important to make sure that you are checking into somewhere like this Atlanta detox center in order to get through the detoxification process. Within one of these facilities, you will be monitored by heathcare professionals. They may even be able to give you some medication that can help control the severity of the detox symptoms. Most importantly, while going through detox there, you will not have the ability to slip up and look for more illegal substances in order to end the uncomfortable feeling of detox, as you are in a controlled environment.
Look Into A Dual-Diagnosis
According to the National Alliance on Mental Illness, a dual diagnosis is needed in order to successfully treat the addiction and any mental health issues that may be present. It can be hard to know whether the addiction came first and that caused a mental health issue, or if there was a mental health issue that someone tried dealing with through the use of addictive substances. Either way, anyone that does have a mental health disorder will need to receive proper treatment for that in order to increase his or her odds of a successful recovery.
Handling Temptations
Once you have been released from the substance abuse rehabilitation facility, you will need to be extra cautious to make sure that you are avoiding as many temptations as possible. Even if you were taking illegal drugs, you may want to avoid anything that can be an addictive thing, such as alcohol. Avoid social drinking gatherings or work related function where alcohol is served.
You will also need to steer clear of any friends or family that you used to purchase from or use with. Otherwise, you might find that you are going to be triggered and will have to start the rehabilitation process all over again.
Long Term Plans
From the beginning of your treatment program, you will be asked to create a plan for your future. This plan should include things that you are going to do to stay on a sober path. Examples of such things would be attending support meetings, taking your medication, attending church, staying in contact with a sponsor, and making new supportive friends. You will also want to think about how you can change your life at home in order to make things a little easier for you. This way, for the beginning part of your recovery, you may not have to deal with as much stress that you may be incapable of dealing with so early into the recovery process.
As long as you are committed to the process and you are willing to put in the work that it takes, you will be able to get sober and stay sober for the rest of your life. You finally have a chance to take control of your life once again. You just have to take that first step.