The Coleman Institute Blog
17
Nov 20
How Can Naltrexone Make Life Better in a Pandemic?
The use of naltrexone has been a cornerstone of the treatment for Substance Use Disorders at the Coleman Institute for Addiction Medicine in Richmond, Virginia, since its inception over 20 years ago.
Naltrexone is an opioid antagonist with no opioid agonist properties. It is, essentially, a blocker on the opioid receptors. While it sits on these receptors, it does not create euphoria or physical dependence or tolerance or addiction. Instead, it prevents opioids from landing on the receptors.
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28
Oct 20
My Doctor Refuses To Prescribe My Pain Medication!
John is a 60-year-old man who was the victim of a motor vehicle accident in 1996 that left him with multiple injuries, including skull, vertebral and other bone fractures. He was hospitalized for several weeks and basically had his entire face rebuilt and rods placed in his back, while other bones were screwed back together.
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20
Oct 20
How Do I Know It’s Safe to Stop Drinking Alcohol?
People in true recovery — beyond the physical act of not drinking or using, and in true emotional recovery — are easy people to be around. In the greatest of paradoxes, they, the wounded healers, have found strength through their weakness. They have learned wisdom not from doing it right, but from doing it wrong. (more…)
15
Oct 20
There Are Alternatives to Using Suboxone to Stop Pain Medications and Withdrawal
COVID-19 aside, the landscape of family practice has changed dramatically in the last few years, especially as it pertains to prescribing medication for patients with chronic pain. The CDC reports that starting in 2006, the total number of opioid prescriptions dispensed continued to rise until it peaked in 2012 at “more than 255 million and a prescribing rate of 81.3 prescriptions per 100 persons.”
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30
Sep 20
The Safest & Best Way to Detox Off Fentanyl
I’m a medical professional in the substance use/addiction field. When I started in this business about 13 years ago, the most common situations our patients presented with were their struggles to get off methadone, prescribed pain medication, or heroin. (more…)
