Ice—otherwise known as crystal meth, crank, or crystal tea—is highly addictive and can bring both mental and physical harm to anyone who uses it.
Ice, or meth, functions by altering the levels of dopamine and serotonin in the brain. This is significant, as both dopamine and serotonin are vital to healthy brain function. Dopamine regulates reasoning, movement, and happiness and serotonin is a hormone that makes people feel happy. Ice boosts the levels of these chemicals in the brain, making users feel euphoric, confident, and energetic. These results make ice extremely enticing to those who otherwise feel sad, tired, or overwhelmed.
The negative effects of using ice, however, far outweigh any perceived positives. If you believe you or a loved one may have fallen prey to an ice addiction, help can be found at rehab centers that offer a safe, judgment-free environment to detox and begin the recovery journey.
Do You Need to Go to Rehab to Quit Ice?
Using ice can lead to a number of negative side-effects—specifically, aggression, psychosis, paranoia, and hallucinations. These can cause a user to engage in harmful behaviors, either towards themselves or towards others.
The effects of ice can last for anywhere between 4-12 hours and can be felt almost immediately. The drug stays in a person’s system for up to 2 days. Psychosis and anxiety caused by ice abuse can last for months, with specific episodes lasting for periods of hours or days. Long term use can lead to a substance-induced mental health disorder, which will require additional therapy to address.
Ice can impart a variety of negative short- and long-term effects:
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Withdrawal can be harrowing as well. It can take up to 14 days to physically withdrawal from methamphetamine, and up to 18 months to stop having withdrawal symptoms. The withdrawal period can be painful, both physically and psychologically. Because ice physically changes the chemicals in the brain, it can take months for the brain to rewire itself and begin to regulate dopamine absorption and production correctly.
In short, ice addiction is a serious mental and physical health concern, and as such requires expert medical support in order to ensure an individual’s safety during detox and throughout the recovery process. Recovering from meth addiction in a rehab center, as opposed to at home or in a general hospital, provides optimal support while minimizing withdrawal symptoms as much as possible.
Evaluating Your Options
If you or your loved one need help to heal from an ice addiction, rehab centers offer the best hope for sustainable recovery. However, not all rehab centers offer equal levels of care quality. When choosing a rehab center, be sure to:
- Familiarize yourself with what to look for in a quality rehab center.
- Narrow down your treatment options according to your personal priorities.
- Prepare questions ahead of time to ask admissions specialists when contacting facilities for more information.
- Take notes on your top options to help you make your final choice.
Regardless of unique individual considerations, all rehab centers worthy of your consideration will have certain qualities in common. The staff will be compassionate and respectful. The environment will be clean, comfortable, and secure. And the treatment programming will be flexible and individualized to meet each client’s specific needs—because the right rehab center will be one that recognizes that no two people heal from addiction in exactly the same way.
Ice Addiction: Help Is Easier to Find Than You Think
Ultimately, the thing to remember when beginning your recovery journey—whether it is you or a family member who is addicted—is that you are not alone on this path. Addiction specialists are waiting to help you or your loved one navigate this sometimes complicated journey and can help you build (or rebuild) a strong support network to foster continued healing and growth.
Family programming provides additional support for addicts and family members alike by providing a safe space in which to address and heal from the effects an individual’s addiction has had on the family as a whole. And continued support is available even after initial treatment is complete to ensure you or your loved one never have to feel cut off or distanced from help, should you need it.
No one is beyond help or hope of recovery; it is never too late to begin healing.
