Drug treatment

Many substance abuse addicts who desperately want to overcome their drug addiction never achieve sobriety because the withdrawal symptoms are impossible to overcome. Some of the symptoms that are associated with withdrawals from a drug include irritability, migraines, seizures, psychological issues including anxiety and depression, and in extreme cases, even death.


Drug treatment facilities have a few solutions for helping patients overcome that tumultuous withdrawal phase, including ibogaine treatment programs. If you’ve never heard of ibogaine therapy, stay tuned for our list of frequently asked questions and answers below:

Frequently Asked Questions About Ibogaine Treatment Programs

  1. What does a ibogaine treatment program to help with drug detox?

    To understand how ibogaine treatment programs work, you have to understand how drug withdrawals work. When a person uses addictive substances, it forces their brain to flood itself with unnatural chemical levels. This is makes them feel great (super energized, or super relaxed, depending on the substance, but gradually the brain grows dependent on the substance in order to create the chemicals needed to function. Over time, it needs more and more of the drug in order to regain the “high” and the lows become lower. If the drug is suddenly removed altogether, it can throw the brain into crisis mode.


    When ibogaine is used to detox, it restores the brain’s natural ability to regulate its own chemical levels, which removes the devastating symptoms that come with withdrawal of an addictive substance. In fact, the impact of ibogaine on the brain’s chemical levels is so profound that it can even treat psychological disorders that aren’t associated with addiction, such as depression, anxiety, and post traumatic stress disorder.


  2. How successful is ibogaine treatment for drug addiction?

    Let’s get one thing straight: there is no magic pill for addiction. There is no treatment option that is 100% successful. The greatest roadblock in drug addiction recovery is the patient themselves; if they do not want to recover, no treatment program in the world is going to heal them. And ibogaine is no exception.


    That being said, the success rate of ibogaine treatment programs, when used in conjunction with other treatment approaches such as identifying addiction triggers and learning new coping mechanisms, is very successful. Without a desire to get clean, the user will never achieve sobriety. However, if the patient wants to overcome their addiction, ibogaine is a very effective way to beat the first hurdle on the path to recovery — physical withdrawal from the drug.


  3. Are there negative side effects to ibogaine?

    Any time you introduce a new substance to your body, especially one that impacts the way your brain functions, you should be prepared for side effects. Ibogaine is a natural substance that is derived from a root, so the side effects tend to be far milder than if you turn to big pharmaceuticals to cope with the withdrawals.


    Some patients say that they experience nausea with the initial introduction of ibogaine into their system. In extreme situations, they might experience heart palpitations or anxiety. These symptoms tend to ease over the course of the first week. After the initial adjustment to the ibogaine treatment, many patients experience a change in the way their brain manages its chemical levels, which leads to overcoming the physical dependency on drugs (although the emotional and mental dependency on drugs will still need to be addressed), and a greater mental awareness. Sometimes, that heightened mental clarity makes a patient realize they have strong emotions bottled up (that might even be the source of their addiction). If a patient is unprepared to manage those emotions, including anger, rage, sadness, or regret, it may be viewed as a negative side effect of the ibogaine. Although sorting out the bottled up emotions is a critical part of recovery anyways.


  4. What else should I know about ibogaine?

    Ibogaine isn’t a miracle drug or a magic cure to addiction. If the ibogaine treatment program you are considering suggests that, you might want to find a new program. An effective treatment plan should incorporate pre-care as well as therapy to help the addict remain drug free for the long run after the ibogaine treatment.

Do you have other questions about ibogaine? Please share in the comment section below.