Despite the efforts of health-care professionals and law enforcement officials alike, addiction to alcohol and other drugs continues to be a major problem. The failure of conventional methods to defeat the insidious disease of addiction should not be seen as a rationalization for an addict to give up hope of quitting. Not all treatment methods suit all addicts. Fortunately, alternative approaches to alcohol and drug addiction offer hope to those whose past efforts have failed.
Urge Surfing
Addiction is characterized by powerful cravings for the individual's drug of choice. Conventional approaches suggest ignoring these urges, avoiding them through distraction until they pass. Though this may seem the intuitive way of dealing with the desire to participate in drug use, it is the reverse tactic that some have found useful. A technique called "urge surfing" developed by Dr. Alan Marlatt of the Addictive Behavior Research Center at the University of Washington, instructs participants to focus intently on the urge until it passes. Marlatt's technique likens addictive urges to waves on the ocean. They can only grow to a certain extent, and then they must subside. A person who experiences drug urges is often beset by the notion that her maddening cravings will continue to grow until satisfied, while in reality, urges typically weaken in 30 minutes or less. While urge surfing, a person relaxes his body and pays close attention to the sensations that the addictive urges provoke. Marlatt's research published in the journal Psychology of Addictive Behaviors in December of 2009 found that smokers who participated in a mindfulness group that taught urge surfing smoked significantly fewer cigarettes than those in a control group who receive no urge-surfing instruction.
Ibogaine
Addiction to opioid drugs is particularly pernicious. Users quickly develop a tolerance for these drugs, and ever-increasing dosages are needed to create the desired response. When the individual who is addicted to opiates tries to quit, extremely uncomfortable withdrawal symptoms can draw her back into drug use. An African herb used as part of a religious sacrament by the Bwiti religion has become an unlikely source of salvation for some who seek to escape the grasp of opioid addiction. Ibogaine's potential as a treatment for addiction was first observed in the 1960s, when it was noted that addicts did not suffer from heroin withdrawal when they stopped using opiates while under the influence of ibogaine. Unfortunately, according to Kenneth R. Alper of the Department of Psychiatry at New York University School of Medicine, the drug has hallucinogenic effects, which have made law enforcement officials wary. Although these effects wear off, the use of ibogaine in treating addiction is not legally sanctioned in the United States. It is legal in Europe and other places, and clinics worldwide exist where ibogaine is used as an alternate treatment for addiction.
Drum Circles
In what may seem the most far-out of addiction therapies, some tout participation in drum circles as an adjunct to addiction treatment. Michael Winkelman, of the Department of Anthropology at Arizona State University in Tempe, conducted a survey of drum circles used in the treatment of substance abuse. A drum circle is a group of drummers playing hand drums together. He found that they are useful to addiction therapy, especially in cases where recurring relapses are an issue or where other methods of treatment have failed. Winkelman says that such musical activities as improvisation, call and response and basic drum techniques may have psychophysiological effects that are comparable to those of meditation.
References
- Science Direct: The Ibogaine Medical Subculture
- Psychology of Addictive Behaviors: Surfing the Urge: Brief Mindfulness-based Intervention for College Student Smokers
- American Journal of Public Health: Complementary Therapy for Addiction: "Drumming Out Drugs"
- Mindfulness: Urge Surfing -- Relapse Prevention
