Comprehensive Heroin Addiction Treatment in Massachusetts | NorthStar Recovery Center

The Prevalence of Heroin Use in the U.S. and Massachusetts

Heroin use is extremely prevalent in the U.S., particularly in Massachusetts. Unfortunately, opioid overdose-related deaths rose in Boston in 2022 by 2.5% and remain high. In 2021, over 9,000 people died from a heroin-related overdose in the U.S., and of those, just over 2,000 were in Massachusetts. The crisis of heroin addiction is significant, and if you are struggling with heroin abuse, getting help is the key to healing. 

How NorthStar Recovery Center Can Help

At NorthStar Recovery Center, we offer treatment that can help you heal from heroin addiction. Our treatment programs provide a structured, holistic, and caring approach that treats every patient like an individual. We offer treatment programs that genuinely help patients to rebuild their lives after heroin addiction. 

Understanding Heroin Addiction

Heroin is a drug synthesized from morphine, which is created from a type of poppy plant. It is processed and brought into the U.S. in the form of powder. When heroin enters the body, it binds to receptors in the brain that cause the body to release dopamine, which is a neurotransmitter that naturally reinforces positive behaviors like spending time with family, eating, or having sex. Heroin hijacks this receptor, reinforcing the behavior of using heroin. Ultimately, this causes heroin abuse and addiction. 

This interaction with the brain is a primary reason why heroin is so addictive. However, every individual’s experience of heroin addiction is unique. This is why getting treatment is so important, as treatment helps you to manage your root causes of heroin addiction. 

Physical and Psychological Effects of Heroin

The short-term or immediate effects of heroin include a rush of pleasure, dry mouth, heaviness, clouded thinking, and slowed heart rate. These effects can feel positive, and many describe them as euphoric. However, heroin has significant impacts when used consistently. 

Heroin use changes structures in the brain and body. These changes affect hormonal and neurological functions in the body. In addition, the white matter in the brain deteriorates, causing changes in decision-making and self-regulation. 

Why It’s Difficult to Quit Heroin Without Professional Help

Healing from heroin addiction is very difficult. The physical changes that occur due to heroin use are one of the primary reasons why it is so difficult to quit. When you are struggling with heroin addiction, it is difficult to think clearly, to see a way out of heroin use, and to understand your priorities. As a result, you get trapped in a cycle of withdrawal and heroin abuse. 

Comprehensive Treatment for Heroin Addiction at NorthStar Recovery Center

Fortunately, there is a way out. At NorthStar Recovery Center, we understand how difficult it is to quit heroin and move forward with your life. Therefore, we offer comprehensive treatment for heroin addiction that helps you begin to heal from the physical changes due to heroin use and address the root causes of your addiction. Our holistic treatment plans address immediate symptoms of withdrawal while helping you build skills to stay sober long-term. 

Overview of Our Heroin Addiction Programs

At NorthStar Recovery Center, we offer heroin addiction programs in Southborough, MA, and West Springfield, MA. Our programs offer individualized treatment plans that address your unique healing needs. Treatment includes comprehensive clinical health care and behavioral health therapies. Through treatment, your immediate physical and mental needs are met while you learn how you can change your behavior in therapy. Out treatment is a balanced and effective recovery process tailored to suit your needs with daily structure and support. 

Individualized Care Plans Tailored to Your Needs

While the process of heroin addiction is well understood, your path to becoming addicted to heroin is unique. In addition, each individual’s needs and path to healing differ. At NorthStar Recovery, we honor your individual journey and needs. We provide individualized treatment care plans that dictate the type of treatment and the specific structure of your treatment journey. 

Inpatient vs. Outpatient Treatment Options for Heroin Addiction

Outpatient and inpatient treatment differ in many ways. In outpatient treatment, you live on the premises, which is a good fit for those who need around-the-clock care. Outpatient treatment is when you live elsewhere and attend treatment at a facility. At NorthStar Recovery, we offer outpatient care. However, we offer different levels of outpatient treatment. Our intensive outpatient program (IOP) is highly structured. Most patients attend treatment five days a week for six hours a day. In addition, we have an outpatient program (OP) that offers less support. 

Types of Therapy for Heroin Addiction

Effective therapy for heroin addiction varies depending on the individual. At NorthStar Recovery Center, we offer multiple therapeutic options that, in conjunction, help you heal. Multiple therapies can be integrated into your treatment program, allowing you to heal from multiple avenues at once. 

Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) for Addiction

At NorthStar Recovery Center, we believe that behavioral therapies greatly help in addiction recovery. We offer cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) as a way for you to discover how your thoughts, feelings, and actions interact. CBT is a type of talk therapy that aims to help you make changes in your cognition and your behavior. This means it helps you to change your thought patterns and your choices. Both of which are vital in healing from substance abuse. 

Group Therapy: Building Support and Community

Recovery from heroin addiction is difficult and nearly impossible when you are alone. At NorthStar Recovery, we offer group therapy as one of our therapeutic modalities. The content and structure of each session is unique depending on the individuals involved. However, group therapy aims to help you build support and community while healing from heroin addiction. In group therapy, you will learn to listen to others, learn from others, and share your own experiences and challenges with substance abuse. 

Individual Therapy: One-on-One Sessions Focused on Recovery

Working with a group helps you to build community, find support, and learn from others. Individual therapy offers the other side of the coin in terms of therapy. While working one-on-one with a counselor, you have the opportunity to dive into your past, present, and future. The techniques will vary depending on your needs. However, it is an ideal place to dig into the root challenges that have brought you to struggling with heroin addiction and how you can change in order to recover long-term. 

12-Step Programs: Long-Term Support in Recovery

At NorthStar Recovery, we know that recovery does not end with treatment. Recovery is a lifelong process. A 12-Step program integrated into treatment programs provides a structure that can continue beyond treatment. 12-Step programs are based on spiritual principles that guide you through the healing process, ultimately helping you to find forgiveness, take responsibility, and learn to change. 

EMDR Therapy: Addressing Trauma and Its Connection to Addiction

At NorthStar Recovery, we know that trauma and heroin addiction often occur hand-in-hand. Therefore, we offer treatments that encompass trauma. Eye movement desensitization and reprocessing (EMDR) is a way to access trauma in the brain through talk therapy and specific eye movements. Within heroin addiction treatment programs, EMDR plays an important role for those who have a history of trauma that is impacting their challenges with addiction. 

Medication-Assisted Treatment (MAT) for Heroin Addiction

The use of medication in medication-assisted treatment (MAT) is a method that can help in heroin addiction treatment. Medications can be used in multiple ways. First, they are used to dampen withdrawal symptoms that occur due to the impact of heroin on the brain. Additionally, medications can be used to improve mental health, cognitive functions, and overall well-being. Medication use is closely monitored to ensure it is not abused and changes throughout the treatment process. 

Day Treatment Programs (PHP and IOP) at NorthStar Recovery Center

At NorthStar Recovery Center, we offer multiple-day treatment programs that are effective for healing from heroin addiction. These include a partial hospitalization program (PHP), an intensive outpatient program (IOP), and a virtual day treatment. Each program has unique attributes but maintains the holistic and individualized care of all NorthStar Recovery programs. 

Partial Hospitalization Program (PHP) for Heroin Addiction Recovery

PHP is an outpatient program at NorthStar Recovery Center that offers significant structure and support. Typically, patients are on sight five days a week and involved in structured treatment protocols aimed at helping with their recovery. In PHP, patients are offered treatments that require more oversight, like MAT. 

PHP is ideal for someone who is in need of extensive support, structure, and care. While it is not around-the-clock care, patients are required to spend a significant amount of time at our facility to maximize treatment effectiveness. 

Intensive Outpatient Program (IOP): Flexible Support for Ongoing Recovery

While still an outpatient program, IOP offers less structure and more flexibility. This is ideal for patients who do not need as much support and do not require therapies that require as much oversight. While patients still spend time at our facility, their treatment program is less intensive. Therefore, it is ideal for patients who need the flexibility that this program offers. 

Virtual Day Treatment: Remote Therapy and Support Options

At NorthStar Recovery, we know that Massachusetts does not have enough treatment facilities for heroin addiction. Therefore, we offer virtual therapy and support to patients who are far away from whom our other treatment options do not work. 

Aftercare and Relapse Prevention

Heroin recovery does not end with treatment. Therefore, we offer aftercare and relapse prevention programs that help you to recover from heroin addiction long-term. 

Family Involvement in Aftercare and Relapse Prevention

At NorthStar Recovery, we offer family involvement in treatment, aftercare, and relapse prevention. Family involvement helps you to have a more supportive environment that effectively gives you structure and support long after treatment. 

Alumni Programs at NorthStar Recovery Center

Our alumni programs vary as we strive to keep patients involved in the community they have fostered in treatment. Through alumni events and peer support meetings, patients enter treatment at NorthStar Recovery knowing that they are signing up for long-term support and care. 

The Importance of Dual Diagnosis Treatment

At NorthStar Recovery, we know that mental health and addiction are closely tied. Mental health disorders like post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), depression, and anxiety commonly come alongside heroin addiction. We believe that in order to heal, patients need to be treated for both addiction and mental health challenges simultaneously. 

While each patient is unique, dual diagnosis treatment commonly includes multiple types of therapy, support from peers or family members, and more.