Cocaine Treatment And Rehab

How Is Cocaine Addiction Treated?

Treatment for cocaine addiction typically includes detoxification and therapy, provided through either an inpatient rehabilitation program or an outpatient treatment program, depending on your needs and the severity of your addiction. Participating in these structured programs significantly improves the likelihood of a successful recovery.

For anyone considering treatment for cocaine addiction, it’s helpful to seek a substance abuse evaluation from an addiction professional to determine the right type of support.

Which Level Of Care Do You Need For Cocaine Addiction?

Levels of care for cocaine addiction include both inpatient care and outpatient care. The severity of your cocaine addiction often determines the level of care, as well as your home life, social support, and insurance status.

The following are examples of levels of care for cocaine addiction treatment:

• For severe cocaine addiction, you often need constant monitoring. In that case, an inpatient or residential treatment center may be the best initial level of care.
• If you have medical complications associated with cocaine use, treatment in a hospital setting will most likely be the best choice.
• If you are at risk of cocaine withdrawal or are in the early stages of cocaine withdrawal, detoxification may be necessary before entering a formalized treatment level of care.
• If you have already undergone inpatient treatment and are improving, you may step down to an outpatient treatment program. It is also possible that you enter an outpatient treatment program right away. For instance, if your addiction is not severe and you have a healthy home life and strong social supports, you could be a good candidate for a partial hospitalization program.
• If you only misuse cocaine in certain scenarios to manage stress, you may be a good candidate for weekly outpatient care.

Determining the level of care is a carefully calculated, individualized decision made by the treatment team at intake. Psychotherapy and medications, with individual therapy and group therapy, are an integral part of the treatment process at every level of care.

Is Inpatient Treatment Right For You?

Inpatient treatment provides around-the-clock monitoring while you live in a medical facility, such as a hospital or a residential treatment facility.

Inpatient care focuses on stabilizing and treating any underlying or co-occurring medical morbidities. Cocaine abuse and addiction can cause multiple medical complications such as:

• Deviated septa
• Chronic rhinitis
• Stroke
• Heart attacks
• “Crack lung”
• Kidney complications

Inpatient treatment may be warranted if you have one of these medical complications associated with cocaine use.

Residential treatment is less medically intensive than treatment in a hospital. It provides you with around-the-clock monitoring but focuses on the cocaine addiction, rather than on underlying medical conditions and medical stabilization. Medications and psychotherapy are administered daily. Most rehabs last 30 to 90 days but may last longer depending on your needs.

An inpatient program can help you learn how to live a healthy life without relying on cocaine. The typical rehab program includes:

• Psychotherpy
• Support groups
• 12-step programs
• Relapse prevention education
• Aftercare planning

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Is Outpatient Treatment Right For You?

Outpatient programs for cocaine addiction include partial hospitalization, intensive outpatient, and regular outpatient.

These outpatient programs take place in a clinic or treatment center, and you can go home every day after treatment. The main differences among the three outpatient levels of care are the number of hours of treatment required per week.

Therapy For Cocaine Addiction

Psychotherapy is an important treatment pillar for overcoming a cocaine addiction.

Cognitive behavioral therapy, motivational interviewing, and contingency management are most effective when treating cocaine addiction. All of these methods can be effective in both group and individual therapy sessions, and studies have shown that using both group and individual drug counseling is an effective treatment for cocaine addiction.

Cognitive Behavioral Therapy

Cognitive behavioral therapy helps you identify and challenge harmful thought patterns and behaviors that may contribute to relapse.

A therapist will work with you to recognize negative self-perceptions and high-risk situations that could trigger cravings or substance use. Through this awareness, you’ll learn effective coping strategies to manage triggers, strengthen self-control, and maintain long-term recovery. This therapeutic approach fosters a sense of personal agency and accountability.

Motivational Interviewing

Motivational interviewing involves collaboration between you and your therapist to develop goals and effective strategies that empower you to want to move forward in your recovery. When you feel confident in your recovery, you are more likely to stay sober and not relapse after treatment.

Contingency Management

In contingency management, you receive rewards or vouchers, such as gift cards or cash incentives redeemable for goods and services in the community, when you test negative for cocaine on a urine drug screen and comply with your treatment program.

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Support Groups For Cocaine Addiction

Once you complete a treatment program, you need to have a support system in place. Consistent participation in support groups is one of the best ways to prevent a relapse. These groups connect you with others who are facing similar experiences and best understand how hard the road to recovery can be.

There are several support groups specifically tailored for people in recovery from cocaine addiction, such as Narcotics Anonymous and Cocaine Anonymous. These organizations have chapters across the country and use 12-step programs to provide a path to long-term sobriety.

How Are Cocaine-Related Health Issues Treated During Recovery?

Cocaine abuse and addiction can cause detrimental effects to your body, and you may require medical care to help manage these medical complications associated with cocaine use.

A cardiologist may need to be involved if you show any signs of cardiac complications from cocaine use. Cardiac complications associated with cocaine use include:

• Heart attack (myocardial infarction)
• Arrhythmias
• High blood pressure
• Atherosclerosis
• Structural damage to the heart, causing a dilated heart (cardiomyopathy)

Cardiac medications and procedures may be required.

Snorting cocaine intranasally can cause a lot of bone and cartilage damage to the nose, sinuses, and palate to the point that it cannot only be disfiguring but can also interfere with breathing and sleep. People often refer to the structural damage as “coke nose,” and in late stages, surgery may not be able to restore the damaged nose to its former healthy state.

Nose, sinus, and palate damage associated with cocaine use include:

• Deviated septum
• Nose bleeds
• Septal perforations causing nasal collapse
• Sinus infections
• Palatal perforation

An otolaryngologist, a doctor specializing in ENT, a plastic surgeon with a specialty in nose and palate, and an oral maxillofacial surgeon may need to be on board to address any of these issues, as most of these issues are surgical. Nose bleeds and sinus infections can often be treated with medications and in-office procedures (cauterization), usually under the care of an ENT.

Cocaine can also wreak havoc on the oral cavity, resulting in cavities, poor dentition, teeth grinding, dry mouth, “coke jaw”, and oral cancers, which can require multiple visits to dentists and oral surgeons.

Other specialists, such as pulmonologists to help treat any lung damage, such as “crack lung”, and neurologists who manage care for any neurological disorders, such as seizures and strokes associated with cocaine, may also need to take an active part in your medical care.

Are There Any Medications For Cocaine Addiction?

There are no FDA-approved treatments for the treatment of cocaine addiction, and psychosocial treatment is currently the standard of care.

Some off-label medications may show effectiveness for reducing cravings and withdrawal symptoms for cocaine abuse; however, evidence from studies has not shown enough effectiveness for these medications to be used in common practice. Some of these off-label medications include disulfiram, modafinil, and topiramate.

How Do You Stay Clean From Cocaine?

After completing treatment, you need to adopt a healthy lifestyle and coping strategies that can help minimize triggers and cravings to stay clean from cocaine.

Removing yourself from people, places, and things that were past triggers can be helpful. For example, if you used cocaine while drinking or at bars, then staying away from alcohol and places associated with alcohol is important, as this is an unhealthy trigger.

Another example would be to no longer maintain friendships with people who trigger you, used to participate in drug use with you, or who do not support your recovery. Avoid any social situations and places where you used to use that may be triggering for you.

Other helpful strategies to stay clean include:

Always have a safe space: Always have a place or a person to whom you can go when you feel triggered. This may be a room in your house, your car, a park, or a close friend who can listen and help keep you accountable.

Adopt a healthy routine: Start exercising (aim for 3 hours per week), make new friends, and take up new hobbies to help keep you busy and motivated. While it’s important to rest, you don’t want to spend a lot of time sitting around because boredom and loneliness may trigger you to want to use cocaine again. Physical exercise is healthy for your recovery.

Volunteer in your community: Whether it is trash cleanups at the beach, spending time at a local animal shelter, or serving food at a homeless shelter, giving back to your community can give you a sense of pride and purpose, which can lessen the desire to use again.

Adopt or foster a pet: Animals make great companions and require responsibility. They keep you busy and make you feel at home.

Avoid stress: Try to avoid any stressful environments, such as sitting in traffic, arguing with people, and unhealthy relationships. You can even clean and declutter your living space to reduce stress. Stressful environments and situations can be triggering and can result in relapse.

Find A Treatment Center For Cocaine Addiction Today  

A cocaine addiction is harmful to your body, mind, and well-being. In recovery, you can learn to live free from cocaine once again and recover the person you truly are. Thousands of people who struggled with cocaine addiction have successfully changed their lives for the better.

If you or someone you know is struggling with cocaine addiction, help is available. Contact a treatment provider or visit our rehab directory today to explore your treatment options and start your recovery journey today.