Cocaine Addiction Treatment Center
Our drug abuse treatment center in Kentucky is dedicated to providing evidence-based, high-quality addiction treatment for Kentucky residents and beyond.
Understanding Substance Abuse
The impacts of opioid use and addiction are not limited to a single demographic, city, or state. In areas all across the United States, millions of people have been touched by the opioid epidemic in some way. Whether it is a friend, family member, loved one, or your addiction that you face, many have struggled with addiction to opioids or even lost their lives to overdose. An opioid is a broad term used to describe a range of substances, including both legal and illegal drugs. Drugs including prescription pain medications such as OxyContin and Vicodin and illicit drugs like heroin are classified as opioids.
The heroin epidemic in Louisville, Kentucky, remains troublesome. Hundreds of Kentucky residents lost their lives to a heroin overdose in the last year alone. In 2017, the rate over overdose (specifically related to opioids) was nearly twice the national average. Heroin is a drug manufactured from the naturally occurring substance morphine. Morphine is obtained from the seed of the opium poppy plants native to Asia, Mexico, and Columbia. Depending on how it is manufactured, heroin can be a white or brown powder. It can also be a brown sticky substance known as black tar heroin due to it’s color and consistency. Heroin is referred to by a variety of names, including smack and hell dust. Although the most common way to use heroin is by inhaling it through the nose, there are other ways people use heroin. It can be smoked or liquefied and injected into the body. Some people also mix heroin with crack cocaine to create a more potent drug. This practice is known as speedballing.
Heroin, regardless of how it is used, causes a rapid and intense high. When heroin enters the brain, it operates similar to other opioid drugs. The drug binds itself to the opioid receptors on the brain, spinal cord, and throughout other areas of the body. Opioid receptors are the locations throughout your body responsible for transmitting feelings of pain and pleasure. They are also responsible for vital, life-sustaining functions, including breathing, heart rate, and sleeping patterns.
In recent years, the number of prescriptions written for opioid drugs has significantly reduced. This is likely due to the active effort by the medical community, local and federal agencies to reduce the amount of opioid drugs that are available “on the street.” Because prescription pain medicines such as Oxycontin and Vicodin have similar effects to heroin, research suggests that prescription painkillers are often gateway drugs to heroin. As the number of opioids available decreases, those who struggle with an untreated addiction to opioid drugs seek another way to achieve the same high provided by prescription opioids. Heroin is often the most effective option. Surveys conducted within the last few years show a percentage of those who misused prescription opioids often switched to heroin.


How to Know if Someone is Addicted
Signs & Symptoms of Cocaine Addictions
During the early stages of addiction, the signs and symptoms of cocaine addiction may not be easily noticed. Initially, the impacts cocaine has on the body and brain are mild. Despite this, it is important to understand what the signs and symptoms of cocaine addiction may look like so you can help a friend or loved one seek early treatment at a cocaine rehab to overcome cocaine addiction. One does need to use cocaine for long to experience the physical and psychological effects related to its use. When someone uses cocaine, there may be immediate effects that are visible to others. These may include:
- Sniffling or runny nose
- Changes in appetite
- Dilated pupils
- Increased happiness or social behavior
- Paranoia
- Abnormally high energy levels
- Excitability
- Improved concentration
Most of the above symptoms are considered short-term. They occur immediately after use but do not last long. Often, short-term symptoms of cocaine use will begin to subside within thirty minutes. Because the effects of cocaine are so short-lived many, who crave the feeling the drug products will continue to use higher and more frequent doses to keep the high going. In more significant and more frequent amounts, cocaine becomes even more dangerous as the risk of overdose and overdose-related death rises dramatically.
Continued cocaine use leads to harmful and often irreversible effects on the brain and body systems. The severity of the long-term effects of cocaine addiction will vary from person to person. Without treatment, someone who uses cocaine more frequently and at higher doses is more likely to develop potentially life-threatening symptoms and side effects. Regular, long-term cocaine use inevitably leads to physical damage to many vital organs, including the heart, brain, lungs, organs of the gastrointestinal system, and the kidneys and other organs of the renal system. In addition to organ damage, other common effects of long-term cocaine use include:
- Chills
- Headaches
- Confusion
- Violent and aggressive behavior (especially when unable to use cocaine)
- Sweating
- Chills
- Elevated blood pressure
- Nausea and vomiting
- Changes to sleeping patterns
- Confusion
- Stroke
- Seizures
- Heart attack
- Coma
- Death
Because many of the signs and symptoms of cocaine addiction do not present clearly to others until the addiction is severe, it is essential to understand what early cocaine addiction may look like. While each of the above short or long-term addiction symptoms can occur, not all will occur for everyone who uses cocaine. Changes in behavior such as talking about cocaine or seeking ways to get cocaine may be an indicator that an early addiction is developing. Another possible early sign of addiction includes craving and continually seeking to use it despite knowing the harmful consequences that come with its use. Other early signs of cocaine addiction you may notice are, changes in your loved one’s behavior, the presence of drug paraphernalia, physical and psychological changes, and the presence of withdrawal symptoms when you or a loved one stop or reduce using cocaine.
How we Help
We provide evidence-based treatment for addiction at our drug rehab center in KY.
Detoxification
Here at The Robert Alexander Center for Recovery, we offer safe & effective medical detoxification services.
Residential Inpatient
The residential inpatient program at RAC was designed to treat each client's unique needs when dealing with addiction.
Aftercare & Alumni
From planning outpatient treatment to sober living, RAC offers clients the tools needed for long-term success in recovery.
How to Know if Someone is Addicted
Our Cocaine Addiction Treatment Center
The safest and most effective way to overcome cocaine addiction is to seek treatment at a Kentucky cocaine rehab center. If left untreated, cocaine addiction can be fatal. In addition to any of the above side effects of cocaine use, cocaine also has a lasting impact on how the brain produces and releases dopamine. These changes cause cocaine users to believe they need to use cocaine to feel “normal.” Unlike opioid or alcohol withdrawal, cocaine withdrawal does not typically produce adverse physical symptoms. However, the intensity and severity of psychological symptoms can vary widely and depend on the person, which may be challenging to manage without treatment support.
At our Kentucky cocaine rehab center, we offer a range of evidence-based treatment models to help you overcome cocaine addiction. The most common treatment used in cocaine rehab programs is cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT). Cognitive-behavioral therapy encourages the individual to examine negative thoughts and behaviors to help better understand the roots of their addiction and how to change addictive behaviors. Other common treatment interventions include community-based recovery groups such as 12-step programs. Some of the most well-known 12-step programs tailored to help those with cocaine addiction include Narcotics Anonymous and Cocaine Anonymous.
Preparing for Treatment
Re-Start Your Life With Our Cocaine Rehab Center in Kentucky
What to Expect at the Robert Alexander Center
Re-Start Your Life With Our Cocaine Rehab Center in Kentucky
Successful cocaine rehab programs combine detox services with comprehensive, evidence-based addiction treatment models in an inpatient treatment setting. Choosing a rehab like Robert Alexander Center for Recovery is vital to ensuring a safe and successful recovery from cocaine addiction. A comprehensive cocaine addiction treatment program at RAC offers the opportunity to learn and practice the tools you need to maintain lasting recovery and freedom from cocaine addiction. When choosing a cocaine rehab, it is essential to choose a program that specializes in cocaine treatment. It is also vital to select a treatment facility equipped to treat other drug addictions and co-occurring mental health conditions. A large percentage of those who struggle with cocaine addiction also use other drugs and often have co-occurring mental health conditions such as depression and anxiety.
If you or a loved one struggles with cocaine addiction, seeking help at a professional cocaine rehab program like RAC can help you put addiction in the past. Long-term cocaine use can be dangerous and leads to dramatic changes to your physical and psychological health. Without treatment, these changes may be irreversible and lead to other significant disease processes.
Our team of addiction treatment professionals at our Kentucky cocaine rehab program will work with you to design a treatment program based on your unique treatment needs and goals. We offer a full range of treatment options to help you achieve freedom from cocaine addiction. Throughout your treatment program, our team at Robert Alexander Center for Recovery is here to provide the support and guidance you need to put addiction in the past. If you or a loved one are ready to begin your sobriety journey, contact us today to learn how addiction treatment at Robert Alexander Center for Recovery cocaine rehab in Kentucky can help you take the first steps on your journey to freedom from addiction.
Ready to Escape Addiction for Good?
Let our drug abuse treatment centers in Kentucky help you, or your loved one, today. Our dedicated admissions team is standing by 24/7 ready to help you find the solutions that work best for you.