Herbal Therapy for Recovery and Sobriety
Since holistic therapies treat the whole person—mind, body and spirit, they are in alignment with our philosophy at Transitions Recovery. So from an online addiction recovery guide, we’ve chosen a few methods that can be helpful when treating addiction and alcohol recovery, both when accompanied by a professional treatment plan and in maintaining long-term sobriety.
Herbs are natural botanical substances that have effects on the body. Many herbs have long been used in detoxification. For example, Kudzu has the potential for moderating alcohol abuse. Kava and valerian can be used to treat the insomnia that accompanies withdrawal. Milk thistle has been shown to improve liver function.
Research done by Takahashi and Toduyama on the effects of ginseng found that ginseng was able to block the analgesic effects of opioids and inhibit tolerance to and dependence on morphine. Among the findings, evidence showed that ginseng may be useful clinically for the prevention and treatment of morphine, cocaine, and methamphetamine dependence.
Similarly, researchers working on Clonidine-based therapies found that they treat the physical symptoms of withdrawal during opiate detoxification, but have not effectively addressed associated mental symptoms such as anxiety. Their findings published in the Journal of Clinical Pharmacy & Therapeutics found that the herbal extract of the Passionflower has been successfully used in the management of anxiety. In this study, the use was as a daily dose of 60 drops of passionflower extract with a maximum daily dose of 0.8 mg of clonidine and it showed a “significant superiority over clonidine alone in the management of mental symptoms associated with detoxification”.
Of course, the treatment is not meant to be attempted alone, as those with substance abuse problems need more than simply the application of more substances. It needs to be part of a complete program that addresses the mental, physical and spiritual aspects of addiction recovery to ensure long-term sobriety.
Once the first stages of recovery have been completed successfully, the use of herbal therapy may be most effective when used in conjunction with other strategies that support the whole person, including nutrition, bodywork, acupuncture, relaxation and exercise.
