Meth Addiction Treatment in Orange County, California at A Better Life Recovery

Methamphetamine use has surged across the nation over the past few decades, leaving millions battling with addiction and other dual diagnosis issues.1 Sustained crystal meth use can change your brain chemistry in ways that can make quitting feel impossible on your own. However, specialized meth addiction treatment can help guide you toward genuine recovery.

A Better Life Recovery is here to help. Our treatment center in San Juan Capistrano provides medically-supervised detox and residential meth treatment with evidence-based care, including cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT), trauma therapy, and more.

We also specialize in dual diagnosis treatment for those managing co-occurring conditions like meth and depression or meth and anxiety for holistic, total-person care.

If you or a loved one is struggling with methamphetamine use in Orange County, contact us today to speak with an admissions specialist about our rehab and recovery programs.

This page can also help you understand the process of meth addiction treatment by exploring the phases of treatment and the therapies used.

Understanding Methamphetamine Addiction

Methamphetamine works by flooding your brain with dopamine, a neurotransmitter that regulates feelings of pleasure and motivation. While natural rewards, such as social connection or food, release moderate amounts of dopamine, meth triggers a surge that can be 10 to 12 times higher than your baseline level. This can create intense feelings of euphoria and increased energy.2

However, repeated meth use can damage your brain’s dopamine receptors and deplete your natural reserves, making you dependent on the drug to feel any pleasure at all.2 Further, the drug typically reaches your brain quickly, creating an immediate high that also reinforces ongoing use.3

Additionally, the drug’s relatively low cost and easy accessibility can also contribute to addiction – many people who start using meth find themselves addicted much faster than they’d anticipated. The crash that follows meth use can also be extremely challenging, causing feelings of exhaustion and depression that can drive people to use again just to feel normal.3

The Signs and Symptoms of Meth Use

Ongoing meth use can cause unique physical, behavioral, and psychological changes that often become increasingly obvious as addiction takes hold. The symptoms include:4

Hyperactivity and feelings of restlessness
Aggression
Suppressed appetite and weight loss
Severe tooth decay and gum disease
Skin sores or open wounds
Erratic sleeping patterns or insomnia
Paranoia
Aggressive behavior
Engaging in risky behaviors
Social withdrawal
Hallucinations

Our Orange County Meth Rehab Program

A Better Life Recovery is committed to providing individualized care for meth addiction. Our team can guide you through the process with the support you need for long-term recovery with a small staff-to-client ratio and a full spectrum of care.

In the following sections, we explore what the phases of treatment typically involve.

Phase I: Medically-Supervised Meth Detox and Residential Care (15-30 days)

Meth withdrawal can create intense physical and psychological challenges, including severe fatigue, depression, anxiety, cravings, and even meth psychosis.

Our meth detox program in Orange County provides 24/7 clinical support to manage these symptoms safely. Trained staff are available to give round-the-clock supervision, ensuring your safety and comfort during this vulnerable time in the recovery process.

Your medical team monitors your vital signs and provides medication support to manage withdrawal symptoms, including antidepressants, anti-anxiety meds, or sleeping aids. We also provide nutritional support and unique hydration therapies, as crystal meth addiction can often lead to malnutrition and dehydration.

The detoxification process typically lasts 7-14 days, though this can depend on your needs. Throughout the process, you’ll be assessed by a board-certified psychiatrist to identify any dual diagnosis concerns that may require treatment going forward.

Once you’ve been cleared from detox, our residential meth treatment program provides a seamless transition where your clinical team will co-create a treatment plan with you. This will likely include holistic and evidence-based interventions, along with any appropriate medications.

Further, during Phase I, you’ll be assigned both an individual therapist and a case manager to work with you throughout your recovery journey. This can enable you to participate in individual therapy, group sessions, and 12-step program work. Inpatient support focuses on stabilization and building your motivation and resilience for continued healing, establishing a new foundation of steadiness.

A Better Life Recovery also provides you with healthy outlets like yoga at our onsite fitness center to rebuild your physical vitality once you’ve been medically cleared to participate.

Phase II: Partial Hospitalization and Intensive Outpatient (45-60 days)

As you make progress in your recovery, you’ll then transition to our partial hospitalization or intensive outpatient program. In these programs, you’ll continue daily group therapy and twice-weekly individual sessions while gaining new freedom and responsibility.

This transitional period allows you to practice your new skills while still accessing a strong level of clinical support, rebuilding healthy routines, and working on practical life skills.

Also, staff will work with you on planning your reintegration into the community, identifying an AA or NA sponsor, and exploring new employment opportunities.

Phase III: Continuing Outpatient and Reintegration

The final phases of our meth treatment program provide you with ongoing support as you build an active, healthy life in sustained recovery. For instance, group sessions may gradually taper down to once per week, and individual sessions might adjust based on your progress and emerging needs.

Our extended support is designed to improve your long-term outlook and address the practical challenges many people face. Our team will help you access vocational training or educational services, heal family relationships, and establish healthy connections in the community.

Evidence-Based Therapies for Meth Recovery

Effective treatment for methamphetamine addiction involves several evidence-based modalities that facilitate long-term recovery. These may include:

Cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT): CBT for meth addiction can help you identify the thought patterns and triggers driving your substance use, teaching you to challenge and reframe these thoughts and develop healthier responses.

Dialectical behavioral therapy (DBT): DBT teaches skills for managing difficult and intense emotions to prevent relapse, improving your ability to tolerate distress. These skills can also heal challenges in relationships that contribute to negative emotions.

Family therapy: Family sessions involve your loved ones in the healing process, working to improve communication patterns and mutual support for sustained recovery.

Individual and group therapy: One-on-one sessions and group work are core components of addiction treatment, providing personalized care for your struggles and safe environments for processing your experiences with others who understand.

Life skills and coping strategies: Stress management, better communication skills, problem-solving, and healthy routines are major parts of sobriety and independent living – and A Better Life Recovery can help you improve these practical abilities.

Motivational enhancement therapy: This modality can strengthen your internal motivations for change, assisting you in overcoming ambivalence towards change.

Relapse prevention planning: It’s important to know your warning signs and be able to respond effectively if cravings arise. Relapse prevention planning equips you with the tools to avoid high-risk situations and thrive post-treatment.

Trauma-focused therapy: Trauma-based therapies, such as EMDR, work to address any underlying factors to meth addiction. For instance, EMDR utilizes eye movement desensitization and reprocessing and other approaches to safely process your past traumas.

About Our Insurance & Admissions

A Better Life Recovery offers same-day admissions and accepts most major insurance plans, making meth addiction treatment accessible where and when you need it most. We’re in-network with Anthem, Blue Cross Blue Shield, First Health, Humana, HMC HealthWorks, Coventry, ComPsych, and many more.

Our admissions team understands that navigating your insurance coverage can feel like a lot to handle, especially during a crisis. For this reason, we aim to make understanding your benefits and handling the verification process as easy as possible for you.

Simply call us at 866-278-8804, and our staff can contact your insurance provider to determine your coverage for detox, residential treatment in Orange County, and more. We’ll explain what your plan covers and any out-of-pocket costs, along with answering any other questions about your care.

Even if you don’t have insurance or lack adequate coverage, consider contacting us anyway – our admissions specialists can discuss alternative payment options and help you find a path forward.

Frequently Asked Questions About Meth Addiction Treatment in Orange County

Meth addiction treatment can feel like an incredibly daunting undertaking, so if you have persisting concerns after the information on this page, this is normal. The following responses to FAQs may help.

How Long Does Meth Rehab Take?

The timeline for meth addiction treatment depends on a host of factors, but meth detox usually lasts anywhere from seven to 14 days. During this time, staff will monitor your symptoms and work to make you comfortable throughout the acute withdrawal phase.

Following detox, it’s recommended to attend anywhere from 30 to 90 days of residential treatment. This process allows your brain chemistry to restabilize and gives you time to develop strong recovery support skills in daily treatment activities.

Additionally, many people benefit from continuing with intensive outpatient services and outpatient care for at least a month after residential care, followed by ongoing recovery integration.

Is There Medication for Meth Addiction?

There are currently no FDA-approved medications specifically for treating methamphetamine addiction. However, this doesn’t mean that medications don’t play an important role in managing meth withdrawal symptoms or other co-occurring mental health conditions.

Medications for dual diagnosis issues like depression and anxiety can improve treatment outcomes, and our approach focuses on using medications as one component of a comprehensive stimulant addiction treatment approach.

What Does Meth Withdrawal Feel Like?

Meth withdrawal can be extremely challenging, especially on your own. Most people experience fatigue and an overwhelming need for sleep as the body recovers. Depression can also become severe during withdrawal, sometimes accompanied by suicidal thoughts.

Anxiety, irritability, and difficulty concentrating are also common. Intense cravings for meth can be frequent during the stages of early recovery, making the risk of relapse high without the proper medical and psychological support. Additionally, some people may experience meth psychosis, which can include delusions and hallucinations.5

Our meth detox program provides the comfort and symptom management you need to navigate this difficult part of the process safely.

Does A Better Life Recovery Treat Meth Psychosis?

Yes, our Orange County rehab facility specializes in treating meth psychosis and other related psychiatric symptoms. People who experience methamphetamine-induced psychotic symptoms typically require antipsychotic medications to stabilize their symptoms, along with a safe place to re-acclimate.

A Better Life Recovery helps you to stabilize in early recovery and ensures wraparound support at every step of the process, including providing extended treatment timelines. We also work to address any other co-occurring conditions and prepare you for long-term recovery.

Can Meth Cause Permanent Brain Damage?

Long-term methamphetamine use can damage brain structures and functions, with studies showing that chronic use can cause changes in brain areas responsible for memory, decision-making, and emotional regulation.6

However, the brain has the remarkable ability to heal and create new neural pathways, with many cognitive functions improving during the first year of the recovery process.

Early intervention is always key, and our meth addiction treatment program serving Orange County supports neurological healing with proper nutrition and psychiatric care, along with tested therapeutic interventions to help your brain heal.

References

Calcaterra, S. L., Yamkovoy, K., Pallavi Aytha Swathi, Ciccarone, D., Brandon Del Pozo, Englander, H., Wang, J., & Barocas, J. A. (2024). U.S. Trends in Methamphetamine-Involved Psychiatric Hospitalizations in the United States, 2015-2019. Drug and Alcohol Dependence, 111409–111409. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.drugalcdep.2024.111409
LA County. (n.d.). How Meth Affects You. Methfreelacounty.org. https://methfreelacounty.org/how-meth-affects-you.php
Rusyniak, D. E. (2013). Neurologic Manifestations of Chronic Methamphetamine Abuse. Psychiatric Clinics of North America, 36(2), 261–275. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.psc.2013.02.005
Sacramento County Department of Health & Human Services, BHS. (2019, October 9). Signs and symptoms of methamphetamine use. https://dhs.saccounty.gov/BHS/Documents/SUPT/Methamphetamine/Coalition-2019/MA-ADS-2019-10-09-Meth-Coalition–Signs-of-Meth-Use.pdf
Glasner-Edwards, S., & Mooney, L. J. (2014). Methamphetamine Psychosis: Epidemiology and Management. CNS Drugs, 28(12), 1115–1126. https://doi.org/10.1007/s40263-014-0209-8
Rusyniak, D. E. (2013). Neurologic Manifestations of Chronic Methamphetamine Abuse. Psychiatric Clinics of North America, 36(2), 261–275. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.psc.2013.02.005

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