Cocaine Addiction Withdrawal with Natural Remedies
© PeterSmithUK.com
Remedies for the Step 1 Withdrawal
Cocaine Addiction Withdrawal Treatment Program
I offer treatment programs combining natural remedies to boost dopamine and regulate glutamate in the first phase and then natural remedies to boost neuroplasticity and speed up the long term recovery of the brain, together with specific meditation brain trainings to target the parts of the brain that cocaine damages and other supportive techniques such as a neuroplasticity boosting diet and specific physical exercises all of which improve the health of the brain and speed up recovery. To book an appointment give me a call or send me an email you.
Giving up cocaine is tough but not impossible, 80% of people relapse within the first 6 months so if you do fall off the wagon just regroup and start again.This post is about how to gain assistance from natural remedies and brain training (meditation type techniques), to address the psychological aspects combine these with your drug counselling/support.
When You Stop Cocaine Dopamine Levels Plummet
Use Natural Remedies to Prop up Your Low Dopamine Levels
There are actually quite a few remedies that have dopamine boosting effects, now obviously they’re not as strong as cocaine so they are not going to feel as good and you are still going to have to put up with some discomfort; but if you take a big stack of natural remedies that boost dopamine it can help to take the edge off the craving, reduce the bad feeling and give you a better chance of succeeding. There’s even a natural remedy that appears to combat addiction by improving our willpower!Glutamate is Another Neurotransmitter Involved in Driving Cocaine Addiction
Besides dopamine long-term cocaine use alters glutamate activity in the brain. Glutamate is a neurotransmitter that speeds the brain up, it intensifies whatever’s going on in the brain, I have an intimate relationship with glutamate because glutamate levels shoot up during periods of bipolar mania, actually bipolar mania is very much like getting free cocaine, which may sound like a pretty good thing :-) it’s just the bipolar depressions that follow one are so bad they can nearly kill you!To recover from my bipolar disorder I learned how to regulate and establish healthy glutamate activity in function in my brain using natural remedies; in terms of cocaine recovery there are some remedies we can use in the short term for balancing glutamate activity and then in the long run it’s all about boosting neuroplasticity to shorten the time it takes for the brain to recover from cocaine use and regenerate to a happy and healthy state.
First Phase Dopaminergic Remedies
In the first phase, the first 1-3 months to boost dopamine I a combination of tyrosine, DLPA, Rhodiola, Scutellaria, Magnolia bark, jiaogulan, bacopa, NAC cysteine, Alpha GPC, CDP choline, ginkgo and sometimes black cohosh and chase berry (but these are only for women), glycine.Eliminating Deficiencies Is Critical to Manufacturing Dopamine
There are certain key nutrients we need to manufacture dopamine including methylfolate, (don’t use folic acid) iron and B6 so these should be supplemented along with B complex and magnesium.
NAC cysteine for Cocaine Addiction Withdrawal
NAC cysteine stands out not only does it boost dopamine but it has proven effectiveness against reducing addictive cravings, it may even increase our willpower to not relapse.NAC has been given to cocaine addicted rats and they voluntarily started to use less cocaine, further studies in humans have also shown NAC reduces addictive cravings in humans.
Cysteine is an amino acid found in all protein foods available to buy as a nutritional supplement. It has a remarkably wide range of therapeutic effects it can be used to detoxify the liver, help clear mucus from the lungs and many therapeutic effects in the brain; it is a quite powerful antidepressant. The precise mechanism whereby NAC produces these effect is still unclear but it appears it has a restorative effect on glutamate and dopamine balance which helps in addiction recovery across the board not only for cocaine but also heroin, nicotine and alcohol addiction and may help marijuana dependence, it even gambling [insert ref] . I use NAC cysteine on a daily basis as part of my regime to balance glutamate and dopamine in my bipolar brain.
Additional remedies include:
Passionflower and high dose taurine have calming effects against stress, pantothenic acid and ginseng can help if you experience exhaustion and fatigue.My Drug Use and Recovery How I Learned to Rebalance Dopamine and Glutamate
Although I did use cocaine at parties in the 80s, I wouldn’t say I was an addict; to be honest I would have used it a lot more it was just so incredibly expensive back then which I was upset about the time but looking back and glad for that. I also liked opiates, in fact I liked opiates too much and I quickly realised they were going to kill me so I pulled back and I was high on cannabis every day for about 3 ½ years.My main mental health problem was not drug use, it is that I have bipolar disorder and in bipolar disorder dopamine and glutamate levels shoot up and can shoot down and this often drives people and it did me to want to self-medicating so to speak with recreational drugs. Actually the hypo-manias I get feel very similar to getting high on cocaine and from the outside when I’m in a hypomania I look like someone high on cocaine. I’m not a comedian but I’m sure that there’s a joke in there somewhere about the good thing with bipolar disorder is at least the cocaine is free :-) but from personal experience the problem with this free hi is the comedown’s are so bad they used to nearly kill me!
In order to recover from my bipolar disorder I had to learn a lot about how to self regulate my own dopamine (and glutamate see later) neurotransmitter levels and I now apply what I learnt there to help people not just with bipolar but also people withdrawing from cocaine.
What’s interesting is to this day if I allow my dopamine levels to drop my brain still remembers how good cocaine and heroin felt and I start to think about those things; but as soon as I rebalance my dopamine levels miraculously I stopped thinking about drugs.
Second Phase Boosting Neuroplasticity To Re-Sensitise Cocaine Desensitised Synapses
By propping up your dopamine these remedies can help you get through the first withdrawal phase but you are still vulnerable to your dopamine levels dropping especially every time you have a stressful setback in life which causes dopamine levels to drop, until you restore the sensitivity in your brain to dopamine you are still more vulnerable to relapsing.As things progress the emphasis should shift to a combination of remedies to boost neuroplasticity, some of the above herbs also boost neuroplasticity so they can stay in place and then be combined with additional neuroplasticity boosting remedies. The brain does naturally recover its sensitivity to dopamine (this process is called neuroplasticity) but only slowly over a few years. It is generally said that if you can stay clean from a drug for 5 years then you probably overcome the addiction and are largely safe.
Since 2012 I’ve been using a new protocol consisting of a stack of remedies to boost neuroplasticity and BDNF combined with an anti-inflammation diet. The goal is to simply speed up the natural healing process to cut the time it takes for the brain to regenerate its sensitivity to dopamine and re-establish healthy glutamate activity.
BDNF and neuro plasticity with the intention of cutting the time it takes for the brain.
How Long Will It Take?
Neuroplasticity regeneration of the brain is a natural process it will occur anyway all are trying to do is to speeded up so that what was going to several years to achieve could be achieved in a fraction of that time. This is new and experimental work so I cannot give you exact timeframes about how much it speeds up recovery, or how effective it can be; if I could I would bet medical research costs millions has so far it hasn’t been done in this area.Neuroplasticity Boosting Diet and Lifestyle
In addition to using neuroplasticity/BDNF boosting remedies we can significantly improve neuroplasticity with the right diet, the right type of physical exercise , good sleep and so forth. See my videos on the flavonoids and the best antidepressant diet to understand the diet to optimise neuroplasticity.Long-term Cocaine Use Damages Specific Parts of the Brain We Can Repair These Parts of the Brain with Targeted Meditation Brain Training
Cocaine reduces the volume of brain grey-matter in structures called the insular and right inferior frontal gyrus.The insular is a part of the brain that enables us to feel and sense the different parts of our body and sensations within our body. I use a particular type of meditation adapted from mindfulness of breathing technique to focus intensely on body sensations and give the insular the maximum exercise workout. The brain responds to exercise in the same way that muscles do when we exercise a part of the brain we can force it to grow and regenerate.
The insular along with the anterior single cortex is also involved in processing social and emotional situations, particularly the ability to discriminate between choices that will lead to positive versus negative outcomes. What this means in practice is when we think about using cocaine or someone offers us some cocaine a well-functioning insular helps us to be more fully aware of the negative consequences of reusing; compared to what happens when you have a poorly functioning insular and in those moments of temptation we lose all our sense and perception of the negative future outcome.
The inferior frontal gyrus is important in willpower, impulse control and inhibition, the more we can strengthen these qualities and capacities within our brain the better the chances of staying away from drugs. we can strengthen the inferior frontal gyrus with some meditation techniques such as Tibetan Dzogchen medication, this is a very deep and advanced form of mindfulness.
With meditation we can also strengthen the frontal cortex and anterior cingulate cortex of the brain, this further enhances our capacity for willpower and resilience to stress.
If you’re serious about your recovery don’t miss out on the therapeutic benefits of an intensive programme of meditation brain training. I give private meditation classes and will soon be doing online group meditation classes please enquire if you are interested in these.
To achieve significant results all you have to do is 50 hours of mindfulness meditation brain training which is 30 minutes a day for 3 months and one week or 20 minutes a day for about 6 months; your future self will thank you for the time you invest in this training.
Book a Consultation to Start Your Treatment Program
I offer private consultations to develop a tailor-made prescription of natural remedies, diet brain training exercises and more. The initial appointment lasts 90 minutes, usually more and is followed on by the prescription. The cost of the initial consultation is £120 by Skype, and also be offering face-to-face appointments again in London in due course.Final thoughts:
I’m sure you already know you probably should have drug addiction counselling/therapy to work on the psychological aspects of your addiction. Furthermore you should avoid being in situations where drugs are available; tell you friends you’ve stopped using around you and if they don’t respect this get rid of them with extreme prejudice and get new friends. Get your dealer completely out of your life, you don’t want someone with a financial investment in your drug use anywhere near you.REFERENCES:
- Curr Psychiatr . 2018 June ; 17(6): 30–55 N-acetylcysteine: A potential treatment for substance use disorders Rachel L. Tomko
- Toxicology. 2006 Sep 21;226(2-3):238-45. Epub 2006 Jul 1.Baicalein attenuates methamphetamine-induced loss of dopamine transporter in mouse striatum. Wu PH et al PMID: 16887252 DOI: 10.1016/j.tox.2006.06.015
- Sci Pract Perspect. 2005 Dec; 3(1): 4–10. PMCID: PMC2851032 PMID: 18552739 The Neurobiology of Cocaine Addiction Eric J. Nestler, M.D., Ph.D.
- Psychiatry Investig. 2014 Jul; 11(3): 297–306. Published online 2014 Jul 21. doi: 10.4306/pi.2014.11.3.297
- PMCID: PMC4124189 Chronic Administration of Bacopa Monniera Increases BDNF Protein and mRNA Expressions: A Study in Chronic Unpredictable Stress Induced Animal Model of Depression Ritabrata Banerjee, et al
- The neuroscience of mindfulness meditation Yi-Yuan Tang, et al Nature Reviews Neuroscience 16, 213–225 (2015) doi:10.1038/nrn3916
- N-acetylcysteine in psychiatry: current therapeutic evidence and potential mechanisms of action
- Olivia Dean, BSc, PhD; Frank Giorlando, MBBS, BMedSc; Michael Berk, MBBCh, MMed(Psych), PhD
- Dean, Berk
- The neuroscience of mindfulness meditation Yi-Yuan Tang, et al Nature Reviews Neuroscience 16, 213–225 (2015) doi:10.1038/nrn3916
To prevent dopamine levels falling too low:
L-Tyrosine: 1000 to 2500 mg three times a day 30 minutes before meals. Tyrosine is converted into the neurotransmitter dopamine. Naturally boosting dopamine will help your energy levels and depression. Regularly monitor your blood pressure if you have hypertension and don’t take tyrosine if you have a history of melanoma.Rhodiola: 500 mg standardised extract with each meal. Rhodiola boosts dopamine, serotonin and energy levels. It’s what is called an adaptogenic herb, these herbs help the body to cope with stress. If you intend to take Rhodiola for an extended period of time miss out one day a week to prevent your brain from habituating to it.
Scutellaria powder (search online for Huang Qin powder to buy this): take a slightly rounded teaspoon twice a day made up into a hot drink like a hot cocoa sleep and if necessary with xylitol and miss out one day a week prevent your brain habituating to it.
Magnolia bark powder (search online for Huo Po powderto buy this): take this the same way as Scutellaria together at the same time.
Passionflower : 350-400 mg three or four times a day for the first few days or even weeks thereafter reduce to 350-40 mg twice a day missing out one day a week to prevent your brain from habituating to it.
Passionflower builds up GABA levels which counterbalances excessive glutamate it also re-sensitises desensitised dopamine receptor sites in dopamine synapses which is an important part of the long-term recuperation phase.
NAC Cysteine: this is a key component in using natural remedies for cocaine addiction, iit combats excessive glutamate buildup in the synapses and balances dopamine levels which are the two key neurotransmitters involved in cocaine addiction.
1500 to 2000 mg twice per day at the same time as the tyrosine, or 1000 mg 3 times per day.
Appears to reverse the changes in the brain circuitry that are associated with cocaine addiction (also gambling and perhaps other drugs too), this reduces the cravings for cocaine and helps reduce relapse. NAC is also a supper antioxidant promoting brain and liver detoxification and regeneration. You can start on the NAC before you do your full cocaine elimination to help you reduce your cravings. NAC is a little expensive if you want to take it at the high dose for a long period of time you could invest in powder which is much cheaper but I warn you that it takes a couple of minutes to get it to dissolve, it has an unpleasant acidic taste and it’s very acidic like pure lemon juice which can potentially cause acid erosion of your dental enamel. To protect against dental enamel erosion immediately after consuming NAC liquid rinse your mouth first with water and then with enamel protecting toothpaste, but don’t brush your teeth while the enamel is soft and vulnerable, just rinse and let the alkaline toothpaste neutralise the acid over 5 to 10 minutes.
In one study NAC was shown to reduce cocaine use by cocaine users by 85%. (Mardikian PN, LaRowe SD, Hedden S, Kalivas PW, Malcolm RJ. An open-label trial of N-acetylcysteine for the treatment of cocaine dependence: a pilot study. Prog Neuropsychopharmacol Biol Psychiatry 2007;31:389-394.)
NAC cysteine has numerous healing effects, it’s antidepressant, calms excessive excitation in the brain, detoxifies the brain and liver, protects the brain from oxygen free radicals and chelates toxic heavy metals. For more information on the health benefits of NAC cysteine see my page:
https://www.balancingbrainchemistry.co.uk/peter-smith/111/NAC-Cysteine-depression,-bipolar,-addiction,-anxiety,-detoxifying.html
To counteract excessive glutamate driving addiction you can take the following remedies:
Glycine I recommend using powder because of the high doses required: up to 15-18 g a day during the first detox phase and thereafter 8 to 12 g on a daily basis. Don't take the full daily dose in one go but divided between at least two or three dosages, glycine is a sweet tasting powder that can be used even as a sweetener in drinks or on food (but remember don't drink coffee because it can cause fluctuations in your dopamine levels which until you really stable you want to avoid. glycine binds to glutamate receptor sites therefore reducing excessive glutamate activity which can drive addiction.
Taurine: 6-9 g a day in the beginning withdrawal phase, reduced down to 3-6 g a day for long-term use during the recuperation phase.
Taurine has a calming GABA like affect and when taken long-term it also stimulates neurogenesis in the hippocampus and area of the brain involved in memory and learning new things, you want a healthy hippocampus as you undergo drug counselling to integrate the knowledge you pick up in counselling into long-term useful memory resources.
L-Glutamine: Considering whether or not these glutamine is complicated for some people it will help to manage fatigue in the brain and has a relaxing effect because in then it primarily increases the level of GABA, unfortunately however in other people the extra GABA gets recycled back into glutamate which then increases addictive drives; I had a patient doing well on a prescription for cocaine addiction and then he decided to add L glutamine because you read it can be helpful on the Internet and rapidly pushed him straight back into cocaine use. So I now recommend you do not take L glutamine unless you have taken it before and know for a fact that in your case it produces a relaxing antianxiety feeling.
Ask your doctor before using glutamine if you have had cirrhosis of the liver.
To increase serotonin for an antidepressant and improved sleep effect you can take tryptophan.
L-Tryptophan: 1000 to 2000 mg last thing at night I recommend tablets over capsules. Tryptophan naturally increases serotonin levels and helps us sleep it also produces an antidepressant effect. CAUTION: do not take tryptophan if you are on serotonin boosting antidepressant drugs (SSRIs or SNRIs) without expert supervision.
Pantothenic Acid: (vitamin B5) 3000 mg with each meal. Pantothenic acid is a tremendous support for the adrenal glands helping them through periods of stress and to regenerate. 3000 mg three times a day may seem like an exceptionally high dose for a B vitamin but pantothenic acid is completely safe, laboratory studies have been unable to find toxicity from this substance at any dosage; actually if you want to you can increase this dosage I’ve heard that beyond 18,000 mg a day it may give some people loose bowels.
B Complex: by a good-quality B 50 complex and take want to pills with each meal. B vitamins are needed as co-factors for the production of dopamine; they also support energy levels and help us cope at times of stress. Please note that it’s perfectly normal to get bright yellow coloured your own when you take B-Complex.
Vitamin C: 2000 to 4000 mg with each meal. Vitamin sees also co-factor for the production of dopamine and support our adrenal glands to cope with fatigue and periods of stress. Doses over 5000 to 6000 mg can cause loose bowels in some people it’s this happens to you just cut down on the dose.
Multimineral Supplement: use a good quality multimineral with plenty zinc and selenium such as Life Extension To Per Day. This will provide additional co-factors needed for the production of dopamine and general wellness.
Optional Melatonin this may be helpful as a sleep aid, but that high doses can produce disturbing dreams and you have to experiment to establish the right dosage. Melatonin is also a powerful natural antioxidant regeneration of the brain.
Improving Neuroplasticity to re-sensitizes Drug Desensitised Synapses
The goal is to speed up the rate that dopaminergic synapses and neurological circuits regenerate, left to their own devices these systems can regenerate if you eat and averagely healthy diet but it can take a couple of years for them to return to normal. Since 2012 I’ve been using a new protocol consisting of a stack of remedies to boost BDNF and neuroplasticity that cuts the time taken for this process down to a few months.
Meditation for Mental Health Problems and Addiction
hi Lander Lastly but by no means least don't miss out on this treatment, mindfulness-based meditation brain training can do something to combat the addiction that you cannot achieved by any other means. An intensive course of focused brain training has been shown to increase the size and density of connections in several areas of the brain that improve our ability to be aware of our emotional/psychological state, improve our emotional balance and improve our impulse control all the things we want to combat the addiction.
In my practice I combine meditation exercises with natural remedies that increase neuroplasticity to speed up and increase the rate of change stimulated by the meditation, I teach meditation both individually and in small groups adapting the meditation technique to individual needs for example although mindfulness meditation can be helpful to improve our impulse control there are other meditations that can stimulate the release of endorphins and give us a natural high but without the damage, expense and comedown.
Natural Remedies to Prevent Relapse
I’m sure you already know you probably should have drug addiction counselling/therapy for the Psychological aspects of your addiction theand reduce or stop being in situations where drugs are available; tell you friends you’ve stopped using if they don’t respect this get rid of them with extreme prejudice and get new friends. Get your dealer completely out of your life, you don’t want someone with a financial investment in your destructive drug use anywhere near you.Ok back to the natural remedies: continue on the above regime at least until you feel your energy and sleep fully recovered, however I would recommend continuing for at least 3-6 months, or more if you poor physical condition. Thereafter use the guidelines for Dopamine deficient depression and stay on the NAC long-term.
Follow the GI and Zone diet to stabilise your blood sugar, this is important.
Complete 100 days of relaxation response training and find a meditation system you like and do 25-35 mins a day for another 100 days.
If you stay clean for 5 years you are unlikely to relapse so stay focused on that first 5 years.
Addiction Main Menu:
- Addiction & Neurotransmitters (Dopamine GABA Serotonin)
- Heroine and Opiates Addiction Natural Remedies for
- Cocaine & Methamphetamine Addiction Natural Remedies for
- Tranquilliser Addiction Natural Remedies for
- Smoking Addiction Natural Remedies for
- Alcohol Addiction Natural Remedies for
- Cannabis, Marijuana Withdrawal Remedies
- Ketamine
- Ecstasy
- Meditation to Get High and Help Drugs Withdrawal
- My Personal Drug Story
https://www.slideshare.net/CMoondog/the-addicted-brain
https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/can-you-cure-yourself-of-addiction/
© PeterSmithUK.com –Holistic Medicine Consultant-
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