Helping Families in Addiction & Mental Health Crisis

Addiction is a primary, chronic disease of brain reward, motivation, memory, and related circuitry. Dysfunction in these circuits leads to characteristic biological, psychological, social, and spiritual manifestations. This is reflected in an individual pathologically pursuing reward and/or relief by substance use anotherbehaviors.

Addiction is characterized by the inability to consistently abstain, impairment in behavioral control, craving, diminished recognition of significant problems with one’s behaviors and interpersonal relationships, and a dysfunctional emotional response. Like other chronic diseases, addiction often involves cycles of relapse and remission. Without treatment or engagement in recovery activities, addiction is progressive and can result in disability or premature death.

The Impact of the Mental Health Law on Addiction Treatment

“There is no illness currently being treated that will be more affected by the Mental Health Law than addiction. That’s because we have a system of treatment that was built for a time when they didn’t understand that addiction was an illness.”

The new law designates addiction treatment as an “essential health benefit” for most commercial insurance plans, meaning the plans must cover it. However, substance abuse treatment is primarily publicly funded and often run by counselors with limited medical training, resulting in challenges in meeting the growing demand for addiction treatment.

Addressing the Treatment Gap

According to the Survey on Drug Use and Health, 23.1 million people aged 12 and older needed treatment for an illicit drug or alcohol use problem last year, but only 2.5 million received treatment at a specialty facility. Lack of treatment centers and long waiting lists have been significant barriers for individuals seeking help. Our addiction treatment rehabs in Karachi, Multan, and Islamabad are dedicated to bridging this treatment gap and providing comprehensive and personalized care to those in need.