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Living With An Addict

Finding Local Help

A reader is helping a sibling recover from heroin and meth addiction, and is looking for a doctor to assist with detox and a rehab program, while keeping it from their parents.

Answered by John Lee

Question

My sibling is staying with me to recover from heroin and meth. He is substituting Suboxone and Xanax bars to help his recovery. He says he's done it before, but I want to ask him to see a doctor within my city.

Can you recommend a doctor that could help him detox correctly (therapist, psychologist, or medical doctor)? Eventually, I'd love to help him get into a rehab program. He has no where else to go and my parents do not know of the situation.

Hi Amy C,

I'd recommend contacting local addiction treatment programs or detox clinics to ask for whether they have someone on staff who specializes in this type of treatment, or if not, if they can recommend a local provider who does. Obviously a specialist in addiction medicine is going to be your ideal candidate for this type of care. One great tool for finding what's available in your area is SAMHSA's treatment locator tool http://findtreatment.samhsa.gov/ You can punch in your zip code and then add in search criteria to find providers within a given radius from your home.

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