Alcohol is the most misused substance in the state. Slightly more than 12% of people in Oregon struggle with alcohol use disorder (AUD). Although not the most addictive drug, alcohol has a powerful effect on your brain. It produces pleasant feelings and dulls negative ones. Alcohol stimulates your brain to release dopamine and endorphins. These chemicals act as natural painkillers and bring about feelings of satisfaction and pleasure. These feelings prompt some individuals to use alcohol over and over despite the negative consequences for their health and well-being.

If you struggle with alcohol use our alcohol addiction rehab in Portland offers quality, comprehensive treatment.

Fentanyl is an especially addictive synthetic opioid. Fueled by fentanyl, the number of overdose deaths in Oregon has grown since 2019. And, even though the surge in overdoses is part of a national problem, the state’s underfunded treatment system still struggles to provide local solutions.

Fentanyl puts both users experimenting with drugs for the first time and people who have been longtime drug users at a much higher risk of overdose than most other drugs. People have died from a single dose. Many didn’t know they were consuming fentanyl. Our fentanyl addiction rehab in Portland combines medically-assisted treatment and therapy to address issues caused be fentanyl misuse.

Methamphetamine is a highly addictive stimulant. It affects your central nervous system. “Meth” increases the amount of the natural chemical dopamine in your brain. Dopamine is concerned with body movement, motivation, and reinforcement of rewarding behaviors. The ability to release high levels of dopamine in the reward areas of your brain quickly strongly reinforces the behavior making the individual want to repeat the experience.

Similar to 2020, methamphetamine was the most common drug noted in the county’s (Multnomah) fatalities. But the number of deaths involving fentanyl, and a combination of opioids and meth, saw the biggest increases. However, meth remained the deadliest drug in general. It was implicated in 93 deaths. That amounts to 82% of deaths due to substances, which continued the trend from 2020. At Crestview, we understand that methamphetamine addiction is an issue and offer outstanding treatment.

Opioids are very addictive, mainly because they activate powerful reward centers in your brain. They trigger the release of endorphins, which are your brain’s feel-good neurotransmitters. The endorphins then suppress your sensation of pain and increase feelings of pleasure. This creates a powerful but temporary feeling of well-being. When it wears off, you will probably want the good sensations back as quickly as possible. This is the first landmark on the path to addiction.

Our opioid addiction rehab in Portland, address cravings and utilizes therapies to help our client quit using opioids.

Heroin is an illegal, highly addictive opioid drug and is considered the most addictive drug. It’s made from morphine which comes from the opium poppy plant. Right after you use heroin, it gets to your brain and produces a rush of good feelings and happiness. Heroin blocks pain messages in your body. Because it slows your heart rate and breathing you may feel as if the world has slowed down for several hours.

Repeated use of the drug can lead to tolerance, meaning that the person needs to use more and more of it to have the same effects. Over time, the body develops a physical dependency on heroin. However, heroin addiction is more than physical dependence, it is a chronic brain disorder. A factor that played a part in the rise of heroin addiction is the growing misuse of prescription opioid painkillers which are chemically related to heroin.

The second most addictive drug is Cocaine. Whether it is snorted, injected, or smoked, cocaine enters your bloodstream rapidly and penetrates your brain. Its immediate psychological effect causes a buildup of the neurochemical dopamine and prevents neurons from turning off the signals. This causes the high. Even though cocaine also inhibits the transporters of other neurotransmitters (serotonin and norepinephrine), it is believed that the effects on the dopamine system are the most important.

Barbiturates belong to an old class of drugs that were originally used to treat anxiety and help people sleep. They are central nervous system depressants and cause effects that range from mild sedation to general anesthesia. These drugs interfere with the chemical signaling in the brain by shutting down various brain regions. At low doses, they cause euphoria but at higher doses, they suppress your breathing and may be fatal.

Benzodiazepines

A class of drugs known as benzodiazepines have replaced barbiturates for both medical and recreational use for the most part. Benzodiazepines also have a high risk of physical dependence and negative effects.

One of the most commonplace drugs in the world is alcohol. Researchers found that alcohol can increase dopamine levels in animal brains by 40 to 360%. The more they drank, the higher their dopamine levels rose.

Oregon voters passed Measure 110, or the Drug Addiction Treatment and Recovery Act in November 2020. By passing the measure, the voters of Oregon recognized that:

• Drug addiction and overdoses are a serious problem in Oregon
• Access to treatment needs to be expanded
• A health-based approach is more effective and humane
• Criminalizing people because they suffer from addiction makes it harder to get access to treatment and recovery

In 2021, the Behavioral Health Resource Networks (BHRNs) was established. BHRNs work together to provide community-based services and support to individuals with SUDs. Each county and Tribal area has at least one. The State of Oregon’s policy is that screening, assessments, treatment, and recovery services for drug addiction should be available to all people who need and want the services.

In July of 2023, the Executive Leadership Team of the Addiction Prevention Section launched a relationship with the Oregon Council on Behavioral Health. The purpose of the Addiction Prevention Section is to promote community-based prevention throughout the state. The section serves as an effective influence in policy, programming, and funding regarding alcohol, marijuana, tobacco, prescription drugs, illicit drugs, mental health, and other community health topics.