Innovo Blog - Drug Detox Center in PA

Xylazine: Veterinary Tranquilizer Prevalent in Rising Overdoses Cases

elite2022-04-26T13:59:38+00:00April 19, 2022|Addiction News|

There is a new prescription drug showing up in the rising drug overdoses taking place throughout the country. The drug, called Xylazine, is a dangerous tranquilizer often used by veterinarians and veterinarian clinics on animals. Over the last few months, in different areas around America, the drug is showing up more and more in cases of both fatal and non-fatal drug overdoses. Most often, and in similar ways to the powerful and dangerous synthetic opioid fentanyl, xylazine is being used in counterfeit prescription pills being sold on the street. Xylazine is a drug most often used in veterinary medicine as a sedative. It is a drug that has analgesic and muscle relaxant properties. Used for many different animals, the [...]

Seniors Struggling with Addiction

elite2022-04-26T13:55:18+00:00April 4, 2022|Addiction Recovery|

When people think of individuals struggling with addiction or substance use disorder, the overwhelming thought is to think of a young adult. Addiction is often thought of as a disease that impacts a younger population- teenagers experimenting with drugs and alcohol, college aged young adults on their own for the first time at a university, or the 21-to-35 aged adults still going out and partying. While addiction does impact the younger adult population more so than other age groups, there is a segment of the population that has seen skyrocketing rates of substance use disorder over the last several years: Seniors and the older adult population. Addiction affects up to 17% of the older population, meaning individuals over the [...]

The Dangers of Medical Marijuana

elite2022-04-25T20:56:48+00:00March 28, 2022|Addiction News|

We have reached a progressive period in American history, one in which we are slowly entering a time where marijuana will become legal. Many areas of the country have decriminalized marijuana and even more have created legal access for Americans to get medical marijuana. When we look at the failure of the War on Drugs, this is not necessarily a bad direction to go in, especially when comparing marijuana to the health risks associated with other, more powerful drugs. There are also studies demonstrating some of the benefits that marijuana can have for individuals with numerous ailments. A large argument for marijuana is that it can effectively treat pain without the dangers, side effects, or physical dependency of opioids. This [...]

How Long Do You Need to Drink or Use Drugs Before Needing Detox?

elite2022-04-25T20:51:08+00:00March 21, 2022|Detox, Uncategorized|

One of the main questions an individual or concerned family members asks regarding substance use disorder or addiction is how long someone needs to abuse drugs or alcohol before they need detox. Often a concerned parent, spouse or loved one will call a rehab or addiction treatment center because they are concerned about their loved one’s drug use or drinking. They will often ask if that loved one needs detox based on the amount of time the person has been misusing drugs or having issues with their drinking. Unfortunately, there is no cut and dry or black and white answer regarding this question. Every person is different, with different factors regarding their substance misuse including different biology, different physiology, [...]

Innovo Detox welcomes Leah Christman as new Director of Nursing

elite2022-03-16T19:55:32+00:00March 16, 2022|Innovo Updates|

We are pleased to announce the addition of Leah Christman, BSN, RN, to the Innovo Detox team as our facility’s new Director of Nursing. Leah comes to Innovo Detox after over a decade working in management and clinical operations in skilled nursing facilities and long-term care communities and will join the Innovo Detox leadership and medical teams in her new role. Leah received her diploma in nursing in 2010 from the Reading Hospital School of Health Sciences and went on to receive her bachelor’s degree of Science in Nursing, Cum Laude, from Drexel University in 2014. She is a Registered Nurse (RN) in the state of Pennsylvania. After school, Leah went to work for a large healthcare system [...]

Innovo Detox: A Place to Recharge and Renew

elite2022-03-16T20:05:25+00:00March 14, 2022|Addiction Treatment|

All too often rehabs and addiction treatment facilities promote themselves as spa like atmospheres, enticing patients and clients with fancy amenities. It is vital that when a potential patient or loved ones are searching for a detox or rehab to above all else make sure that the chosen facility is able to appropriately and effectively meet the individual’s medical and clinical needs. Detox and rehab are not vacations. They are interventions and experiences that stop the use of drugs and alcohol and begin to delve into the underlying reasons someone is suffering from addiction or substance use disorder. They are the first steps in what is hopefully a journey of recovery. There is important, serious work that a patient [...]

Treating Chronic Pain

elite2022-03-16T20:14:19+00:00March 7, 2022|Addiction Treatment|

Chronic pain is an issue recently at the forefront of addiction treatment. As America’s opioid epidemic increased and got worse, government and public health officials began to call for greater scrutiny on prescribing practices, especially the prescribing of dangerous opioids. Overtime, prescribing methods began to catch up with the overprescribing of opioids, with less and less opioids prescribed for patients dealing with acute medical conditions and alternative methods considered for patients that could avoid the prescribing of opioids. However, it seems that an unintended consequence of trying to get America’s arms around the opioid crisis was that chronic pain patients, having been prescribed opioids for many years, were seemingly cut off from medications they had been taking for a long [...]

We Do Not Need to Hit ‘Rock Bottom’ to Find Recovery from Addiction

elite2022-03-16T19:25:43+00:00February 28, 2022|Addiction Recovery|

For years in both addiction treatment and the recovery community, there was a theory that an individual needed to hit ‘rock bottom’ in addiction in order to find recovery from addiction or alcoholism. The idea of “rock bottom” in addiction is that an individual has no further down to go in their active addiction or alcoholism. “Rock Bottom” is the inflection point in active alcoholism or addiction, where someone gets so bad that they are forced to change their life and find recovery. The terms “rock bottom” often sounds bad, although when speaking to someone living life in recovery, they may often say that their “rock bottom” was the best thing that ever happened to them, because they ran out [...]

Molly Ashcroft Named 2022 Health Care Hero by Central Penn Business Journal

elite2022-03-16T19:13:23+00:00February 21, 2022|Innovo Updates|

Each year, the Central Penn Business Journal honors professionals within the healthcare field with the “Health Care Heroes” awards. This year, we are excited to announce that Innovo Detox Executive Director Molly Ashcroft, CADC, was honored as a 2022 Health Care Hero by the Central Penn Business Journal in the Mental Health Hero category. The Health Care Heroes awards are designed to recognize excellence, promote innovation, and honor the efforts of organizations and individuals making a significant impact on the quality of health care in the Central PA region of state of Pennsylvania. The Central Penn Business Journal puts out calls for nominations for the Health Care Heroes awards to professionals within the Central Pennsylvania area of the state [...]

Top 10 Benefits of Drug and Alcohol Detox

elite2022-03-16T18:28:56+00:00February 14, 2022|Detox|

There are obvious benefits to sobriety. A life without drugs and alcohol often brings with it a life free of the consequences or difficulties often associated with addiction. If a person suffers from addiction, they also deal with things often associated with addiction, including internal issues like mental health concerns, emotional difficulties, pain, trauma, low self-esteem, guilt, and shame, along with external consequences like relationship issues, financial hardships, and difficulties at school or work. So, it makes sense that if a life of drug and alcohol addiction brings with it pain, suffering and consequences, that a life free of drugs and alcohol should also bring with it much less pain, suffering and consequences. However, when seeking and finding sobriety [...]