MAT Service Explainer · Medication Component
Medication-Assisted Treatment (MAT) in Norwood, NJ
Medication-Assisted Treatment at Valley Spring Recovery Center is the medication component of addiction care, prescribed inside Partial Care, Intensive Outpatient and Outpatient rather than sold as a standalone program. For opioid use disorder the options are buprenorphine with naloxone, extended-release buprenorphine, and naltrexone in oral or extended-release injectable form. For alcohol use disorder they are naltrexone and acamprosate. Every one of those FDA labels says the same thing about how the medication is meant to be used: as part of a complete treatment plan that includes counseling and psychosocial support. The on-staff psychiatrist and psychiatric nurse practitioner evaluate and prescribe.
Medically reviewed by Dr. Michael Olla, MD·Last reviewed August 22, 2026
Free Insurance Verification
Get Answers Now
Same-day admissions available. Our team verifies your insurance and schedules your intake, typically the same day.
Why Choose Valley Spring
Why Choose Valley Spring Recovery for Medication-Assisted Treatment?
Valley Spring is chosen for MAT because the prescriber and the therapist work in the same program, which is the arrangement every one of these FDA labels assumes. A buprenorphine prescription filled at a clinic with no counseling attached is being used outside the terms its own label sets out. Here the medication and the clinical hours are one plan reviewed in one weekly meeting.
- Psychiatrist and psychiatric nurse practitioner on staff, both evaluating within the first 72 hours
- Buprenorphine with naloxone, extended-release buprenorphine, oral naltrexone, extended-release naltrexone and acamprosate
- Medication prescribed inside Partial Care, Intensive Outpatient or Outpatient, never as a prescription on its own
- Weekly individual therapy running alongside the medication, which is what each label calls for
- Existing MAT continued without a gap when a client transfers in from another provider
- Integrated treatment for a co-occurring psychiatric condition by the same prescriber
- Ongoing medication management visits, with dosing reviewed against response and side effects
- Naloxone education built into programming, because the labels advise having a reversal agent on hand
- In-network contracts with 19 payers including AmeriHealth, Fidelis Care, Magellan Healthcare, Cigna and UnitedHealthcare, with Blue Cross Blue Shield, Aetna and Horizon accepted out-of-network or by single case agreement
- Coordination with a community prescriber at discharge, so the medication course outlasts the program
Licenses & Accreditations
People Who Recovered
What Do Clients Say About MAT at Valley Spring?
Clients on medication write about not being treated as a lesser category of patient, which is the persistent problem with MAT in recovery settings. The reviews below are published Google reviews of the Norwood facility. Valley Spring publishes no retention or abstinence rate for MAT, and cites the FDA labels and the primary literature instead of a number of its own.
“Valley Spring Recovery Center saved my son's life. The staff is amazing. I'm so grateful for the exceptional care he received. The support and encouragement by the staff and the rest of the Valley Spring Community is so meaningful.”
Lana Roeser
“Everyone treated me like family, I felt like I was born into this family. The welcoming I received was incredible. Valley Spring changed my life in ways I never thought possible.”
Tr3 Weee
“Valley Spring Recovery Center is absolutely exceptional. Brian and Mike have created a truly beautiful establishment, both in appearance and in spirit. The clinical setting is world class, blending professionalism with genuine compassion.”
Christopher Ferry
“Valley Spring Recovery Center truly changed my little brother Jordan's life. From the moment he entered the program, he was treated with respect, care, and real compassion. The staff went above and beyond to support him, not just in his recovery, but in every aspect of his life.”
Deshaya Williams
“It cannot be more clear the profound impact that Sean has made in my recovery journey. Finding someone who can balance the weight of recovery with genuine humor is rare, and he embodies that perfectly.”
Daisy McCloud
Patient testimonial
A Story of Hope
Patient testimonial
Finding Recovery
Family testimonial
A Mother's Story
Alumni testimonial
My Recovery
Program Details
What Does Medication-Assisted Treatment at Valley Spring Include?
MAT at Valley Spring includes four components: a psychiatric evaluation within the first 72 hours, the prescription itself, medication management visits that review response and side effects, and the counseling hours the medication is prescribed alongside. The sections below set out what each contains and which conditions have an approved medication at all.
Who MAT Serves, and for Which Disorders
MAT at Valley Spring serves adults 18 and older with opioid use disorder or alcohol use disorder, the two substance use disorders that have FDA-approved pharmacotherapy. Clients work with the psychiatrist and the psychiatric nurse practitioner to establish a medication and dose while building skills in individual and group sessions, and appointments are scheduled in person or over secure video around a working week.
For cocaine, methamphetamine and cannabis use disorder there is no FDA-approved medication, and this page says so rather than implying that something exists. Clients with those diagnoses receive the same clinical program without a medication component for the addiction itself, and psychiatric medication where a co-occurring condition calls for it.
What the Labels Require Alongside the Prescription
Each of these medications carries the same instruction in its own prescribing information. The Suboxone label states the film should be used as part of a complete treatment plan that includes counseling and psychosocial support. The Brixadi label repeats it. The Vivitrol label states that treatment should be part of a comprehensive management program that includes psychosocial support, and the acamprosate label uses that same phrase. The naltrexone tablet label makes the point in the negative: naltrexone hydrochloride has not been shown to provide any therapeutic benefit except as part of an appropriate plan of management for the addictions.
Valley Spring supplies that plan rather than referring the client to find one. Weekly cognitive behavioral therapy connects medication response to cravings, decisions, and return-to-use risk.
Dialectical behavior therapy adds distress-tolerance and emotion-regulation skills, while the prescriber and therapist review the same chart in the same weekly treatment-team meeting.
What Happens at Each Appointment
The medication management appointment
The psychiatrist or psychiatric nurse practitioner reviews how the medication is working, whether cravings have changed, and which side effects have appeared. Dosing is adjusted against that account and against the clinical picture rather than on a schedule.
The individual therapy hour
The assigned therapist works the situation the medication does not touch: the relationship, the workplace, the hour of the evening. Medication reduces craving; it does not decide what a client does with a Friday.
The group session
Small group therapy sessions put a client alongside peers, some of them on the same medication. That matters, because the belief that medication is a lesser form of recovery is acquired in a room of peers and is corrected in one.
What a Client on MAT Does Between Appointments
Six commitments fill the days between medication visits:
- Taking the prescription exactly as the prescriber wrote it, including on the days cravings are absent
- Attending peer recovery meetings such as AA, NA and SMART Recovery
- Logging cravings and side effects, so the next appointment works from a record rather than a memory
- Keeping a naloxone kit accessible and telling one other person in the household where it is
- Practicing the coping technique the therapy hour set
- Calling the on-call clinician when a dose feels wrong rather than adjusting it alone
Who Is a Candidate for MAT
Five presentations point toward a medication component:
- Discharged from detox: A client whose withdrawal has resolved and who now needs craving suppression to hold the gap. The Vivitrol label names this position exactly: prevention of relapse to opioid dependence following opioid detoxification.
- Opioid or alcohol use disorder: A client with either diagnosis, which are the two with approved pharmacotherapy.
- A co-occurring psychiatric condition: A client who needs the psychiatric prescription and the addiction prescription written by one prescriber who sees both.
- Already on MAT elsewhere: A client transferring in who needs the course continued without a lapse while the therapy hours start.
- Relapse on a medication-free plan: A client who completed abstinence-only treatment and returned to use, for whom the medication question has now been answered by events.
Which Medications Does Valley Spring Prescribe, and What Is Each Approved For?
Valley Spring prescribes five FDA-approved medications for opioid and alcohol use disorder, prescribes topiramate off-label, and does not prescribe methadone at all. The distinction between those three categories is the whole point of the table below, because “FDA-approved medication” is used loosely in this field and a reader deciding whether to start a drug deserves to know which shelf it sits on. Every indication in the second column is the FDA label's own wording, and every dose is the label's recommended dose. The prerequisite column carries the condition that has to be true before a first dose, which is where the clinical risk in MAT sits.
| Medication | What the FDA label approves it for | Form and dose | Prerequisite before a first dose | Approval status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Buprenorphine and naloxone sublingual film (Suboxone) | Treatment of opioid dependence | One sublingual dose a day; maintenance generally 4 mg/1 mg to 24 mg/6 mg a day | Induction begins when objective and clear signs of withdrawal are evident, which is what avoids precipitating withdrawal | FDA approved for this use |
| Buprenorphine extended-release injection (Brixadi) | Treatment of moderate to severe opioid use disorder in patients who have initiated treatment with a single dose of a transmucosal buprenorphine product or who are already being treated with buprenorphine | Subcutaneous injection: weekly at 8, 16, 24 or 32 mg, or monthly at 64, 96 or 128 mg | A transmucosal buprenorphine dose first. Available only through the Brixadi REMS, and the label states that only healthcare providers should prepare and administer it | FDA approved for this use |
| Naltrexone tablets, 50 mg | In the treatment of alcohol dependence and for the blockade of the effects of exogenously administered opioids | 50 mg once a day for alcohol dependence | An opioid-free interval of a minimum of 7 to 10 days for patients previously dependent on short-acting opioids | FDA approved for this use |
| Naltrexone extended-release injectable suspension (Vivitrol) | Treatment of alcohol dependence, and prevention of relapse to opioid dependence following opioid detoxification | 380 mg by deep intramuscular gluteal injection every 4 weeks, alternating buttocks | An opioid-free duration of a minimum of 7 to 10 days is recommended, to avoid precipitating withdrawal severe enough to require hospitalization | FDA approved for this use |
| Acamprosate calcium delayed-release tablets | Maintenance of abstinence from alcohol in patients with alcohol dependence who are abstinent at treatment initiation | Two 333 mg tablets, totalling 666 mg, three times a day | Abstinence first. The label states that efficacy has not been demonstrated in subjects who have not undergone detoxification and not achieved alcohol abstinence prior to beginning acamprosate calcium delayed-release tablets treatment | FDA approved for this use |
| Topiramate (Topamax) | Epilepsy and the preventive treatment of migraine. The label carries no substance use disorder indication. | Varies by indication and age group | Prescribed off-label for alcohol use disorder, one of three alternatives named where naltrexone or acamprosate has not worked, is not tolerated, or is not the patient's preference | Not FDA approved for any substance use disorder |
| Methadone | Opioid use disorder, dispensed through an opioid treatment program | Set by the opioid treatment program | An opioid treatment program holding current SAMHSA certification under 42 CFR 8.11(a) | Not prescribed or dispensed at Valley Spring |
Three rows need a sentence of their own. Topiramate is marketed as Topamax and its label covers epilepsy and the preventive treatment of migraine only. Treatment of Alcohol Use Disorder, the clinical guideline written by the New York State Department of Health AIDS Institute with the Johns Hopkins University Clinical Guidelines Program and published on the NIH National Library of Medicine's Bookshelf as NBK561234, states that like gabapentin, topiramate is not approved by the FDA for AUD treatment, but it has been associated with fewer drinking days. The same guideline records that currently, 3 medications are approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration for the treatment of AUD: acamprosate, naltrexone, and disulfiram. Its recommendation for the people this row concerns reads that for individuals with AUD who have not responded to or are intolerant of naltrexone or acamprosate, or who prefer a different medication, clinicians should discuss and offer disulfiram, gabapentin, or topiramate. Topiramate is therefore one of three co-equal alternatives rather than the alternative. Methadone for opioid use disorder is dispensed through an opioid treatment program holding current SAMHSA certification under 42 CFR 8.11(a); Valley Spring is not an opioid treatment program, does not prescribe methadone, and refers clients for whom methadone is indicated.
One safety instruction runs through two of these labels and belongs here rather than in a footnote. The Suboxone label directs prescribers to strongly consider recommending or prescribing an opioid overdose reversal agent such as naloxone or nalmefene at the time the film is initiated or renewed, because patients being treated for opioid use disorder have the potential for relapse, putting them at risk for opioid overdose. The Brixadi label carries the same direction. Call 911 in a suspected opioid overdose. On the order of the steps, the over-the-counter NARCAN Drug Facts label has a bystander give the first dose and then call 911 right away, and SAMHSA's Opioid Overdose Prevention Toolkit puts the dose before the call in the same order. An opioid overdose is a medical emergency, and naloxone buys time rather than replacing the ambulance. Follow the naloxone overdose response steps for repeat dosing, side effects, and the limits of overdose reversal.
Why Valley Spring
What Makes MAT at Valley Spring Different?
Three things separate this from a prescription-only clinic: prescribers on staff rather than under contract, medication written inside a level of care with weekly counseling hours attached, and the same prescriber treating a co-occurring psychiatric condition. Valley Spring holds CARF accreditation and in-network contracts with 19 payers.
Valley Spring Recovery Center · Norwood, NJ
5
FDA-Approved Medications Prescribed
2
Prescribers on Staff
0
Methadone Prescriptions
Our Facility
Where Are MAT Appointments Held?
Medication appointments are held at 830 Broadway, Norwood, New Jersey 07648, alongside the therapy hours, or over HIPAA-compliant video where a client prefers that. Extended-release injections are the exception, and the two labels word the point differently. The Vivitrol label states that VIVITROL must be prepared and administered by a healthcare provider. The Brixadi label states that only healthcare providers should prepare and administer BRIXADI. Both of those appointments therefore happen in person.
Clinical Process
How Does Medication-Assisted Treatment at Valley Spring Work?
MAT runs in four phases. Evaluation and induction come first, with the medication chosen against the diagnosis and the prerequisites its label sets. Stabilization follows, then the therapy work the label assumes, then transition to a community prescriber who continues the course. Dosing is reviewed at every medication visit against response and side effects.
Evaluation and Induction
Phase 1
The prescriber takes the substance use history, the current medication list and the withdrawal picture, then chooses the medication against the diagnosis and the prerequisite its label sets. Buprenorphine induction waits for objective and clear signs of withdrawal. Naltrexone waits for the opioid-free interval. Getting that sequence right is what prevents a precipitated withdrawal.
Stabilization and Skills Work
Phase 2
Once dosing steadies the physical picture, the clinical hours take over. The therapist uses CBT and DBT to work the triggers a medication does not reach, and the prescriber reviews response and side effects at each medication visit. Group sessions supply peers, including peers on the same medication.
Application at a Steady Dose
Phase 3
With the dose established, the client tests the recovery plan in their own week while keeping work and family commitments. The prescriber adjusts dosing on reported craving and side effects rather than on a taper timetable, and the therapy hour handles the situations that a stable dose reveals rather than removes.
Transition to a Community Prescriber
Phase 4
The medication frequently outlasts the program, so discharge planning names the community prescriber who continues it and sends the record across before the last appointment. The therapist identifies the ongoing counseling that keeps the plan the label describes in place after the level of care ends.
Getting Started
How Does Admission to MAT Work?
Admission to MAT takes four steps: benefits verification, clinical assessment, detox coordination where withdrawal needs medical supervision, and a prescriber evaluation within the first 72 hours, after which the medication can start. Bring the current prescription bottles or a written list. The admissions line at (201) 781-8812 is staffed around the clock, and a client already on MAT elsewhere says so on the first call, so the course is not interrupted.
Call and Verify Coverage
Call (201) 781-8812, staffed 24 hours a day. The admissions team checks the plan against Valley Spring's 19 in-network contracts and states whether it is in-network or out-of-network. Prior authorization for an extended-release injection is requested at this step.
Complete the Clinical Assessment
The clinical director reviews the screening information and any records the client releases, which can be completed by phone or over video. Approval schedules the intake appointment with the psychiatrist or the psychiatric nurse practitioner.
Coordinate Detox Where the Medication Requires It First
Two of these medications require an opioid-free interval or completed detoxification before a first dose, so where the assessment shows physical dependence Valley Spring coordinates the detox referral, arranges placement and arranges the transfer back after discharge. Valley Spring does not perform detox.
Start Treatment, With the Prescriber Seen Inside 72 Hours
The intake appointment carries the clinical assessment, and the prescriber evaluation follows within the first 72 hours, so the medication protocol starts inside that window where the label's prerequisites are met. A client already on MAT elsewhere continues without a gap.
How Do I Start Medication-Assisted Treatment?
Call Valley Spring Recovery Center at (201) 781-8812, 24 hours a day, with the current prescription list to hand. The call covers coverage, the level of care the medication will sit inside, and the first available intake appointment.
HIPAA compliant · Confidential · No obligation
Our Clinical Team
Who Prescribes MAT at Valley Spring?
MAT is prescribed by the Medical Director, a psychiatrist, and by a board-certified psychiatric nurse practitioner, both on staff rather than contracted. Licensed clinical social workers and licensed clinical alcohol and drug counselors carry the counseling hours the labels require, and case managers handle the authorizations that extended-release injections in particular tend to generate.
FAQ
What Do People Ask About Medication-Assisted Treatment?
These nine questions are the ones the admissions line fields about MAT: which medications are used, whether MAT substitutes one drug for another, why methadone is not offered, how long medication continues, working through it, coverage, what naloxone does, how soon medication can start, and which disorders have no approved medication.
Which medications does Valley Spring use for MAT?+
Buprenorphine with naloxone, extended-release buprenorphine, naltrexone tablets, extended-release injectable naltrexone and acamprosate, all FDA approved for opioid or alcohol use disorder. Topiramate is also prescribed, off-label, for alcohol use disorder.
Is MAT just replacing one drug with another?+
No. Buprenorphine is a partial opioid agonist prescribed at a dose that suppresses craving and withdrawal without producing euphoria, and naltrexone is an antagonist that blocks opioid effects entirely. Both are prescribed and monitored inside a treatment plan.
Why does Valley Spring not offer methadone?+
Methadone for opioid use disorder is dispensed through an opioid treatment program holding current SAMHSA certification under 42 CFR 8.11(a). Valley Spring is not an opioid treatment program, so it refers clients for whom methadone is indicated.
How long does MAT continue?+
Length is set by the client's response and the diagnosis rather than by a program calendar. Some clients transfer to a community prescriber within months; others continue for longer, and the medication frequently outlasts the level of care.
Can I work while I am on MAT?+
Yes. Medication visits are scheduled morning, afternoon or evening and run over secure video where a client prefers. Case management produces FMLA and return-to-work documentation where a role requires it.
Does insurance cover MAT?+
Valley Spring holds in-network contracts with 19 payers, among them AmeriHealth, Fidelis Care, Magellan Healthcare, Cigna and UnitedHealthcare. Blue Cross Blue Shield, Aetna and Horizon are accepted out-of-network or by single case agreement. The admissions team submits whatever prior-authorization request an extended-release injection requires.
What is naloxone and when do I use it?+
Naloxone reverses an opioid overdose and restores breathing, and it works when given by someone with no medical training. Call 911 in a suspected overdose. On the order of the steps, the over-the-counter NARCAN Drug Facts label has a bystander give the first dose and then call 911 right away, and SAMHSA's Opioid Overdose Prevention Toolkit sets the same order. Naloxone buys time; it does not replace the ambulance.
How soon can medication start?+
The prescriber evaluation happens within the first 72 hours, and the medication starts once the label's prerequisite is met. Buprenorphine induction begins when objective and clear signs of withdrawal are evident. Naltrexone requires an opioid-free interval of a minimum of 7 to 10 days for a client previously dependent on short-acting opioids.
Is there a medication for cocaine or methamphetamine addiction?+
No. The FDA has approved no medication for cocaine, methamphetamine or cannabis use disorder. Clients with those diagnoses receive the same clinical program without a medication component for the addiction itself.
In-Network Insurance Accepted
Also in-network with AmeriHealth, Northwell Direct, ComPsych, Oscar, VA Community Care, Lower Hudson Valley EAP, JRN Consulting, Teamsters, UMR, Oxford, New York City Employees Plan, Workforce Assistance EAP, Iron Workers Members Assistance, Humana.
Blue Cross Blue Shield, Aetna, Horizon, Carelon Behavioral Health accepted out-of-network or by single case agreement · Call 24/7 to verify your specific benefits
Which Addictions Have an Approved Medication?
Valley Spring Recovery Center's Medication-Assisted Treatment program treats 7 categories of substance use and co-occurring mental health conditions: alcohol, opioids, cocaine and crack, benzodiazepines, marijuana, stimulants, and co-occurring conditions. Select one for the disorder name, where care begins, the medication position, and the levels of care that treat it.
Alcohol
DSM-5-TR: Alcohol use disorder
- Where care begins
- Medically supervised withdrawal comes first. Valley Spring Recovery Center refers to detox partners, admits directly after detox discharge, and keeps provider-to-provider communication open with the detox facility so care continues without a gap. Valley Spring does not provide detoxification.
- Medication
- Naltrexone, and Vivitrol, the extended-release injectable form of naltrexone, are on Valley Spring's medication list for alcohol use disorder. The FDA has approved three medications for alcohol use disorder overall, according to the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism: disulfiram, naltrexone and acamprosate.
- Levels of care
- Partial Care at ASAM 2.5, Intensive Outpatient at ASAM 2.1, and Outpatient at ASAM 1.5. Partial Care is delivered in person. Intensive Outpatient and Outpatient run in person or virtually by client preference.
The DSM-5-TR diagnoses alcohol use disorder against 11 criteria observed over a 12-month period, and grades severity by criterion count: 2 to 3 criteria is mild, 4 to 5 is moderate, 6 or more is severe. Untreated alcohol withdrawal produces seizures and delirium tremens, which is why physical dependence is stabilized under medical supervision before outpatient treatment begins. Call 911 if a person withdrawing from alcohol has a seizure, becomes confused, or cannot be woken.
There are 5 recognition signs families and clinicians look for:
- Drinking more, or over a longer period, than intended
- Repeated unsuccessful efforts to cut down or stop
- Needing markedly more alcohol to reach the same effect
- Tremor, sweating, nausea or anxiety in the hours after stopping
- Continuing to drink despite a physical or psychological problem alcohol caused or worsened
Alcohol addiction treatment in Norwood, Bergen County, NJ sets out admissions, insurance verification and what the first week looks like.
Opioids
DSM-5-TR: Opioid use disorder
- Where care begins
- Medically supervised withdrawal comes first. Valley Spring Recovery Center refers to detox partners, admits directly after detox discharge, and keeps provider-to-provider communication open with the detox facility so care continues without a gap. Valley Spring does not provide detoxification.
- Medication
- Buprenorphine, including Suboxone, which combines buprenorphine with naloxone, and Brixadi, the extended-release buprenorphine injection the FDA approved in May 2023 for moderate to severe opioid use disorder, is prescribed by Valley Spring's on-staff psychiatrist. Vivitrol, extended-release injectable naltrexone, is the other option on the roster. Valley Spring does not prescribe methadone.
- Levels of care
- Partial Care at ASAM 2.5, Intensive Outpatient at ASAM 2.1, and Outpatient at ASAM 1.5. Partial Care is delivered in person. Intensive Outpatient and Outpatient run in person or virtually by client preference.
Opioid use disorder is sustained by two forces at once: the reinforcing effect of mu-opioid receptor agonism, and avoidance of a withdrawal syndrome that brings severe pain, diarrhea, sweating and craving. Opioid tolerance falls during any period of abstinence, including a detox stay or a jail term, so a dose that was previously tolerated can cause fatal respiratory depression afterward. Call 911 for a suspected opioid overdose and give naloxone if it is on hand.
There are 5 recognition signs families and clinicians look for:
- Taking opioids to prevent withdrawal rather than for pain or effect
- Running out of a prescription earlier than the schedule allows
- Obtaining opioids from more than one prescriber or from non-medical sources
- Muscle aches, agitation, sweating and diarrhea when a dose is missed
- Continuing opioid use despite a job, legal or relationship consequence it caused
Opioid addiction treatment in Norwood, Bergen County, NJ sets out admissions, insurance verification and what the first week looks like.
Cocaine and crack
DSM-5-TR: Stimulant use disorder, cocaine type
- Where care begins
- Direct admission after clinical assessment. Cocaine withdrawal does not carry the seizure and delirium risk that alcohol and benzodiazepine withdrawal carry, so treatment starts at the assessed level of care rather than after a detox stay.
- Medication
- No FDA-approved medication exists for cocaine use disorder. The National Institute on Drug Abuse states there is no FDA-approved medication for methamphetamine use disorder or any other stimulant use disorder. Treatment is behavioral, and contingency management is the best-studied of the approaches, alongside cognitive behavioral therapy and motivational interviewing.
- Levels of care
- Partial Care at ASAM 2.5, Intensive Outpatient at ASAM 2.1, and Outpatient at ASAM 1.5. Partial Care is delivered in person. Intensive Outpatient and Outpatient run in person or virtually by client preference.
Cocaine blocks the dopamine transporter, so dopamine accumulates in the synapse instead of being recycled, and the resulting reward signal is what drives repeat dosing within a single session. Crack is the freebase form of the same drug, smoked rather than insufflated, which reaches the brain faster and clears faster. Cocaine constricts coronary arteries and raises the risk of myocardial infarction, arrhythmia and stroke in people with no prior cardiac history. Call 911 for chest pain, seizure or collapse, and call Poison Help at 1-800-222-1222 for any overdose or ingestion.
There are 5 recognition signs families and clinicians look for:
- Using in binges that continue until the supply is gone
- Crashing into exhaustion, low mood and heavy sleep after a session
- Spending beyond what income supports to keep a supply available
- Nosebleeds, chronic congestion, or burns on the lips and fingers
- Continuing to use despite chest pain, palpitations or a cardiac warning from a clinician
Cocaine addiction treatment in Norwood, Bergen County, NJ sets out admissions, insurance verification and what the first week looks like.
Benzodiazepines
DSM-5-TR: Sedative, hypnotic, or anxiolytic use disorder
- Where care begins
- Medically supervised withdrawal comes first. Valley Spring Recovery Center refers to detox partners, admits directly after detox discharge, and keeps provider-to-provider communication open with the detox facility so care continues without a gap. Valley Spring does not provide detoxification.
- Medication
- No FDA-approved medication treats sedative, hypnotic, or anxiolytic use disorder. The FDA updated the boxed warning on the whole benzodiazepine class in September 2020 to require a gradual taper when a benzodiazepine is reduced or stopped, because abrupt discontinuation causes withdrawal reactions including seizures. A prescriber supervises that taper. Valley Spring's clinical work is behavioral, and Valley Spring does not supervise withdrawal.
- Levels of care
- Partial Care at ASAM 2.5, Intensive Outpatient at ASAM 2.1, and Outpatient at ASAM 1.5. Partial Care is delivered in person. Intensive Outpatient and Outpatient run in person or virtually by client preference.
Benzodiazepines bind an allosteric site on the GABA-A receptor and amplify inhibitory signaling, which is what makes them effective for anxiety, panic disorder and insomnia and also what makes stopping them dangerous. The FDA's 2020 safety communication states that physical dependence develops when benzodiazepines are taken steadily for days to weeks, even exactly as prescribed, so dependence is not evidence that a person misused the prescription. Call 911 if someone reducing or stopping a benzodiazepine has a seizure or becomes confused.
There are 5 recognition signs families and clinicians look for:
- Needing a higher dose than prescribed to get the same relief from anxiety or insomnia
- Rebound anxiety, insomnia or agitation between doses
- Filling a prescription early, or holding prescriptions from more than one clinician
- Combining a benzodiazepine with alcohol or an opioid for a stronger effect
- Avoiding situations where a dose would not be available
Benzodiazepine addiction treatment in Norwood, Bergen County, NJ sets out admissions, insurance verification and what the first week looks like.
Marijuana
DSM-5-TR: Cannabis use disorder
- Where care begins
- Direct admission after clinical assessment. Cannabis withdrawal is a recognized DSM-5-TR syndrome and it is uncomfortable rather than medically dangerous, so treatment begins at the assessed level of care.
- Medication
- No FDA-approved medication exists for cannabis use disorder. The National Institute on Drug Abuse states there are no FDA-approved medications for the treatment of cannabis use disorder or for medically assisted withdrawal. Treatment is behavioral, and the three approaches with evidence behind them are cognitive behavioral therapy, motivational enhancement therapy and contingency management.
- Levels of care
- Partial Care at ASAM 2.5, Intensive Outpatient at ASAM 2.1, and Outpatient at ASAM 1.5. Partial Care is delivered in person. Intensive Outpatient and Outpatient run in person or virtually by client preference.
Cannabis use disorder is diagnosed on the same 11 DSM-5-TR criteria as every other substance use disorder, and the DSM-5-TR also carries cannabis withdrawal as a separate diagnosis: irritability, sleep difficulty, appetite loss, restlessness and depressed mood in the week after stopping heavy regular use. Withdrawal that reliably ends an attempt to quit is the mechanism that keeps daily use in place, which is why cannabis treatment concentrates on the first two weeks.
There are 4 recognition signs families and clinicians look for:
- Using daily, or first thing in the morning, to feel normal
- Irritability, restlessness and disrupted sleep in the days after stopping
- Losing interest in activities that were previously done without cannabis
- Continuing daily use despite a work, academic or relationship cost
Marijuana addiction treatment in Norwood, Bergen County, NJ sets out admissions, insurance verification and what the first week looks like.
Stimulants
DSM-5-TR: Stimulant use disorder, amphetamine type
- Where care begins
- Direct admission after clinical assessment. Stimulant withdrawal presents as exhaustion, heavy sleep and depressed mood rather than the seizure risk that alcohol and benzodiazepine withdrawal carry, so treatment starts at the assessed level of care.
- Medication
- No FDA-approved medication exists for methamphetamine or amphetamine use disorder. The National Institute on Drug Abuse names contingency management as the best-studied behavioral treatment for methamphetamine use disorder, delivered alongside cognitive behavioral therapy, motivational interviewing and group support.
- Levels of care
- Partial Care at ASAM 2.5, Intensive Outpatient at ASAM 2.1, and Outpatient at ASAM 1.5. Partial Care is delivered in person. Intensive Outpatient and Outpatient run in person or virtually by client preference.
Methamphetamine forces dopamine release and blocks its reuptake, which produces a longer and more intense signal than cocaine does from the same neurotransmitter. Heavy or prolonged use produces psychosis with paranoia, visual and auditory hallucinations, and delusions that persist for months after use stops in some people. Acute stimulant toxicity raises body temperature to a dangerous degree. Call 911 for seizure, chest pain, extreme agitation or a body temperature that keeps climbing, and call Poison Help at 1-800-222-1222 for an overdose.
There are 5 recognition signs families and clinicians look for:
- Staying awake for a day or more at a time, then sleeping for an extended period
- Marked weight loss, dental damage or skin sores from picking
- Paranoia or the sense of being watched or followed
- Using a prescribed stimulant at higher doses, or by a route other than the prescribed one
- Continuing use despite a cardiac, dental or psychiatric consequence
Methamphetamine addiction treatment in Norwood, Bergen County, NJ sets out admissions, insurance verification and what the first week looks like.
Co-occurring conditions
DSM-5-TR: Co-occurring substance use and mental health disorders
- Where care begins
- Direct admission after psychiatric evaluation. New Jersey Mental Health Licence #70420104 is standalone, so a substance use diagnosis is not required for admission to mental health care.
- Medication
- Psychiatric medication is prescribed by the Medical Director, an MD, and a psychiatric nurse practitioner credentialed PMHNP-BC, and it treats the mental health condition rather than the substance use disorder. Where a client is already on buprenorphine or naltrexone, that medication continues alongside psychiatric care rather than being stopped at admission.
- Levels of care
- Mental health treatment runs at Intensive Outpatient, ASAM 2.1, and Outpatient, ASAM 1.5. Partial Care at ASAM 2.5 is licensed under New Jersey Substance Use Licence #200887, so a client who also meets criteria for a substance use disorder can start there.
Valley Spring treats anxiety disorders, major depressive disorder, PTSD, trauma and complex trauma, bipolar I and II, ADHD, OCD, borderline personality disorder and schizophrenia spectrum disorders alongside substance use, and tracks them with the PHQ-9, the GAD-7 and the PCL-5. Both conditions are treated together from admission rather than sequenced, because treating a substance use disorder while an untreated psychiatric condition drives the use leaves the driver in place. Valley Spring treats adults 18 and older.
There are 4 recognition signs families and clinicians look for:
- Psychiatric symptoms that persist through periods of abstinence
- Using a substance to manage panic, intrusive memories, sleep or mood
- A previous course of treatment that addressed one condition and not the other
- Psychiatric medication started and stopped repeatedly around periods of use
Dual diagnosis treatment for co-occurring disorders sets out admissions, insurance verification and what the first week looks like.
Service Area
Where Are MAT Appointments Available in New Jersey?
MAT appointments run at 830 Broadway in Norwood and over secure video across New Jersey, with extended-release injections held in person. The Bergen County location sits near the George Washington Bridge with access from the Palisades Interstate Parkway, the Garden State Parkway and the New York State Thruway, and it is reachable by bus routes connecting to regional transit hubs. Transportation assistance is considered case by case. The in-person requirement for injections comes from the labels themselves, and the two are not worded alike. The Vivitrol label states that VIVITROL must be prepared and administered by a healthcare provider. The Brixadi label states that only healthcare providers should prepare and administer BRIXADI.
What Other Addiction Treatment Programs Does Valley Spring Recovery Center Offer?
MAT is a component of a level of care rather than a level of its own, so the four programs below are the ones a prescription is written inside, plus the integrated track for a client whose psychiatric medication is being managed at the same time.