Substance Abuse Testing and Addiction Assessment

Denial is one of the most prevalent symptoms of advanced drug abuse. High tolerance and dependency are part and parcel of the phenomenon of denial. Only substance abuse testing can uncover the harmful and self-destructive habits of an advanced addict, so that an addiction assessment can be made and the healing process can begin.

Substance abuse testing is administered or required by many employers. However, addicts are often able to use techniques that produce inaccurate results during mandatory substance testing. In addition, the goal of substance abuse treatment is to prevent situations that can lead to job loss due to a failed workplace drug or alcohol abuse test. Therefore, voluntary substance abuse testing is a step toward rehabilitation, whereas workplace substance abuse testing is simply a means to prevent an addicted employee from creating problems that affect his or her employer. Relying on employer substance abuse tests to convince an addict to begin rehabilitation usually fails. The addict will somehow circumvent the testing process, or the addict will lose his or her job due to a failed test and fall even deeper into addiction as a way of self-medicating his or her feelings of despair that result from that job loss.

To find out more about how rehabilitation can begin with a private and confidential substance abuse test, please contact us at (800) 660-0986 or fill out our contact form. We can help direct you to practitioners and laboratories that offer reliable substance abuse tests that help you or your loved one take the first steps toward rehabilitation.

Types of Substance Abuse Testing

Substance abuse testing can detect both psychological and physical signs of drug abuse. Types of substance abuse tests include:

• Self-analysis
• Psychological screening
• Blood tests
• Urine tests
• Hair sample tests

For a person who is indeed fortunate enough to recognize that he or she is abusing one or more legal or illegal substances, self-analysis can be the beginning of the treatment and healing process. Self-analysis assessments are available from various online sources of substance abuse testing information as well as from treatment professionals. If an addict can honestly evaluate his or her state of dependence or addiction by providing accurate answers to the questions asked on these assessments, he or she can be motivated to seek treatment.

Psychological screening can be administered by a therapist or psychologist, or it can be administered as part of a routine medical exam if a physician is alerted to or suspects drug abuse in a particular patient. The subject is asked questions regarding his or her use of alcohol or drugs, and the practitioner can often analyze whether the patient is being honest based on his or her psychological response as well as by checking for physical symptoms of substance abuse.

Addictions Treatment by Type

If you are suffering from one or multiple addictions, treatment options are widely available. It is possible for individuals to become addicted to many different substances and develop many addictive behavior patterns, which is why there are wide arrays of treatment programs designed to handle virtually any form of addictive behavior. For some individuals, it is easy to determine the type of treatment needed…

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Blood tests can detect the presence of certain commonly abused substances in the bloodstream. These tests can be useful in cases of advanced alcohol abuse, as an alcoholic can become so tolerant of dangerously high doses of alcohol that he or she shows no outward symptoms of abuse. Alcohol is particularly easy to detect in the bloodstream with a simple medical test.

Urine tests are the most commonly used type of substance abuse testing. However, they often do not discriminate between an occasional user and a habitual user. In addition, substance addicts are all too aware that they are being asked to take these tests in order to detect abuse, so they will find a way to adulterate their sample or otherwise circumvent the test. Therefore, these tests are most useful in workplace and law enforcement situations.

Hair sample tests can detect the presence of even minute quantities of some abused substances, as these substances leave traces of their metabolites in a patient’s hair. These tests are often used by law enforcement agencies as well as agencies that determine whether a parent is fit to have custody of children. When they are administered on a voluntary basis, they must be done so discreetly and in a way that the tester gains the trust of the patient.

If you need assistance with any type of drug testing, or a referral to a professional who can help you determine whether you or a loved one has developed a substance abuse problem, please contact us by phone at (800) 660-0986 or fill out the contact form. We can help you find a testing agency or screening professional who specializes in assessments and testing that are a first step on the road to a healthy lifestyle.