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Neurotransmitter Restoration (NTR)
New Hope:
Withdraw-free Detox Services in an Outpatient Setting
Detox safely and comfortably from any combination of addictions to: alcohol, nicotine (tobacco), marijuana, cocaine, opiates, uppers, downers, inhalants, prescription drugs, Food-overeating, Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder, Gambling, Sex, Pornography, Shopping, Internet, games, A.D.D..
For a ten-day period, up to 5 hours a day, the patient receives individually formulated intravenous amino acids and vitamins under the supervision of a trained medical staff. The process rebalances neuroreceptors in the brain. At the end of treatment, the patient is no longer physically addicted to any substances and physical cravings are either absent or greatly reduced. With this increased clarity of mind, the patient can resume a life free of substance abuse and its ruinous medical, interpersonal, and legal consequences.
NTR RESTORES CLARITY OF MIND
How does the brain work?
The brain is composed of billions of nerve cells called neurons. Brain activity is the interaction of neurons as they communicate with one another. Neurons do not actually touch one another; instead, they are separated by small gaps called synapses. Activity within a neuron is electrical: however, electrical activity cannot cross the synapse. When the neuron want to signal another, it releases a number of neurotransmitter chemical molecules into the synapse.
For each type of neurotransmitter, the receiving neuron has specific receptor sites on the surface. As neurotransmitter molecules bind to a receptor site, the process causes electrical activity in the receptor neuron. The receiving neuron then releases the neurotransmitter molecules so that the sending neuron can reabsorb them from the synapse in a process called reuptake, which stops the communication.
How do we feel pleasure?
The presence of dopamine, a neurotransmitter, in the synapses of the reward centers of the brain is directly related to every feeling of pleasure we experience, from eating good food to falling in love. Other neurotransmitters mediate other emotions and attitudes.
How do addictive substances work?
The neurotransmitters mentioned above are naturally produced by the brain. But there are external substances that can mimic the activity of natural neurotransmitters. After they are ingested (swallowed, smoked, inhaled), they travel to the brain through the bloodstream where they flood the synapses and bind to the same receptor sites as the natural substances. However, there is not enough reuptake activity to neutralize them quickly, so the neurotransmitter activity (and the pleasurable feeling) lasts too long.
How do people become addicted?
As people continue to use these substances, the body reduces the number of receptor sites. In the absence of external substances, the body experiences a neurotransmitter deficit. Addicts begin by taking drugs to feel high, they end up taking them in order to feel low. Although dopamine is the main neurotransmitter of pleasure, addiction can also affect other neurotransmitters. NTR rebalances them all.
What is withdrawal?
When a chemically dependent person is denied access to a substance he/she is addicted to, the addicted brain goes into a frenzy that manifests itself in the physical symptoms of withdrawal. These symptoms may be life threatening and may induce agitation, hallucinations, intestinal upsets, severe muscular aches, etc. After withdrawal, the body may be completely free of the addicting substance, yet the neurotransmitters of the brain are still not in balance. This may lead to physical feelings of craving-an almost overwhelming desire to use the substance again.
What is a Neurotransmitter Restoration (NTR)?
The physical condition of being addicted means that the brain is just not working correctly; brain neurotransmitters have been thrown out of balance. NTR is the process that brings them back into balance.
NTR is a ten-day outpatient process. It uses intravenous vitamins and individually formulated all-natural amino acids (the building blocks of neurotransmitters) to assist the patient through a comfortable withdrawal, and greatly reduce or eliminate physical cravings. Specially trained staff, under the direct supervision of a physician, administer each treatment.
What is the treatment process?
Treatment takes a ten-day period, up to 5 hours a day. A Patient Questionnaire and blood test provide a medical and historical substance abuse picture of the patient. The physician reviews the results and develops an individualized Treatment Plan, tailored to the specific needs of the patient.
Each morning of treatment, a nurse inserts an intravenous line (where the veins are in extremely poor condition, a semi-permanent shunt will be inserted by a surgeon on the first day of treatment and removed on the last). The client relaxes in a recliner while amino acid solutions are slowly infused into a vein. Almost immediately, the uncomfortable feelings of withdraw and craving subside and remain at bay. About the fourth day, patients typically report feelings of amazing mental clarity.
During the day, the patient may visit with family members, watch TV, read, eat, and even doze. At the end of the day's treatment, the intravenous line is removed and the patient leaves the outpatient facility.
During treatment, some patients report mild flu-like symptoms (stomach upset, diarrhea) during the first twenty-four hours while other report none at all. The severe physical symptoms of withdrawal are banished; however, the full ten days are required to complete the treatment and minimize or eliminate physical cravings. Note that psychological cravings, thinking about using, as well as associating drugs with specific places/sights/actions, may still be present.
What about multiple addictions?
Based on an accurate complete Patient Questionnaire, NTR can simultaneously treat addiction to any combination of prescribed or illicit substances, including drugs, alcohol, and nicotine.
Can the patient ever resume again?
No. If the patient uses any mood altering substances after treatment is complete, the brain's chemical balances will be altered and physical cravings will return.
After treatment, is normal life possible?
After treatment, the patient is no longer physically addicted and may certainly resume a normal life. However, an addicted person will typically not have been leading a normal life for some time. In order to rejoin the world successfully, a variety of aftercare coping strategies can be helpful:
1. AA, NA, and other twelve-step programs
2. Individual psychotherapy
3. Group therapy
4. Family therapy
5. Nutrition programs
6. Exercise programs
7. Affinity and other social groups
We will be happy to refer to any of these.
Is the treatment safe?
Yes, it is completely safe. The intravenous solutions are made from ingredients that occur naturally in the body and are prepared by a compounding pharmacy. Only FDA-approved ingredients of the highest purity are used.
How was NTR developed?
Dr. William Hitt, award winning physician and pioneering scientist, developed NTR in the mid-1980's after a lifetime of research involving amino acids. He completed his research in Mexico at the invitation of the Mexican government and with the support of the World Health Organization.
Who is William Hitt?
Dr. William Hitt is a Doctor of Medicine and Surgery and is an international member of both the Canadian Psychiatric Association and the American Psychiatric Association. He is also licensed to practice in Mexico.
He was a member of the Mexican delegation, headed by Dr. Velasco Suarez, of International Physicians for the Prevention of Nuclear War of 1985. The organization was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize.
He received the Leeuwenhoek award for microscopic cytology, and Eli Lilly award as a coworker with the Sever Group in the study of mycoplasma.
Dr. Hitt was Director of Medical Research at Baltimore Biological Laboratories (Baltimore, MD) and Cappell Laboratories (West Chester, PA).
Since 1982 he has been researching the medical treatment of chemical dependency, principally dealing with brain neuroreceptor imbalances.
Who can become addicted?
Anyone can become addicted if he or she overuses powerful, mood-altering substances. However, there is a growing body of evidence to indicate that certain people are at greater risk for becoming addicted.
Statistically speaking, a spectrum of problems (alcoholism, drug addiction, tobacco addiction, etc) tends to occur together, rather than being independent variables. There may be a genetic basis for a propensity to become addicted.
A gene on chromosome 11 manages a specific dopamine receptor (D2). There are two major versions of the gene: A1 is found in approximately 25% of the population; A2 is found in about 75%. In one study, 52% of cocaine addicts had the A1 version; only 21% of non-addicts had that version. Other studies have found that the presence of the A1 version is strongly associated with the above problems and many other obsessive-compulsive disorders.
Individuals with the A1 version may have thirty percent fewer D2 receptors than those with the A2 version. Fewer dopamine receptors may mean that A1 carriers are not rewarded by the same internally generated stimulus that A2 carriers find satisfying. Thus they self-medicate, seeking the satisfaction.
Addiction is a medical condition that involves the chemistry of the brain. The end of addiction by restoration of the chronically imbalanced brain is the major requirement for clarity of mind.
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