Detox nurses are mostly commonly understood to help those who are looking for aid with dealing with their alcohol and drug abuse. However, alcohol and illegal substance abuse are not the only addictions that detox nurses treat. After all, the science is in on gambling addiction and brain activity for gambling addicts is comparable to substance addicts such as heroin and cocaine and they suffer similar withdrawal symptoms to drugs abusers too. I will be discussing how a detox nurse treats patients that suffer from gambling addiction.

Acceptance

Unlike with other addictions, compulsive gambling will not drastically affect physical appearance and physical health, so it can often go unnoticed and untreated. The addict themselves may also be reluctant to admit that they are addicted and it is the work of the detox nurse to help their patient come to the realisation that they are addicted and they need help before treatment can start. The detox nurse needs to know that their patient truly wants to help themselves work on controlling their compulsive gambling.

Changing Behaviour

The detox nurse knows that a patient acknowledging their addiction, and acknowledging that it is a problem and sincerely wanting it to change is the first step, but it is not enough. Nurses that specialise in addiction will work on helping their patients’ habitual behaviour that is not helping their pursuit to control their addiction. There will be activities and behaviours for a gambling addict that make it difficult to resist their urges. The detox nurse will help their patients recognise their behaviours that do not help their treatment.

Treatment Plan

A detox nurse develops a treatment plan that’s tailored to their patient’s needs. A treatment plan a detox nurse prescribes will be the roadmap for their patient. They have a plan that they issue to their patients and will explain to their patients each step and action involved and continually manage the patient’s progress.

Detox nurses treat all kinds of addiction in their patients. As you can imagine, they all require different approaches and treatments. This means detox nursing requires a wide range of knowledge on addiction and many ways to treat it. Gambling addiction provides its own specific problems to patients and to the nurse treating them. It is remarkable that detox nurses can treat a wide variety of patients effectively.