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Drug Rehab Seeks Respondents for Post Acute Withdrawal Survey

Tue, 18 Dec 2012 13:42:49 EST

After helping thousands of people achieve sobriety over the last decade, Recovery First is requesting collaboration with addicts and alcoholics in the US.  The Hollywood, Florida drug rehab center is asking people in any stage of recovery to fill out a confidential, self-reporting survey about Post Acute Withdrawal Syndrome - considered by many to be the #1 cause of relapse among those with substance abuse problems.
 
According to Jim Davis, CEO and founder of Recovery First, the survey is designed to generate more nationwide awareness about PAWS and teach people how to identify its symptoms. 
 
'As a fellow addict with more than 30 years in recovery, I know how difficult it can be to stay clean when you're struggling with PAWS symptoms.  Unfortunately, few treatment strategies focus on this troubling set of physical and emotional symptoms, leading many people to turn back to drugs or alcohol to seek relief.'
 
Post Acute Withdrawal Syndrome is a set of symptoms that sets in after an addict has passed the Acute Withdrawal or detox stage - generally the first step before attending a long term treatment program.  Symptoms vary significantly from person to person and include insomnia, lack of coordination or fine motor skills, inability to organize or express thoughts, and many other often-debilitating symptoms. 
 
But according to Davis, the most troubling symptom of PAWS is an intense and generally inexplicable desire to use drugs or alcohol again.    
 
Davis indicated that the survey asks respondents questions about their knowledge of PAWS, the duration and severity of their symptoms, and treatment or management strategies that have helped them to stay clean.  The survey, which can be found at: http://recoveryfirst.org/paws-survey.html , is completely confidential and does not collect personal information. 
 
'We're asking people to help us with this survey so that we can create more awareness about PAWS and fine tune our long term treatment strategies,' said Davis from his Hollywood offices this week.  'Let's face it - recovery isn't over after rehab.  It's a lifelong process, and those people who relapse do so categorically as a result of PAWS.  We need more information about this condition and how to combat it in our daily lives.  By taking the survey, respondents could literally be saving the life of a fellow addict.' 
 
The survey is available on the Recovery First website and consists of 21 simple questions.  Survey respondents or others interested in addiction and recovery can view the results for each question in the survey to see where their answers rank with other respondents. 
 
 
Recovery First is an aptly named addiction treatment center because we focus on placing your recovery first; one day at a time.  To take the PAWS Survey now, visit this address: http://recoveryfirst.org/paws-survey.html.  To hear about our success stories or to discover how we can help you or someone you love who is suffering from drug addiction or alcoholism, please contact our intake and assessment team at:  1-800-734-5192 or Email: info@recoveryfirst.org. Or visit us online to request a free, confidential consultation: http://www.recoveryfirst.org