unique
outpatient treatment
for substance abuse

OUR APPROACH

UNDERSTANDING
SUBSTANCE ABUSE

DETOX

RELAPSE PREVENTION

ACHIEVING SUCCESS

Treatment of CHRONIC PAIN

CONTACT US

Parallax Center is a New York State licensed treatment facility.

Why Does Parallax Center Use Alternatives to Opioid Medications to Treat Chronic Pain?

Chronic pain is usually treated with opioid medications (pain killers) such as:

• codeine,
• oxycontin,
• percocet, percodan, vicodin, vicoprofen,
• darvocet,
• morphine, and
• methadone.

These can be effective medications for treating some types of pain, but can be problematic when treating chronic pain. Treating chronic pain with long-term use of opioids may cause myriad side effects and other problems for the patient. Long-term opioid use can often cause problems in a person's biological, psychological and social well being:

• dependency – after taking these medications for a period of time, the body becomes tolerant to the dose, and the dose must be increased to get the same amount of pain relief. After dependency develops, the medications cannot be stopped without significant, painful withdrawal.
• depression and irritability.
• hypersensitivity to pain (hyperalgesia) – the patient's pain can seem to get worse despite higher and higher doses of medication. Sometimes no dose seems to relieve the pain.

The Parallax Center physicians and staff use alternative methods to assist the patient as individually appropriate to withdraw safely from opioid medications and to effectively treat chronic pain without these medications. At times, of course, opioid medications may be the only available choice for treatment during periods of acute pain, and in such cases the staff will use and monitor opioid medications carefully.

The Parallax Center Treatment Modality for Chronic Pain

Outpatient detoxification from opioids with pain management

Parallax Center provides individuals with a safe and comfortable outpatient detoxification from opioids. We use non-opioid medications to alleviate the symptoms of withdrawal as the individual discontinues the use of opioids. Additionally, once the individual starts the detoxification protocol, they work with a physician to start a regimen of effective non-addictive pain management medications at the end of the detoxification procedure. The patient also begins naltrexone, a medication which has been shown to rapidly up-regulate (normalize) the patient's own endogenous opioid system. This provides both help for pain symptoms and an increase in energy. Naltrexone is used in combination with other non-opioid pain medications.

Intensive outpatient program with stabilization and continuing pain management.

After opioid medications are discontinued and the patient begins to stabilize, we continue to address the patient's emotional and medical health to help the patient re-integrate into the social environment and to take control of pain management.

• Non-addictive pain treatment medications – The patient continues to work with a physician post-detoxification to monitor and adjust their non-addictive pain medications.
• Psychotherapeutic counseling – to address the emotional consequences of pain and to learn to cope with pain in new ways.
• Non-medication therapies – In addition, an individual counselor helps the patient to explore the elective options of
• physical therapy,
• yoga stretching,
• manipulative medicine,
• acupuncture and other alternative therapies
• Preventing relapse to addictive medications and to prevent further dependency, if needed
• An intensive outpatient program of group, individual and family sessions.

145 EAST 32ND STREET
6TH FLOOR
NEW YORK, NY 10016
(212) 779-9207
FAX (212) 779-9288