“Archangels gave me my life back. Their team is the most amazing, caring people I have ever met. The housing they sent me to was amazing, the groups are amazing, and this whole project is amazing. If you're tired of being sick and tired, reach out and save your life.”
“This facility is run by some of the best people you could ever ask for. They are extremely professional and truly dedicated to helping those struggling with mental health and addiction. They truly saved my life. I will be forever grateful for everything they did for me.”
“I had the honor of touring this facility, and it was absolutely beautiful, clean, and thoughtfully designed. But more than how it looked, you could feel the love in every detail. Watching the staff interact with clients genuinely touched my heart.”
Plain, fact-first answers about how care works here. Want to talk to a person? Call (888) 464-2144.
A 60-second walkthrough of the Tinton Falls clinic, the space where the program actually runs.
Medication-assisted treatment (MAT, also called medications for opioid use disorder, or MOUD, when applied to opioids) combines FDA-approved medication with counseling and behavioral therapy to treat substance use disorders. For opioid use disorder and alcohol use disorder, the medications work. The clinical evidence is among the strongest in addiction medicine. The barrier to MAT in most cases is not whether it works; it is stigma, access, and lingering belief in older models that treated medication as somehow incompatible with "real" recovery.
This page covers the medications available at The Archangel Centers, how each works, the choices clients face, and the most common myths.
MAT is treatment that includes a medication, prescribed and monitored by a medical provider, alongside therapy and recovery community participation. The medication is not the entire treatment. It is one tool that, for the conditions where it works, dramatically improves outcomes.
The medications are FDA-approved for specific conditions:
The Archangel Centers' formulary includes buprenorphine (Suboxone and Sublocade) and naltrexone (Vivitrol) for opioid use disorder, and naltrexone, acamprosate, and disulfiram for alcohol use disorder. Methadone is not in our formulary; clients who need methadone are referred to a federally licensed opioid treatment program in their region.
A partial mu-opioid receptor agonist. At appropriate doses, it suppresses opioid withdrawal and craving and blocks the effect of additional opioids. Because it is a partial agonist, the respiratory depression risk is much lower than with full agonists like methadone or heroin; the dose-response curve flattens out.
Buprenorphine is The Archangel Centers' primary MAT option for opioid use disorder.
An opioid antagonist. Blocks the effect of opioids entirely. Requires a period of opioid abstinence before initiation (typically 7 to 10 days), or precipitated withdrawal will occur. Available as oral naltrexone (daily) or extended-release injection (Vivitrol, monthly).
Vivitrol is the option most often used at The Archangel Centers for clients who choose an antagonist approach after a sufficient opioid-free period, often after detox or an inpatient stay.
A full mu-opioid receptor agonist with decades of evidence for opioid use disorder. Dispensed only through federally licensed opioid treatment programs (OTPs), with daily dosing at the clinic for most patients. Methadone is not in our formulary; clients who need methadone are referred to a federally licensed OTP in their region. Methadone is a legitimate, evidence-based treatment, simply not one we deliver.
Group rooms, private therapy offices, the medical office, family programming rooms, and the wellness space, designed for clinical depth and nervous-system regulation.
An opioid antagonist that reduces alcohol cravings and the rewarding effect of drinking. Available as oral naltrexone (daily) or injectable Vivitrol (monthly). The injectable form removes the daily adherence question and improves retention.
Acts on glutamate and GABA systems. Helps people who have already stopped drinking maintain abstinence by reducing post-acute withdrawal symptoms (sleep disturbance, anxiety, low mood). Taken three times daily.
Produces an unpleasant physical reaction if alcohol is consumed (flushing, nausea, racing heart). Useful for highly motivated patients with social support; effectiveness depends on adherence.
The most common misperception, often repeated even in recovery communities. MAT medications, used as prescribed, do not produce the cycle of impairment, craving, and harm that defines an addiction. They restore function. Buprenorphine at therapeutic doses does not produce a "high" in opioid-dependent users. Naltrexone has no abuse potential at all. The American Society of Addiction Medicine, the American Medical Association, and SAMHSA all explicitly recommend MAT as the standard of care.
Many people in long-term recovery use MAT for years or indefinitely and consider themselves fully recovered. Decisions about discontinuation are made carefully with the medical provider; for many, longer is safer.
Buprenorphine at therapeutic maintenance doses does not produce impairment. People on MAT work, drive, parent, and live ordinary lives.
12-step communities vary in their stance on MAT. The official position of most major 12-step organizations is that MAT is a personal medical matter, not a barrier to membership. Many people in 12-step recovery are on MAT.
There is no moral hierarchy of recovery paths. The most consistent finding in opioid use disorder treatment is that MAT-supported recovery produces dramatically better outcomes than abstinence-only approaches, including a substantial reduction in overdose deaths. Choosing the path that works is not a moral failure.
The medical provider, in collaboration with the client and the broader treatment team, makes the MAT decision based on:
Medication is one piece. Therapy (CBT, DBT, trauma-informed care), group work, family programming, and recovery community participation carry the rest.
Treatment integrates cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT), dialectical behavior therapy (DBT), motivational interviewing, narrative therapy, and trauma-informed care with EMDR available in individual therapy. The medical provider manages MAT (Suboxone, Vivitrol, Sublocade) and psychiatric medications when indicated.
Intake uses the full evidence-based battery: ASAM Criteria, LOCUS for mental health acuity, PHQ-9, GAD-7, the Columbia Suicide Severity Rating Scale, plus biopsychosocial, nutrition, and pain screens. The assessment drives the treatment plan from day one.
See Our ModalitiesMAT continues through the outpatient continuum:
There is no universally correct answer. For many clients, longer is safer; the relapse and overdose risk associated with premature discontinuation, particularly of buprenorphine for opioid use disorder, is significant. Discontinuation should be a planned clinical decision, not a reaction to outside pressure.
“I came back from rock bottom. I'm here because I want to show others they can too. This isn't just a business. It's my mission.”- Mike Sorrentino, Founder
Mike and Lauren Sorrentino did not set out to build a generic treatment center. They wanted a recovery-grounded program that mixes lived experience, licensed clinical expertise, and family programming that actually moves the needle for the people who love someone in active addiction.
The clinic that resulted is small enough that each client knows their primary therapist by name, but resourced enough to deliver the full ASAM continuum from Partial Care through outpatient continuing care, with MAT and EMDR available when clinically indicated.
Read the Full StoryMost clients leave the first admissions call with a clinical assessment, an insurance verification, and a scheduled start date. Recovery starts with a decision, not a commitment. The admissions line is staffed around the clock.
Confidential, 24/7 admissions. Same-week placement is often available. Verify your insurance free of charge before any commitment.
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