Find a Drug Rehab Center That Is Right for You

When searching for addiction rehabilitation for drugs and alcohol, you should first be able to determine if outpatient or inpatient treatment is the best type of treatment for you or an addicted loved one. Determining this point and learning as much as you possibly can about these treatment choices and available rehab centers can assist you in making the best decision for you or an addict you know. 

Inpatient versus Outpatient Treatment in a Nutshell 

Here are the differences between inpatient and outpatient treatment. 

Inpatient:

• It’s also known as residential addiction treatment since it typically involves staying over a clinic, wellness center, or even a home-like residence.
• This treatment involves accommodations that include rent and food as well as medicines and therapeutic services all throughout your stay.
• It’s an immersive substance abuse rehabilitation clinic where you live on-site 24/7.
• Patients get more focused and individualized treatment to ensure their road to recovery all throughout their stay.
• It’s typically more expensive than outpatient options.
• It’s highly effective and studies show evidence of better recovery outcomes for those who spend at least 90 days of treatment.
• You can go from 30 to 90 days of treatment depending on the wellness center you’ve chosen.

Outpatient:

• A good example of outpatient rehab is Alcoholics Anonymous that features meetings every week until you complete its 12-step recovery program.
• These options are much more affordable to those who don’t wish to stay overnight in a facility or hospital.
• Outpatient treatment also allows those with less severe drug and/or alcohol addictions to undergo rehab while still going to school or work.
• There’s no need to have your life end up on a standstill when going the outpatient rehabilitation route.
• This service also allows you to live at home then attend counseling or participate in other forms of substance abuse treatment for several days to months.
• This entails a more regimented schedule versus the 24/7 monitoring of inpatient options.
• This entails a more regimented schedule versus the 24/7 monitoring of inpatient options.

What to Expect from Inpatient Addiction Treatment

Inpatient rehabilitation’s first phase involves a detoxification period. During detox, you’re slowly weaned off of the substance you’re abusing and/or any trace of the substance is removed from your body, allowing your excretory system to get rid of every last bit of alcohol or drugs within you. 

As much as possible, addicts prefer the outpatient method because it’s less of a burden on their expenses. At any rate, here’s what you should expect from inpatient addiction treatment.

• Inpatient Treatment Is Best for Medical Detox: Medical detox is called for when undergoing inpatient treatment because this is the perfect type of treatment for focused monitoring of the vitals and status of an addict who’s experiencing withdrawal symptoms.
• Detox with Medical Supervision:The best type of detox for hardcore drug addicts and alcoholics is one that’s under medical supervision in a professional facility. This is because this setting provides the most comfortable and safe setting to begin recovery for the addicted patients in question.
• More about Withdrawal Symptoms:If a patient’s withdrawal symptoms from alcohol or drugs aren’t extremely severe, then inpatient detoxification won’t be required and outpatient treatment is enough. However, most of the time for long-time substance abusers, these symptoms can be severe of even life-threatening.
• Substance Abuse versus Behavioral Addiction: There’s no such thing as a formal detox period for behavioral addictions like sex or gambling addiction. It’s different for substance abuse of substances like alcohol, tobacco, prescription drugs like painkillers and antidepressants, and hardcore illicit drugs like heroin and cocaine.
• Psychological Dependence on Substances: Psychological addiction to behaviors, alcohol, and drugs is traditionally the second condition that’s treated when undergoing the inpatient treatment process. In quite a lot of cases, this recovery phase involves combining peer, psychological, and medical support together.
• Emphasis on Individualized Treatment: Most programs of the inpatient variety are tailor-made to the necessities and requirements of the individual. The treatment is adjusted in accordance to the needs of a particular patient. It might even include dual diagnosis depending on the depth of the patient’s addiction issues.
• Evidence-Based Modalities:Traditional residential treatment programs tend to use a number of evidence-based treatment modalities that include individual and group counseling. The group setting isn’t reserved for outpatient treatment and is actually useful for sharing experiences among patients. Individual counseling, meanwhile, offers a more intimate one-on-one setting with a professional counselor. If called for, additional psychiatric care will also be provided.

What to Expect from Outpatient Rehab Treatment

Outpatient rehabilitation is comparable to inpatient rehab in terms of having a number of different treatment types and modalities. This type of addiction rehabilitation therapy can involve meeting with an intake counselor who’ll assess your situation and the severity of your addiction prior to entering the program.

Some of these counselors might even suggest inpatient therapy themselves if the addiction is severe enough. With that said, here’s what you should expect from outpatient treatment.

• Diagnosing the Addict’s Condition: Before placing the patient to the best program for him or her, an examination of the individual’s life and health commitments, the duration of the addiction, and its severity should be factored in first. This is also done when it comes to inpatient treatment, but this is typically required in outpatient treatment to know the length and intensity of the program.
• Length of the Program: The length of the outpatient program will tend to vary on the patient’s needs. There are programs that last for eight hours a session. Other programs allow you to meet for one to two hours a day, as though you’re attending a class (and you might even have “classmates” with you if it’s group therapy).
• The Main Difference: The main difference between outpatient and inpatient treatment is that there’s no overnight stay at the center so you won’t have to pay for your food and shelter on top of your medicine and treatment services. These programs are also more flexible for your schedule at the cost of them being less focused since there’s a lack of 24/7 monitoring.
• Weekly Drug Tests:Because there’ll be no nurses and caregivers monitoring your vitals and making sure you’re only drinking your medicine and not substances you’re addicted to, you’ll be tested weekly. These tests ensure that you’re not off the wagon and have relapsed to your old habits while away from the rehab facility.
• Multiple Addictions and Mental Health Issues:If the patient in question has multiple addictions and/or mental health issues, then a dual diagnosis might be called for. However, dual diagnosis is best done with inpatient treatment, which is the better treatment solution when compared to the more flexible outpatient treatment option.
• Long-Term Addiction versus Short-Term Dependence:Some addiction cases are more severe than others. In the case of long-term hardcore addicts, inpatient rehab is called for because it isolates them from the triggers and enablers that allow them access to various drugs, alcohol, cigarettes, and other legal and illegal addictive substances.

The Same Treatment Practices in Both 

The same treatment practices that were taken note of in inpatient care are also done with outpatient care. For example, outpatient programs also have life skills workshops, medication-assisted treatment, support groups, group therapy, and individual therapy. With that said, look for these specific offerings from either outpatient and inpatient treatment.

• The Holistic Program Paradigm : Many of the best rehabs incorporate a holistic type of approach when it comes to addiction treatment and recovery. In this context, it involves an integrated type of therapy in the whole-body perspective. It incorporates various natural therapies to promote contentment, overall health, and sobriety
• Gender-Specific Rehab Programs : Sometimes, a unisex type of treatment isn’t called for. Instead, something more gender-specific is required, like special care for addicted men or women. This allows patients to focus on recovery without being distracted from the opposite sex while at the same time getting therapy for issues pertaining to a particular gender.
• Teenager-Specific Rehab Programs : Inpatient programs also tend to specifically address adolescent or teenager addictions, particularly in terms in need of family therapy and special counseling when it comes to dealing with peer pressure and teen angst.
• Faith-Based Programs : Some churches and religious congregations offer programs that involve the gospel, catechism, meditation, and bible study to the addiction therapy mix. This type of treatment incorporates various philosophies and beliefs into their rehabilitation model. For example, an addict is taught to replace drugs with worshipping and praying to God.
• Various Treatments Included : Aside from individualized treatment and potential dual diagnosis services, inpatient rehab centers also offer complementary activities, life skills courses, group therapy, and individual counseling sessions. This holistic approach towards addiction recovery should also help patients regain the skills required to function at work, at home, and in society in general.

Is Group Therapy Effective in Addiction Rehab?

Based on selected criteria, a study called “The Impact of Respondent Type on Treatment Facility Performance Evaluations – Do Alumni and their Friends and Family Prioritize Different Offerings?” involving 379 addiction rehabilitation center alumni were asked to rate a variety of treatment centers.

Unsurprisingly, those who had a positive group experience were 168 percent likelier to recommend their facility to others. This shows that group therapy plays a significant role in the success of rehabilitation treatment success and ultimate satisfaction. 

The benefits of group therapy when it comes to effective substance abuse treatment include the following:

• Sobriety peer support that proves no man is an island.
• Shared wisdom from patients undergoing the same thing as you and alumni that have succeeded with the rehab.
• Reducing negative feelings of loneliness and isolation.
• Instilling hope, especially when you talk to understanding counselors and successful sponsors who were once patients themselves.
• Addicts under rehab can also model sober behavior from their rehabilitated peers, learning from them coping skills and whatnot.
• Patients can also become sponsors themselves, learning the ropes on how to provide peer support, encouragement, and feedback.
• Participants can also refine their social skills, use peer confrontation regarding substance abuse and other harmful behaviors, and acquire structure in their treatment.
• Peer support can also be provided outside the group setting in certain cases, usually when it comes to outpatient or aftercare rehab.

Aftercare Options When It Comes to Addiction Rehab

The best rehab services also include extended-care and ongoing treatment long after you’ve completed rehab. Rehabilitation typically goes on from 30 days to 90 days or a month to three months. You can even get an extra month in some rehabilitation facilities as a promo of sorts.

Many patients choose one form or another of extended care for the sake of supporting their long-term lifelong sobriety and mitigating relapse. There are a number of settings involved when it comes to log-term recovery efforts. It can involve the following:

• Private or personal therapy.
• Regular attendance at self-help support groups.
• Extended-care treatment facilities where patients reside.

The Benefits of Extended-Care Rehab 

Sometimes, going to long-term rehab centers isn’t what you need during a certain point in your recovery process. Instead, it’s more ideal to avail of extended-care rehab facilities since it puts more faith in the rehabilitated addict’s ability to keep on recovering without relapse or giving into his drug-induced impulses thanks to successful rehab. 

These facilities are available to patients only after they’ve completed the primary rehab program but wish to gain additional support before they return home. It’s like an extension of the program to ensure that he or she won’t relapse. This is also a viable option when other treatment options hadn’t led to sobriety in the long-term or when the living situation or environment isn’t a good place for recovery. 

The Benefits of Sober-Living Homes 

A sober-living home can serve as a transitional support environment before a patient returns home for real. This home is a less restrictive and more residential-styled version of extended care rehab facilities. This allows the recovering drug addict to reintegrate himself or herself into society without ending up using substances.

Sometimes a test run for sobriety is called for in order to prepare the rehabilitated individual to his or her actual home environment. To wit:

• The recovering ex-addict in question will end up living in a house with other recovering ex-addicts.
• He or she is taught the value of taking responsibility in a hands-on manner by taking on chores and a job.
• These patients also get to attend group therapy sessions for good measure with sponsors who are themselves successful rehabilitated addicts.
• Because these individuals end up living in sober surroundings with peers like them, the likelihood of relapse is significantly reduced.

The Benefits of Long-Term Rehab