What Is Drug Rehab?

Drug rehabilitation What Is Drug Rehab?

What Is Drug Rehab?

Drug rehab facilities help drug addicts prepare to re-enter society. Drug addiction often changes a person's behavior, which can affect all aspects of his or her life, including work and relationships. In drug rehab, patients do their best to regain their normal lives in a safe and healthy way.

What Is Drug Rehab?

There are many different types of drug rehab facilities. Some specialize in helping patients with a specific drug addiction; others offer a broader range of drug addiction services. Some rehab facilities are even gender- or age-specific, as this often helps patients feel more comfortable in the rehab setting. Inpatient and outpatient rehab facilities are also available.

Drug rehab treatment centers often carry the stigma that patients are forced to stay. However, this stereotype is untrue. Patients in rehab centers are free to leave anytime they choose to. One reason for this is that drug rehab can only be truly effective when the patient has a desire to be there and to change his or her addictive habits. That being said, in instances where individuals are compelled to go to rehab -- such as via a court order -- the rehab process can still be effective, even if they were initially reluctant to go.

Drug rehab centers range from very basic facilities to luxury treatment centers. The type of center a patient attends depends upon his or her budget and level of insurance coverage. While luxury centers offer more amenities than basic facilities, they are not always the best treatment centers. Patients should investigate a rehab facility before making a final decision.

Before entering a rehab facility, patients may have to undergo detox treatment. Detox is the process in which a patient rids his or her body of the addictive substance. This process usually takes about a week and is monitored by doctors and nurses. Once a patient completes detox, he or she is ready for rehab.

Drug rehab treatment facilities help patients change their attitudes toward drugs. Many times drug addicts deny that they have an addiction and sometimes even claim that the drug is not harmful. The first step in rehab is to help patients get past this denial so that they can make an effort to change.

Committing to Recovery

Doctors and counselors in rehab centers help patients make goals for themselves. Patients commit to themselves and their loved ones that they will strive to make a positive change in their lives. They make long-term goals and then short-term goals that help them along the way.

To help patients overcome denial and make healthy choices and commitments, doctors educate them on the consequences and effects of drug abuse and addiction. Patients learn about the effects that the drugs have on their bodies in the hopes that they will be more motivated to make a change.

Drug rehab treatment centers offer frequent individual counseling to patients. These counseling sessions sometimes even take place on a daily basis. Counselors help patients discover any emotional or psychological factors that may have contributed to their addictions. It is important that these psychological factors are addressed if a patient is to make a full recovery.

In addition to individual counseling, patients in rehab often participate in group therapy. Patients with similar addictions meet together under the direction of a counselor. This allows them to form friendships and to have fellowship with one another. These close personal bonds aid patients on their road to recovery.

Patients in drug rehab learn to recognize situations that may trigger drug abuse. These triggers could be emotional, physical, part of relationships, or simply part of their normal routines. Counselors and doctors help patients learn how to combat those triggers and get out of circumstances that may lead them to abuse drugs.

Once patients learn to recognize drug abuse triggers, they learn the skills needed to cope with them. Counselors and doctors in drug rehab treatment facilities work with each patient to come up with a personalized set of coping skills that the patient can use to prevent him or her from turning to drugs.
Counselors also help rehab patients change their negative habits that are related to their addictions. This could include changing leisure activities or even changing aspects of the addict's career or everyday life. The goal is to reduce the amount of stress and triggers in the patient's life to keep him or her from relapsing

Medication in Rehab
Doctors in rehab centers may administer medications to patients to assist them in their recovery. A patient may take medication to control mental or physical drug abuse triggers. This medical treatment can be short term or long term, depending on the patient's circumstances and needs.

Life Changes in Addiction Rehab


Patients in drug rehab treatment programs are encouraged to end toxic relationships. Toxic relationships are those that have the propensity to lead to drug abuse. Conversely, patients are encouraged to seek help from other people who can support them on their journey. These supportive relationships could include friends, family members, and even other rehab patients.

Family members of rehab patients can seek drug rehab information by talking to the counselors and doctors at the facility. Friends and family members can help and support patients by learning about drug addiction. They may do this by participating in counseling sessions with the patient. Counselors in rehab facilities can also teach family members and friends of patients how they can help. They can learn about the coping skills that the patients are learning, the different drug abuse triggers, and the best ways to show love and support.

Sometimes drug addictions can negatively affect the friends and family of the addict.
-REHABS.COM

Sometimes drug addictions can negatively affect the friends and family of the addict. In this case, drug rehab treatment centers can offer counseling and healing services to friends and family of patients. Loved ones can help a patient best once they have sought healing for themselves.

Drug rehab usually lasts 28 days, but it can take several months. The length of time a patient spends in the rehab facility depends on his or her healing progress. Doctors and counselors may suggest an early release for the patient, or they may request that the patient stay in rehab longer than expected.

Many rehab patients continue to receive treatment for their addictions after leaving rehab. They may have regular clinic visits with a doctor to manage physical symptoms. Patients may also meet with a counselor on a regular, outpatient basis to refine coping skills. In addition to the love and support of family and friends, patients may also attend support group meetings after leaving a drug rehab treatment facility. All of these aftercare services help patients remain drug free and avoid relapse.

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Drug rehabilitation

Drug rehabilitation

Drug rehabilitation

Drug rehabilitation

Psychological dependency[edit]
Psychological dependency is addressed in many drug rehabilitation programs by attempting to teach the patient new methods of interacting in a drug-free environment. In particular, patients are generally encouraged, or possibly even required, to not associate with friends who still use the addictive substance. Twelve-step programs encourage addicts not only to stop using alcohol or other drugs, but to examine and change habits related to their addictions. Many programs emphasize that recovery is a permanent process without culmination. For legal drugs such as alcohol, complete abstention—rather than attempts at moderation, which may lead to relapse—is also emphasized ("One is too many, and a thousand is never enough.") Whether moderation is achievable by those with a history of abuse remains a controversial point, but is generally considered unsustainable.[2]

Drug rehabilitation

Types of treatment[edit]
The brain’s chemical structure is impacted by drugs of abuse and these changes are present long after an individual stops using, This change in brain structure increases risk for relapse, making treatment an important part of the rehabilitation process.[3]

Various types of programs offer help in drug rehabilitation, including: residential treatment (in-patient/ out-patient), local support groups, extended care centers, recovery or sober houses, addiction counselling, mental health, and medical care. Some rehab centers offer age- and gender-specific programs.

In a survey of treatment providers from three separate institutions (the National Association of Alcoholism and Drug Abuse Counselors, Rational Recovery Systems and the Society of Psychologists in Addictive Behaviors)[where?] measuring the treatment provider's responses on the Spiritual Belief Scale (a scale measuring belief in the four spiritual characteristics AA identified by Ernest Kurtz); the scores were found to explain 41% of the variance in the treatment provider's responses on the Addiction Belief Scale (a scale measuring adherence to the disease model or the free-will model addiction).[4]

Scientific research since 1970 shows that effective treatment addresses the multiple needs of the patient rather than treating addiction alone.[citation needed] In addition, medically assisted drug detoxification or alcohol detoxification alone is ineffective as a treatment for addiction.[5] The National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) recommends detoxification followed by both medication (where applicable) and behavioral therapy, followed by relapse prevention. According to NIDA, effective treatment must address medical and mental health services as well as follow-up options, such as community or family based recovery support systems.[6] Whatever the methodology, patient motivation is an important factor in treatment success.

For individuals addicted to prescription drugs, treatments tend to be similar to those who are addicted to drugs affecting the same brain systems. Medication like methadone and buprenorphine can be used to treat addiction to prescription opiates, and behavioral therapies can be used to treat addiction to prescription stimulants, benzodiazepines, and other drugs.[7]

Types of behavioral therapy include:

Cognitive-behavioral therapy, which seeks to help patients to recognize, avoid and cope with situations in which they are most likely to relapse.
Multidimensional family therapy, which is designed to support recovery of the patient by improving family functioning.
Motivational interviewing, which is designed to increase patient motivation to change behavior and enter treatment.[8]
Motivational incentives, which uses positive reinforcement to encourage abstinence from the addictive substance.[9]
Treatment can be a long process and the duration is dependent upon the patient’s needs and history of abuse. Research has shown that most patients need at least 3 months of treatment and longer durations are associated with better outcomes.[10]

Medications[edit]
Certain opioid medications such as methadone and more recently buprenorphine (In America, "Subutex" and "Suboxone") are widely used to treat addiction and dependence on other opioids such as heroin, morphine or oxycodone. Methadone and buprenorphine are maintenance therapies intended to reduce cravings for opiates, thereby reducing illegal drug use, and the risks associated with it, such as disease, arrest, incarceration, and death, in line with the philosophy of harm reduction. Both drugs may be used as maintenance medications (taken for an indefinite period of time), or used as detoxification aids.[11] All available studies collected in the 2005 Australian National Evaluation of Pharmacotherapies for Opioid Dependence suggest that maintenance treatment is preferable,[11] with very high rates (79–100%)[11] of relapse within three months of detoxification from LAAM, buprenorphine, and methadone.[11][12]

According to the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA), patients stabilized on adequate, sustained doses of methadone or buprenorphine can keep their jobs, avoid crime and violence, and reduce their exposure to HIV and Hepatitis C by stopping or reducing injection drug use and drug-related high risk sexual behavior. Naltrexone is a long-acting opioid antagonist with few side effects. It is usually prescribed in outpatient medical conditions. Naltrexone blocks the euphoric effects of alcohol and opiates. Naltrexone cuts relapse risk during the first 3 months by about 36%.[11] However, it is far less effective in helping patients maintain abstinence or retaining them in the drug-treatment system (retention rates average 12% at 90 days for naltrexone, average 57% at 90 days for buprenorphine, average 61% at 90 days for methadone).[11]

Drug rehabilitation

Ibogaine is a hallucinogenic drug promoted by certain fringe groups to interrupt both physical dependence and psychological craving to a broad range or drugs including narcotics, stimulants, alcohol and nicotine. To date, there have never been any controlled studies showing it to be effective, and it is accepted as a treatment by no association of physicians, pharmacists, or addictionologists. There have been several deaths related to ibogaine use, which causes tachycardia and long QT syndrome. The drug is an illegal Schedule I controlled substance in the United States, and the foreign facilities in which it is administered tend to have little oversight, and range from motel rooms to one moderately-sized rehabilitation center.[13]

A few antidepressants have been proven to be helpful in the context of smoking cessation/nicotine addiction, these medications include bupropion and nortriptyline.[14] Bupropion inhibits the reuptake of norepinephrine and dopamine and has been FDA approved for smoking cessation, while nortriptyline is a tricyclic antidepressant which has been used to aid in smoking cessation though it has not been FDA approved for this indication.[15]

Acamprosate, disulfiram and topiramate (a novel anticonvulsant sulphonated sugar) are also used to treat alcohol addiction. Acamprosate has shown effectiveness for patients with severe dependence, helping them to maintain abstinence for several weeks or months.[16] Disulfiram (also called Antabuse) produces a very unpleasant reaction when drinking alcohol that includes flushing, nausea and palpitations. It is more effective for patients with high motivation and some addicts use it only for high risk situations.[17] Patients who wish to continue drinking or may be likely to relapse, should not take disulfiram as it can result in the disulfiram-alcohol reaction mentioned previously, which is very serious and can even be fatal [18]

Nitrous oxide, also sometimes known as laughing gas, is a legally available gas used for purposes that include anesthesia during certain dental and surgical procedures, as well as food preparation and the fueling of rocket and racing engines. Substance abusers also sometimes use the gas as an inhalant. Like all other inhalants, it's popular because it provides consciousness-altering effects while allowing users to avoid some of the legal issues surrounding illicit or illegal drugs of abuse. Abuse of nitrous oxide can produce significant short-term and long-term damage to human health, including a form of oxygen starvation called hypoxia, brain damage, and a serious vitamin B12 deficiency that can lead to nerve damage.

Although dangerous and addictive in its own right, nitrous oxide has been shown to be an effective treatment for a number of addictions.[19][20][21]

Residential treatment[edit]
In-patient residential treatment for alcohol abuse is usually quite expensive without proper insurance. Most American programs follow a traditional 28–30 day program length. The length is based solely upon providers' experience in the 1940s that clients needed about one week to get over the physical changes, another week to understand the program, and another week or two to become stable.[22] 70 to 80 percent of American residential alcohol treatment programs provide 12-step support services. These include, but are not limited to AA, NA, CA, Al-Anon[22] One recent study suggests the importance of family participation in residential treatment patient retention, finding "increased program completion rate for those with a family member or significant other involved in a seven-day family program."[23]

Experimental treatment[edit]
The Nature of Things, a CBC Television program by David Suzuki, explored an experimental drug treatment by Dr. Gabor Maté in which the substance Ayahuasca was used to treat addicts in Vancouver.[24]

Recovery[edit]
The definition of recovery remains divided and subjective in drug rehabilitation, as there are no set standards for measuring recovery. The Betty Ford Institute defined recovery as achieving complete abstinence as well as personal wellbeing[25] while other studies have considered "near abstinence" as a definition.[26] The wide range of meanings has complicated the process of choosing rehabilitation programs.

Criminal justice[edit]
Drug rehabilitation is sometimes part of the criminal justice system. People convicted of minor drug offenses may be sentenced to rehabilitation instead of prison, and those convicted of driving while intoxicated are sometimes required to attend Alcoholics Anonymous meetings. There are a number of ways to address an alternative sentence in a drug possession or DUI case; increasingly, American courts are willing to explore outside-the-box methods for delivering this service. There have been lawsuits filed, and won, regarding the requirement of attending Alcoholics Anonymous and other twelve-step meetings as being inconsistent with the Establishment Clause of the First Amendment of the U. S. Constitution, mandating separation of church and state.[27][28]

In some cases, individuals can be court ordered to drug rehabilitation by the state through legislation like the Marchman Act.

Counseling[edit]
Traditional addiction treatment is based primarily on counseling.

Counselors help individuals identifying behaviors and problems related to their addiction. It can be done on an individual basis, but it's more common to find it in a group setting and can include crisis counseling, weekly or daily counseling, and drop-in counseling supports. They are trained to develop recovery programs that help to reestablish healthy behaviors and provide coping strategies whenever a situation of risk happens. It's very common to see them work also with family members who are affected by the addictions of the individual, or in a community to prevent addiction and educate the public. Counselors should be able to recognize how addiction affects the whole person and those around him or her.[29] Counseling is also related to "Intervention"; a process in which the addict's family requests help from a professional to get this person into drug treatment. This process begins with one of this professionals' first goals: breaking down denial of the person with the addiction. Denial implies lack of willingness from the patients or fear to confront the true nature of the addiction and to take any action to improve their lives, besides of continuing the destructive behavior. Once this has been achieved, professional coordinates with the addict's family to support them on getting this family member to alcohol drug rehabilitation immediately, with concern and care for this person. Otherwise, this person will be asked to leave and expect no support of any kind until going into drug rehabilitation or alcoholism treatment. An intervention can also be conducted in the workplace environment with colleagues instead of family.

One approach with limited applicability is the Sober Coach. In this approach, the client is serviced by provider(s) in his or her home and workplace – for any efficacy, around-the-clock – who functions much like a nanny to guide or control the patient's behavior.

Drug rehabilitation

Twelve-step programs[edit]
The disease model of addiction has long contended the maladaptive patterns of alcohol and substance use displayed by addicted individuals are the result of a lifelong disease that is biological in origin and exacerbated by environmental contingencies. This conceptualization renders the individual essentially powerless over his or her problematic behaviors and unable to remain sober by himself or herself, much as individuals with a terminal illness are unable to fight the disease by themselves without medication. Behavioral treatment, therefore, necessarily requires individuals to admit their addiction, renounce their former lifestyle, and seek a supportive social network who can help them remain sober. Such approaches are the quintessential features of Twelve-step programs, originally published in the book Alcoholics Anonymous in 1939.[30] These approaches have met considerable amounts of criticism, coming from opponents who disapprove of the spiritual-religious orientation on both psychological[31] and legal[32] grounds. Nonetheless, despite this criticism, outcome studies have revealed that affiliation with twelve-step programs predicts abstinence success at 1-year follow-up for alcoholism. Different results have been reached for other drugs, with the twelve steps being less beneficial for addicts to illicit substances, and least beneficial to those addicted to the physiologically and psychologically addicting opioids, for which maintenance therapies are the gold standard of care.[33]

Client-centered approaches[edit]
In his influential book, Client-Centered Therapy, in which he presented the client-centered approach to therapeutic change, psychologist Carl Rogers proposed there are three necessary and sufficient conditions for personal change: unconditional positive regard, accurate empathy, and genuineness. Rogers believed the presence of these three items in the therapeutic relationship could help an individual overcome any troublesome issue, including alcohol abuse. To this end, a 1957 study[34] compared the relative effectiveness of three different psychotherapies in treating alcoholics who had been committed to a state hospital for sixty days: a therapy based on two-factor learning theory, client-centered therapy, and psychoanalytic therapy. Though the authors expected the two-factor theory to be the most effective, it actually proved to be deleterious in outcome. Surprisingly, client-centered therapy proved most effective. It has been argued, however, these findings may be attributable to the profound difference in therapist outlook between the two-factor and client-centered approaches, rather than to client-centered techniques per se.[35] The authors note two-factor theory involves stark disapproval of the clients' "irrational behavior" (p. 350); this notably negative outlook could explain the results.

A variation of Rogers' approach has been developed in which clients are directly responsible for determining the goals and objectives of the treatment. Known as Client-Directed Outcome-Informed therapy (CDOI), this approach has been utilized by several drug treatment programs, such as Arizona's Department of Health Services.[36]

Psychoanalysis[edit]
Psychoanalysis, a psychotherapeutic approach to behavior change developed by Sigmund Freud and modified by his followers, has also offered an explanation of substance abuse. This orientation suggests the main cause of the addiction syndrome is the unconscious need to entertain and to enact various kinds of homosexual and perverse fantasies, and at the same time to avoid taking responsibility for this. It is hypothesised specific drugs facilitate specific fantasies and using drugs is considered to be a displacement from, and a concomitant of, the compulsion to masturbate while entertaining homosexual and perverse fantasies. The addiction syndrome is also hypothesised to be associated with life trajectories that have occurred within the context of traumatogenic processes, the phases of which include social, cultural and political factors, encapsulation, traumatophilia, and masturbation as a form of self-soothing.[37] Such an approach lies in stark contrast to the approaches of social cognitive theory to addiction—and indeed, to behavior in general—which holds human beings regulate and control their own environmental and cognitive environments, and are not merely driven by internal, driving impulses. Additionally, homosexual content is not implicated as a necessary feature in addiction.

Drug rehabilitation

Relapse prevention[edit]
An influential cognitive-behavioral approach to addiction recovery and therapy has been Alan Marlatt's (1985) Relapse Prevention approach.[38] Marlatt describes four psychosocial processes relevant to the addiction and relapse processes: self-efficacy, outcome expectancies, attributions of causality, and decision-making processes. Self-efficacy refers to one's ability to deal competently and effectively with high-risk, relapse-provoking situations. Outcome expectancies refer to an individual's expectations about the psychoactive effects of an addictive substance. Attributions of causality refer to an individual's pattern of beliefs that relapse to drug use is a result of internal, or rather external, transient causes (e.g., allowing oneself to make exceptions when faced with what are judged to be unusual circumstances). Finally, decision-making processes are implicated in the relapse process as well. Substance use is the result of multiple decisions whose collective effects result in consumption of the intoxicant. Furthermore, Marlatt stresses some decisions—referred to as apparently irrelevant decisions—may seem inconsequential to relapse, but may actually have downstream implications that place the user in a high-risk situation.[citation needed]

For example: As a result of heavy traffic, a recovering alcoholic may decide one afternoon to exit the highway and travel on side roads. This will result in the creation of a high-risk situation when he realizes he is inadvertently driving by his old favorite bar. If this individual is able to employ successful coping strategies, such as distracting himself from his cravings by turning on his favorite music, then he will avoid the relapse risk (PATH 1) and heighten his efficacy for future abstinence. If, however, he lacks coping mechanisms—for instance, he may begin ruminating on his cravings (PATH 2)—then his efficacy for abstinence will decrease, his expectations of positive outcomes will increase, and he may experience a lapse—an isolated return to substance intoxication. So doing results in what Marlatt refers to as the Abstinence Violation Effect, characterized by guilt for having gotten intoxicated and low efficacy for future abstinence in similar tempting situations. This is a dangerous pathway, Marlatt proposes, to full-blown relapse.

Cognitive therapy[edit]
An additional cognitively-based model of substance abuse recovery has been offered by Aaron Beck, the father of cognitive therapy and championed in his 1993 book Cognitive Therapy of Substance Abuse.[39] This therapy rests upon the assumption addicted individuals possess core beliefs, often not accessible to immediate consciousness (unless the patient is also depressed). These core beliefs, such as "I am undesirable," activate a system of addictive beliefs that result in imagined anticipatory benefits of substance use and, consequentially, craving. Once craving has been activated, permissive beliefs ("I can handle getting high just this one more time") are facilitated. Once a permissive set of beliefs have been activated, then the individual will activate drug-seeking and drug-ingesting behaviors. The cognitive therapist's job is to uncover this underlying system of beliefs, analyze it with the patient, and thereby demonstrate its dysfunctionality. As with any cognitive-behavioral therapy, homework assignments and behavioral exercises serve to solidify what is learned and discussed during treatment.[40]

Drug rehabilitation

Emotion regulation and mindfulness[edit]
A growing literature is demonstrating the importance of emotion regulation in the treatment of substance abuse. Considering that nicotine and other psychoactive substances such as cocaine activate similar psychopharmacological pathways,[41] an emotion regulation approach may be applicable to a wide array of substance abuse. Proposed models of affect-driven tobacco use have focused on negative reinforcement as the primary driving force for addiction; according to such theories, tobacco is used because it helps one escape from the undesirable effects of nicotine withdrawal or other negative moods.[42] Acceptance and commitment therapy (ACT), is showing evidence that it is effective in treating substance abuse, including the treatment of poly-substance abuse and cigarette smoking.[43][44] Mindfulness programs that encourage patients to be aware of their own experiences in the present moment and of emotions that arise from thoughts, appear to prevent impulsive/compulsive responses.[42][45] Research also indicates that mindfulness programs can reduce the consumption of substances such as alcohol, cocaine, amphetamines, marijuana, cigarettes and opiates.[45][46][47]

Behavioral models[edit]
Main article: Community Reinforcement Approach and Family Training
Behavioral models make use of principles of functional analysis of drinking behavior. Behavior models exists for both working with the substance abuser (Community Reinforcement Approach) and their family (Community Reinforcement Approach and Family Training). Both these models have had considerable research success for both efficacy and effectiveness. This model lays much emphasis on the use of problem solving techniques as a means of helping the addict to overcome his/her addiction.

Criticism[edit]
Despite ongoing efforts to combat addiction, there has been evidence of clinics billing patients for treatments that may not guarantee their recovery.[1] This is a major problem as there are numerous claims of fraud in drug rehabilitation centers, where these centers are billing insurance companies for under delivering much needed medical treatment while exhausting patients' insurance benefits.[2] In California, there are movements and law regarding this matter, particularly the California Insurance Fraud Prevention Act (IFPA) which declares it unlawful to unknowingly conduct such businesses. [2]

Drug rehabilitation

Under the Affordable Care Act and the Mental Health Parity Act, rehabilitation centers are able to bill insurance companies for substance abuse treatment.[48] With long waitlists in limited state funded rehabilitation centers, controversial private centers rapidly emerged.[48] One popular model, known as the Florida Model for rehabilitation centers, is often criticized for fraudulent billing to insurance companies.[48] Under the guise of helping patients with opioid addiction, these centers would offer addicts free rent or up to $500 per month to stay in their "sober homes", then charge insurance companies as high as $5,000 to $10,000 per test for simple urine tests.[48] Little attention is paid to patients in terms of addiction intervention as these patients have often been known to continue drug use during their stay in these centers.[48] Since 2015, these centers have been under federal and state criminal investigation.[48] As of 2017 in California, there are only 16 investigators in the CA Department of Health Care Services investigating over 2,000 licensed rehab centers.[49]

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Drug Abuse Treatment Programs

Drug Abuse Treatment Programs Drug rehabilitation

Drug Abuse Treatment Programs

Why Choose Treatment?

Drug abuse treatment programs provide valuable help to thousands of individuals struggling with drug abuse. Substance abuse of any kind affects people of all ages, genders and cultural backgrounds. Despite the large demographic variability, all share one very important commonality – they need help!

For many, drug addiction treatment can mean the difference between life and death.

What Is Drug Abuse Treatment?

Normal daily functioning, including productive employment, relations with family and loved ones, and avoidance of legal entanglements can be achieved with assistance from effective substance abuse treatment.

Substance abuse programs of all types strive to break the cycle of compulsive drug seeking behavior and the damages of continued drug or alcohol abuse. Treatment setting and type are highly variable and will depend largely on each individual’s specific situation and needs. For some, substance abuse recovery can be achieved with relatively short outpatient programs. Others might benefit more from a longer duration residential rehab.

This isn’t to say that all outpatient or inpatient programs are the same. Numerous types of treatment modalities might be employed in any outpatient or inpatient program – again, dependent on an individual’s specific substance abuse history and their demonstrated response to treatment. Furthermore, for many people, the chronic nature of substance abuse problems necessitates vigilant outcome monitoring and, possibly, multiple intervention attempts. However, with focus and attention, recovery is possible.

Hope in Recovery

The following video tells the story of Jake, a former drug addict who discusses how recovery changed his life for the better and how his new purpose is to be of service to others and show them that "there's a way out of that darkness."

Those seeking treatment for substance abuse would benefit greatly from an initial assessment or evaluation by an addiction professional. Whether it's from a physician, psychologist, addiction counselor or other qualified individual with addiction treatment experience, the insight offered in terms of recommending an appropriate treatment type will prove invaluable to bolstering chances of a successful outcome.

Since the 1980s, the American Society of Addiction Medicine (ASAM) has availed its list of criteria (The ASAM Criteria or ASAM patient placement criteria) that can be utilized in helping clinicians with matching patients with substance abuse problems with 5 broad categories or types of substance abuse treatment. The ASAM criteria emphasizes that treatment exists on a continuum, and that outcome monitoring both during and after treatment can determine whether a patient could benefit from more or less intensive treatment types that fall on the scale.

Treatment Types

Many of the broad categories from the ASAM criteria reflect the types, and varying levels of treatment intensiveness, predominantly encountered in the addiction treatment realm. These include:

Outpatient Treatment – Can be delivered from a doctor’s office or other clinical setting. Outpatient treatment lies near the “least intensive” end of the treatment continuum, and is typically reserved for those with the least severe substance abuse issues, active employment commitments and a robust set of social support in place. Treatment can range from drug education, sober skills training, to more frequently scheduled counseling and addiction therapy and, even, outpatient detox programs. Treatment length is variable and contingent on recovery progress.

Intensive Outpatient Treatment/ Partial Hospitalization / Day Treatment Programs – Somewhat more intensive than the prior category; still, this consists of many of the services available in regular outpatient treatment, but administered a bit more frequently and/or for longer periods of the day. Additionally, intensive outpatient or partial hospitalization can accommodate patient’s with co-existing medical or mental health issues and allow them access to many of the services that exist for an inpatient population during the hours of the day that the intensive outpatient treatment occurs.
Residential Treatment – For more severe substance abuse issues that require the stability of round-the-clock attention; residents are placed in a 24-hour care situation, with the potential benefit of removing them from contributing situations or factors that exacerbate their addiction to begin with. Daily activities can consist of numerous individual and group counseling sessions. Many residential treatment centers also provide monitored detox and withdrawal, as well as more intense treatment for dual diagnosis psychiatric or behavioral addiction issues.

Intensive Inpatient Hospitalization – Full-time, fully supervised, hospital-based care for those with severe substance abuse issues as well as serious co-existing medical or mental health conditions. Frequently, an intensive inpatient hospitalization will begin a period of substance abuse treatment if the patient has been admitted in a seriously deteriorated medical or psychiatric state, and close monitoring and/or medical intervention to return them to stable condition is in order.
The cost of these programs can vary widely based on a number of factors, including type, length, location, and level of luxury. In general, inpatient programs tend to be more expensive than outpatient programs. Inpatient treatment can cost anywhere between $200 to $900 per day, with lower cost per day for longer program duration. Outpatient, specifically intensive outpatient treatment, tends to cost anywhere between $100 and $500 per session, so the total price will vary by the length of the program and the frequency of sessions.

NIDA provides some great details about the types of programs available. It should be noted that these treatment categories aren’t absolute, and that there will be some overlap in the types of offerings available at individual treatment programs. Researching the types of treatment programs in your area (or remotely, if you wish to travel for treatment) will pay dividends in terms of closely matching a program to your needs.

Our treatment support advisors can help with the research. Call us today at 1-877-906-6227Who Answers?.

What Determines the Appropriate Drug Abuse Treatment?

Young woman depressedAs mentioned, effective drug abuse treatment isn’t a one-size-fits-all phenomenon. A highly variable patient population demands a more tailored approach to treatment.

Some of the variables that will determine just what type of program is most appropriate include:

Length of the drug or alcohol abuse problem.
Type of substance used.
Frequency/amount of use.
Number of previous treatment attempts.
The existence of multiple abused substances.
Co-existing or dual diagnosis psychiatric conditions.
Co-existing or dual diagnosis behavioral addictions.
Co-existing medical conditions.
The need for medically assisted detox and withdrawal.
The need for pharmacotherapy during recovery.
The need for employment, family or legal counseling and/or assistance.
The National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) has published an evidence-based guide (Principles of Drug Addiction Treatment: A Research-Based Guide) that provides more detail on these and other factors that can contribute, in part, to an effective and comprehensive drug treatment program.

What to Look for in a Drug Addiction Program

Locating a supportive program with services carefully matched to your needs will be a key step to embark upon recovery. While the decision of drug abuse treatment type is best left to an addiction treatment professional, there are a number of factors to be considered in ultimately selecting a drug abuse treatment program.

Some important questions to ask include the following:

Recovery footsteps

Are the majority of staff doctors, nurses and counselors credentialed in addiction treatment or addiction medicine?

Are there treatment center or practitioner reviews available to the public?

How close to home will treatment take place? Will travel or transportation be necessary?

Can I continue to work or have access to email, phone and/or computers?

Are there special programs available for different groups (e.g. teens, seniors, gender lines, LGBT, substance type, etc.)?
Can I request a private room?
Will my insurance cover payment for this rehab or program?
How can I supplement payment if insurance only pays for part of my treatment?
Can treatment accommodate dual diagnosis issues?
Are there medically assisted detox services available?
Are specialized treatment modalities available, such as complementary and alternative medicine (CAM), or holistic treatment?
When it comes to finding an effective drug abuse treatment program it is important to find a facility that provides its patients with a full continuum of care.

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Pros and Cons of State-Funded Drug Rehab

Drug rehabilitation Pros and Cons of State-Funded Drug Rehab

Pros and Cons of State-Funded Drug Rehab

Understanding State-Sponsored Drug and Alcohol Rehab Options

There are countless drug facilities and detox centers throughout the country. Many of these provide high quality care and complete medical services in order to guide a patient through a successful recovery. However, many of the recovery options cost a lot of money and with treatment sometimes taking several months to complete; patients may be unable to afford the costs, even with a loan or a payment plan. This is a slippery slope, the patient needs help because they are struggling with a dependency, but are unable to save up for help because they are spending their money on their continued drug or alcohol abuse. If you have no possible other alternative, there are free programs available.

What is State-Funded Treatment?

That is where the state-sponsored program comes into play. These facilities target those living in poverty, have lower incomes, do not have a quality health insurance plan or for any other reason cannot possibly afford to private pay for addiction treatment. As the name itself suggests, these detox clinics and drug rehab centers are funded by the state. If a patient does not have insurance or cannot pay for the overall costs necessary, they can attend these programs free of charge. These state-sponsored clinics might not have the same accommodations that many of the private recovery facilities do, but that does not mean that they cannot help users who need it. The funding granted to these recovery programs varies state to state, which means that the different centers across the nation can greatly vary in the treatments and services that they are able to offer the patient.

What are the Benefits?

The cost – Many of these programs are available free of charge for eligible participants. Even though the procedures may not be as up-to-date as with privacy rehab and though the facility might not be as nice as luxury treatment options, some patients are simply unable to spend even a dime on treatment. The first step is finding help. Getting help at these facilities is certainly better than no help at all.
The care – Even with some of the drawbacks, the specialists that work at these facilities still have a good understanding of what they are doing. Even taking into account that the facilities might not be as upscale, it does not mean a patient cannot recover in a state sponsored program.
What are the Drawbacks?

Just as with any program, there are some disadvantages in selecting a state funded recovery facility, as well. The following are some of the more significant disadvantages

The waiting list – Addiction is a serious problem that will often alienate people from their friends and family members. Many people struggling with dependence do not start finding help until they already have a massive debt, lost their job, or have serious physical issues, or perhaps a combination of all three. Research has shown that it is important to move quickly when a long-term user is willing to seek help. Not only is the motivation usually temporary (meaning that you may have to convince them all over again later on) but it is important to move fast in order to avoid further physical and emotional damage. Considering some recovery programs may have upwards of a six-month waitlist, you can understand why it goes against everything we have just mentioned.

The Revolving Door – Given that these programs have limited funds and limited capacity, there are some patients who believe that they might be released from the facility before their treatment is ‘complete’. This leads to them feeling alienated from the whole concept and makes them less likely to attend rehab again in the future.

Outdated techniques – With a limited budget, it is no surprise that these facilities sometimes have to make do with what they have. This means that they occasionally use the same methodology that has been around for decades because upgrades cost money. However, the field of addiction science is constantly evolving, continuously coming up with new developments. This is not to say that the older techniques might not work, but they might not be as effective. These programs often rely on the AA / 12-step program.

Privacy – Many patients feel uncomfortable sharing information about their dependency with government institutions. Because they have no idea how many people are likely to attend or who they might encounter in rehabilitation, some feel that it is better to find an alternative option a little farther away.

How Are You Admitted?

In a private rehab facility, you call admissions, answer questions, show proof that you are able to pay for treatment and then enroll. However, entering into these state-run programs may be slightly more difficult. Because every state is different, there is no ‘standard’ that we can give you, but oftentimes you contact the center first in order to find out what type of  drug addiction treatment services are offered. You then need to check out the qualification criteria for admission. Perhaps you need to show financial statements that show you have no available finances to pay for recovery. Perhaps you have no insurance to pay for the costs of recovery. After you have given the necessary information, you are likely admitted and will end up on the wait list for entry.

Get Help Finding the Right Option

If you are going to opt for a state supported program, remember that not all states distribute their grants equally. Two different programs in the same state might not offer the same type of recovery. You could do the research yourself and try to find that information online, or you could rely on our network to help you make your decision much easier.

If you want help finding a state-supported recovery program near you that does have availability or are seeking an alternative option, call New Beginnings right now. We can help you find a program that you feel will work for you, whether it is free-of-charge or perhaps something affordable on a payment plan – we are here to help you.

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