People enter drug and alcohol rehabs at astounding rates each year in the United States. While rehab is helpful to many people, 10% of people have been in at least five other rehabs before. This can seem like a discouraging number, but the reality is that they probably haven’t found the treatment center that works for them yet.
You can avoid spending money and time on a treatment center that doesn’t fit your individual needs by asking several questions before getting started. Once you are armed with the proper information, finding a quality rehab that can support you or your family’s need will be a breeze.
1. Is this Treatment Center Short-Term Focused or Long-Term?
Most treatment centers offer a 28-day program but that isn’t what’s needed by all addicts. If the center only offers 28 days, check to see if they have established relationships with outside facilities that provide other levels of care. If so, they may be able to offer an entire continuum of care.
Addiction is a complex disease and there isn’t a one size fits all program. Some people require a longer stay in order to maintain a solid recovery. It’s important to discuss what your needs are before agreeing to head to rehab. If you need options for longer-term care, then work that out at the beginning.
2. Will the Program Offer Ways to Alleviate Cravings?
As an addict, you need to know that cravings are going to be something to contend with. They can range anywhere from minor daily cravings to severe, overwhelming urges. Many treatment centers don’t offer dedicated support to deal with these cravings.
Instead, they’ll recommend additional medications to patients in hopes of suppressing the cravings. This is often referred to as medication-assisted treatment or maintenance programs. This is not a safe way to handle the struggle and can actually lead to more dependency issues in the future.
Cravings need to be addressed and dealt with if you ever desire to move past them. High-quality treatment centers offer nutritional guidance, support meetings and other techniques to help you deal with cravings.
With these new sober living skills, you have a higher chance of succeeding when the cravings hit you outside of rehab. That’s how you build long-lasting recovery.
3. What about Nutritional Aspects?
Most addicts arrive at rehab with a poor bill of health. Opiate abuse alone leads to numerous issues with the intestinal and digestive tract while alcoholism is a common component of anemia. To help each individual recover from addiction, it is necessary to treat the entire body.
Your best course of action is to utilize a program that includes nutritional support. This enables you to begin repairing the deficiencies common in most addicts. Otherwise, you face the risk of depression, energy loss, sleeplessness and irritation.
These complaints are common to those not taking care of their bodies and often lead to relapse issues down the road. Sometimes, people turn to the use of more medications to deal with these symptoms when it could have been solved on a nutritional level instead.
Studies have recently proven that treatment centers that include nutritional guidance have up to a 60 percent higher success rate than those without. That’s a pretty large number, especially when we are talking about your recovery.
4. Will the Program Help Me Learn the Life Skills Needed to Remain Sober?
Spending time in rehab learning how to remain sober is a great thing, but what about when you head back out into the real world? Problems will arise, stress finds its way back into your daily grind and there will be temptation all around. There could be setbacks such as the loss of your job or divorce that you didn’t plan for. Now what?
It is essential that you know how to deal with these issues before they occur. While it is an achievement in itself to remain sober in rehab, it is far more important that you learn how to stay sober at home. A complete program features training of life skills that will equip you to deal with the everyday stresses coming your way.
Many addicts enter a treatment center with a distorted way of thinking. Morality has been destroyed and they’ve learned to deal with pain through addiction. To remain sober after heading home, it is imperative that a new way of coping is taught and practiced. Each individual must learn how to break the destructive patterns that have been used and start acting responsibly.
Treatment centers that offer life skills training feature higher instances of long-term sobriety among clients. Remember, relapse doesn’t need to be the typical story. With a change of thinking on how to deal with problems, it is possible to achieve sobriety for the remainder of your life.
5. Is the Rehab Promoting a Quick Fix?
If the treatment program you are examining features promises that don’t seem logical; chances are it isn’t. Sobriety is not something that is attained in 24 hours and there are no magic potions to achieve success.
To live a sober life, one must make the changes necessary to alter their way of thinking. Many of these “quick fixes” never bring about any sobriety, but only tend to hurt the body and mind more.
As with most things in life, if something sounds too good to be true, it normally is. Opt for a recovery plan that will help you achieve sobriety through hard work and effort.
6. Does the Program Support the Family System?
Before heading to rehab, you’ll want to ensure that the entire family has access to the tools they need. Remember, addiction isn’t only about the addict but affects the entire dynamic of a household.
While drinking and drugging, you didn’t just affect yourself. You are the main priority as you enter rehab because without your sobriety nothing will change. For long-term success, you want options for the entire family to find recovery and freedom in whatever ways they need.
Many treatment centers offer family counseling and events that the family can be involved in. This helps to keep your loved ones involved in the process which in turn leads to more support for you.
Studies have shown that individuals with a supportive and loving environment to go home to have a better chance of success. Choose a treatment center that is willing to examine the entire family system.
In the End…
It is most important that you find the facility that meets needs which are important to you. No one else can tell you what program is going to be the best for your recovery.
Asking questions before entering rehab is an essential part of the recovery journey. You don’t want to invest your time and money into a treatment center only to later find out they didn’t offer what you needed.
Do a short interview before making any commitments and then prepare yourself to jump into a new life filled with adventure and hope.
Contact Clearbrook Today
Are you or a loved one struggling with drugs and alcohol? If so, help is available.
For 45 years, Clearbrook Treatment Centers has been a leader in the treatment of chemical dependency and alcoholism.
Secluded in the beautiful mountains of Northeastern Pennsylvania, you or your loved one will have the opportunity to begin your journey to wellness in a serene and peaceful environment.
For more information, give us a call today. Our specialists look forward to assisting you in the process of admission.
