Who Should Go for A Long-Term Residential Treatment?
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Battling any addiction is no easy feat. Although it is possible to receive treatment in an outpatient setting, some people fighting intense addiction might need inpatient or residential care. Those suffering from dual diagnoses like drug and alcohol addiction can also take benefit from long-term treatment programs of Stepstogether. This Rehab center will provide you more time to confront and carve a path of recovery through these problems.
This type of care typically lasts from six months to a year. While some addiction treatment centers have a fixed duration for the program, some facilities allow them to graduate when they are ready. Even though long-term residential treatments require a lot of your time, it is worth every minute as it comes with many benefits which will help you speed up your recovery and achieve sobriety.
Process of Recovery
The first step of treatment in a long-term residential addiction treatment center is the Detox process. During this process, the patient is restrained from consuming alcohol or abusing drugs. An individual will receive supportive supervision and care, medication-assisted detox, gradual drug reduction therapy, or drug replacement therapy.
These treatments manage the potentially severe withdrawal symptoms that the patient will experience during the detox process. The withdrawal symptoms occur when the individuals' bodily systems adjust to functioning without the support of the previously heavily dependent drugs. The duration of this process may be several hours or days. It depends on the substance that was earlier used and the length and severity of the addiction.
Detox is merely the first stage of treatment. The patient must take additional substance abuse treatment efforts to complete a successful detox with guaranteed lasting recovery. Once the detox is completed, chronic drug abusers or alcoholics are advised to continue with some form of ongoing therapy such as,
- Cognitive-behavioral therapy.
- Multidimensional family therapy
- Contingency management.
- Motivational interviewing.
Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT):
Cognitive Behavioural Therapy helps people learn to identify the self-defeating and negative thoughts and actions that may contribute to substance use. It is a short-term, focused, therapeutic approach that allows drug or alcohol-dependent people to become abstinent.
The primary focus of CBT in the treatment of any addiction is to learn new coping skills, improve motivation, change old habits, and manage painful feelings better.
During the treatment for alcohol and drug independence, CBT can help in the following ways
- Improving self-control
- Avoiding triggering circumstances.
- Recognizing those circumstances in which they are tempted to drink alcohol or use drugs.
- Cope with other problems that may lead to their substance abuse.
- Develop coping mechanisms that will help when they face situations that trigger cravings.
Multidimensional Family Therapy (MDFT)
The word 'multidimensional' shows that many perspectives can contribute to understanding behavior problems. These may include emotional, behavioral, environmental, biological, cognitive, or developmental perspectives. The Multidimensional Family Therapy treatment attempts to address the interconnected relationships between emotions, mental processes, and behavior.
This treatment involves various therapy sessions for both the patient and family. It is designed to help the patient maintain sobriety by reducing harmful behaviors and encouraging positive, healthy behaviors.
Contingency management (CM)
Contingency Management (CM) is an approach that intends to help an individual reduce drug-related behavior. The central view of the CM approach is that a person is more likely to repeat positive behaviors if those behaviors are rewarded. Providing incentives such as food items or vouchers as a reward for a drug-free urine sample reinforces healthy behavior. Contingency Management is an evidence-based therapy for recovery from substance abuse. Research shows that it can help recover individuals, increase abstinence, remain in addiction treatment centers, enhance the overall experience and participation in rehab.
Motivational Interviewing (MI)
Motivational Interviewing is a counseling technique that motivates the client to change destructive behavior. It aims at strengthening one's motivation and commitment to a particular goal, like sobriety. One of the most challenging impediments to overcome while battling addiction is the lack of motivation. Many people use drugs or alcohol as a coping mechanism to deal with issues that arise from their daily lives.
Motivational interviewing is a non-judgmental and non-confrontational approach that assists individuals in learning about what is causing the uncertainty for them to change and helps them resolve this.
Benefits of Long-Term Residential Treatment
After seven days of treatment, a person leaving an addiction center might struggle with sobriety because they will be going back to the same environment that they were in before. It is only a very brief period away from their previous use. A rapid re-entry into the same unhealthy atmosphere will not make things any better. If the addiction were severe, this would be an ideal scenario for relapse.
- Keeps you away from a Lifestyle of Addiction
When you enroll in a residential program, your daily life will change dramatically. You will be in a different and new environment with several people, many of whom are going through treatment just like you. You will be away from your drinking buddies and dealers. Short-term therapy may keep you away from your lifestyle of active addiction for a brief period, but it's not usually long enough for you to make lasting changes.
- Addresses Multiple Issues
Many people come to addiction treatment centers to treat addiction with a mental health issue like depression. Problems like depression can feed off of and worsen substance use disorders. For the treatment to be effective, various issues need to be treated at the same time. Otherwise, these other problems, like mental issues, can contribute to a relapse. Long-term residential treatment involves therapies that address multiple problems, including mental health issues. Professionally qualified mental health practitioners are available to help such patients. These programs also have on-staff case managers to help address issues involving finances, housing, job-hunting, and legal matters.
- Cost Concerns
Many people delay long-term residential treatment over cost concerns. Although long-term addiction treatment programs can be more expensive than short-term treatment, the patient and their family must view this expense as an investment that can potentially cause a massive change for the better. Without any treatment, the person will continue to abuse drugs or alcohol. When used on a chronic basis, the price of drugs or alcohol is even more than treatment costs. Many private insurance providers cover substance abuse treatment at varying levels.
End note
Keeping aside the financial factor involved, the toll of addiction on the person's personal life is enormous. A person's mental and physical health will begin to suffer. Essential relationships that include partners, children, parents, or close friends can deteriorate under the weight of addiction.
