Between the growing uncertainty of the world, the fast-paced sedentary lifestyles we live, and the increase in mental health issues across the board, there is no wondering why substance abuse is a problem in America. The availability of powerful drugs on the street, in the pharmacy, and at the liquor store make it a whole lot easier to become dependent on substances.
Luckily the response of the addiction recovery community has been to diversify treatments and find new comprehensive ways to approach addiction as a medical and mental health condition. Below is your guide to finding comprehensive substance abuse treatment.
Supervised Detox
One of the most vital parts of addiction treatment is supervised detox. When you stop using drugs and/or alcohol, your body will go through withdrawals. These can be painful, uncomfortable, and dangerous without the right supervision. Not only do you want to avoid relapse to make it go away, but you also want to make sure that you are safe during this process. Take the stress off the whole thing and get the attention you need. Supervised detox can help you get through the initial detox and start recovery off right.
Medical Approach
Typically, when you have a supervised detox, it means that the facility takes a medical approach to recovery. This is one side of the coin. When the rehab center employs medicine in addiction treatment, they will be monitoring your overall health and well-being. This is extremely advantageous.
You can see where you are physically and how you can be healthier. You will also have questions like is high blood pressure due to alcohol use reversible? Having a medical approach means that you get the benefit of having people look after you and your physical health. This doesn’t translate to sobriety, but it helps you feel your best and stay healthy during this process. In addition to the physical health attention, there also needs to be mental health attention.
Dual Diagnosis
Dual diagnosis is essentially addiction treatment that seeks to take mental health into account overall. The term refers to two diagnoses. One is substance abuse. The other could be any other mental health disorder. There doesn’t need to be a mental health illness present to receive dual diagnosis treatment though. Dual diagnosis is more about treating the whole person comprehensively for whatever mental health treatment they need. Whether the person has bipolar disorder or has been self-medicating after a divorce, dual diagnosis aims to work on the underlying causes that led to the substance being abused.
12-Step Support Groups
Inarguably the most successful approach to long-term sobriety and recovery is the 12-step program. You begin the program by attending group meetings. You will listen to people’s stories and share your own. Then you will begin working the steps. You will get a sponsor and, eventually, become one yourself. It’s a process that is effective at helping people stay sober long-term, even if there is a relapse. Relapse, after all, is a part of treatment.
Therapeutic Approach
Whether there is an underlying mental health issue or not, therapeutic elements are needed in addiction treatment. For example, most rehabs have counselors who you see during individual sessions. This is basically talk therapy, with an emphasis on addiction. Other forms of therapy can be useful though. For example, cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) is used to help change behaviors that end up in addiction.
Forms of mindfulness therapy, eye movement desensitization reprocessing (EMDR), and other forms of therapeutic treatment are extremely useful in substance abuse recovery. It’s vital to have a therapeutic approach in addition to the detox, medical, and 12-step approaches.
When an addiction recovery facility has all of these approaches, they are usually a very reputable place to seek treatment. You need to work with multiple treatment styles. One thing wont work for everyone. Each person is different and requires their own specialized comprehensive professional treatment. Personalized addiction treatment means having all the tools to make the process as effective as possible. Of course, in the end you must want to be sober.
The first part of the process is acceptance. When you are in denial, you won’t be receptive to treatment. If you put in the work to acknowledge that you have a problem with substance abuse and need help to stop using, you have taken the first step. You will have a chance at living a productive, happy, and healthy life.
