As more than 23 million Americans deal with an addiction of some kind, there are 23 million ways to get through it.
While each person dealing with addiction needs to get a personalized approach, the methods offered by inpatient drug rehab show positive results. If you or a loved one is considering this kind of treatment, you should know what the process entails.
Here are five things to expect when seeking inpatient rehabilitation.
1. Engaging Activities
One of the reasons that some people seek out drugs is they have too much time and nothing to do with it. When people recover from drugs and alcohol, it’s vital to have something to do to replace that activity. Without activities to take up their time, people recovering from addiction could risk slipping back into their habits.
Many inpatient treatment centers offer art, music, and writing programs. By channeling energy into these kinds of activities, addicts find new ways to talk about the things that have driven their substance abuse.
It’s hard to pinpoint some of the painful things that lead someone to seek an escape through drugs and alcohol. By taking an abstract approach, people dealing with addiction open up and get the chance to dig deeper into their personal experiences.
There are other activities that can involve dance therapy or agriculture-related treatments. Some drug rehab centers bring their residents out to horse farms to provide equine therapy. While it doesn’t work for everyone, some people find that the labor and energy of caring for a horse can be a great replacement for addiction.
2. Group Therapy
Most treatment centers offer group therapy to their residents on a daily basis. In inpatient treatment, residents are grouped together to help one another. Group therapy offers a lot of opportunities to see all sides of addiction and how multiple people deal with treatment.
Group therapy is a chance for people in inpatient treatment to listen. Listening is a valuable skill to develop while getting treatment for an addiction. Addicts struggle to hear other peoples’ problems above the cacophony created by their own addiction and its control over their brain.
By sitting around in a group, some people dealing with addiction see that their problems might not be as bad as others. They get the opportunity to be inspired by seeing other people overcome issues. Residents will learn new ways to approach their own issues by seeing the trials and tribulations of others.
Group therapy also reminds residents that they’re not alone in their treatment. When sitting in groups with others who they see every day, they’re reminded that addiction isn’t defeated alone, but together.
3. Personalized Treatment
Every major inpatient rehab center should offer personalized treatment to offer people new to addiction a way to talk unencumbered. People dealing with their addiction for the first time might not know where to begin with their addiction. They might have no clue of the ways their addiction connects to their past.
When people suffering addiction get the chance to speak privately to a therapist, they can talk about the most difficult parts of their life. Not everything can be shared in group therapy. In some cases, things shared in group therapy start out by being communicated in one-on-one therapy.
When someone is seeking inpatient rehab, they should get a treatment program focused on their needs. Every addiction has its own specificities. People who are dealing with drinking will need to take a different approach than someone addicted to prescription drugs.
Treatment specialists should be able to create a personalized program to help addicts recover on their own terms. However, it should take into account some of the common issues addicts face with certain substances.
4. A Secure Site
When someone is going to inpatient rehab, they need to be at a site that feels secure. It needs to be free of drugs and alcohol that are snuck in by people who can’t get over their addiction.
In a secure setting, there are ways for staff to eliminate the temptation to use drugs or alcohol. Some people might want to sneak out and buy drugs or alcohol. There is often a temptation to escape and go back to the addiction they previously had.
Treatment is difficult. Drug rehab leads to withdrawal and physical pain that can be alleviated by the substance the addicted body lacks. When a site is open to come and go as addicts please, there is a chance they could slip back into addiction.
There should be accountability, a check-in system, and the ability to be chaperoned when needed.
5. Healthy Meals and Lifestyle
Part of getting clean and healthy is to get a healthier lifestyle overall. All the psychological treatments that people get at rehab are meaningless if there isn’t work done to make recovering addicts live better.
Inpatient rehab centers should offer healthy food at every meal. Breakfast and lunch should be lean, low-fat, and full of healthy fruits and vegetables. Dinners are often communal and give everyone the opportunity to eat healthy together.
When seeking out treatment, major lifestyle changes are needed. A healthy lifestyle entails learning new ways to deal with problems that drive addiction. You could learn new exercise routines, meditation, and non-denominational ways to engage your faith to help when times get tough.
Inpatient Drug Rehab Should Feel Personal
No matter what substance someone is dealing with, there is an inpatient drug rehab situation to suit their needs. Drug rehabilitation must be catered to the substance and lifestyle of each resident. During their stay, people dealing with drug addiction issues require support that feels personalized from day one.
With the holidays coming up, check out our guide or addiction news for avoiding substances during the joyful season.