What Residential Drug Treatment Programs Are There?

For anyone seeking help with overcoming an addiction, the process of finding a place and a program that can guarantee success is practically impossible.

The fact remains that the ability of an addict to kick their addiction is heavily reliant on his or her motivation and desire to make a full recovery. The only thing to do is find out as much as possible about options before making a decision on where to go. Choosing a residential drug treatment program often proves to be the right decision for many people seeking help with their drug or alcohol addition. 

Residential drug treatment programs are different to simple inpatient and outpatient treatments, and not just because the cost can be anywhere between US$400 to US$1200 per day. Residential treatment involves a patient living in the center for a long period of time – often for as long as a year – before returning to the outside world. It has proven to be a highly successful method of recovery but like all treatments, there can be differing philosophies influencing different residential drug treatment programs. As a result, there are some things that you must watch out for before making a decision.

Often a program can seem rather commercial, with the rehabilitation center getting through quite a lot of patients each month. What this would suggest is that the center is not as committed to the individual patients as they would have you think. Patients are often very emotionally fragile, despite showing signs of strengthening while in residence, and despite completing a 30-day residency may need more time. Once they are out in the real world again, they can struggle to avoid the circumstances and people that led them into drugs in the first place. There is, therefore, a higher chance of relapsing.

Some more progressive residential drug treatment programs are less about getting patients into and then out of the door. Instead, these programs are designed to address the emotional and mental issues of the patient, not just the physical dependency. So, after an initial period of detoxing, some alternative programs can be adopted to move the patient’s emotional and mental dependencies away from drugs. These programs often include activities that we take for granted – like yoga or massage – but which can ease the body and mind into a stronger state.

While patient group therapy is considered as standard, there is a selection to choose from. Most have catchy titles, like the 12-Step Plan, while others are focused on avoiding relapses or look at the original reasons for starting on drugs, offering life assessment. There can also be family counseling, which can help your loved ones to cope with the pressures of your recovery, and offer them advice on how to help.

However, the best residential drug treatment programs are tailored to focus on a patient’s own particular needs and not simply treat them as another patient. Individual counseling plays a key role in such programs, while patients learn to understand themselves and their reasons for turning to drugs. That, along with time spent at the residence, can be the best way to achieve the aim of recovering completely from drug addiction.