Average Duration of Inpatient Drug Rehab Programs

The length of stay in an inpatient drug treatment program varies greatly depending on the person. There are both short and long term facilities, with each providing different levels of service. A short term stay could just be 5 to 7 days of detox and physical stabilization. Long term inpatient treatment translates to anywhere from 60 to 90 days or longer. The average length of a stay in an inpatient treatment center is about 28 days. This is about the time it takes to break a habit, receive the appropriate therapy and return to a productive life. In general, the more severe the addiction the longer the stay. The following is the general treatment process and approximate completion times.

Getting Admitted to Rehab

The first step when being admitted to an inpatient rehab program is possibly the most important one. This consists of a comprehensive assessment and evaluation. This will establish a medical history, your personality for the healthcare professionals who will treat you and the severity of your addiction. The ultimate objective is to set a baseline so that you can see the life changes you will have to make to be successful in abstaining from drugs or alcohol.

Medically Supervised Detox

The next step is medically supervised detoxification. Most inpatient programs cannot begin until this step has been completed. This can take anywhere from 3 to 14 days depending on the individual and the severity of their addiction or alcoholism.

Addiction Recovery Begins

After detox, the long term work related to recovery begins. However, usually an alcoholic or drug addict is in some stage of denial. They deny the amount of alcohol or drug they are consuming, the effect it has on their life and the lives of those around them, and the consequences of continuing. Getting past that denial means work. This could include individual, group or family therapy, lectures, exercise, Yoga, special therapies for psychiatric issues, homework and music or art therapy. This also helps the rehab center achieve its goals of educating you about the facts of your addiction and how to live a drug or alcohol free lifestyle. Helping you to become aware of your behavior and the impact it’s having on your life can lead to a life-changing epiphany for many people in recovery.

There are several types of inpatient rehab centers to choose from. They include hospital based, long term extended care, gender specific, adult or adolescent, faith based and “wilderness” based.

To give you an example of how many people go to one of these inpatient rehab centers, it has been estimated that in 2007, 2.5 million people were admitted to rehab centers for alcohol abuse alone. If you have an addiction, inpatient treatment could provide you with the best chance of a lasting recovery. Overcoming an alcohol or drug addiction is difficult, but the process of learning how to stay sober dramatically improves your chances of success.

Because drug treatment programs are highly individualized, there is no set duration of treatment. For some people rehab may last just a few short weeks, while for others treatment is available for as long as they need it; up to 6 months or longer at some facilities. In many cases the duration of your treatment will be entirely up to you.

If you or someone you love is suffering from an addiction and has questions about how long inpatient treatment will last, call the number at the top of your screen for an immediate, free consultation. We can advise you on all of your treatment options and even tell you what your daily schedule will be like. Regardless of where you are or what time it is, we can help, but we can’t do anything if you don’t call.