What makes a Drug Rehab Program Successful?

Today’s drug rehab programs can be incredibly successful at helping addicts achieve lasting sobriety – depending on the treatment methods employed. By treating addiction as a neurological disease, medical professionals have been able to create a myriad of highly effective drug rehab therapies. However, most laypeople don’t understand what goes on at rehabilitation clinics. It is crucial that people and their communities better understand drug addiction treatment so that they can help people who are unable to help themselves. The following are some of the treatment methods which make drug rehab programs so successful.

Beginning with Detox

When severely addicted people seek treatment for the first time, they are truly dependent on drugs or alcohol. Their brains have incorporated addictive substances into their normal operations, and they cannot make it through a single day without getting drunk or high. Detox weans them of these dependencies through a simple one to two-week process of deprivation. The withdrawal symptoms addicts experience during detox can be painful and debilitating, but rehab specialists help them endure the process with counseling, family support, and medication.

Clinical Isolation

Residential inpatient treatment is the most involved and effective drug rehab program for quickly turning addicts’ lives around. Patients live at their actual treatment facilities for thirty to ninety days, and this isolation is critical for undisturbed progress. Clinic staff can ensure that their patients don’t use drugs during this time, and the escape from the outside world allows addicts to focus entirely on their recovery efforts.

Evidence-Based Therapies

Nearly all rehab clinics in the United States use evidence-based therapies – those which have been scientifically tested, statistically proven, and approved by government and private institutions. They primarily include individual counseling, peer-group discussions, and family-oriented therapies.

The one-on-one counseling sessions are by far the most useful. Addiction counselors help their patients make personal discoveries about their reasons for using drugs and the aspects of their lives which compel their addictive behaviors. They can then work together to formulate strategies for dealing with cravings later in life – the key to maintaining sobriety.

Reality Treatment

Reality therapy teaches addicts how to tell the difference between situations they can and cannot control. These lessons are extremely useful for many patients, since control issues so often contribute to people’s addictions. When addicts understand the level of control they have over their surroundings, they can choose the most effective and socially appropriate strategies for avoiding or mitigating stress and drug cravings.

Dealing with Post Acute Withdrawal

Post Acute Withdrawal Syndrome – or PAWS – is the leading cause of relapse among recovering addicts. It sets in immediately after detox, but its effects can linger for years after treatment. Symptoms include insomnia, drug cravings, depression, schizophrenia, and chronic physical pain. Because PAWS is so prevalent and dangerous, rehab clinicians now prioritize its mitigation through education, additional counseling, and occasional medication.

Addicts’ Long-Term Efforts

Ultimately, addicts themselves are responsible for the success of their drug rehab programs. Even extended clinical treatments last less than a year, but staying sober takes a lifetime of effort. Addicts must maintain the lifestyle changes they make at their clinics through social sacrifices, healthy habits, and constant self-reflection. Addiction recovery takes requires a great deal of time and effort, but the rewards of sobriety are well worth it.

If you are unable to control your drug use, you need to seek help now. Addiction is a neurological disease – not a lack of willpower – and the only way to achieve lasting sobriety is through clinical addiction therapy. Pick up the phone and call the toll-free number at the top of your screen. We’re available night and day to confidentially consult with you about a drug rehab program that’s right for you. Take the first step on the road to recovery – call us now.