Selecting the right treatment option for addiction improves one’s chances of recovery. If you have a wide social network and support, have strong will-power and can be abstinence for at least 72 hours then it is more likely that an outpatient addiction treatment will be recommended for you. Alternatively, an outpatient addiction treatment can be advised to you if there are daily responsibilities which require your personal attention or if an inpatient treatment is well outside your budget.

Extensive assessment of the patient’s condition a must

Before considering an outpatient addiction treatment seriously, it is best to perform an extensive evaluation of the condition of the patient. It is highly recommended as, while most of the patients and their family members would prefer outpatient addiction treatment because of various reasons, one might require much more  intense treatment than outpatient addiction care.

Though outpatient addiction treatment generally refers to programs which allow the patient to stay at home, the patient needs to undergo treatment and attend various rehab programs suggested by the medical practitioner. Though the basic pattern of most of the outpatient addiction treatment programs are same, there might be some differences in the treatment methods.

Advantages of Outpatient Addiction Treatment

Some of the major advantages of outpatient addiction treatment is that the treatment can be done without the patient taking a break from one’s work. When compared with inpatient addiction treatment, outpatient addiction treatment is a whole lot cheaper. The most important advantage of an outpatient addiction treatment is that, the patient gets to stay with his loved ones at home, and hence receives continuous support from them during the course of the treatment.

The outpatient addiction treatment is ideal for patients who are experiencing mild addiction patterns and behaviours. In this program, the patient is required to visit the treatment centre for about three to five times in a week.

Drawbacks of Outpatient Addiction treatment

Majority of the outpatient addiction programs deal with the treatment of patients only through counselling. Since, patients with major addiction problems require medical attention in addition to counselling, it is highly recommended that all patients with major addiction behaviours should be admitted in an inpatient addiction program. Similarly, if an addict is facing any physical or psychological issues which demand medical attention, then inpatient addiction treatment would be the best option.

The outpatient addiction treatment lags behind the inpatient addiction treatment in some aspects such as outpatient addiction patients receive delayed medical facilities when compared to inpatients as inpatients have instant access to all the medical facilities which effectively takes care of all their health problems.

Once an individual and the family members of the patient have recognized the fact that the addict needs professional help, it is best to seek immediate intervention for the addiction. However, it is best to consult a counsellor to determine the best addiction treatment based on the individual needs of the patient. At any point in time, it should be kept in mind that a treatment program which suits the physical and psychological needs of the patient will help him recover at the earliest.

Inpatient Addiction treatments are programs in which the patient or the addict is required to stay at the treatment center. Inpatient addiction treatment is ideal for patients who have a long history of addiction and are deeply addicted to drugs or alcohol.

24 Hour Facilities

Inpatient addiction treatment is preferred by many individuals as it gives the patient an instant and round the clock access to all the important facilities of the treatment center. These facilities also include the services of professionals like Doctors, Physicians, Psychiatrists, Medical Counsellors, Therapists and Nurses. Inpatient Addiction treatment programs fulfil all the criteria of a successful rehab program by providing the patients with all the possible help and resources, so that it becomes easier for the patient to live a life which is free of dependence on drugs and alcohol.

Duration of Inpatient Addiction Treatments

Duration of an inpatient addiction treatment can vary anywhere between one week to three months. Programs which last from one week to almost a month are known as short-term inpatient addiction treatment programs and programs which typically last between three to six months are known as long-term inpatient addiction treatment programs. While all the facilities and the treatment methods remain are almost the same for both the programs, short term inpatient addiction treatment is considered best for patients with mild addiction and for patients who have the ability to understand the irrepressible nature of their addiction at the early stages of the treatment itself.

Addiction is a Chronic Disease

Addiction is a chronic disease with huge probability of relapsing, and hence cannot be fixed that easily. Long-term inpatient addiction treatment mainly aims at refurbishing and renovating the entire system of the patient which was damaged during the whole experience of addiction and drug or alcohol abuse. Inpatient addiction treatment is usually recommended for a longer duration of a minimum of three months for patients with a long and recurring history to strong addiction. It usually takes at least three months for the addict to re discover the real self who is no longer over-shadowed by the ways of the addict.

Advantages of Inpatient treatment

Apart from the advantage of the 24 hour facilities, the biggest advantage of Inpatient treatment is that it allows the patient to open up and discuss the underlying physical and psychological issues with the counsellors and doctors, which might be posing a difficulty for one to come out of addiction completely. Not only this, Inpatient treatment also allows the patients to observe and relate with other patients. The patients establish bonds with each other which help them to recover faster.

Disadvantages of Inpatient treatment

Since the recovery from addiction requires strong support of family members and loved ones, it would not be wrong to say that the biggest drawback of the Inpatient treatment is that the patient has to stay away from the family members and hence cannot feel their continuous support.

Conclusion

It is very important for the patient and his family members to understand the differences and similarities between different types of addiction programs, to find and determine on an addiction treatment which best suits the needs of the individual.

The primary objective of any reputed rehabilitation program is to maintain a long-term or a permanent recovery from addiction. Statistics prove that patients who stayed in halfway homes had much low incidence of relapse. It is because of this reason that many of the rehabilitation centers recommend the patients stay in a halfway house for some length of time rather than the patient directly going back to home and similar circumstances which induced addiction in the first place.

Purpose of a Halfway House

The rationale behind a half way house is to provide the patient with surroundings which facilitate the process of re-assimilation into the society. The halfway houses provide the much essential support and monitoring which is required at this stage to ease the risk of addiction relapse. As the name suggests halfway houses or sober houses are places which allow and support the patients to recover and lead a sober life. More often than not, the stay in these halfway houses is a voluntarily decision of the patient.

How to Find a Reputed Halfway House

There are many factors which differentiate a normal halfway house with a quality one. The most important one being, the main purpose of the halfway house should be to help the residents rather than simply making money from them. Most of the quality half way houses are licensed, but it is not essential that a good halfway house should be licensed. A quality sober house has a list of rules and regulations and effective means to track if they are being followed by the house guests.  Quality halfway houses are mostly located near rehabilitation centres and good neighbourhoods. Also, the quality halfway houses collaborate with the local social service agencies to help the residents the most. While there are many decisive factors which make a sober house a quality one, it is best to do some research, to find the best one which suits the needs and temperament of the individual.

Halfway Houses are an Essential Part of Most Reputed Rehabilitation Process

Sober houses form an integral part of many well-known treatment processes. With the decent surroundings of good neighbourhoods proving to be conductive in helping the individuals to effectively maintain the recovery, half way or sober houses provide the patient with an ideal setting. Most of the quality halfway houses support the individuals in whatever work they take up to mark the beginning of a new and meaningful life. As discussed earlier, the stay in the halfway houses are voluntary and hence the admission and discharge depends on the choice of the individual.

The Difference between a Halfway House and a Treatment Center

Halfway houses are completely different from treatment or rehabilitation centres. Halfway houses do not offer any treatment to the residents; they only provide a sober environment and surrounding to the individuals which is usually conductive in maintaining the recovery for long. One needs to understand that if a person is continuing the abuse of drugs or alcohol in any form, then the individual needs a rehabilitation center and not a halfway house.

Detoxification is considered as the first and one of the most crucial steps in overcoming the addiction of drugs or alcohol.  Medical professionals are of the opinion that detox is a necessary step to achieve complete de-addiction of the patient. However, detoxification process can be quite taxing for the patients and hence the whole process requires constant support from the family members as well as the medical personnel in the treatment center.

What is Drug Detoxification?

Withdrawal symptoms are the body’s reaction to the removal of drugs or alcohol, on which the body was dependent for long. Withdrawal symptoms include increased cravings for the removed substance. The duration in which the body tries to defeat the addiction to the substance is called detoxification.

Types of Drug Detox

There are primarily three types of drug detox methods. They are:

1)     Residential Social Model Detoxification: This method does not involve any support from the medical personnel and is also marked by the absence of any medication.  It is best for individuals with mild addiction history. Successful detoxification of the patient through this method only requires 5-10 days. During this process, the treatment centers take care that the patient should get adequate nutrition and rest. The patients are monitored round the clock by a staff of the treatment center. Some treatment centers also include drug education or alcohol education in the process, whichever is appropriate for the patient’s recovery.

2)     Medical Model Detoxification: This method of detoxification is generally recommended for patients who require medical attention because of their ill health or are expecting rigorous withdrawal symptoms. Medical model detoxification is crucial for all the patients who are marked by medical conditions like seizures and delirium tremors during withdrawal. This process is generally carried out in hospitals as it requires medical attention and medications. Medical Model Detoxification requires round the clock monitoring of the patient by the medical staff in the hospital.

3)     Rapid Detox: is a medical procedure in which the addict’s opiate receptors are cleansed for opiates and its traces. This is primarily done with the help of medicines. Rapid detoxification usually takes a few hours during which the medical personnel give anaesthesia to the patient, and the patient is required to stay in an intensive care unit. This process demands careful monitoring of the patient by the physicians and medical personnel in the hospital. A person who is detoxified through this method usually requires taking prescribed medicines for almost a year. This is to ensure that the physical cravings do not re-occur.

Conclusion

Since detoxification is the first step in the treatment of addiction, it would not be an exaggeration to say that these detoxification methods pave the way for effective rehabilitation and treatment of the patients. Most of the detoxification methods are very challenging for the addicts and need to be tackled with sensitivity and compassion. It is also very important that staff of the treatment center takes the complete drug history into consideration, before determining on a particular detoxification model or method.

After care is one of the most significant aspects of any addiction treatment. This is especially true because it is a proven fact that more than 50% people who attempt treatment suffer with relapses. It would not at all be an exaggeration to say that aftercare is indeed the most challenging aspect of any addiction treatment. However, it is also a fact that with an apt aftercare and expert treatment, many of the patients live successful and happy lives, which is free of any kind of addiction.

Why is Aftercare so Important?

Once the patient returns home after successful treatment program, it is likely that one has to confront many situations which could create cravings of various intensities in the individual.  Aftercare plays a substantial role in dealing with these cravings, which could otherwise lead to relapse of the addiction.  It is very important to understand that addiction is more of a mental ailment than a physical one. It is the mind which plays an important role in the dependence on the substance. While the detoxification process takes care of the physical aspect of the treatment, the aftercare phase is very important for the complete mental recovery from the problem of addiction.

Aftercare Phase Crucial for Increasing the Patient’s Commitment

Aftercare, which is often the last stage of the recovery of the individual, plays the most important role in reinforcing the patient’s commitment to abstinence and a drug or alcohol free life. A good aftercare treatment also prepares the individual to face the many problems and struggles of life, without getting addicted once again and facilitates emotional and mental strengthening of the individual.

Effective Aftercare can Prevent Relapse

It is an unfortunate fact that many addicts relapse back into addiction once the treatment is over and they return to the same surroundings and environment which would have once led them into addiction. This might be because of the inability to cope up with the stress and pressure exerted by the activities and social activities of the peers and friends. In such circumstances it becomes quite difficult for the patient to remember and apply the skills acquired in the addiction centre. And it is because of this reason; the importance of an effective after phase treatment is stressed by many experts.

Conclusion

For a sustained recovery, it is crucial for the patients and their family members to understand that inpatient treatment was certainly not the end of the rehabilitation program.  The physicians and the counselors make the patient understand that due conscientiousness is required even after the inpatient treatment is over, and more so as there won’t be any hospital staff to monitor the patient on a regular basis. At this stage, the patient’s understanding of the actual scenario plays a very crucial role in the success of the entire process. Relapse prevention is handled very effectively by many of the aftercare treatments by simply making the patient aware of all the risks which could bring a relapse.