Drug addiction of any sort is a terrible illness. People addicted to alcohol and other drugs are caught in a cycle of physical compulsion and mental obsession.
They are unable to manage their lives or stop using substances no matter what the consequences. Even though they may have the most sincere desire to stop using and try everything in their power they simply cannot put down the substance. This is why having a place for addiction treatment where people can receive help is so important.
A place for addiction treatment is better known as a rehabilitation centre or “rehab”. There are many such centres across the globe. These specialist facilities employ expert addiction treatment consultants and other staff to run programs that have been developed over decades of research. They have a high success rate but only for patients who are willing to work the program and take the advice of their drug counsellors.
That may sound like common sense but many people come to a place for addiction treatment unwillingly and struggle against the system for much of their time there. They do not take full advantage of the expertise on offer and so miss out on vital parts of the program.
Even though it’s a part of the addiction treatment consultant’s task to help shift people from this ambivalent and resistant position often such people don’t stay clean and sober for very long after leaving rehab and need to be re-treated.
The staff in a place for addiction treatment should all be specialised in treating addiction. Drug addiction is a very serious illness and is very complicated since it pervades into all aspects of a patient’s life. In order to untangle the issues and help the patient to make sense of it all, the drug counsellor needs to have an intimate understanding of addiction and it’s ramifications.
Because of this fact it is not enough to focus exclusively on one area of a patient’s life. The treatment program in a place for addiction treatment will be varied in order to examine every part of a patient’s unique makeup. This is accomplished by having a multi-disciplinary team of professional addiction treatment consultants – doctors, psychologists, social workers and drug addiction counsellors. By collating their specialist knowledge the team is able to develop a holistic understanding and so provide effective therapy in the place for addiction treatment.
Therapy at any place for addiction treatment will start with a detoxification phase. Drug addicts suffer from withdrawal symptoms when they discontinue their substance. Under close medical supervision the patient will be weaned off their substance of abuse which helps reduce the withdrawal symptoms. Additionally they may be prescribed medication to ameliorate the process. Most addicts who try to detoxify independently end up relapsing. This is why a medically managed detoxification is preferable.
Finding a place for addiction treatment can be a daunting task. For a start it seems that every rehab centre claims to have the “best” program and “outstanding success rates”. This may well be the truth but since each rehab will have a slightly different program you need to find the program that is best FOR YOU. This will involve a little bit of homework in researching the options open to you but being placed in the correct drug addiction rehab centre will pay dividends.
You should carefully look at whether the centre employs a multi-disciplinary team, what sort of amenities they offer (gym, sauna, etc) and what ancillary therapeutic activities they use (art therapy, psychodrama, music groups, etc). You should make sure that the staff members are all professionally qualified and that the place for addiction treatment holds the proper registration status.
If all of this sounds like a daunting task please contact one of our treatment coordinators for expert advice in choosing the drug addiction rehab that is going to best suit your particular needs.