Tuesday 17th September 2013
Busy lifestyles make it very difficult for alcoholics to find time for alcohol rehab. Responsibilities at work & at home often force them to turn the other cheek when it comes to getting into treatment.
However, you have to understand the seriousness of the issue at hand. Having a drinking problem negatively affects every part of your life & the only way to stop it is to get professional help.
In this article, I’m going to provide you with all the information you need to make the right decision, starting with helping you determine if you’re an alcohol abuser or an alcoholic.
An alcohol abuser is someone who can stop drinking but doesn’t want to. An alcoholic is someone who wants to stop drinking but can’t.
Distinguishing between the two can be difficult but here’s how you can do it:
An alcohol abuser is someone who:
- Is unable to complete their daily responsibilities because of their drinking habits
- Continues to drink in dangerous situations, for example, while driving or at work
- Continuously gets into trouble because of their drinking
An alcoholic is someone who:
- Needs to drink more to achieve feelings that were once reached through smaller amounts of alcohol
- Suffers withdrawal symptoms when they try to quit drinking
- Wants to quit drinking alcohol but can’t
- Spends excessive amounts of time drinking alcohol
- Continues to drink alcohol despite seeing the damage it’s causing to their physical health & well-being
If you can relate to any of the above, the best thing that you can do is to get professional addiction help instead of trying to quit on your own. Here are the alcohol rehab options available for you:
Inpatient Alcohol Rehab
Inpatient alcohol rehab is without a shadow of doubt the best addiction treatment that alcoholics can receive.
In inpatient treatment, alcoholics will receive a supervised alcohol detox, counselling, therapy & education.
The alcohol detox (done under the constant supervision of the medical staff at the clinic) is often seen as the starting point of the treatment program. It helps to remove all the harmful toxins of the substance out of the body while also minimising the effects of any cravings & withdrawal symptoms that you might experience.
Once the alcohol detox has been completed, the counselling, therapy & education phase of the treatment program will begin. The main aim of it is to:
- Get down to the cause of why & how you became an alcoholic
- Show you what would’ve happened if you continued to drink alcohol
- Teach you how you can avoid drinking alcohol in future
- Help you communicate in a positive manner with other people & teach you how to make the right decisions again
All of this is done so that you’re equipped with all the necessary skills to help you achieve long term sobriety.
How long you’ll stay in alcohol rehab is ultimately down to the nature & severity of your own addiction, however there is a minimum requirement that all patients stay in treatment for at least 4 weeks.
For access to the best private inpatient alcohol rehab centres in South Africa, the United Kingdom & Thailand, call us now & let one of our qualified addiction counsellors provide you with free, expert advice.
Outpatient Alcohol Rehab
Outpatient alcohol rehab is designed for alcohol abusers that want to stop drinking but can’t get into inpatient treatment due to unavoidable obligations at work or at home. It’s also a good form of secondary care for alcoholics who have just completed a treatment program inside an inpatient alcohol rehab centre.
However, outpatient treatment isn’t for everyone and there are certain requirements that patients have to meet:
- You have to want to achieve recovery
- You must be able to quit drinking by yourself (random blood tests will be done to check if you were drinking)
- You must be able to attend the meetings regularly & on time
Outpatient alcohol rehab doesn’t require you to stay inside the clinic but you have to be able to attend the meetings in the evenings during the week. You’ll receive medical care, counselling, therapy & education similar to inpatient treatment, just in further detail.
For immediate access to the best private outpatient alcohol rehab programmes in South Africa, the United Kingdom & Thailand. Give us a call now & let one of our addiction counsellors assist you.
Article by We Do Recover