Forget what you’ve heard about what happens in rehab.
There are so many misconceptions floating around about what actually happens inside rehab that it has given addiction treatment a bad stigma, when in actual fact it’s a process that helps people recover from an illness, just like any other medical facility.
In this article, we are going to tell you about the rehabilitation process and what you can expect once admitted into rehab.
The Assessment
Before any patient is admitted into rehab, one of the most important things to determine is what they are addicted to, what their symptoms are and how severe it is.
Included in the assessment will be to determine the patient’s medical history, addiction history, have they been in rehab before and what is their current physical & mental health state.
This needs to be done for every single patient that gets admitted because nobody’s addiction symptoms will ever be the same.
Once the assessment has been completed, the next step is to devise an addiction treatment program suited to the addict’s individual needs.
The Detox
A detox plays an important role in the addiction treatment process and it’s often seen as the starting point towards long term recovery.
The main aim of the detox is to remove all the harmful, poisonous toxins of drugs or alcohol out of the body and to minimise the effects of any withdrawal symptoms that might be experienced.
It also prepares patients for the next phase of treatment, which will include education, counselling and therapy.
The detox will be done under the watchful eyes of the medical staff at the rehab centre, ensuring that their patients are okay and looked after.
Patients suffering with behavioural addicts such as gambling, sex or pornography won’t be required to engage in a detox.
Inside Rehab
Once the detox has been completed, it is now time to get down and find out the real cause of the problem and to teach the addict how they can avoid making the same mistake in the future.
This will be done through individual counselling, group therapy, cognitive behavioural therapy and family therapy.
Individual counselling gives patients a one-on-one opportunity to work with an addiction counsellor to help get to the reason why and how they became addicted to drugs or alcohol in the first place and also to teach them ways on how to prevent this from happening ever again.
Group therapy gives patients the opportunity to engage and receive support from people in similar positions as themselves. This is vitally important as it helps the addict to gain experience in dealing with situations that they might face in their recovery.
Cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT) helps recovering addicts to understand that what they think and how they feel causes them to behave in a certain way. This teaches addicts to learn how to think and feel positive, which may help them to behave correctly and accordingly once discharged.
Family therapy is another key aspect of any treatment program, as these are usually the people that will support the addict’s recovery efforts once they leave rehab. It also helps to mend any relationships that may have been broken during the time of the addiction.
Discharge
Once treatment has completed, it does not mean that the addict is now fully recovered and can now go on with everyday life. Since there is simply no cure for addiction, recovery from this illness is a lifelong commitment to remaining clean and sober.
One of the biggest dangers that will be experienced during the early stages outside the rehab is the possibility of suffering a relapse, which is a fall back into addictive behaviours.
In order to prevent this from happening, it’s advisable to get into an aftercare program, such as outpatient treatment or support groups such as Alcoholics Anonymous (AA) or Narcotics Anonymous (NA), which are self-help groups have proven to be extremely effective in helping recovering addicts achieve long term sobriety.
If you are looking to continue your stay in a sober living environment, halfway houses are another good option. In a halfway house, recovering addicts will stay, eat and do fun things together; however they will be required to be out of the house during the day doing something meaningful to their recovery, such as working or studying.
For access to a good quality rehab that offers all of this, call us now and we can get you or your loved one immediate admission into the best private rehabs all over South Africa.