Category: Uncategorized

Residential substance abuse treatment, or inpatient substance abuse treatment, hinges on the client living in the treatment facility for a number of days. It is typically 30-day, 60-day or 90-day intervals that are optional to clients in residential treatment centers. This model of treatment has been around for many years as people have long recognized the need to quarantine substance abusers in a safe place away from the substance they tend to abuse. Residential substance abuse treatment takes place within a treatment facility that is usually licensed to run out of a residential home or resort-like setting. The client submits to a certain number of days living within the facility under supervision by mental health professionals in order to strengthen their resolve to quit their substance abuse.

The start of residential substance abuse treatment is a detoxification period. Anyone abusing a substance requires detoxification because substance abuse throws off the body's chemistry. In order to be clearheaded and physically healthy enough to undergo extended treatment, a person must first cleanse their system of harmful toxins. Detoxification lasts for a number of days and is overseen by medical professionals who make the cleansing as comfortable as possible.

After detoxification, cognitive behavioral treatment begins in the form of sessions, workshops, assigned readings, workbook exercises, individual counseling, group therapy, physical exercise and therapeutic activities. This conglomeration of treatment devices is aimed at discovering the underlying cause of the individual's substance abuse problem and eradicating it. By changing the individual's thought and behavior patterns, they are able to re-enter the world with a new set of coping skills that will help them resist the urge to abuse substances again.

Once a person completes residential substance abuse treatment, they still have access to a great many resources that they had during their treatment, as well as new ones. They receive thorough exit counseling that gives them detailed directions on who and what is available to them during their ongoing recovery, including counselors, sponsors and support groups. Residential substance abuse treatment is highly recommended as the most intensive and successful form of substance abuse treatment available.

In selecting a method of substance abuse treatment for yourself or for your loved one, one of the first decisions you will need to make is whether you will go with inpatient treatment or outpatient. The difference between inpatient and outpatient substance abuse treatment may seem basic - the client is admitted for one and not for the other - but this difference in methodology between the two actually sets them apart quite distinctly. These two different types of substance abuse treatment have very different dynamics, and you will want to carefully choose between the two in order to receive the treatment that is most relevant.

Inpatient substance abuse treatment is thought of by mental health professionals as the most intensive and effective form of substance abuse treatment available. This method entails living on site in the treatment facility under 24-hour per day monitoring. The main objective of this type of treatment is to keep the individual securely away from the substance they have been abusing so that they can relearn how to function without it. During the time they spend in the treatment center, they focus on their mental and physical health with the help of professional counselors and facilitators who lead them through a detoxification period, therapy sessions, cognitive exercises, readings, physical exercise and therapeutic activities to prepare them to re-enter the world with a new set of coping skills. This method is best for those who have a moderate to severe substance abuse problem.

Outpatient substance abuse treatment has similar therapeutic methods but because there is no admittance, treatment is much less intensive. The individual is still free to interact with the outside world however they choose, but they attend regular appointments and sessions with counselors, facilitators, sponsors and groups in order to work toward recovery and strengthen their mental health. Outpatient substance abuse treatment allows the average person to stay active in their lives and in their jobs rather than forcing them to take leave. This makes outpatient substance abuse treatment a great option for mild to moderate substance abusers, or individuals who have already been through inpatient treatment and need to supplement what they learned with more treatment.