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.