One of the most meaningful steps you can take toward breaking free of addiction is finding the substance abuse treatment program that is the best fit for you. Deciding between inpatient facilities and outpatient detox programs is a very individual choice, dependent on a variety of considerations.
Fortunately, there are thousands of certified treatment programs across the country, and hundreds of opportunities in New Jersey and the New York City metro area that offer various recovery experiences to fit any need. Each provides a different combination of therapies and a unique philosophy of care.
What do you need to know in order to choose the best option from the many different addiction treatment centers in your area?
Knowing Your Options Provides Fresh Hope
Sometimes the incorrect impression we get from television and movies about drug rehabilitation programs is that they are all restrictive, 24/7 supervised facilities that seem more like a jail than a place to heal. In reality, you and your loved ones can choose just as much, or as little, supervision and support as necessary to reach your sobriety goals.
This is your journey, and it will be as unique as you are. While it may at times be challenging, recovering from addiction is also empowering and re-invigorating. Rather than breaking you down, the right program will help you reach your personal goals and repair the damage that drugs or alcohol have caused in your life.
Every program has positives and negatives, but knowing you have so many options available will help you overcome any hesitations and get moving toward recovery. Let’s delve into the differences between the inpatient and outpatient facilities and discover the strengths of each approach.
Inpatient Treatment Programs
Inpatient treatment entails living in a supervised facility, usually under 24/7 supervision. Some are hospital-based, and others are more of a group home environment. Inpatient programs:
- Remove outside distractions and influences
- Might be a covered medical leave from work
- Are effective for severe or recurring addictions
- Are usually more expensive than outpatient treatment
- Enforce daily structure, scheduling, and healthy life habits
- Provide a supervised sober living environment, usually with medical care
- Often require a transition back to an unsupervised home environment
Outpatient Treatment Programs
Outpatient detox programs allow individuals to continue to live at home and attend structured treatment and guided therapy during the day. There is often support available through mentors or by phone 24/7. These programs also strive to build, repair, and maintain existing natural support systems with friends and family. Outpatient programs:
- Provide guidance in achieving sobriety by overcoming distractions and outside influences
- Allow continued involvement in school and family life
- May enable individuals to continue working or return to work sooner
- Are often recommended for early stages of addiction or for substances with less severe physical withdrawal
- Are usually less expensive than inpatient programs
- Teach life skills, stress management, and healthy life habits
- Provide a structured support program and medical care as needed
- Integrate recovery into daily life, easing the transition back to normal activities
You may also consider an intensive outpatient program, which incorporates a more rigorous and structured approach with many of the advantages of traditional outpatient therapy. This extends outpatient treatment programs to individuals with more serious, complex, or recurring types of addiction.
Questions to Ask Yourself
Examining your own individual needs and home environment will help you know which way to go. Being honest with yourself will give you the power to seize the right opportunity. Here are some factors to consider before you make your choice:
- Do I need a sober place to live or can I maintain a sober home environment?
- Am I concerned about severe withdrawal or co-occurring medical or mental health conditions that need 24/7 care?
- Do I need to be completely free from outside influences and stress or can I achieve sobriety with daily support in my own environment?
Questions to Ask a Treatment Facility
Having considered your own unique situation, you will be well prepared to discuss your needs when reaching out to the facilities in your area. When talking to potential recovery centers, be sure to ask these types of questions:
- Is the program certified, accredited, and licensed, with a good reputation for high-quality care?
- What is their success rate, and how do they measure success? Does this align with your personal goals?
- Does the program identify addiction as a chronic disease and treat it as such? This approach is in line with current medical research.1
- Does the facility make claims of instant or permanent cures or claim a 100% success rate? Effective treatment is a process, and such claims are usually a sign of unreliable providers.
- Do they use medication to treat addiction, reduce cravings, or prevent relapse? There are new medications that can be very helpful, but some individuals prefer a program that focuses on counseling and behavioral psychology.
- What are their expectations for patients? Is the program long- or short-term? Will you be able to meet these commitments?
- Do they offer outpatient addiction treatment, inpatient options, or both?
- Does the program include modern therapies which teach relaxation, healthy lifestyle changes, and stress or anger management?
- Is family encouraged to participate in treatment and support groups as well?
- Is wellness, including a nutritional component, part of the program? Studies show programs with a nutritional component have higher success rates.2
- Is a broad spectrum of services available to support mental and behavioral health, life skills, career goals, relationship building, and relapse prevention?
- Do they provide follow-up services, ongoing mentorship, and/or community support groups to help prevent or treat relapse?
Choose a Treatment Program You Can Trust
Gathering this information will help you decide which program is most aligned with your needs. You should choose the one that best fits your individual situation and personal beliefs while providing all of the services you or your loved one might need.
Just as in education, the least restrictive environment that will support the return to sobriety may be the best choice. Certainly, this decision sets a course for a brighter future, and receiving the best possible guidance now will greatly improve your chances of getting there quickly, safely, and with long-term success.
The right treatment program will be happy to answer all of your questions and may even recommend another type of facility if they believe it would be in your best interest. You should be treated with respect, compassion, and support at every step of the journey, and their concern for your wellbeing and safety should be obvious.
Not to Decide Is to Decide
If one program does not feel right to you, just cross it off the list and move on to the next reputable opportunity. What is vitally important at this point is that you don’t get discouraged or give up before you find the help you need, even if you’ve had a bad experience in the past.
Making the choice to seek help and research inpatient and outpatient detox programs is a brave one, and the team you choose to rely on should respond with your next steps and help you get started as soon as possible. They know how difficult it is to make that first contact and are standing by to empower your decision to change.
When you choose BlueCrest Recovery Center, you will have a team of highly trained counselors by your side to educate you about addiction and help you start healing right away. Our outpatient programs reverse the devastating biological, sociological, spiritual, and psychological impacts of addiction and restore lives. Contact us today to find out if we are the right place for your future healing!
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