Long Term Addiction Treatment

There are many recovery options available for anyone looking to overcome a substance use disorder and manage other co-occurring mental health disorders. One of these options comes in the form of long term addiction treatment.

Although there are several drug rehabs, research studies have shown that long term treatment might be more effective in the creation of better outcomes in therapy and rehabilitation. Read on to find out more:

Brief Definition

Also referred to as long term inpatient treatment or long term residential treatment, long term addiction treatment refers to treatment that will typically take place over anywhere between 3 and 12 months or longer.

The time you spend in such a program will allow you to live in a recovery center where you can receive round the clock care and medical supervision. During the first few stages of your recovery, you will be monitored closely. This is because of the risk of developing adverse and life-threatening withdrawal symptoms.

During the program, you will start receiving long term care. The center might also provide you with aftercare programming services so that you have a clear plan of action to activate once you check out of the drug rehab center.

Although you can expect to spend anywhere between 3 and 6 months in a typical long term addiction treatment program, some facilities will often require that you spend longer. This is because you may need the additional time to achieve full recovery before checking out of the facility.

That said, most of these residential treatment programs will offer long term care and recovery processes. All these program offerings can help you achieve full sobriety and recovery in the most effective and natural way possible.

The primary goal of long term care is to reinstate you to your daily life while also helping you to become more productive. It can also teach you how to make your life more meaningful by avoiding drugs and alcohol.

Who Is Long Term Addiction Treatment Best For?

According to SAMHSA - the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration - more than 22 million people in the United States required professional addiction treatment services in 2013. However, only about 2.5 million were able to get these services.

If you are struggling with a substance use disorder, you may find that long term addiction treatment is the right option for you. It could even help you set and maintain long term recovery.

The treatment professionals working in these centers will take the severity and history of your substance abuse into account. Other factors that they will consider before enrolling you for recovery services include:

- Any other comorbid condition that you may also be struggling with, such as medical, physical, psychological, and behavioral health problems that occur at the same time as your addiction

• Duration of your substance abuse
• The type or types of substance that you used to abuse
• -Your physical state
• Your social, cultural, mental, spiritual, and emotional needs
• The highly structured rehab program offered at a long term addiction treatment center could also be ideal if you are:
• Dealing with specific needs, due to your state as a mother, a pregnant woman, or an adolescent
• Experiencing multiple relapses
• Facing challenges even after completing another treatment program
• Facing challenges in recovery while enrolled in a rehab center that lasts shorter
• Struggling with co-occurring mental health and medical disorders

Research studies have also shown that long term addiction treatment might be the right option if you have been addicted for a long time period and you are yet to maintain complete sobriety even after being through another treatment program. This is because you will typically need to spend more time working through your recovery before you can get a footing on sobriety.

How Long Is Long Term Addiction Treatment?

As the name suggests, long term addiction treatment will typically take place over a long duration of time. In many instances, this form of drug rehab will take up anywhere between 4 to 6 months - or 120 to 180 days. Some of them may even last longer.

The important thing to keep in mind is that these programs that help you overcome a chronic substance abuse problem so that you can sustain your abstinence long after you have been through treatment.

You should also remember that addiction will often affect your psychological and physical health in various ways. It is for this reason that there is no single universal approach that can help everyone who is addicted to achieve a state of full recovery.

Consequently, you may want to seek help from a long term addiction treatment program. By so doing, you could potentially improve your chances of achieving full sobriety and staining your recovery in the long term.

Research studies have also shown that people who spend more than 90 days to 1 year in a treatment program tend to enjoy better outcomes in recovery. To this end, long term care could afford you the opportunity you need to be able to concentrate on all the behaviors, actions, and thoughts that underlie your substance abuse and addiction. These programs can also allow you enough time to practice the recovery lessons you learned during treatment.

You should also keep in mind that long term addiction treatment is often divided into various stages. These include medical detox, therapy and counseling, post-care and aftercare programming. These programs also provide different approaches in recovery, both on an inpatient and on an outpatient basis. All these offerings could increase the total amount of time you spend in a long term drug rehab center.

Average Cost of Long Term Addiction Treatment

The cost of long term addiction treatment will vary widely from one center to another. If you choose a high end program, for instance, you can expect to be charged more. This is because of the extra benefits that you will be able to enjoy in such a program - such as a higher staff - to - patient ratio, special services, and additional luxury amenities.

Outpatient care, on the other hand, will often cost less than what you would typically pay in an inpatient treatment program. This is because inpatient programs offer various activities, therapy and counseling, meals, and lodging.

Even so, outpatient treatment - even when it is on a long term basis - will vary from one program to another. This variation will be in terms of the offerings provided. Including support group meetings, individual and group counseling sessions, highly structured detox services, and intensive programs.

The important thing to keep in mind is that there are many factors that will affect the total cost of your long term addiction treatment. These include:

• The amenities provided, such as acupuncture, gourmet meals, massage therapy, private rooms, animal therapy, yoga and others
• The duration of the treatment program itself
• The existence of other co-occurring disorders over and above your addiction
• The location of the treatment program
• The severity of your addiction

Before you enroll in any of these programs, you should talk to the addiction treatment professionals working there. This way, you will be able to discuss the costs, as well as other issues pertinent to financing your care.

How Do I Go About Finding Long Term Addiction Treatment?

There are many things that you need to keep in mind while looking for an addiction treatment program, even if it is on a long term basis. These factors include but are not limited to:

• How you are going to pay for your treatment
• The cost of care
• The location of the program
• The recovery options available at the long term addiction treatment program
• The kinds of addiction that the program focuses on
• The services provided
• The specialization of the program
• The type of program you wish to enroll in
• The types of insurance - if any - that the program accepts

You need to go for a thorough assessment and evaluation before enrolling in such a program. By so doing, you will be able to understand the extent and severity of your addiction so that you can determine if long term drug and alcohol rehab is the right option for you.

Conclusion

In conclusion, long term addiction treatment tends to last longer than many other forms of drug and alcohol rehabilitation program. The extra time you spend in such a program, however, could prove beneficial.

For instance, it will allow you enough time to work through the withdrawal symptoms and drug cravings that you experience during the initial stages of your addiction treatment - a period known as detox.

After you have safely detoxed, the program can offer you theory and counseling services. This way, you will be able to understand all the reasons why you started abusing drugs and drinking alcohol and continued doing so for such a long time. As a result, you will get the opportunity to work through all these issues, as well as address other factors linked to your addiction.

Finally, if you also have a dual diagnosis for addiction and another co-occurring medical or mental health disorder, long term addiction treatment could help you deal with both disorders until you achieve a state of full recovery from both.

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