How Does Addiction Rehabilitation Work
URP is More than a Rehabilitation Center. It is a Place where Lives are Changed Forever.
FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla., Dec. 27, 2022 /PRNewswire/ — United Recovery Project:
Addiction is a chronic health issue for which there is no definitive cure. The consequences of alcohol and substance use disorders not only affect the person who is addicted, but they also affect that person’s loved ones and society as a whole. Understanding how addiction rehabilitation works may help clients get the most benefit from their treatment.
Addiction disorders affect more lives in the United States than most people realize. The National Institutes of Health estimates that 23 million U.S. adults have struggled with substance abuse at some point, and approximately 14.5 million people over the age of 12 have had an alcohol use disorder.
Sadly, too many people don’t survive their addiction issues. An estimated 100,306 overdose deaths occurred in 2021 alone.
People who engage in addiction treatment for the first time don’t always know what to expect when they decide to undergo rehabilitation. The first step is deciding which type of treatment program will best suit their needs.
A medical detox center provides patients with a range of medical care resources to help manage detoxification and minimize withdrawal symptoms. While anyone can benefit from medical detox, it is especially recommended for people with severe or prolonged addiction issues.
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What Is A 12
A 12-step program is a peer-based mutual help program for alcoholism, drug abuse and other addictive and dysfunctional behaviors. The steps are guiding principles that outline how to overcome addiction, avoid triggers and live a healthy, productive life.
The group provides an anonymous, safe and supportive environment to share knowledge, build bonds and maintain sobriety with others in similar situations. Its led by a member of the program, often someone who has been in recovery for a significant time.
Members encourage one another to share their feelings and experiences with addiction as they work through each step of the program. The goal is to help members experience a spiritual awakening or make the personal change needed to overcome addiction.
Programs can differ but some common steps in the 12-step process include:
- Admitting you are not in control your addiction
- Recognizing a higher power can give strength
- Examining past mistakes
- Living a new way of life
While 12-step programs are based in spiritual principles, the language of God as a higher power emphasizes how each member recognizes it, allowing for different interpretations and beliefs. While some members do believe in a traditional God, others believe in karma, earth, science, mother nature, the universe, humanity at large or even their recovery fellowship as a healing power.
For more information, visit www.12step.org.
Stage : Early Recovery
If the addict has not already entered a rehab center, this happens at the beginning of Stage 4, which is characterized by the individual putting their recovery plan into action and making the effort to see it through. The first step of this will be choosing what kind of recovery program would be best for them. There are many different options to choose from, but the most effective of these is known as inpatient care, which is when the patient resides at the facility while receiving treatment.
In most scenarios, treatment begins with a process known as detoxification, also known as detox. During detox, all addictive substances are carefully removed from the patients body, under the supervision of qualified medical professionals. Due to the adverse side effects associated with withdrawal, it is imperative to undergo this process in a medical setting. When attempting detox alone, it can be quite difficult, and sometimes, very dangerous.
In cases of severe withdrawal, such as alcoholism or opioid addiction, the staff may utilize specific medications that lessen the effects of withdrawal, in order to make the process less dangerous. If not for these, the recovery process could easily become dangerous thanks to the severity of the addiction.
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How Does Addiction Start
Addiction starts in many ways. While its origins may begin with your mental state, its introduction can come from many different arenas. The other variables of your background can have a tremendous effect on your life path. It can be disconcerting to see so many lives veer toward addiction. However, they do have common themes that you can examine for yourself. This may save you in future decision-making or when choosing addiction treatment. This article discusses how addiction has already started for some individuals. It can also help you be wary of that for yourself. According to the National Institute on Drug Abuse , these origins can be attributed to biology, environment, and development.
What Kind Of Care Is Needed During Recovery
What is needed is any type of care or program that facilitates not merely a drug-free life but the pursuit of new goals and new relationships. There are many roads to recovery, and needs vary from individual to the next. Some people need medication to help them recover, some need the structured support of an outpatient program of a treatment facility to help them through, others need a recovery residence, while others get sufficient information and nourishment from the regular contact with others that self-help groups provide. Others do well on their own making use of available community resources.
But attention to the addiction is only one facet of recovery. Recovery involves rebuilding a life returning to wellness and becoming a functioning member of society. Every person needs a comprehensive recovery plan that addresses educational needs, job skills, social relationships, and mental and physical health. Therapy may be critical to resolving underlying problems that made escape into substance use so appealing in the first place.
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Will The Cravings Ever Stop
Cravings are the intense desire for alcohol or drugs given formidable force by neural circuitry honed over time into single-minded pursuit of the outsize neurochemical reward such substances deliver. Cravings vary in duration and intensity, and they are typically triggered by people, places, paraphernalia, and passing thoughts in some way related to previous drug use. But cravings dont last forever, and they tend to lessen in intensity over time.
Studies show that craving has a distinct timetablethere is a rise and fall of craving. In the absence of triggers, or cues, cravings are on a pathway to extinction soon after quitting. But some triggers cant be avoided, and, further, the human brain, with its magnificent powers of association and thinking, can generate its own. Studies show that craving for alcohol peaks at 60 days of abstinence. For methamphetamine, it peaks at three months.
People can learn to resist or outsmart the cravings until they become manageable. There are strategies of distraction and action people can learn to keep them from interrupting recovery. One is to shift thinking immediately as a craving arises. Another is to carefully plan days so that they are filled with healthy, absorbing activities that give little time for rumination to run wild. Exercise, listening to music, getting sufficient restall can have a role in taking the focus off cravings.
Choosing The Right Addiction Rehab Center
Choosing the right addiction rehab center for yourself or a loved one isnt an easy task. We can help you make an informed decision regarding the next steps in your or your loved ones recovery. At Steps to Recovery, we offer outpatient drug addiction services with licensed recovery housing. Additionally, our sister facility, Silver Pines Treatment, is a detox center that provides a comprehensive detox program.
Steps to Recovery will forever have a special place in my heart. The staff truly cares about each and every individual that comes through their program and they provided me with the opportunity of a new life I could of never imagined for myself!
Dana C.
STR is one of the reasons Im alive and clean today. If not for this company and the tremendous help they provided for me and my family I wouldnt be the man I am today.
David S.
Str is a phenomenal program. I was so scared walking in there and was immediately embraced as basically a family member. This program contributed significantly-and still does- to my sobriety. Ive been able to reach almost 2 years now and I cant thank them enough.
Never been to a treatment center as amazing as Str. The loving staff actually took the time to get to know everyone on a personal basis, and cared for us when we couldnt care for ourselves. I genuinely owe my life to Str.
Brit M.
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Detox Through Your First Days Of Sobriety
No matter the addictive substance or activity youre looking to remove from your life, the detox period will likely prove a difficult one. Once youve committed to removing the addition from your life, and once youve surrounded yourself with individuals and professionals who will accompany you and support you, its time to detox.
Its time to quit the addiction, and weather the detox period to come.
Whenever you remove an addiction from your life, the abstinence period can yield all sorts of personal responses. Youre likely to experience all sorts of physical and emotional reactions, as your body and mind together cope with the removal of the addiction. Lets make one thing very clear: every second you spend fighting against the effects of your detox period, every second you spend free of your addiction, is a victory. Even if youre only seconds, minutes or hours into your detox, youve already accomplished something you couldnt or didnt before: an attempt to distance yourself from the worst thing in your entire life.
Beyond the physical responses your body might have to a detox, youre also likely to experience one or several emotional responses. These can include temporary anxiety or stress, difficulty falling or staying asleep, emotional discomfort, even an inability to concentrate on anything else.
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Jeffrey Juergens
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Jeffrey Juergens earned his Bachelors and Juris Doctor from the University of Florida. Jeffreys desire to help others led him to focus on economic and social development and policy making. After graduation, he decided to pursue his passion of writing and editing. Jeffreys mission is to educate and inform the public on addiction issues and help those in need of treatment find the best option for them.
Reviewed by Certified Addiction Professional: October 14, 2019
Dayna Smith-Slade
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Dayna Smith Slade is the President and CEO of Substance Abuse Solutions, L.L.C., a unique and innovative substance abuse consulting firm based in Northern Virginia. Her Small, Women, and Minority owned firm is committed to increasing drug and alcohol awareness in the community and decreasing the prevalence and debilitating impact of substance abuse. Dayna is a seasoned counselor with experience in a variety of therapeutic milieus. She is a dynamic public speaker that has been the featured trainer at national conferences and the featured guest on local television and radio talk shows.
Reviewed by Doctor of Addiction Medicine: July 27, 2022
Dr. Ashish Bhatt, MD
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The Purpose Of The 12 Steps
The 12 Steps were created by the founders of Alcoholics Anonymous to establish guidelines to overcome an addiction to alcohol. The program gained enough success in its early years for other addiction support groups to adapt the steps to their specific substance or addictive behavior.
There are many 12-step programs for various addictions and compulsive behaviors, ranging from Cocaine Anonymous to Debtors Anonymousall using the same 12-Step methods.
Although the 12 Steps are based on spiritual principles, many nonreligious people have found the program immensely helpful. The language emphasizes the presence of God as each participant understands God, allowing for different interpretations and religious beliefs.
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What Are The 12 Steps
The 12 Steps, as outlined in the original Big Book and presented by AA are:2
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Stages Of Change In The Addiction Recovery Process
Recovery is a process that continues after formal treatment ends. The recovery process from drug or alcohol addiction often involves a person making a significant change to improve their quality of life, including overall health and wellness. It can also help teach people to feel empowered in their lives and reach their full potential.
If you or a loved one is starting the recovery journey, or you are curious about what it means, this article will help you understand what the stages of change in the recovery process are, different types of programs and treatment options you may encounter.
Support Systems For Recovery
Sustaining behavior change until new patterns become ingrained is difficult under the best of circumstances. In leaving addiction behind, most people have to restructure their everyday life, from what they think about and who they spend time with and where, to how they use their time, to developing and pursuing new goals. The shifts in thinking and behavior are critical because they lay the groundwork for changes in brain circuity that gradually help restore self-control and restore the capacity to respond to normal rewards.
Further, the behavior change requires constant decision-making often in the presence of deeply rooted desire for the drug escape, before most people have acquired belief in themselves and a complete set of coping skills to help them through the challenges. That makes self-trust one key to quitting, something that tends to be in short supply among those who have previously tried to quit and failed. There are many types of support to call on to help shore up resolve. Any and all are useful
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Alcohol Poisoning: You Can Save A Life In Less Than 10 Steps
Last night Kerry got drunk and then kept drinking. By the end of the night, he couldn’t even stand up on his own. His friends carried him to the car, drove him home and put him to bed on his couch. They thought he’d just sleep it off and have a …
StepsstepsaddictionaddictionrecoveryAddiction
Condition Of Clients In Middle
Often, in as little as a few months, institutional and reimbursement constraints limit access to ongoing care. People with addiction histories, however, remain vulnerable for much longer and continue to struggle with dependency. They need vigorous assistance maintaining behavioral changes throughout the middle, or action, stage of treatment.
Several studies have observed decreased blood flow and metabolic changes rates in the brains of subjects who abused stimulants . The studies also found that deficits persisted for at least 3 to 6 months after cessation of drug use. Whether these deficits predated substance abuse or not, treatment personnel should expect to see clients with impaired decisionmaking and impulse control manifested by difficulties in attending, concentrating, learning new material, remembering things heard or seen, producing words, and integrating visual and motor cues. For the clinician, this finding means that clients may not have the mental structures in place to enable them to make the difficult decisions faced during the action stage of treatment. If clients draw and use support from the group, however, the client’s affect will re-emerge, combine with new behaviors and beliefs, and produce an increasingly stable and internalized structure .
Cognitive capacity usually begins to return to normal in the middle stage of treatment.
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How To Make Different Social Choices Around Your Addiction
If you cant see yourself changing your friends and social circles that have been a part of your addiction, you need to seek help or guidance. Many experts, including Dr. Steven Melesis, a well-known addiction recovery expert and author of the article in the Yale Biomedical Journal titled Relapse Prevention and the Five Rules of Addiction, states that the first stage of recovery is The Abstinence Stage.
The Abstinence Stage is characterized by the need to distance yourself from the drugs or behaviors of the addiction and any friends that are still using. This stage can last anywhere from one to two years. It has many risks involved, including intense cravings, poor self-care, and new addictions coming to the forefront.
To make different social choices around your addiction, you need to examine the social circle surrounding you. The chances are that the friends, locations, and even recreations that you visit and take part in enjoying are in some way triggers your addiction.
You can do several things right now on your own to make different social choices around your addiction this will greatly enhance your ability to get sober and continue in your recovery.
The Three Basic Steps Of Urge Surfing:
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