Why is rehab important? It’s a question we hear a lot, and we’re happy to provide answers about the importance of treatment centers.
Rehab is the most important investment in yourself and your future that you’re likely ever going to make. Without addiction treatment, your disease gets progressively worse.
Ultimately, it’s very likely you’ll die due to an addiction to drugs or alcohol if it stays untreated. Along the way, drugs will chip your quality of life and functionality away. You’ll lose jobs, relationships, and your sense of self-worth.
Going to a rehab center is about a lot more than helping you stop using drugs or alcohol. Addiction treatment programs can help you regain everything you lost. You can rebuild a life and a sense of self that you’re proud of with the help of a team of compassionate professionals. You’ll learn skills and coping mechanisms you can rely on for the rest of your life.
There’s so much more to rehab than leaving sober. Treatment changes how you view yourself and the world. That’s the message we always want to convey if it’s something you’re considering.
How Does Rehab Work?
When you go to rehab, there are many ways the treatment process can work. An overview of general types of treatment or steps in a program include:
Detox
During medical detox at a treatment facility, you safely go through withdrawal symptoms with medical treatment and supervision.
Withdrawal can be uncomfortable. Some symptoms can even be dangerous.
Supervised detox makes sure your symptoms are well-managed. Detox isn’t an addiction treatment on its own, however. Instead, detoxing from any substances is a starting point so that you can begin treatment clean and clear-minded.
Inpatient Treatment Program
An inpatient rehab program is also called residential rehab.
During inpatient treatment, you check into a facility for some time. During this time, you live onsite. You have a scheduled, structured day. There’s a lot of support in inpatient rehab from staff and other residents.
An inpatient rehab facility tends to work well for many people struggling with addiction. You’re in an environment where triggers are removed. You can focus solely on recovery and the work you’re there to do.
Inpatient care may also include partial hospitalization programs.
You might do behavioral therapies, art therapy, and alternative therapies during the inpatient rehab process to promote long-term recovery.
Outpatient Rehab
An outpatient care program is one with more flexibility than inpatient treatment options.
When you participate in outpatient treatment programs, you don’t live on-site. You can continue much of your everyday life. You might go to therapy sessions or check in with a counselor throughout the week.
For some, outpatient rehab is a step-down program after completing inpatient treatment. If your addiction is milder, you might begin with outpatient treatment.
These programs’ intensity and time commitment vary, and some are intensive outpatient treatment. An intensive outpatient program is similar to residential treatment in many ways, but you return home in the evening.
If you aren’t sure what type of program is best for you, you should talk to an addiction treatment professional. A professional can learn more about your substance use, and if relevant, co-occurring mental or physical health disorders you may have. Then, the professional can work to create a tailored treatment plan for your needs.
What Is Rehab Like?
There’s often a fear factor about going to rehab. This is entirely understandable. Your addiction maybe your identity and all you know at this point. Going to treatment would be stepping into the unknown.
Luckily, rehab offers you a sense of comfort and support. Here’s what you should keep in mind while choosing a rehab.
- If you’re in an inpatient program, your day will be highly structured once you complete detox.
- There are likely to be different therapeutic interventions you participate in. For example, you may spend part of your day in group therapy and some in individual therapy sessions.
- Rehab treatment programs will put a lot of focus on how you can identify situations that are high-risk to you. You’ll develop relapse prevention skills so you can stay sober once you leave treatment.
- Once you progress in your recovery and get close to the end of treatment, you’ll work with your team on an aftercare plan.
- What your specific aftercare plan looks like depends on your needs. For some, it might include sober living arrangements. For others, it includes ongoing therapy or participation in support groups like a 12-step program.
How Long Is Rehab?
Rehab programs usually start at 30 days, and there are more extended programs that are 60 or 90 days. There are also long-term therapeutic communities for more severe addictions that are part of the recovery process.
How long you stay in treatment depends on your individual needs. Treatment professionals will look at factors like the severity and length of your addiction, substances you use, and co-occurring mental health disorders.
Can You Force Someone Into Rehab?
Research shows rehab can be effective even if someone doesn’t want to go. However, whether or not you can force someone into rehab can be more complex. There are involuntary commitment laws in place for families to help loved ones get treatment.
For those laws to apply, the family would usually have to prove the person was a danger to themselves or others.
- In 37 states, there are involuntary commitment laws related to addiction treatment.
- If you were to try and legally require someone to go to rehab, you should have to go to court to do so and prove the person is harming themselves or could harm others. These cases involve hearings.
- For many families, rather than trying to force someone to go to rehab, they’ll try to convince them. Interventions are one way to do this.
Does Insurance Cover Rehab?
The cost of rehab shouldn’t be a barrier to care. The cost of untreated addiction is much more than rehab and can even cost your life.
While the price of rehab varies depending on the program, your insurance company and health insurance plans that cover treatment will often cover some or all of it.
- Addiction is a disease requiring medical care, just like conditions such as heart disease. However, the specific level of coverage and the plan affects how much a rehab stay receives reimbursement.
- When someone doesn’t have insurance, or there are gaps in coverage, private pay, payment plans, financing options, and other options can help cover the costs.
- Too many people think that addiction treatment is financially out of their reach, but it’s not.
- Under the Affordable Care Act, mental health and substance abuse disorder services became covered by health insurance as essential health benefits.
- Health plans and insurers also have to offer substance use disorder and mental health benefits comparable to surgical and medical care.
Substance abuse treatment is so critical, especially when we consider that in 2020 more people died of drug overdoses than ever before. Getting treatment can help you or your loved one avoid becoming one of those tragic statistics, making it one of the most important decisions you’ll ever make.
If you’re interested in learning more about types of programs for a successful recovery, how to get help, and how to pay for treatment, please call 855-953-1345 and reach out to the Opus Health team today. We can work directly with health insurance providers to determine your insurance coverage for alcohol rehab or a drug rehab program.
