Health & Medical Addiction & Recovery

What To Expect At An Alcoholic Treatment Center

Addicts who decide to go to an alcoholic treatment center are always apprehensive as to what is in store for them at the facility. This is because there are some misconceptions about what takes place during the rehabilitation process. The aim of this article is to provide some information as regards what addicts can expect when they enroll for a de-addiction program in an alcoholic treatment center.

Typically, the treatment centers do not have locks on the doors and patients, even those adjudicated under the criminal justice system, are free to leave at any time they want though they may face the consequences later on. The reason why locks are not provided for doors in an alcoholic treatment center is because the program will work only if the patients are willing to go through the sessions. Here are some of the things that patients who decide to go through the program can expect:

Alcoholic Treatment Center - Detoxification

Some treatment centers offer their own detoxification programs, but many centers now require patients to complete their detox program prior to enrolling them for treatment at an alcoholic treatment center. This change is part of the trend which requires patients to get through the withdrawal process at a center which specializes in dealing with drug as well as alcohol withdrawal symptoms. The duration of the inpatient detox program ranges from 5 to 7 days.

Alcoholic Treatment Center - The Facilities

There are thousands of inpatient rehabilitation facilities in the United States of America. Each one is unique in terms of the convenience available at each alcoholic treatment center. The facilities range from one having primitive camp-type settings (generally used to treat troubled teens) to ones that are luxurious. Like many things in life, patients get what they pay for. In other words, patients will have to choose a rehabilitation facility on the basis of what they or their insurance can afford. However, the conveniences that an alcoholic treatment center provides have nothing to do with the successful outcomes from the programs offered by them.

Education is a key aspect of all treatment programs in rehabilitation centers, though it is seen to vary from one facility to another. The aim of providing the education at an alcoholic treatment center is to give patients an honest and realistic look at their addiction. It also helps patients change their attitude about use of alcohol.

Most alcoholics continue to hold on to the denial mode about the seriousness of their condition during the early stages of the recovery process. Treatment programs are designed to break through the denial and ambivalence and get patients to assume the responsibility for leading a clean as well as sober lifestyle. Typically, patients are educated on the nature of alcoholism, dynamics of addiction and effects of alcohol on their body and consequences of continuing to use alcohol in an alcoholic treatment center.

Alcoholic Treatment Center - Group Therapy And Counseling

During the rehabilitation process at any treatment center, patients are individually counseled by trained counselors and are made to attend group therapy meetings. Such sessions are designed to teach patients the skills they need to live an alcohol-free life, recognize situations in which they will most likely consume alcohol and to avoid such circumstances as much as possible. The group sessions teach patients the value of peer support.

A successful alcoholic treatment center will also include family members and friends as part of the treatment program for patients. This is because it helps to significantly improve rehabilitation outcome.

Alcoholic Treatment Center - Aftercare Program

Typically, the residential rehabilitation process lasts for a period of 30 days. However, depending on the severity of the patient's addiction and rate of recovery, it can get extended to 60 days or even 90 days. During this time patients are kept in structured environments without access to alcohol.

What happens to patients after they leave after they complete the rehabilitation program at an alcoholic treatment center and start facing the real world? Successful treatment centers incorporate a structured aftercare program that meets the needs of individual patients. The counselors who know their patients very well suggest the steps that the patients have to take based on where they are on their journey to recovery.

The aftercare plan can consist of intensive outpatient sessions at the alcoholic treatment center, residing in a halfway house, attending 12-step meetings and weekly counseling, among others to help patients avoid triggers and situations that may cause a relapse.


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