Alcoholism
Find Alcohol Rehabs in Your Area
Most cities, towns, and metropolitan areas have at least a few alcohol rehabs, but choosing the right one for you can be a challenge. Some alcohol rehabs are expensive, some may not be covered by your insurance, and some may not offer the level of care that you need. But do not let the difficulty of sorting through these options discourage you. Instead, take a methodical approach, and go through each of these steps until you find the best treatment center for you.
1. Ask your insurance company: Your insurance company may not be able to tell you which alcohol rehabs in your area offer the strongest programs or the best care, but they will give you a list of programs to work with.
2. Ask your doctor: If you have a regular doctor, set up an appointment for a check-up, and ask your doctor if he or she knows of any good programs in the area.
3. Ask your friends: If you do not know anyone who has successfully gone through alcohol recovery, ask around. Chances are that someone will know someone who has overcome this problem and can recommend a good treatment center. If you are reluctant to bring this up to some of your friends, do not worry about it. There are other ways to find good alcohol rehabs.
4. Attend a support group: Most recovering alcoholism addicts enter rehab prior to attending support group meetings, but there is no reason why the process cannot be the other way around. If you are serious about seeking treatment, start attending your meetings now, and ask other attendees if they have any alcohol rehabs they can recommend.
5. Use the web: If all other options turn up nothing, consult online resources to find some good alcohol rehabs in your area. Some websites may not offer much good information, but if you dig a little deeper into directories, local web forums, and review sites, you should be able to find some clear, unbiased opinions about the alcohol rehabs in your area.
After an Inpatient Substance Abuse Program: What’s Next?
Attending an inpatient substance abuse program is the best way to conquer a long-term, severe addiction, but it is not the end of the recovery process. You’ll make great strides during the detox phase and the early stages of recovery that occur within an inpatient substance abuse program, but after a few weeks you’ll be sent out into the world to cope more-or-less on your own. For many, this is the stage of recovery.
Alcohol Detoxification Benefits Your Body and Mind
Most of the talk about the early stages of alcohol recovery, including the detoxification stage, focuses on how difficult and painful rehab can be. There are many uncomfortable symptoms associated with alcohol withdrawal, and of course most recovering addicts go through many moments of psychological and emotional vulnerability. But it’s not all bad. In fact, for anyone who has been drinking for years, those early weeks of alcohol recovery can be exhilarating due to all the positive changes that take place.
Reclaiming your health
Many long-time alcoholics just don’t realize how profoundly alcohol affects their systems on a daily basis. The effects are so deep and widespread that there is practically no part of the body that is unaffected. For one thing, alcohol interferes with sleep, so that many alcoholics forget what it’s like to wake up in the morning feeling rested and refreshed. You may experience insomnia during the detoxification stage, but after that you’ll likely sleep better than you have in years.
You’ll soon begin to feel more energetic, and this will affect all aspects of life. After detoxification you’ll be more willing to exercise, and you’ll feel clear-headed and confident. And let’s not forget the fact that regular alcohol use can add quite a bit of extra girth to the waistline. After a few weeks without alcohol, not only will you feel more energetic, but your improving body will give you a healthy dose of confidence.
Clear skies
And while you experience all those physical benefits, you’ll also notice positive changes in your intellectual and emotional life. You’ll be able to think with a level of clarity that you haven’t known in a long time. This results partially from a lack of alcohol-induced impairment and partially from better sleep. After just a few weeks, the effects will be huge.
Meanwhile, alcohol is also a depressant, and with long-term use it can lead to or exacerbate depression and anxiety disorders. Along with all the other physical and mental benefits of alcohol detoxification, you’ll also be in a better mood. Sure, there will be times when life’s hardships and the temptation to drink may put you in dark moods, but for the most part you’ll feel happier than you have in a long time.
6 Components of Effective Alcoholism Rehab
If you’re exploring alcoholism rehab options, you’ll probably find that there are many types of recovery facilities and that they all seem to have their own treatment philosophies. There are many valid approaches to alcoholism rehab, but there are some common components that all the best ones have in common. As you’re considering options, keep in mind these six components that every good alcoholism rehab program should have.
- Monitored detox: Whether you’ll be attending an inpatient or outpatient treatment facility, the initial detox period is the stage in which you’ll need to be in closest contact with the doctor. Withdrawal can be painful and dangerous, and it’s important for the doctor to adjust your treatment according to the severity of your symptoms.
- Counseling options: Patients of alcoholism rehab should have the ability to choose from multiple treatment plans. Most recovering alcoholics use some combination of counseling and group therapy, but this is up to the individual. Make sure you choose a program that is flexible.
- Medication options: The early stages after quitting can be painful in multiple ways, and you may want the option to ease your symptoms with prescription medications.
- Long-term support: Every good alcoholism rehab program should offer continuing support beyond the initial stages of rehab. After all, alcoholism is an incurable disease, and most addicts need some form of help throughout their lives.
- Treatment for other conditions: The best alcohol treatment programs address common medical and psychological problems that may be related to alcoholism. New patients should get full check-ups to detect any health problems, and the therapy portion of treatment should address any mental issues that have exacerbated the alcohol problem.
- Behavior modification skills: Good treatment programs provide their patients with actionable tools they can use to make sure they stay sober. There are different approaches for this, so find out how the facilities you’re considering help their patients manage their behavior in the long term.
What to Say at an Alcohol Intervention
In an alcohol intervention, the most difficult thing for the alcoholic’s loved ones is figuring out what to say. This is a delicate situation, the stakes are high, and no one wants to be responsible for the intervention going poorly. As a result, many people get nervous about what to say at an alcohol intervention, and during the event they may even get a sort of stage fright that prevents them from saying everything they should say.
In the end, the most effective approach to an alcohol intervention is to have everything you’re going to say figured out in advance. You can even keep a little cheat sheet with bullet points indicating all the things you want to say. If it helps, you may even want to practice in advance.
In case you’re having trouble coming up with ideas for what to say, here are a few suggestions that may help:
1. Acknowledge your role: As family and friends of an alcoholic, it’s difficult to acknowledge when we play a role in the illness. But if you think you’ve helped enable the alcoholism in any way, be prepared to admit it openly. Of course, you do not want to renounce your relationship or take back any kindnesses, but do acknowledge any role you’ve had.
2. Explain how you’ve been hurt: If your loved one’s alcoholism has negatively affected you, don’t hold back. The alcoholic needs to know that his or her illness has had consequences and that change is needed. That’s what an alcohol intervention is for.
3. Recall how things used to be: If you knew the alcoholic before he or she developed this problem, then you might want to tell a story from when times were good. The goal is to remind the alcohol that things don’t have to be this way, and that there is life after alcohol just as there was life before.
