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.

 

I'm fine as long as I'm not at work, not in a grocery store, not passing a liquor store, not sitting in a bar or restaurant that serves beer, wine, liquor. What the hell man. I work in a bar. Liquor and beer stare me in the face on a daily basis. I don't think anyone around me knows just how hard it is to stay on this sober streak or whatever you want to call it. It sucks, it's hard and I don't want to do it. But, I'm doing it. I think I'm doing it more for everybody else right now instead of me. If it weren't for everybody else, I'd probably be really lost and lonely and drunk! Is that enough for me to stop?  Why is this so difficult? How can drinking a certain beverage make you,er, me so different? If I could just be different when I drank.... I've tried and tried and tried. I've tried not to drink too much, not to drink liquor, not to do shots, to drink to a minimum...it doesn't work and it ends up bad for me and everyone around me. I still don't know why my husband decided to marry me after all the hell I put him through by my drinking. The embarrassment, the fights, the belittling, the screaming, the hitting, the suicidal tendencies. I just don't know why someone would put themselves in a position to have to put up with that forever.  But he did and he's sticking by my side. I still don't think he knows how hard this really is for me, I've tried to tell him and I just don't think he gets it. It wasn't hard for him to stop so why is it so hard for me? I guess I have a problem and he doesn't or didn't. I don't know. I'm just bored, I'm always bored. I want to be entertained all the time. I think this is part of my depression as well, but it seems I'm always trying to come up with ways to maybe, maybe try to pull "it" off. I never go through with it because I don't want to let my husband, my daughter, my mom, my sister...you name it, down. Like I said, I think I'm doing this for everyone else right now. I want to do it for me, but I just don't have that desire for myself. I think, it'll be easier if I drink it away, it will be more fun if I drink, it'll make me feel better. I know all these things are just ways I'm trying to cope with quitting but it's always there, in the back of my mind.  I hate feeling this way. When is it going to get easier?

Sobriety

The biggest misconception in recovery is that just quitting drugs and alcohol means instant sobriety. This isn’t the true meaning of the word. We have all had periods in our drinking and using careers where we, through sheer will power have stopped using for a short period of time. We often experience that feeling of restlessness, irritability and discontent. The urge to drink becomes so overwhelming that we can no longer resist the urge to pick up the bottle. Are these brief moments of not drinking considered sobriety, certainly not?

Sobriety is general defined as the “state of being sober and not under the influence”; I have to disagree. Sobriety is only achieved when we can finally live life without the urge to drink while maintaining a sense of serenity.  Although our lives may experience the emotional ups and downs of everyday life, we still maintain the emotional balance we only achieve by working a spiritual program. We are selfish and egotistical people by nature. When we finally accept defeat and are willing to place our lives in the hands of something greater than ourselves do we begin to build on true sobriety. We let go of the human idea that sobriety can be achieved by will power alone.

The Dry Drunk
We have all seen him. The epitome of uneasiness. He is the man that has overcome the physical addiction but struggles daily with the mental obsession to drink.  About 15 years ago, I tried this method believing that abstinence alone will deliver me to true sobriety. I still maintained that I was the one in control and that I alone determined my own destiny.  Little did I realize that I was emotionally unable to handle life on life’s terms when a situation that was out of my control would arise? I was destined to drink again. The dry drunk is a danger to himself, the temporarily bought of abstinence later followed by relapse can often discourage him in the future for seeking a true solution.