What Is Rehab Like?

Knowing what to expect in rehab can help someone to accept the help that is needed and get their life back on track after struggling with addiction to drugs and alcohol. What rehab is like depends on the rehab center a person is attending. The specifications of any rehab program will vary based on the facility. However, there are general outlines of what a traditional rehab could and should entail.

What is Drug and Alcohol Rehab?

A rehab center has a goal of helping those who are struggling with drug and alcohol recovery find recovery and achieve long-term sobriety. Drug and alcohol rehab is a process someone who is struggling with these substances goes through in order to begin regaining control of their life.

What to expect in rehab can include healing. They can learn the necessary coping skills to deal with life as daily stressors and triggers arise. Oftentimes, people who are struggling with alcohol and drugs return to using the substances as a means of dealing with stressors and triggers that occur throughout their daily lives. 

Rehab for Drug Addiction

Rehab for drug addiction is beneficial for those who are struggling. What to expect during drug rehab in Kentucky can include things like traditional therapies and holistic therapies. Traditional therapies can include cognitive-behavioral therapy or CBT. CBT is a form of therapy in which, through the guidance of a professional, a person is able to learn techniques geared toward changing negative and unhealthy coping skills into positive and productive ones. It helps people to identify how their thoughts and feelings can impact their behaviors.

Learning positive and healthy coping skills can help someone navigate through their struggles with addiction to drugs and alcohol, making it easier to fend off the urges and desires to use drugs and alcohol despite the negative consequences. 

Rehab for Alcohol Addiction

Alcohol addiction is a struggle that many people face on a daily basis. What rehab is like for alcohol addiction is similar to drug rehab. It will consist of traditional therapies like cognitive-behavioral therapy and dialectical behavioral therapy, or DBT. Undergoing alcohol rehab can help individuals who are struggling with alcohol to find their footing in recovery and begin living life without this harmful and life-altering substance.

Signs of alcohol addiction can include the following:

• Drinking more than intended
• Unsuccessfully trying to cut back or stop drinking
• Neglecting responsibilities in order to continue drinking
• Drinking despite negative consequences
• Engaging in dangerous activities like drinking and driving

There is help available for those who are struggling with alcohol, and that includes rehab.

Dual Diagnosis

Dual diagnosis is common among those who are struggling with drugs and alcohol. But what is dual diagnosis? Simply put, this means that a substance abuse issue coexists with mental health conditions within one person simultaneously. For example, someone struggling with drugs or alcohol could also be struggling with mental health conditions like anxiety and depression. Struggling with mental health can complicate addiction to substances like drugs and alcohol.

It is common for people who struggle with mental health to turn to drugs and alcohol as means of coping with the symptoms that the mental health conditions can produce. It may feel as though the substances are helping the person, however, in reality, these substances will exacerbate the symptoms of mental health in the long run.

On the other side, alcohol and drugs can lead to mental health conditions coming to the forefront and becoming worse in individuals who are struggling. Drugs and alcohol affect the brain negatively. They cause changes in brain chemistry, and the production of necessary chemicals can be altered.

Using drugs and alcohol can make the brain develop different mental health conditions and treating them can be difficult without addressing both mental health and addiction simultaneously. What to expect in rehab can include addressing any mental health conditions that could be present while also treating addiction to drugs and alcohol. 

Levels of Care

Not everyone has the same needs through their recovery journey. Understanding what each level of care during rehab is like will help clients know what to expect throughout the process.

Detox Programs

What to expect in rehab can begin with detox. Detoxification is a necessary process to begin a life of recovery. Removing the toxic and harmful substances from the body is crucial to being able to fully gain the tools and coping skills that are vital to maintaining long-term recovery. 

Partial Hospitalization Program

Once a person has been safely and effectively detoxed from the substances they are using, they can then start the process of healing and learning to live without using drugs and alcohol. This can include a partial hospitalization program or PHP. PHP is an intensive form of outpatient care in which someone is stabilized and able to begin the necessary processes that can help them heal and begin recovery.

Unlike detox and residential where a person is living on a single campus throughout the process, PHP provides a break. They will be in a sober living environment and go to a rehab center where they will be undergoing drug and alcohol treatment during designated hours. Once the day is complete, they will return to their sober living environment and be able to relearn how to take care of themselves without the influences of drugs and alcohol. 

Intensive Outpatient Program

An intensive outpatient program, or IOP, usually begins once a PHP program is completed. This is a form of outpatient treatment that allows a person to maintain daily life, such as working and handling family responsibilities, while simultaneously receiving treatment for addiction to drugs and alcohol. During IOP, a person could live at home if it is fitting for their needs, or in another sober living environment, and still receive the right kind of care and support that can allow them to continue on the path to healing and recovery.

Outpatient Program

Outpatient, or OP, is generally the final stage of a rehab program. It is the least intrusive level of care in drug and alcohol treatment. The person, at this point, has become stabilized and can manage cravings and symptoms of addiction without returning to using drugs and alcohol, but they still could use the support of addiction professionals. They will have access to medical and mental health professionals and continue their journey to recovery from addiction.

Rehab for Relapse Prevention

Having proper care as someone begins a journey to a life in recovery can make a world of difference. Getting better begins with detox and rehab. These steps can clear the mind and allow for healing to begin.

Part of getting better is removing the substances from the body and then learning new and necessary coping skills to deal with life as it happens. Daily stressors and triggers can lead someone to use drugs and alcohol again—or a relapse. Having these tools available through rehab can help prevent a relapse

Getting Better at Louisville Addiction Center

Struggling with drug and alcohol addiction is difficult. The impacts that addiction can have on health and overall well-being can be severe and lead to some intense changes in a person. The impacts don’t have to continue. There is help available. Drug and alcohol rehab can help a person who is struggling to find and maintain recovery. At Louisville Addiction Center we offer personalized and compassionate care for those that are struggling with addiction to find a way out and regain control of their life.

Contact us today to learn what drug and alcohol rehab is like in Louisville, Kentucky.