If you’re on your way to drug or alcohol rehab, you’re probably dealing with a curious mixture of excitement and dread. After all, professional treatment is the surest way to free yourself from the bonds of substance use disorder. However, many newly recovering addicts are also under a tremendous amount of pressure to succeed, even as they fearfully await the symptoms of withdrawal. The good news is that you have already taken the most important step towards freedom and good health by opting to seek assistance. Going forward, one of the best things that you can do to avoid becoming overwhelmed is to take each day one at a time. With addiction recovery, you will face a number of progressive challenges.
Even as you do, your mind and body will become increasingly adept at weathering them. From detox and counseling to goal-setting and long-term life-planning, with the right mindset and a commitment to staying the course, you can avoid having your progress completely derailed by any single relapse event. Addiction recovery is a lifelong journey. Understanding that many people face setbacks is important. To limit your likelihood of relapsing, make sure to choose a program that is sufficiently long for meeting your needs.
For instance, if you have tried and failed in recovery before, you may be best-suited to in-house treatment that lasts approximately three to six months. No matter how long your rehab program is, it’s always a good idea to align yourself with an ongoing support system. You can additionally explore your options in relapse prevention programs, sober living, and other post-treatment resources. Although addiction is a disease, and one that cannot be cured, it is a wholly manageable condition. With a solid recovery plan and all of the necessary support, you can set the stage for lifelong sobriety, and you can enjoy a happy, stable, and high-quality life.
Things to Remember Throughout Your Recovery Journey
Rehab works best when it offers the services that the individual patient requires. For instance, if you have long dealt with overwhelming depression and anxiety, you may be living with an undiagnosed and untreated mental health disorder. Countless people start using drugs and alcohol in an effort to alleviate the pain of issues they do not understand. Attending a rehab program that offers treatment for comorbidities will eliminate the need to get high in order to obtain relief. Once underlying comorbidities have been properly identified and addressed, patients are able to achieve and maintain mood balance without having to medicate themselves in dangerous ways.
Some people use drugs or alcohol as the result of current or past trauma, or negative behavior conditioning. Harmful experiences in life don’t just open the door to addiction. They also create feelings of low self-worth and negative thinking patterns that make breaking the cycle of addiction extremely difficult. As such, many rehab centers offer options in cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT).
CBT teaches people to recognize their value and to acknowledge that they are both worthy of recovery, and worthy of leading happy lives. With CBT in rehab, you can grow your self-confidence, learn how to navigate challenging social situations, and learn how to distinguish between toxic, unhealthy relationships, and relationships that are mutually fulfilling. Recognizing addiction as a disease makes it infinitely easier for new rehab patients to get over their fear of failing. Once your brain and body have become chemically dependent upon drugs, abstaining is no longer simply a matter of will. That’s why rehab centers often offer medically assisted detox.
With medication and other forms of support, the body has a much easier time adapting to being drug or alcohol-free. After the initial, physical symptoms of detox have abated, other support strategies are leveraged for resolving problems with:
- Insomina
- Emotional fatigue
- Anxiety
- Depression
and many other post-acute withdrawal symptoms. With adequate detox support, the likelihood of relapsing early on in addiction treatment is greatly diminished. In addition to removing the fear of failure, recognition of addiction as a disease also instills an understanding of the need for new coping strategies, continued commitment, and ongoing support. Once people exit the rehab environment, they will again be confronted with real-world stressors and triggers, along with periodic temptations and cravings.
Fortunately, these are all challenges that rehab professionals expect, and thus, they are all challenges that your counselors will prepare you for. If you’re ready to start your journey to recovery and want to find the best rehab facility or program for your needs, we’re always available to help. Call us today at 866-963-7200.