Addiction Recovery - Choosing a Program

Alcohol abuse and drug addiction are each complicated and potentially life-threatening problems. An addiction recovery program is aimed at assisting addicts as well as their family and friends to get the help which they must have in order to beat the pull of the alcohol or drugs. Most family members are very confused when they are first thrust into trying to deal with a process they don't understand. In addition, the tremendous impact which it places on family relationships add to an already stressful situation. Most people have no understanding of alcoholism, drug addiction, or chemical dependency and this lack of knowledge can mean that improper actions are taken, or even worse, that no action at all is taken and the addict gets either improper help or no help.

If the addiction has accelerated to the point where the person is not making valid decisions about their condition it may mean that the assistance or intervention of family and friends will be the only thing standing between a healthy life of abstinence and an early death of alcoholism or drug overdose.

The first step in choosing an addiction recovery program is generally determining whether or not a medical detoxification will be necessary. Some addiction recovery centers have a detox facility included with the rest of the programs under one roof. Since some types of drug do not require that detoxification be carried out, you won't need to select a center with a detoxification in every case. Detoxification should never be carried out without qualified medical supervision. The body's reaction to the elimination of the addictive substance is known as withdrawal. While there is still alcohol and or drugs in the body of the individual, he or she will continue to experience craving. In addition, while the patient is still dependent upon alcohol or drugs, he is not ready to take part in addiction recovery elements such as education or therapy which are included in the rehabilitation and treatment.

Both drug detoxification and alcohol detoxification are usually completed in an inpatient medical setting since the effects of detoxification can be extremely traumatic both physically and psychologically. Alcohol almost always requires medical intervention and monitoring during the detoxification process. Opiates such as methadone and heroin as well as prescription medications such as vicodin, xanax, hydrocodone and Lortab all require medical detoxification as well, Other street drugs such as marijuana, crystal meth and crack cocaine don't require medical supervision for effective detoxification.

For those substances where supervised detoxification is strongly recommended it is common to have both physical and psychological manifestations during the withdrawal process. Some of the symptoms which may appear during this part of the addiction recovery process include loss of appetite, restlessness, sweating, nausea, headaches, sleeplessness, abdominal cramping, diarrhea, and tremors. More severe side effects of detoxification include convulsions, Delirium tremors and autonomic hyperactivity.
Detoxification generally requires a time period ranging from three days to two weeks at varying levels of discomfort. Medications given are generally to reduce the pain and discomfort caused by the addictive substance leaving the body.

The balance of the addiction recovery process can occur in inpatient, hospital setting, short term residential treatment, long term residential treatment or outpatient .
With all the information available on the internet, choosing a program which will help the family member or friend who is abusing drugs or alcohol is a matter of doing the necessary research. Many websites contain up-to-date information about how to help the alcoholic and how to deal with opiate, methadone, crystal meth, heroin, crack, cocaine or other drug addiction. You can also check on the subjects of family intervention, detoxification, treatment, counseling and rehabilitation. Successful addiction recovery has been possible for millions because they were able to get the help they needed before it was too late.

It is important to find a program which provides addiction recovery programs which are consistent with the philosophy and beliefs of the addict. For example, it may be pointless to place an avowed atheist in a program run by a religious organization. If, on the other hand the addict has strong ties to a religious belief, he will probably benefit immensely by having a addiction recovery program which is associated with religious beliefs.
Addiction recovery is not an overnight process, In fact, studies have demonstrated that generally, the longer the program--especially if it is a residential program, the more likely the individual is to stay away from drugs or alcohol in the future. It has also been found that the reason for being in the addiction recovery program in the first place has little correlation with whether or not the program is successful for the individual. So, if you must do a family intervention in order to convince the friend or family member that they should be in a drug or alcohol rehabilitation program, they almost always will thank you later, once they get their life turned around.

Even those people who complete treatment due to a court ordered program in lieu of incarceration and who remain drug or alcohol free generally come to see that addiction recovery was the best possible thing that could have happened to them.
The individual will usually complete a number of beneficial components during the balance of the stay at the drug and alcohol rehabilitation center. They may be exposed to group counseling and therapy. They may have to relearn some daily living skills such as personal hygiene and nutrition. They work at becoming useful members of society by practicing situations and role playing in many instances so they can be better prepared with coping skills.

Even after the patient has graduated from the program, there may be benefits from maintaining group support and counseling sessions periodically to help smooth the rough spots which may occur during the early days of the post treatment period.
During this same period, many families benefit from family counseling offered through the treatment center. This is especially true if the addict is a child or adolescent.