Four Successful Therapies for Long-Term Drug Rehab
Drug rehab is a long-term endeavor which requires dedicated efforts from both patients and their addiction counselors. The short detoxification period is necessary for addressing the immediate physical concerns of addiction, but maintaining sobriety takes months of therapy. Thankfully, medical professionals allow us many different highly-effective treatments for helping people stay clean.
Unfortunately, most laypeople still consider detox as the main element of rehab. In order to better help those in need, communities must gain greater understandings of the therapies offered at addiction treatment facilities. The next are four of the very most successful therapies for long-term drug rehab.
1. Evidence-Based Treatments
Evidence-based therapies are the absolute most successful treatments for effecting long-term sobriety. These therapies have already been repeatedly tested in controlled conditions, statistically verified, and government-mandated across the United States. The three most frequent forms are individual counseling, group discussions, and family therapy.
Individual counseling is the absolute most critical component in most patient’s rehabilitation. Addicts use counselors to uncover the deep-rooted personal issues responsible for his or her continued drug use. In addition, they explore the precise life circumstances which will make it difficult to avoid or cope with cravings. Ultimately, addicts and their counselors use these personal breakthroughs to develop coping and avoidance strategies for coping with cravings for years to come.
2. Biofeedback Therapy
People who become addicted to heroin, meth, and other physically harmful drugs often sever their mind-body connections. They become unable to associate certain physical feelings with impending drug cravings, and this inability helps it be extremely difficult to keep sober. To address this problem, medical professionals use cutting-edge biofeedback machines to greatly help patients understand the physical warning signs of future drug use.
As an example, doctors may monitor addict’s heart rates and induce mental stress through a battery of personal or emotional questions. As patients stress levels elevate, so do their heart rates. They experience strong urges to use drugs to ease their stress, and they could thus associate those cravings making use of their rapid heartbeats. As time goes by, these addicts can recognize these warnings signs and take appropriate steps to mitigate their cravings.
3. Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy
Cognitive-behavioral therapy teaches addicts that their emotions are products of these thoughts. By controlling their minds and thinking rationally, they could stay calm during emotionally stressful situations and suppress drug cravings.
This kind of therapy is especially useful for addicts with control issues. People often use drugs and develop addictions when they feel a lack of control over particular aspects of their lives. By mastering their emotions through rational thought, addicts gain the ability to overcome the stressors that used to trigger their addictive behaviors.
4. Reality Methods
Reality therapy can also be designed to deal with certain control issues. Rehab clinicians who use these therapies teach addicts how to acknowledge the differences between situations they could and cannot control. With this specific understanding, rehab patients can properly apply the coping and avoidance strategies they learn during individual counseling. When they’re in control of these environments, they could take steps to avoid their addiction triggers. When they encounter uncontrollable situations, however, they could apply their methods for handling stress and suppressing cravings.