Bharat SainiLast Updated on October 11, 2022 by Bharat Saini
Addiction comes in many shapes and sizes, but no matter what a person is addicted to, there is one central theme: addiction is ruining their life. The addiction may be a threat to their health, it may be a threat to their safety, their job, and their security, or it may even be a threat to their loved ones.
Since there are so many different forms of addiction, recovery can look vastly different from one to another. Some addictions can be stopped with little to no outside influence and can happen with a simple change of pace. Some addictions are ways to deal with negative events in your life. If you hate your job and are incredibly stressed and turn to something to relieve that stress that later becomes an addiction, stopping said addiction may be as simple as quitting and finding a different, better job.
In most cases, however, a person suffering from addiction will need help. Yes, understanding the inciting cause of your addiction can help, but more often than not, your addiction has changed your brain chemistry, making you crave what you are addicted to regardless of whether you feel the need to escape or not.
Recovery, of course, is not linear. This is important to remember for those with the addiction and loved ones helping an addicted person beat their affliction. You may experience setbacks, may regress, and may even become readdicted. So long as you recommit to your recovery every time, it is still progress.
As for the actual recovery steps, there are many. In general, however, there are three main stages. These stages may not all apply to you, depending on your addiction.
Detoxing
If you have a substance abuse addiction, then the first stage of any recovery is to detox. Detoxing can be painful and life-threatening. It is always better to detox under medical supervision. If you were committed to the hospital for an overdose or alcohol poisoning, then this detox may occur in a hospital. Otherwise, it may occur in an inpatient program. If you are trying to detox at home, have other people there with you to watch for signs that a call for emergency services is necessary.
Inpatient Treatment
Inpatient treatment means that you live in a rehabilitation facility and receive around-the-clock care and therapy. Your treatment will usually include psychotherapy, group therapy, art therapy, holistic meditation, and more. A rounded approach is usually the best way to approach your recovery, not just while you still itch for your drug of choice.
The point of an inpatient treatment program is to give you the full-time, dedicated support you need, particularly while your body physically recovers from the addiction.
Outpatient Treatment
Once you go through the inpatient program you will be moved to an outpatient program. Initially this will be just as intensive as the inpatient program with a key difference – you live at home, or at least off-site. You are therefore in charge of caring for yourself, eating well, and staying away from your addiction. You’ll continue to go to therapy and will start building the essential life skills that will help you reintegrate into society.
Treatment Programs
Outpatient programs and treatment programs are very similar. The biggest difference, of course, is that outpatient is the second step to inpatient recovery. It helps you reintegrate into your community while continuing a full-time recovery plan.
Treatment programs are for everyone, from those who have been to rehab and those who haven’t. Finding the right approach will be key, as is finding the right people. Some people find strength in a religious approach, and that spiritual growth is a key component to beating addiction in the long term.
Others may find that a holistic approach works for them. The commonality between both options, regardless of religious affiliation, is a connection to your community and a sense of doing right. Find the program that works for you and helps build you up so that you can address and resolve the underlying cause of your addiction in the long term.
Support Groups
We are social creatures, and talking to those who understand where we’ve been and have similar struggles can do wonders towards helping you stay on track. Support groups are very common, and there is no end date. You can go to a support group weekly for the rest of your life. You may find that your community work or social network suffices, and you don’t need to go to a specific recovery group.
In many support groups, you may even have a sponsor or someone specific you can turn to help talk you down the ledge if you are tempted by your addiction.
Having these people is key, so find a group near you or build a support network of your own that you can count on.
