Guide to Alcoholism Treatment

It’s important to inquire about what levels of care a rehab facility offers. Some tackle just one part of the recovery process (i.e., medical detoxification), while others address every aspect of care a person may need such as concurrent management of medical issues, dual diagnosis treatment, and aftercare services.

With multiple levels of care you have the option to remain in a familiar environment throughout your recovery process. This is also helpful in allowing you to move up or down levels based upon your specific experience and the physician’s assessment of your progress.

If you attend a facility with few levels of care, you may need to continue care at another facility as you progress through recovery, which would require new intake assessments, getting to know the staff once again, and getting resettled into a new place. This interruption can stifle progress and open the door for trauma to resurface.

The physical location of a treatment facility is equally important as any other factors when deciding where to attend. A treatment center in your hometown may impact your progress, and may hinder your sobriety since you’ll still be surrounded by people, places and things that may have contributed to your alcoholism.

When you have the option to attend a treatment center out of state, you have the space to focus solely on yourself and your sobriety.

On the other hand, depending on the level of care needed, a treatment center in your hometown may work better for you. If you have positive family support, but are still in need of a recovery program, you may decide to choose a facility that offers a partial hospitalization program (PHP) so that you can still go home each night to be there for your loved ones.

The quality of the staff and facilities should always be a priority in choosing a treatment center. According to Dr. Casey Green at Greenhouse Treatment Center in Texas, an AAC facility, the staff should be invested, engaged, friendly, compassionate, and open-minded.

Additionally, leadership should be accessible to the patient, as this establishes rapport and allows the patients to feel connected with the staff.

Without this atmosphere, patients may feel like the staff is working against them instead of with them as a team, and treatment tends to not be as effective in these cases.

You may want to consider a facility that offers aftercare services, a type of going support that you receive once you complete treatment. A continuum of care often increases long-term sobriety. The most common forms are 12-Step meetings, sober living residences, sobriety sponsors, and/or counseling sessions.