Do Addiction Recovery Programs Work?

Recovery is possible. Addiction recovery programs work. The recovery process can be a long one with many ups and downs, but it is absolutely possible for anyone seeking help. If you or your loved one are feeling apprehensive about the process or have been quick to assume that treatment or recovery does not work, there are millions of people that will say otherwise and instill hope where there is fear. Here are the ways addiction programs not only work but will set you or your loved one up for beginning a new journey in life. 

Residential Treatment Can Be The First Step 

Residential treatment is often the first step for those struggling with substance abuse. Once a client is medically stabilized through assisted detox, entering a residential program helps to lay the foundation with the necessary tools for a successful recovery. Those who have entered a residential treatment center before or have had family who has completed an addiction program may be concerned that there is a sense of failure because they are looking at treatment again. It is important to remember that substance abuse and alcohol dependence are chronic diseases that are clinically and medically recognized as such. Like other diseases, addiction is manageable. However, relapse can also be a part of the disease process as well. Relapse is not an indicator of failure for the person suffering, the family who is rooting for them or the treatment center from which the client graduated. Often, family members are upset with the notion that relapse is a part of substance abuse. It is equally upsetting for the person who is desperately trying to seek help for their disease. There is no shame in trying residential treatment as many times that is necessary to learn the necessary skills to manage the chronic disease of substance use disorder. 

If you or your loved one have never attempted residential treatment before, now is the time. Residential treatment centers have improved drastically over the years, and the research suggests that long term successful recovery can come from a tiered system of programs, with inpatient treatment as the foundation. Those who are most successful start at the highest level of care in treatment and continue working through their addiction for many months until full stabilization. You or your loved one can expect exceptional care while learning about the fundamentals of substance use disorder and the necessary coping skills for long term success. Professionals who treat substance use disorder will explain how drugs and alcohol are a large symptom of a deeper emotional disturbance. By identifying these emotional instabilities in a safe and enclosed environment, a client can learn coping skills to deal with these personal downfalls. It is important to remember that relapse can be a part of recovery but it does not have to be. Some clients who graduate from residential treatment continue with various forms of 12 step programs and other therapies while continuing their recovery with never relapsing. Those with intensive family support tend to have an even higher success rate of long term recovery. 

Family Support in Addiction Recovery

Family support is always a great balancing act when treating someone suffering from substance abuse or alcohol dependence. Family support and family dynamics are an imperative influence to dive into. Frequently, family dynamics can promote a level of enabling and codependency. Enabling is simply defined when a family member removes barriers unknowingly giving the drug user the ability to continue to use a substance. This act could be done by giving the person struggling money or a means to get the substance they are searching for. Enabling is typically done out of a loving act as a means to show support to the person struggling with substance use, not to harm them. Codependency is when two mutual people are supporting each other, specifically when it comes to one person offering more emotional support than the other. Codependency is a family dynamic that is seen a lot when analyzing how loved ones intertwine with a dependent person. 

Learning about these powerful relationships dynamics promotes long-term recovery by bringing awareness to the core of the addiction cycle. Family support is not vital for the healing process, but it can make a drastic difference for a person seeking treatment. Addiction treatment centers are the “middle man” for families. Addiction treatment staff teach families how to show love and support without enabling the afflicted person. They provide techniques to help dismantle codependent behaviors and promote healthy relationships. When a person struggling with substance use disorder has the support of their family and learns how to cope with unhealthy relationships, they have the external motivation to fight off the crippling disease of addiction. 

Peer Support 

Finding the right peer support for yourself or your loved one makes the recovery process just a little bit easier. By finding the right peer support, a client first learns that they are not alone. Being paralyzed by substance use disorder comes with a feeling of loneliness that is indescribable. Seeing peers that are fighting the battle alongside you helps the loneliness to begin to dismantle. The first peers that you will come in contact with are the people they will meet in treatment in a group therapy setting. These people will quickly become the support that you or your loved one opens up to emotionally. This process can happen with some reserve, but the healing process begins by peeling back the layers and expressing vulnerability to others in the same situation. In continuing with the recovery process, the next peers that you or your loved one come in contact with are usually aftercare support groups, like The Rooted Alumni community, or community recovery meetings. This could be peers in a 12 step group, such as Alcoholics Anonymous (AA), Narcotics Anonymous (NA) or church group. Recovery builds up a person’s self-esteem and encourages them to seek a life outside of drugs and alcohol through healthy habits, hobbies and activities. Many clients will find recovery fellowship in a yoga class, art class, sports team, or other various activities. One silver lining about recovery is that it enables a person to find lifelong friends and emotional support that will encourage them to be the very best version of themselves. 

Time Can Heal All Wounds 

Time can heal all wounds. Those suffering from substance use disorder specifically struggle with immediate gratification. Unfortunately, the feelings of immediate gratification exhibited with drug or alcohol use are hard to mimic in other areas of life. However, with the proper treatment, loving family support, a good peer group and time, recovery is possible. Time is the main component of healing from addiction. There are various levels of care in the treatment process. Clients begin at the residential treatment model, which is the most intensive form of treatment. Once clients have completed a residential treatment stay they move onto a partial hospitalization model which is the most intense form of outpatient care. 

From there, clients will step down to intensive outpatient and outpatient services. Research supports that clients who go through all forms of treatment care are the most successful at maintaining lifelong sobriety. The reason for this is that addiction, just like any disease, requires planning, maintaining and shifting treatment models when necessary. These forms of treatment are also set up to help integrate a person back into society slowly so they can use the tools they have learned to battle any obstacles in their way. Relapses that may occur during this time are not considered a failure in the process. 

But How Do I Know Addiction Treatment Works? 

Loved ones seeking hard facts and data to support that treatment works can be discouraged at what they might find. Different treatment centers and different methodologies do not measure treatment success the same. Because of this, there are little hard facts on how to measure successful outcomes. At Lucida, we base our success by following up with clients on their life post-treatment. While we pride ourselves on our program’s success and completions, the real measure is how clients have put their lives together after treatment and their quality of life. We also put a lot of weight into how a person with substance use disorder has managed to repair and rebuild their relationships in life. Because addiction is a chronic illness, some measurements can be done with lapses like any other disease that would go into remission, only to return in time. This would not deem treatment ineffective. Looking at a client’s quality of life and physical and mental health outcomes are the most significant indicator of success in recovery. 

Recovery is certainly possible, just look at the millions of people who have suffered from substance use disorder and have put their lives back together. These same people will tell you the journey to their lives was matched with many obstacles but was worth every trial and tribulation that got them to their life’s success. Recovery takes the skills you learn, supportive peers, family and time to regain your life fully. Lucida’s dedicated and nurturing team will prepare you in getting you on this journey back to yourself.

Call us today at 866.947.7299.