Whether you’re dependent on alcohol or drugs, support is available to help you turn your life around.
The first step is to acknowledge that you have a problem. Understand the ways in which your addiction is negatively impacting your life. For example, you could have become withdrawn or you could have caused friction with your loved ones.
Thankfully, there are various options and resources available to find treatment that can help you overcome these challenges.
Keep reading to discover eight options for your recovery journey.
1. Partial Hospitalisation
Partial hospitalisation is an ideal solution for those seeking assistance with addiction but who cannot dedicate full-time to inpatient services. In these settings, you receive medical treatment and comprehensive therapies for a part of the day while still living at your home.
This approach allows you to maintain a sense of normalcy in life while receiving the concentrated care necessary for recovery.
Key Benefits
- Provides structured, intensive care while allowing you to return home at night
- Offers a safe and supportive environment with access to medical and therapeutic services
2. Intensive Outpatient Services
Intensive outpatient programs could be a better choice, depending on your specific needs. Here, therapy sessions are scheduled around your personal and work commitments, allowing you to balance between treatment and daily responsibilities. Exploring options like IOP (intensive outpatient program) can be particularly beneficial if you are looking for a plan that includes structured therapy sessions while managing other daily activities.
This option is very much about integrating recovery into your everyday life without having the need to stay at a healthcare facility.
Key Benefits
- Provides flexibility, allowing you to maintain work or school commitments
- Offers a comprehensive range of therapeutic services to address addiction and its underlying causes
3. Residential Treatment
If you have a severe alcohol or drug abuse issue, residential treatment could be the best solution for you. In this setting, round-the-clock medical supervision is provided along with intensive daily therapy sessions. All are in a structured environment away from stressors and triggers.
Key Benefits
- Provides 24/7 medical and therapeutic support in a controlled environment
- Offers a highly structured setting for people with severe addiction issues
4. Sober Living Homes
Sober living homes, also known as halfway houses, are less structured than residential treatment and provide a supportive living environment for people who have completed a residential treatment program or are further along in their recovery.
The primary purpose of sober living homes is to offer a safe and stable place to live that promotes sobriety, accountability, and a sense of community.
Compared to residential treatment, sober living homes are generally more affordable, as they focus on providing a stable living environment rather than intensive treatment.
Key Benefits
- Offers a supportive and stable living environment that promotes long-term recovery
- Encourages accountability, peer support, and gradual reintegration into society
5. Outpatient Detoxification
For some people, outpatient detoxification is a viable option. In this setup, you receive withdrawal management services while living at home. There are daily check-ins with healthcare professionals to monitor your progress and manage withdrawal symptoms properly.
Key Benefits
- Allows you to detox and receive medical care while continuing to live at home
- Offers a more cost-effective option for people with milder addiction issues
6. Therapy
Whether you choose residential treatment or outpatient detoxification, you can access a variety of therapies, provided by professional therapists or counsellors, to assist you in getting a hold on your addictive behaviour.
Cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT), for example, helps you to identify and change unhelpful thoughts and behaviours.
Also, dialectical behaviour therapy (DBT) works on your emotional regulation and relationship skills.
If you’ve experienced trauma, you may be interested in this list of trauma-informed therapies.
Key Benefits
- Helps you to recognize and change thought patterns and behaviours contributing to your addiction
- Provides essential tools for coping, relapse prevention, and emotional healing
7. Medication-Assisted Treatment
Medication-assisted treatment combines evidence-based therapies with prescribed medicines to treat substance abuse disorders effectively. For example, drugs like Buprenorphine for opioid addiction or Disulfiram for alcohol addiction can be used in conjunction with therapy sessions.
Key Benefits
- Reduces cravings and withdrawal symptoms, making recovery more manageable
- Proven effective for opioid and alcohol use disorders, increasing the chances of successful recovery
8. 12 Step Programs
Another route that has helped millions of people worldwide to combat addiction are the 12-step programs. Alcoholics Anonymous and Narcotics Anonymous are great examples.
By participating in group meetings and following a set of recovery steps, you can build emotional resilience, gain mutual support from peers, and develop healthy coping mechanisms.
Key Benefits
- Provides a supportive community of peers who understand the challenges of addiction
- Offers a structured program of recovery and spiritual growth, often leading to long-term sobriety
Summary
The journey to recovery from addiction is a unique and deeply personal one.
This article has highlighted eight diverse options and resources to treat addiction, each offering its own approach and benefits:
- Partial hospitalisation
- Intensive outpatient services
- Residential treatment
- Sober living homes
- Outpatient detoxification
- Therapy
- Medication-assisted treatment
- 12 step programs
There’s no one-size-fits-all solution. The key to successful treatment lies in finding the right combination of resources and support tailored to your individual needs.
Whether you or a loved one is seeking help, remember that recovery is possible, and there are a multitude of options available to guide you towards a healthier, addiction-free life.
Trauma-Informed Self-Guided Support for Mental Health
Research shows that self-help materials are often enough for people to overcome mild to moderate mental health difficulties without professional support.
If you’re interested in a trauma-informed self-guided program, be sure to check out The Mental Wellbeing Toolkit.
