inpatient drug rehabilitation

Inpatient Drug Rehabilitation: What to Expect from Your Stay

by Pat Fontana

Treatment for drug addiction varies depending on the person and the severity of the addiction. Outpatient programs enable you to attend therapy sessions, group counseling, and other aspects of the program while also continuing to live a relatively normal schedule outside of rehab. For more severe addiction, or when addiction accompanies other disorders, inpatient drug rehabilitation may be the better solution. Every patient is different and every program is different, but here is basically what to expect from your stay in inpatient drug rehabilitation.

Detox First

Before you can enter inpatient drug rehabilitation, you must first cleanse your body of the toxins from your drug addiction. While some inpatient programs include this step as part of their treatment, others may require you to go through detoxification before you can be admitted. You can complete detox as part of an outpatient treatment program. Detox is the process of ridding your body of the chemicals you’ve ingested on a daily basis as an addict, so you can begin your journey toward recovery.

Honesty is Critical

You will start your inpatient drug rehabilitation experience with intake. This is the point where you will be asked a lot of questions that you must answer honestly. Your successful recovery depends on you being forthcoming with the rehab staff, whether you choose to participate in an inpatient or an outpatient treatment program. They will need to know what drugs you have been taking and will probably ask questions about how you are currently feeling. The intake staff may also do a quick medical check, to get vitals such as heart rate and blood pressure.

Routine an Important Aspect

Once admitted to inpatient drug rehabilitation, you will be on a strict schedule. Downtime is minimized to the point of being almost nonexistent, for a reason. You will have therapy sessions and support groups to attend. Depending on the treatment program, you may also participate in exercise sessions, mindfulness training, or other therapeutic activities.

You will be expected to follow the rules of the inpatient drug rehabilitation program. The more you adhere to the program’s schedule and guidelines, the more you will gain from your treatment. If you try to break the rules set forth by the program, you will only hurt your opportunity for recovery.

If you need a more flexible schedule, an outpatient program gives you the opportunity to meet your work, family, and community responsibilities while still pursuing quality treatment for your addiction.

Types of Residential Treatment Settings

Inpatient rehab programs use a variety of therapeutic approaches:

  • Therapeutic communities are highly structured programs in which patients remain at a residence, typically for 6 to 12 months. The entire community, including treatment staff and those in recovery, act as key agents of change, influencing the patient’s attitudes, understanding, and behaviors associated with drug use.
  • Shorter-term residential treatment typically focuses on detoxification as well as providing initial intensive counseling and preparation for treatment in a community-based setting.
  • Recovery housing provides supervised, short-term housing for patients, often following other types of inpatient or residential treatment. Recovery housing can help people make the transition to an independent life—for example, helping them learn how to manage finances or seek employment, as well as connecting them to support services in the community.

Sleeping Arrangements

In most inpatient treatment programs, residents share a room with at least one other person. There are often beds arranged dormitory style, although some may share suites designed for multiple residents. High-end inpatient drug rehabilitation programs do offer private rooms, but at a higher cost.

Nutrition

While in drug rehab, you will learn how to take better care of yourself and that includes learning how to cook and eat healthier. Your room may have a kitchen or there may be a shared kitchen for all the residents. Some rehab programs assign chores such as cooking and cleaning, so you may be tasked with preparing a meal for all the residents on a rotating basis.

Outside Communications

Most inpatient drug rehabilitation programs limit communications with anyone outside of the program. You may be allowed to call your family using the facility’s phone but might not be allowed the use of your own cell phone. This rule is designed to protect you from the temptation of calling old friends or even drug suppliers who could drastically interrupt your recovery progress.

Treatment Programs

During your stay in an inpatient drug rehabilitation program, you may participate in a variety of therapy programs designed to help you work through your addiction:

  • Individual therapy will help you learn what contributes to your addictive behavior as well as how to identify triggers. You will also learn coping skills and how to manage your emotions without using drugs.
  • Group therapy is designed to let you know that you are not alone in your addiction struggles. You will gain support and insight from others in your group who have had similar issues and experiences with self-defeating behavior.
  • Family therapy can help you and your family throughout the recovery process, uniting broken families and facilitating the healing process.

These are, of course, also the basic types of therapy available to you in an outpatient treatment program. Drug rehabilitation is different for each person. The important thing for you, as an addict, is to get the help you need.

South Miami Recovery Can Help You

At South Miami Recovery, we know that you are unique in your needs and preferences. We believe in the importance of treating the whole person and will work with you to find the right path to recovery for you.

If you’d like to learn more about our services, we encourage you to contact us today to speak to our staff. We speak English and Spanish. Call South Miami Recovery at 305.661.0055.