I worked for many years in various social services/counseling roles and as an addiction counselor I felt myself questioning so many things about a traditional treatment program.
Just like many other things in life, addiction falls on a spectrum and there is no one-size-fits-all answer, nor should there be, yet, you will find the same formula in almost every single rehab facility. A person or their family is desperate to get better, they believe a rehab facility is the answer, the person is assessed and there are two options from there: in-patient or out-patient (no treatment is the third option but you will rarely see that – that’s another post altogether.)
All in-patient and all out-patient approaches are the same. They all have groups, individual counseling, etc. etc. But, what if you need more or less than that? What about those who may not need to give up everything (their job, income, family, friends, pets, etc.) for 90 days or those who haven’t even scratched the surface after 90 days but are let loose in 3 months?
It’s important when looking to get sober to understand where you may fall on the spectrum. Some people are turned off when they learn that they have to go away for 3 months which may make them think their problem isn’t big enough yet.
I encourage you to look at all of your options and figure out if there are ways you can tweak or utilize the resources that are important to you. It is possible to obtain sobriety while keeping the important things in your life.
