If you or someone close to you is struggling with addiction, you might know that getting help is an essential step. But what does that look like? How does drug rehab work, and does it make a difference?
Drug rehab works in two stages:
- Detox
- Therapy/Medication
The first stage is detox, and this helps you do exactly what the name suggests: detoxify your body of all the residual and harmful compounds left behind by drugs and kick the physical addiction.
The second stage is the ongoing therapy and, in some cases, combined medication that you might be using. This is a longer stage, one that lasts several weeks, months, or even years, and gives you the tools you need to manage your long-term sobriety.
How Does Drug Rehab Work?
Drug rehab works in several ways by helping you remove any residual toxins from the drugs and alcohol you may have previously abused. Addiction causes problems with your brain chemistry, disrupting healthy communication between your neurons and changing things like your dopamine responses.
Rehab works by undoing that damage and retraining your brain to manage stress in a healthier fashion and cope with things like triggers.
Detox
How does drug rehab work with detox?
The first stage of any treatment program is detox, and this works by placing you in a secure, comfortable setting where you have complete medical supervision averaging seven days. During this time, your body will flush out the toxins it has built up as a result of drug and alcohol abuse.
This is an otherwise uncomfortable process, but working with a qualified detox center gives you access to things like medication and support, helping you get through it in a much more successful fashion.
You won’t be able to retrain your brain or learn healthy coping mechanisms if you are still struggling with the physical aspect of addiction.
Trigger Recognition
How does drug rehab work for triggers?
When you transition into your recovery stage, you will face trials in the form of triggers. These are people, places, or things that can trigger an intense emotional response, often in relation to your addiction.
Some examples include:
- People you used to get high with
- The street where you used to buy drugs
- The doctor’s office where you got multiple prescriptions
- The smell of burnt metal
- Open alcohol containers
These will be different for everyone. You won’t be able to completely remove triggers from your life, but you can learn to recognize the most common triggers in your life.
Working with a therapist means talking through your emotions, improving your emotional regulation, and learning to identify triggers and be prepared for when they strike.
Healthy Coping Mechanisms
How does drug rehab work for coping?
When you participate in rehab, you will learn healthy coping mechanisms to:
- Improve emotional regulation
- Boost trigger awareness
- Decrease stress
Things like healthy nutrition, good sleep habits, meditation, getting outside, exercising, and practicing self-care are all examples of healthy coping mechanisms you will learn in drug rehab. These mechanisms can and should be practiced on a regular basis.
Healthy coping mechanisms can improve your emotional regulation, decrease stress, and help you to rely on positive activities like yoga, volunteerism, or even progressive relaxation instead of turning to drugs and alcohol when you encounter difficulties like triggers.
Drug Rehab with Casa Serena
At Casa Serena, we believe in providing residential and detox programs for women by women. Our goal is to provide women in the area with access to things like trauma-informed care and modalities like behavioral activation therapy to help with long-term recovery.
When you come to our treatment center for drug rehab, we provide a wide range of services for women, including:
- Treatment for alcohol addiction
- Treatment for benzodiazepine addiction
- Treatment for cocaine addiction
- Treatment for opioid addiction
Some of these, like opioids and alcohol addictions, will start with medication-assisted treatment, where you can receive FDA-approved medication to ease the discomfort of your withdrawal symptoms and help you manage your cravings while undergoing the rest of your treatment.
Our facility specializes in providing approaches for women who tackle co-occurring disorders like eating disorders and addiction or substance abuse and depression. We know that most of the time when people are struggling with addiction, they are simply trying to meet their needs.
We aim to ensure women have the tools and the healthy mechanisms they need to meet their needs in a healthier fashion.
Call our team today to get help with your addiction.