California Drug Treatment Usually Begins With The Detox Process | Lifestyle

California Drug Treatment Usually Begins With The Detox Process

by TomGrady

The first step in recovering from alcoholism or substance abuse is to get the substances that have been poisoning your system out. Dependent on on your substance of abuse, this can take quite a few days or longer than a year. The tough part is if you have been abusing your substance of choice for an extended period of time, your body has most likely become dependent upon it. It has become virtually as vital to your body as food, water or even oxygen.

As the toxin is purged out of your system through sweating, urination, and even breathing, physical signs or symptoms like craving, "the shakes", and also a depressed mental state can take place. It is during this critical time frame when the pain of withdrawal is the worst and without professional support most addicts may fail to get over the hump and begin his or her journey of recovery.

A number of addicts when attempting to quit "cold turkey" on their own will revert back to their substance of abuse to ease the pain of withdrawal, but this preference only ends up prolonging the horrible cycle of their addiction. In social model detox, addicts are closely monitored during the initial 24 hour period of sobriety to ensure that their vital signs keep on being stable and they continue to be abstinent throughout the most difficult time of withdrawal. This is usually done in a residential treatment setting, but for more severe instances it can also be carried out in a hospital.

Following the first 24 hour period, the addict or alcoholic will receive therapy and counseling and be offered long-term options for recovery. Because most stays in a social model detox are somewhere between 5 to 10 days, the personnel will have appropriate time to determine the addict's needs and make suggestions that will maximize the odds of remaining clean and sober long-term.

Possibilities for longer term treatment following a stay in a social model detox program include longer term residential treatment, transitional living, and outpatient counseling. Each one varies in the degree and style of treatment, but the success rate of any of these options is dependent on the motivation of the addict to remain sober.

For many people who are deciding on a avenue of recovery, additional inpatient treatment after the detox program may not be an choice. This can be as a result of financial reasons or personal commitments like jobs or families. For these people, attendance at 12 step meetings like AA or NA may be their only option. This has also been proven to be a good route to take for people desiring to get sober, but it also requires a commitment on the part of the addict or alcoholic to remain sober and work the program.

Both medical detox and non-medical, social model detox have their place for the addict or alcoholic who wants to sober up, and it is dependent on the individual person's state of physical well being as to which is more applicable. Social model detox programs are a cost effective way to begin your journey of recovery. Their presence outside of a medical facility means lower overhead, but it does not mean lower rates of performance or lower standards of care. In fact, the level of personal care by counselors and staff of a social model detox program might be determined to be higher because most people working in these facilities are in recovery. So they can sympathize with the people in treatment.

DISCLAIMER: This article is provided as information only and is not to be taken as financial advice.

If you're looking for drug rehab in California, Pathways Recovery of Northern California offers California drug rehabilitation services in Sacramento.