There are many complicated reasons people develop addictions to drugs and alcohol. Depending on a harmful chemical to feel functional when that chemical is destroying your ability to function is ironic and difficult to stomach. But, whatever strategy or program appeals to you, the basic process of addiction treatment programs remain the same. Whether you’re a teenager with an addiction to alcohol and pills or a senior citizen addicted to prescription drugs, these will be your five most important steps to recovery.
Acknowledge the Addiction
It might sound simple, but this step is often the hardest. It’s incredibly easy to justify substance use to yourself. Your journey to recovery will only start when you can recognize that you’re struggling. This is a difficult realization for many people to come to, but it’s vital if you want to get better.
One of the first steps is understanding that you have triggers. What are they exactly? What causes you to abuse drugs or alcohol? Is it boredom? Stress? Depression? Once you know what your triggers are, you can start to avoid them or find other ways to cope with them. This is an important step in learning how to control your addiction.
Once you acknowledge that you are addicted to drugs and alcohol, the healing can begin. Getting in the right frame of mind is the key to kicking off the recovery process.
Reach Out For Help
The next step in recovery from addiction is realizing that you can’t do it alone. For the best chance of successful, lifelong sobriety, you’ll want to have professional and medical support.
If you try to overcome addiction “cold turkey,” you could put your health and recovery at risk. Trying to quit an addiction cold turkey is rarely successful and can be dangerous. Addiction is a disease, and like other diseases, it requires professional treatment to get better. By far, your best option is to find a drug and alcohol rehab center that offers a suitable program for your addiction and lifestyle.
Complete the Withdrawal Process
Residential detox is the stage when you eliminate drug or alcohol consumption. When you begin a detox, it often causes you to experience withdrawal symptoms. This part of recovery is uncomfortable, but medical support can eliminate any pain and most discomfort.
The good news is that detox is a short process. For many clients, it lasts for less than one week. Although we do not offer detox, we can refer you out to one of our partner facilities.
After you’ve detoxed, you’ll need to find a treatment program that meets your needs. There are many different types of treatment programs, so it’s important to find one that’s right for you. Treatment usually includes some combination of therapy, counseling, and support groups.
Address Underlying Issues
Detox is a necessary part of recovery, but it deals primarily with the physical aspects of addiction. Rehab is just as important because it addresses what caused the addiction in the first place. A range of addiction therapy services and treatment methods can dig deeper and reveal what factors led to addiction and how to resolve them once and for all. Common underlying issues include mental health, a history of trauma or poor stress management.
Understanding mental illness and choosing the right level of care can be overwhelming, whether you need outpatient therapy or inpatient treatment. Finding a facility that offers the right treatment options in a supportive setting is important. If you or someone you love requires mental health care, please reach out to the Crestview Recovery staff if you have questions about any of the following programs:
Evidence-based treatments include medication, education, and talk therapy. In addition, both individual and group therapy are offered as part of a person’s treatment plan. This combination of treatments is used to treat a variety of mental health conditions and is proven to help people manage their symptoms effectively. Therefore, a mental health treatment center will offer these as their primary treatment options.
Learn to Prevent Relapse
The final step in addiction recovery is developing a plan to avoid and resist relapse. Unfortunately, as many as half of all people who complete addiction treatment eventually relapse, so this is a serious risk. Fortunately, you can effectively fight back against relapse and cravings with the right preparation and custom coping mechanisms.
Begin Your Recovery Journey with These Steps to Recovery
These five steps to recovery summarize how you can overcome addiction. At Crestview Recovery in Portland, Oregon, you can work through these steps and find the recovery you deserve. Call 866.262.0531 and begin living a life you can be proud of.
Since 2016, Dr. Merle Williamson, a graduate of Oregon Health Sciences University, has been the Medical Director at Crestview Recovery, bringing a rich background in addiction medicine from his time at Hazelden Treatment Center. He oversees outpatient drug and alcohol treatments, providing medical care, setting policies, detox protocols, and quality assurance measures. Before specializing in addiction medicine, he spent 25 years in anesthesiology, serving as Chair of Hospital Pharmacy and Therapeutics Committee and Chief of Anesthesia at Kaiser Permanente. This experience gives him a unique perspective on treating prescription drug addiction.
