Addiction is a chronic, progressive disease that affects every facet of a person’s life, as well as the lives of their loved ones. However, treatment can help a person overcome addiction by establishing healthy behaviors and a new way of life that promotes and sustains lasting recovery.
The idea of addiction treatment as a continuum of care has only recently become more mainstream. Essentially, the continuum of care says that positive, lasting outcomes are achievable through long-term, extended care that includes assistance in transitioning through the levels of care.
Extended care is considered a treatment program longer than 90 days. Those who remain in treatment for more than 90 days show better overall recovery success rates than those who do not. In addition to more positive treatment outcomes, there is a myriad of other benefits of extended care:
1. It’s affordable.
Addiction treatment can be expensive. Even if health insurance supplements some of it, treatment is usually a pretty significant out-of-pocket expense. But just like cancer, diabetes and other chronic diseases, addiction requires treatment. Extended care is typically more cost-effective than inpatient hospitalization, allowing a person to partake in treatment for a greater duration.
2. It provides time and space for healing.
Addiction is a complicated disease that impacts every aspect of a person’s being, and the damage it’s caused can’t be undone in a matter of days. Recovery is a journey. Even if someone becomes clean and sober, they may find themselves reverting to the dangerous, unhealthy behaviors that drove them to addiction in the first place.
Extended care takes a more comprehensive approach to treatment. Through traditional treatment methods like cognitive behavioral therapy, as well as alternative methods such as fitness and meditation, extended care gives a person the time and space to identify the underlying issues that may have led to addiction, work on managing emotions and recreate their life.
3. It re-establishes the connection with self.
Recovery from addiction requires a total lifestyle change. For someone to successfully reintegrate into their community after treatment, they need to have the necessary tools to maintain recovery and be successful. Treatment that involves traditional and alternative therapeutic modalities helps a person get back in touch with themselves and lays the groundwork for a substance-free lifestyle.
4. It allows the body to heal.
Substance use takes a toll on the mind and body. It can take months for brain chemistry to stabilize after long-term substance use, and extended care grants a person the time they need for their brain and body to recalibrate so they are less likely to relapse upon leaving treatment.
Additionally, extended care allows a person to learn about and adopt healthier eating, exercise and stress-relief habits, which can have a permanent effect on a person’s well-being long after treatment.
5. It involves the entire family.
Addiction doesn’t just affect the person struggling with substances. It affects the entire family. It’s so important for families to understand the disease of addiction and how it disrupts family dynamics. Through family therapy, a person and their family have the opportunity to work through complicated family dynamics and learn how to support instead of enable under the guidance of a licensed therapist.
6. It teaches life skills.
When people begin abusing drugs or alcohol, especially from an early age, they usually miss out on reaching certain milestones and learning some of life’s most important lessons. People struggling with addiction and alcoholism may get older, but they don’t “grow up.”
They may struggle to maintain independence simply because they lack the necessary life skills to navigate life successfully. At Spearhead Lodge, we provide training in goal setting and accountability, personal finance, physical health and wellness, and relationship sanity to help residents successfully reintegrate into their communities after treatment. For more information about our Extended Care Program or to verify your insurance benefits, please contact us at 1-888-483-0528.