Recovery from addiction can be hard, and even scary, especially if a person with substance use disorder (SUD) or their family member is unsure of what they should be doing or looking for.
At Ascension Recovery Services, we want to make sure that we are educating others about all aspects of recovery, from a person just looking for resources or for someone who is at the end of their treatment.
Keep reading to learn about some of the commonly asked questions we receive, such as, but not limited to:
First, we need to understand or define what the word “recovery” means.
Meaningful recovery though has several characteristics including abstinence from drugs and alcohol, increased coping mechanisms to deal with stress, decision making, rewarding oneself, a support system that encourages the recovery process, a new level of maturity and responsibility of one’s behaviors and a spiritual component all with a goal of improving overall wellness of the individual.
While we speak of the recovery process, there is not a “general process” to recovery. Everyone’s recovery will be different, and it is up to their SUD and them on how they want to recover.
Some, many will argue most, individuals will require some combination of detox, residential treatment, partial hospitalization, intensive outpatient treatment, general outpatient and sober living as a mechanism of achieving the above-mentioned goals.
Others may employ strategies such as Alcoholic Anonymous (AA), Narcotics Anonymous (NA), Celebrate Recovery (CR), Refuge Recovery, Smart Recovery or other mutual aid support groups on their own or in combination with clinical (“treatment”) services to achieve or maintain their recovery process.
The severity (mild, moderate or severe) of an individual's SUD is based on 11 DSM-5 criteria.
Substance use disorders span a wide variety of problems arising from substance use and cover 11 different criteria:
These all play a role in determining what a professional will recommend for placement.
Most, if not all, mutual aid support groups like AA/NA/CR do not require abstinence to attend their meetings.
The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) is a great resource for individuals and their families looking for solutions. SAMHSA provides many free resources on their website. There are also many social network groups that focus on recovery and ample individuals that are in recovery who are willing to share their experiences with others.
Treatment options and ways to cover treatment costs vary by state, insurance policy, grant funded programs, financial tolerability of the family and much more.
Talking with an addiction professional that regularly refers to treatment can be one of the most valuable resources in navigating these decisions.
To talk with one of our addiction professionals, you can call 304-241-4585.
According to SAMHSA, 7.9 million people in the United States in 2014 had both a SUD and a mental health condition.
Individuals whom utilize mutual aid support groups alone, will only focus on the substance use but not the mental health issues that are often a barrier to success.
Those individual’s seeking professional addiction treatment, will benefit from a controlled environment for the individual to begin their recovery process. Some individuals do not have an adequately safe home location, meaning someone within their life is using drugs/alcohol, to begin a meaningful recovery attempt. This barrier can be overcome with inpatient treatment. Or, a patient may also require gender specific treatment due to post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), trauma or other process addictions that mutual aid support groups will be unable to address.
Then, there is the amount of personal attention an individual’s needs. Since not all individuals have the same deficiencies and assets beginning a recovery process, it’s important that someone help address the deficiencies and build on the person’s strengths. This is done in very different ways between these two approaches. Those with less intrinsic motivation will certainly benefit from the treatment approach due to techniques the professionals in these treatment centers can utilize to overcome this barrier.
The biggest and most important distinction to note is that “treatment” (especially JAHCO and CARF certified providers) utilize evidence-based therapy methods that are researched and proven to have a positive effect on the recovery process, all of which are facilitated by professionals with education and training specific to the field.
Mutual aid support groups utilize laypersons without any professional training to provide guidance. I personally know individuals that have done both and sustained meaningful recovery (or “sustained remission” - defined as 5 or more years of abstinence).
MAT is not solely limited to opiate treatment (vivitrol, suboxone, methadone). Other medication assisted treatments include: Nicotine replacement and several alcohol-based treatments (anabuse, campral and naltrexone).
These treatments are often utilized during and after treatment and require a prescription (with the exception of some nicotine replacement). These treatments help with reducing symptoms including cravings and withdrawal. Anabuse is intended to bring about negative consequences if a person drinks. The person drinking will not break down alcohol effectively and become ill.
Most treatment providers utilize cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT), some will specialize in certain sub-populations of people with SUDs. For instance, a facility that specializes in trauma may utilize eye movement desensitization and reprocessing (EMDR), while another center that may focus on borderline personality disorder will use dialectical behavioral therapy (DBT).
This is why having a professional’s guidance with placement can be a key to success.
In a 2005 study developed by The Walsh Group, with the assistance of The Center for Survey Research (CSR) at the University of Virginia, found that the more involved and well matched an individual with SUD was with a mutual aid support group, the likelihood of continued sobriety increased.
During and after patient’s treatment, an addiction professional can help find a mutual aid support group or groups that best fits their personality, religiosity and more.
At Ascension, we have many different services that can be provided to someone suffering from SUD:
Our addiction professionals can also place patients and make referrals. If you’d like more information on sober living homes, check out West Virginia Sober Living, a program designed to reintegrate recovering individuals into the world.
If you’d like to talk to one of our addiction professionals, call 304-241-4585.