During these early stages of the process, you might be in denial about the effects of your addiction. As you become more aware of the problems you are facing, you might then struggle with feelings of ambivalence even as you become more aware of your need to overcome your addiction. According to one model of behavior change known as the transtheoretical model, making any kind of change involves a process that starts with pre-contemplation and moves into contemplation. Recognizing and avoiding situations that could lead to relapse is a key part of staying committed to recovery. Repairing relationships damaged by addiction takes time and effort, but it’s possible to rebuild trust and regain support.

What are the stages of addiction recovery?

Addiction involves brain mechanisms, particularly in the dopamine system crucial to reward processing. While stopping drug use is a pivotal aspect of recovery, it is only one part. The process often requires reprogramming deeply ingrained thought patterns, and forming new behaviors. In treatment settings, clinical diagnoses and health problems often focus on behavioral changes as a fundamental element for health prevention and maintenance. Establishing rapport between client and practitioner becomes pivotal, with identified short-term and long-term goals pursued actively through client motivation. Central to the TTM is the concept of motivational interviewing (MI), a clinical tool seamlessly integrating with the Stages of Change Model.

Starting the Process

The support of peers and allies is essential because it can be a great challenge for people in recovery to build relationships disconnected from the use of alcohol and other drugs. MAT is a form of harm reduction that can be integrated into any level of care or used as a stand-alone modality combined with individual therapy. It can be utilized as a long-term therapy or a bridge to help people transition from active addiction to abstinence. Typically, PHP involves four to six hours per day of treatment, five days per week. Long-term recovery is not a final destination but rather an ongoing process of facing and coping with life without retreating into addictive behaviors. It takes continuous commitment, which can waver at any time—particularly times of stress.

Recovery from Addiction

Successful recovery is inspired by the hope that recovery is possible and faith that you will recover. The Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM) avoids the terms addiction and recovery. Sustained remission is applied when, after 12 months or more, a substance is no longer used and no longer produces negative life consequences. Nevertheless, experts see relapse as an opportunity to learn from the experience about personal vulnerabilities and triggers, to develop a detailed relapse prevention plan, and to step up treatment and support activities.

How do the best treatment programs help patients recover from addiction?

Here’s a closer look at the various types of treatment programs, medication-assisted treatment, and the role of therapy in addiction recovery. Each phase of the recovery timeline presents its own challenges and opportunities for growth. The initial stage, acute withdrawal, can be the most physically intense, with symptoms like anxiety and sleep disturbances. As recovery progresses, new challenges such as cravings and relapse prevention become more pronounced, requiring ongoing care and support. These influences help to determine the most effective pathways of recovery for each person. Recovery pathways can include professional clinical treatment with or without medication, mutual-support program participation, support from families and friends, and faith-based resources, among other approaches.

Enter your phone number below to receive a free and confidential call from a treatment provider. Medications can sometimes be helpful in both the short term and the long term. Talk to a doctor about the options that are available to and appropriate for you. Once you make that decision to change, however, you can begin the process of preparing to take action. John C. Umhau, MD, MPH, CPE is board-certified in addiction medicine and preventative medicine.

Because families are interactive systems, everyone is affected, usually in ways they are not even aware of. When a person goes into treatment, it isn’t just a case of sober house fixing the problem person. The change destabilizes the adaptation the family has made—and while the person in recovery is learning to do things differently, so must the rest of the family learn to do things differently. Otherwise, their behavior is at risk of cementing the problem in place. Peer or mutual support is not restricted to AA or NA; it is available through other programs that similarly offer regular group meetings in which members share their experiences and recovery skills. SMART Recovery is a secular, science-based program that offers mutual support in communities worldwide as well as on the internet and has specific programming for families.

• Yet sustained, personalized recovery services are essential because treatment is just the first step toward growth and finding a high quality of life without substances.
• Whatever levels of care a person participates in, research clearly demonstrates that positive outcomes depend on adequate treatment length.
• With supportive resources and the right treatment approach, you can overcome the physical and mental challenges you face in order to recover.
• Such triggers are especially potent in the first 90 days of recovery, when most relapse occurs, before the brain has had time to relearn to respond to other rewards and rewire itself to do so.
• Intensive outpatient programs (IOPs) are a middle ground, offering more support than typical outpatient programs but with the flexibility to live at home.

Outpatient treatment allows you to live at home and continue with your daily activities while attending regular therapy sessions. It’s ideal for those with a stable living situation and less severe addiction issues. Intensive outpatient programs (IOPs) are a middle ground, offering more support than typical outpatient programs but with the flexibility to live at home. Treatment programs for addiction can be broadly categorized into inpatient and outpatient settings. Inpatient treatment involves staying at a rehab facility, offering 24/7 support and a structured environment. This is beneficial for severe addiction cases requiring intensive care.

• Special Topics and Resources presents a bank of important topics and additional resources for those in recovery, families, and individuals wanting to learn more about substance use disorder recovery.
• Recovery involves rebuilding a life— returning to wellness and becoming a functioning member of society.
• Swift intervention via inpatient or residential rehabilitation, outpatient services, or a virtual iop program often becomes essential to avert fatal consequences.
• There are also free alcohol and drug abuse hotline numbers you can call.

You can also reach out to American Addiction Centers (AAC) for free at to explore your recovery options. This group of people with lived experience advises the NIH HEAL Initiative on research directions and ensures that research takes into consideration input from people and communities the initiative aims to benefit. Various barriers have made family involvement in services for substance use disorders the exception rather than the rule. In many cases, providers don’t have training or tools to know what https://appsychology.com/living-in-a-sober-house/ to do.