Life after Detox: Importance of Continuing Care

Short-term and long-term goals are part of any effective substance use disorder treatment. Taking the first step towards recovery can begin with going through detox, but sustaining sobriety over a longer period of time requires new tools, support and continuing care options. So let’s look at how continuing care can be part of the larger sobriety plan you put in place before the first day at detox begins.

Once you finish detox, the work to remain in recovery is just beginning. Returning to familiar environments and routines without ongoing support can increase your risk of returning quickly to alcohol or drug use. Setting up a plan to follow detox before the withdrawal process begins is recommended. That plan may include inpatient or outpatient programs, 12-step programming, a sober living house, individual or family counseling, or a partial hospitalization program. 

What Happens After Detox?

A stay in detox rids the body of problem substances and interrupts the pattern of drinking and drug use. However, it does not begin a sustainable recovery on its own. After detox, patients who return to their normal lives go back to the same environments (and often the same habits) that led to their need for substance abuse help.

Spending time again with people who enable your drinking or drug use can lead to relapse. Thinking you’re capable of ending a substance use disorder alone may keep you from recognizing the power that drug or alcohol use has over you. Without some type of ongoing help, it may be a matter of days or weeks before you’re back to the self-destructive behaviors and risking even more harm to your health and wellness.

Recognizing Your Individual Needs

Even people who spend time in a residential program of 30 days or more are at risk for relapsing without some kind of continuing care. Spending a shorter time in detox alone means you may be neglecting what you need to stay sober for even a short-term period.

Your needs to stay sober depend on your circumstances. You may need a new living arrangement, new employment, a new set of friends and acquaintances, medical care, mental health care, and more. You will need coping skills and strategies to replace the desire to drink or do drugs when feeling anxious, depressed, or stressed.

Options for Continuing Care

There is no need to choose one option for continuing care after detox. Multiple options can be explored in succession or at the same time. Your goal is to find a form of continuing care that feels like a good fit. It doesn’t have to be automatically comfortable to have potential, though. You’ll want to spend time learning about each option and even talking to people about them to get a sense of which one may be the place to start.

1. Individual Therapy

Talk therapy in a one-on-one setting is one form of continuing care that might fit your needs. It’s private, structured, and consistently scheduled. The focus remains on you entirely, and you can learn strategies to practice in between sessions.

2. Online Therapy

An online option for individual therapy allows you to connect with a professional virtually. These sessions can accommodate people without easy access to in-person therapy due to finances, lack of transportation or work and family demands.

3. 12-Step Programming

This option for continuing care can come from meetings at a consistent location or at different locations. Mentors and peers help guide you to making healthier decisions regarding sobriety with a theme of accepting powerlessness and relying on a higher power. Learning how to take responsibility for harming others in the past is a fundamental part of this programming.

4. Sober Living

A sober living environment can be a valuable continuing care option and way to remain connected with peers with similar sobriety goals. House rules banning substance use are clearly established and enforced to protect the recovery work going on. Friendships can be made in this kind of setting with mutual support and understanding of each other’s challenges in staying sober.

5. Inpatient Treatment

Residential stays of 30 days or more can address both substance use disorders and co-occurring mental health disorders. The exceptional treatment centers use evidence-based therapies and personalized care to meet each patient’s needs for drug and alcohol detox in Dallas.

6. Outpatient Treatment

Outpatient options can provide regular support for people in recovery while still allowing them to maintain their jobs and keep up with family responsibilities. An intensive outpatient program (IOP) typically involves more time at a facility to treat substance use and mental health disorders. IOP participants may be in their program for several hours at a time and during portions of several days a week.

7. Partial Hospitalization Program (PHP)

A PHP resembles an outpatient program as a person still lives at home while attending a program at a hospital. This program may involve daily visits for treatment of mental health and substance use disorders. A PHP is considered a short-term treatment option as it typically lasts only a few weeks.

Restored Path Detox is DFW’s premier location for sophisticated medical detox. Conveniently located in Frisco, we provide a safe sanctuary for healing that is also a state-of-the-art detoxification facility for a wide range of substances. Our compassionate physicians and therapists want you to get well and are committed to removing any existing barriers to your care. Restored Path’s board-certified medical professionals and highly qualified nursing team have extensive critical care experience and are available to monitor your alcohol and drug detox program 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

If you or a loved one are struggling with drug or alcohol use, call us today and take your first step towards recovery: 469-827-0000.