Society teaches people that they should have a career, family, home, or whatever else by a certain age. As a young adult, there is a strong fear of missing out because of this societal pressure. Someone with a substance use disorder (SUD) may experience that fear more strongly than others without SUDs, due to the time it takes to heal. However, addiction therapy is an opportunity to grow and change, just as everyone else is doing in their young adulthood.
Addiction Therapy Options
SUDs can feel like they take over your life because of how most substances affect the brain. When substances are abused over a long time, they hijack your brain. This causes it to work differently than it normally does. Whole regions of your brain become altered from substances, making it harder for you to make decisions, feel pleasure from life, or feel and manage emotions like stress correctly. When this is the case, addiction therapy can help you heal physically and psychologically.
Partial Hospitalization Program
Every treatment facility is different, just as every person has different needs. At Lighthouse Recovery Texas, there are five different programs you can go through for addiction therapy. For people who do not need assistance with detoxing or residential care, a partial hospitalization program (PHP) is the option for treatment.
In PHP, you get more intensive support throughout your day. This is to help people who transition from residential care or who can manage their addiction with less support. For five days a week, for a total of four weeks, you will get individual therapy, group therapy, and psychiatric support.
Intensive Outpatient Program
After completing PHP, you have the option to transition to the intensive outpatient program (IOP). Stepping down is what it is called when you transition from one level of the program to a less intense level of care. Once you step down to IOP, you have more time outside of program courses to learn to manage your addiction.
The benefit of IOP is that you only attend three hours of individual and group therapy three days a week. This is for a total of three months. During this time, you to work through triggers, temptations, and emotions in real-time, as you experience them in your week.
Depending on your individual needs, these programs can be done in succession or individually. Sometimes people need a little extra support in recovery. IOP can be a great source of support when you are managing on your own.
Sober Living
For people who do not have stable or supportive home environments, the sober living program meets those needs. It can also provide needed accountability throughout the day The sober living program requires a three-month minimum stay, but people stay as long as they need. Even if that takes a year or more.
By participating in the sober living program, you not only get a furbished and sober environment to live in, but you also get access to support when you need it. Recovery comes with many ups and downs. Sometimes you need immediate counseling, reality-checking, or grounding to help you not relapse. In a sober living program, you have peers and staff who have been through the program around to help you.
Not only do you get support throughout your day, but you also get to participate in life skills training and group programming, as you need it. You can get help setting yourself up to live sober and independently after you complete addiction therapy.
Recovery Coaches
When you complete the different levels of care at Lighthouse Recovery, they provide one last program to support you in learning how to manage and live with your SUD. The program is with working recovery coaches. This program is designed so that you live your life, go to work or school, or take care of your home, and still be able to talk with someone weekly about addiction.
Recovery coaches tend to work with people for six-twelve months. Again, this depends on your needs and what you are looking for in your support system. This is to support you in your first year of sobriety, as you may know, it can be the hardest. With continued accountability and guidance, recovery coaching helps you in reaching long-term sobriety.
Extended Care
Although last on the list, Extended care is not the last option for treatment. It is often a first step, as it combines all the programs above. Within a sober environment, you get custom-tailored programming that supports your specific needs.
Healing More Than Substance Use in Addiction Therapy
While in recovery, you do more than manage substance use. “A person’s recovery is built on his or her strengths, talents, coping abilities, resources, and inherent values. It is holistic,” (Substance Abuse and Mental Health Administration Services).
Seeing friends and family get married, adopt pets, have children, or do other life activities while you are in treatment can cause a variety of emotions. However, you can feel empowered from treatment, as it is a source of growth. You are not staying in one place in life while you attend treatment. In addiction therapy you heal holistically, meaning your mind, body, and emotional state. You grow and learn about your body, brain functioning, and the chemical effects of substances.
Depending on what level of treatment you attend, you may even learn life skills like budgeting, interviewing, or searching for an apartment. In treatment, you will get the help you need to be independent and thrive after treatment. Some people who have never had to attend addiction therapy will not be as progressed or developed as you, even, so there is no shame in taking time to heal in addiction therapy.
Do you find yourself seeking drugs or alcohol when you know they will not help you feel better? Substance use disorders develop over time, with repeated use. At Lighthouse Recovery Texas, we are here to help you learn to manage your substance use. You do not have to manage alone. With different levels of care, we have evidence-based treatment to help you on your recovery journey. Lighthouse’s staff have been through the program, so you will receive top-level care from people who understand living with SUD. Contact us at (214) 396-0259 to talk with our program staff. Let us help you reach sustainable sobriety, so you can build the life you have always wanted.
