Simple enough, right? According to the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA), most IOP recovery programs require 9 to 20 hours of participation each week. At Lighthouse, our IOP has 3 group sessions (of 3 hours each), 1 individual therapy session, and 1 meeting with your recovery coach per week. We use comprehensive, science-backed methods in our therapy and our program requirements which should lead to long-term success. Your job is to show up. No excuses, no late arrivals, you show up.
Taking “show up” a step farther, to reap the benefits of a supportive outpatient program like at Lighthouse Recovery, prioritize it. Make it an immovable block of time that cannot be scheduled over or missed. Plan for traffic within that chunk of time as well. Most IOP recovery programs last 8 to 12 weeks, so prioritize being in town for the duration of the program. If you must leave town during the program, talk to your Lighthouse Recovery team about tuning in virtually so no momentum is lost.
Part of your supportive IOP will be group and individual therapy sessions. Each Client is unique, and each therapist caters their recovery suggestions to that individual. Your therapist will undoubtedly provide you with concrete ideas to aid your recovery; those may include hard conversations to be had, new hobbies to replace addictive ones, or other ideas. This “homework” is part of your recovery. Commit to doing the hard work outside of therapy, and you’ll greatly aid your long-term success.
- Connect with the community
If your time allows, try showing up early or staying late after IOP therapy sessions. Your peers in your small group sessions know better than your closest friends and family the struggle, the challenge, and the joy it can be to recover from a gripping addiction. Another pro to connecting with your IOP community comes through the accountability. These are men and women who want to break free of addiction as much as you, and can help provide that sound voice of reason if you struggle. They can help give personal anecdotes of how they balanced staying true to their recovery journey with their old life. Make yourself available to the people who WANT to see you succeed, like those undergoing an IOP as well.
- Involve friends and family
It can be vulnerable admitting to loved ones you need a supportive outpatient program to break free of addiction. However, involving them in your recovery adds accountability, encouragement, and support. Let them know golf sounds better than a sports bar. That going on a walk is more productive to your recovery journey than staying in the house all weekend. Conversely, does your home environment hinder your recovery? Talk to your team about ways to address triggers at home with your loved ones. We can identify the underlying causes of addiction to lead to full, lasting recovery and mitigate triggers that lead to relapse.
- Set short-term goals and say them aloud
Setting short-term goals help propel you forward in the big goal of long-term recovery from drug or alcohol addiction. Decide on a few realistic short-term goals with your lighthouse team and say them aloud to your loved ones. Let your family in on the goal process so they can encourage you and keep you accountable. Write your goals on a Post-it and tape it to your steering wheel and your bathroom mirror. Be reminded of your little goals, knowing that you CAN do the hard work of addiction recovery.
Once you achieve those short-term goals, celebrate! Grab a cookie cake, treat yourself to a flower bouquet or go on a celebratory dinner to boast that you’re on your way to alcohol or drug recovery. Maybe whiteboard the number of days sober on your mirror to show your hard effort toward recovery. Take special note of sobriety milestones – one week, one month, 50 days – and celebrate them! At Lighthouse Recovery, we offer a special graduation upon completion of the program.
Deciding to enroll in an IOP shows you’re committed to breaking free from your addiction. You’ll be able to live at home, maintain some normalcy, while doing an incredible amount of work addressing the underlying causes of addiction, working with a recovery coach to prevent relapse, and hopefully see long-term recovery like many of our Clients. There’s no better time to enroll than now, so please give us a call to discuss if our IOP is right for you. You’re worth it!
