Understanding the Recovery Journey: What Comes After Detox

The most common pathway from addiction to recovery is to start with detox. Detoxification is a necessary step as all the substances need to be removed from the body to ensure the person is in a stable place, physically and mentally, to continue their journey to sobriety. But what happens after detox?

If you’ve just finished your detox, you might be uncertain about what’s next for you in your recovery journey post-detox. Keep reading to discover why residential treatment is the best next step for a smooth recovery.

Understanding the Need for Residential Treatment After Detox

For most people, detox is incredibly challenging. The detox process can last from hours to days and weeks, depending on various factors. Often, detoxification comes with unpleasant side effects and withdrawal symptoms. Getting through this difficult stage feels like such an accomplishment for most, and it really is! It’s an achievement anyone should be proud of.

However, the mistake some make is getting a false sense of confidence that the hard part is over. As a result, some people think they can manage the next recovery stages on their own. Going it alone is not recommended. In fact, the risk of relapse is incredibly high immediately following a detox, as this is when cravings for substances are the most intense. This is precisely why being in a professionally supervised and supported environment, such as a residential treatment program, is essential.

After detoxification, it’s best to enroll in a residential treatment program. Detox gets all the substances out of the body and a residential treatment program teaches the patient how to prevent any future relapse into substance misuse.

Residential treatment programs help the patient:

• Learn about substance abuse and addiction so they can understand their addiction.
• Get diagnosed with any co-occurring disorders (such as anxiety, depression, OCD and more) so they can receive adequate treatment.
• Learn how to identify triggers that cause the patient to want to misuse substances.
• Learn coping mechanisms to respond to stress, which can reduce the risk of relapse.
• Participate in group counseling sessions to find bonds with others going through the same thing.
• Fix relationships with family members through family therapy.

All of these above elements are necessary to ensure patients are fully prepared to return to their daily lives without giving in to cravings and temptations. A comprehensive understanding of what led them to abuse substances and how they can avoid their triggers, as well as healing through therapy, helps them have the foundation to succeed in recovery.

Many facilities offer both detox and residential programs so patients can smoothly transfer from one to the next.

Luckily, residential programs come in many formats, depending on your specific needs. At Topsail Addiction Treatment, our standard length for a residential program is 30 days. However, patients can choose shorter or longer programs based on the support level they need.

Exploring Inpatient vs. Outpatient Treatment Options

Once you’ve decided that a residential program is the best next step for you after detox, it’s time to choose between an inpatient or outpatient program.

Inpatient Residential Treatment

Inpatient treatment allows patients to temporarily live at the facility, with 24/7 access to medical supervision, professional support, and programs.

Some of the benefits of inpatient treatment are:

• Patients can dedicate all their time and focus on recovery without the distractions of work or family.
• 24/7 supervision so staff can help if a medical emergency arises.
• Access to temptations and substances is removed.

Outpatient Residential Treatment

Of course, not everyone can pause their life for a few weeks to live full-time in a treatment center. Fortunately, people can choose a form of residential treatment called “outpatient” treatment. Outpatient programs are flexible, allowing patients to keep up with their daily responsibilities, such as work and family care. For many, this is important, as they simply can’t step away from their everyday life entirely, even for treatment. With outpatient treatment, patients come to the facility for a few hours for courses, therapy and access to help. They don’t live at the facility and can stay up-to-date with their daily responsibilities.

Some of the benefits of outpatient treatment are:

• You can continue to keep up with daily responsibilities, like work or caretaking for your family.
• Privacy, as patients don’t have to stay overnight at the facilities.
• Ability to spend evenings with loved ones and lean on them for support during recovery.
• Opportunity to adapt to sober living in the “real” world.