Long Term Inpatient Treatment

Long term inpatient treatment is the most recommended form of addiction treatment for people struggling with a severe substance use disorder. In this type of treatment, you will typically live in a controlled environment for anywhere between 90 days to one year - or longer.

It is unlike most other residential rehab programs in the sense that they will provide you with adequate time to work through your drug or alcohol related problems, as well as address all other issues that might be underlying your substance abuse.

What Does The Treatment Program/Process Address?

The goal of long term inpatient treatment is to address any issues that you might not have been able to deal with in another type of recovery program. It will provide you with various resources that are targeted at reducing your risk of relapse.

Additionally, spending time in such a program could end up having far reaching consequences down the road. It is for this reason that you need to ensure that it is the right option for you.

You can do this by talking to addiction treatment professionals after undergoing a thorough assessment. By so doing, you will be able to determine whether long term inpatient treatment would work well in helping you overcome your addiction and any other co-occurring medical and mental health disorders that you may also be struggling with.

How Long Does It Take?

As we mentioned above, most long term inpatient treatment programs will last anywhere between 90 days to a year. However, some of them may last longer than this time. The time you spend in such a program will largely depend on the disorders that you are struggling with.

If you have a relatively mild to moderate addiction to only one substance, for instance, you may be able to recover after about three months in such a program. In other cases, you might need to spend a bit longer especially if you have been abusing more than one drug or you have received a dual diagnosis for addiction with another co-occurring mental health or medical disorder.

That said, most long term inpatient treatment programs are considered to take about 90 days. This makes them different from short term programs that last for a week to about a month.

That said, long term treatment often lasts long. This means that you will be able to enjoy a multifaceted treatment program. You can also find different forms of long term inpatient treatment, including but not limited to:

12-step based drug rehabs
Holistic programs
Spiritually or faith based recovery treatment

The important thing to keep in mind is that the time you spend in such a program will allow you to enjoy a wide variety of benefits. These include but are not limited to the following:

Medically managed detoxification services
Addressing all the issues that may be underlying your addiction
Addiction education
Relapse prevention techniques
Aftercare and followup care programs like continued therapy and counseling, staying in a sober living facility, and attending support group meetings

How Much Does It Cost On Average?

Since you will be spending a great deal of time in such a program, it is highly likely that you are going to pay more for the services that you receive than if you had chosen a short term inpatient program.

However, you should not worry about paying for your long term inpatient treatment. This is because there are many ways to do this, as long as you have the right information and resources.

For instance, you can pay through your insurance program. This is because many insurance plans will provide coverage for some or all of the cost of treatment in an inpatient drug rehab program.

You can also get help with paying for your treatment in a long term program. This help would typically come from donations from your friends and family, getting a loan to offset the cost of care, or crowdfunding through websites like GoFundMe.

The other option would be to offset part or all of the cost of your treatment using out of pocket money. This means that you would have to get the money that you have been saving to help you afford long term inpatient treatment.

That said, many of these programs understand that you need long term treatment because you have a severe addiction or you are also struggling with a co-occurring mental health disorder that could have taken a toll on your finances.

For this reason, some of them have sliding scale fees and payment plans. You can count on these options to be able to afford the cost of care in a long term inpatient treatment program.

Finally, there are free drug rehab centers that you will not require you to pay for your treatment. However, most of these centers have long waiting lists, while some of them might not always have as many amenities as you would find in a full paying facility.

What Are The Typical Day To Day Routines During Treatment?

Some of the things that would happen when you are enrolled in a long term inpatient treatment program include:

Developing solid coping strategies
Learning relapse prevention techniques
Tackling all the issues that may be underlying your addiction and contributing to it
Healing and balancing your brain chemistry so as to reduce drug cravings
Mending all the relationships that you broke with your family and friends
Building healthy relationships with the other people who are in the recovery program
Developing the life skills that will help you in your life after treatment
You will be able to achieve these goals by participating in the following treatment options:
Anger management
Animal assisted therapy
Art therapy sessions
Dialectical behavioral therapy
Gender-specific drug rehab and treatments
Group therapy
Hypnotherapy
Individual psychological counseling
Massage sessions
Meditation sessions
Music therapy
Nature outings
Nutritional consultation
One-on-one counseling
Outdoor activities
Out-of-town trips
Outreach programs
Private rooms
Psychodrama activities
Skills training
Spa treatments
Special meal preparation
Sports
Support group participation
Tai chi sessions
Trauma workshops

How Successful Is It?

NIDA - the National Institute on Drug Abuse - reports that you need a minimum of 90 days or 3 months in a treatment setting before you can reduce and stop your substance abuse and work through your addiction.

The same institute reports that there is a high likelihood of achieving full sobriety by spending more time in a treatment program. It is for this reason that long term inpatient treatment is the recommended form of drug rehab.

However, extended treatment might not always be the best option. There are many factors that you should consider while choosing a recovery program depending on your needs and preferences.

Who Should Get This Type Of Treatment?

Long term inpatient treatment is the recommended form of treatment if you have a severe substance use disorder that has been going on for a period of time. It would also be ideal if you have other chronic co-occurring mental health and medical disorders that you also need to address while trying to overcome your addiction.

You may also choose long term inpatient treatment of treatment if you require greater structure, stable and supportive living arrangements, peer recovery support, and external controls to reduce your risk of relapse.

CITATIONS

http://www.asam.org/quality-practice/definition-of-addiction

https://www.drugabuse.gov/publications/drugs-brains-behavior-science-addiction/treatment-recovery

https://www.drugabuse.gov/publications/principles-drug-addiction-treatment-research-based-guide-third-edition/principles-effective-treatment

https://www.drugabuse.gov/publications/principles-drug-addiction-treatment-research-based-guide-third-edition/drug-addiction-treatment-in-united-states/types-treatment-programs

https://www.drugabuse.gov/publications/principles-drug-addiction-treatment-research-based-guide-third-edition/frequently-asked-questions/what-helps-people-stay-in-treatment

https://www.drugabuse.gov/publications/research-reports/therapeutic-communities/what-are-therapeutic-communities

https://www.drugabuse.gov/publications/research-reports/therapeutic-communities/what-therapeutic-communitys-approach

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3678283/

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/11015800

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/16110224

https://www.samhsa.gov/recovery