When Legal Problems Lead to Long Term Drug Rehabilitation

According to some estimates, as many as 60% of people in long term drug rehabilitation programs have legal problems as a result of their addictions to drugs or alcohol. Many of those in recovery have entered under a court-ordered mandate to complete a rehab program, while others enter as a proactive measure – to clean up their lives and potentially reduce charges or jail sentences.

The good news is that many addicts do succeed in a court-ordered or influenced addiction program.  Studies have shown time and time again, that treatment does not need to be voluntary to be effective. All addicts have the potential to relapse, and total, long lasting sobriety takes a lifetime commitment.

Proponents of court-ordered rehab believe that in spite of relapse percentages, these rehab stays can be effective. Relapse can occur even when clients enter voluntarily, and  abstinence rates are  relatively high among those that successfully complete all court ordered affordable rehab stays. Even if just a small percentage of addicts are given the necessary tools to recover from their addictions, the ultimate cost to the tax payer drops considerably –  estimates are that one tax dollar spent towards drug treatment yields a seven dollar tax savings to society at large.

For many struggling with the pain of dependence, admittance to a court ordered rehab program is eventually seen to be a great stoke of luck. Not only does mandated treatment allow the addict to sidestep incarceration, it also grants them access to comprehensive drug dependency treatment.

Statistics show that the motivation for entry into a program has little effect on the likelihood of  successful recovery, the odds that an addiction can be beaten once and for all through court-ordered drug rehab is fairly high. Full participation in court mandated long term aftercare also increases the odds of success and long term sobriety.

Drug court mandated drug rehab treatment is no guarantee of a future of sobriety, and some degree of relapse is to be expected. Addicts assigned to court ordered drug rehab and court funded drug and alcohol addiction treatment do have the opportunity to better their lives as well as avoid jail. Court ordered drug rehab operates as a needed lifeline to many struggling with addiction, and although most addicts don’t see it as a blessing when arrested, they are often ultimately grateful for  lifesaving treatment.

Court ordered or entry to drug rehab as a way to avoid jail time may not work in every case, but when it does, both the addict and society as a whole benefit. If addiction has caused legal problems for you or someone important to you, contact us today to learn more about drug rehab in California.

30 Day Rehab Programs – The Right One For You

Different 30 day rehab programs offer various approaches to recovery and treatment. When it comes to drug and alcohol addiction, there is no one-size-fits-all method. Each case is as unique and personal as the patients themselves. Locating an inpatient facility that will prove most effective to a particular patient is a matter of research, questions and education regarding what each facility has to offer. If you or someone you know is in need of professional help, the entry below will provide you with a few tips to help locate the care you’ve been searching for.

1 – When researching various facilities, be sure to ask about each treatment center’s philosophies. Having a basic understanding of the approach used during treatment will help determine which place is best suited for the individual in question. Some programs are based in traditional medicine, while others incorporate holistic treatments.

2 – Patients who are dependent on alcohol or opiates will often require detoxification prior to entering rehab. Some facilities will offer this service in-house, while others will concentrate solely on recovery.

3 – Determine how to pay for your treatment. There is no guarantee that treatment centers accepting insurance will be able to obtain approval from your provider. If finances are an issue, be sure to get in touch with your insurance provider prior to researching facilities to obtain a list of facilities that can be covered under your current plan.

4 – Inquire as to whether the facility offers a family counseling program. Some facilities may discourage patient contact with friends and family members during their stay, while others will recommend involvement.

5 – Take a look into any aftercare services that are provided by the program. Patients attending treatment for 30 days without seeking outside help post-treatment are at a much higher risk for relapse than those who do. Plan ahead to determine your available options and avoid finding yourself in a poor spot down the road.

Successful Long Term Drug Rehabilitation – Finding the Right Fit

Long term drug rehabilitation is not simple. Aside from treating the intense and often uncontrollable cravings which have led the addict to devastating personal consequences, the effects of prolonged drug exposure on brain functioning affect multiple circuits in the physical body – including those involved in motivation, learning and memory. These complicated issues make treatment a complicated matter as well.

Because of this, an effective addiction program can often incorporate many components, to each target a particular aspect of the illness and its consequences. Addiction treatment must first and foremost, help the individual stop using  – but it should also give him or her the tools to maintain a drug-free lifestyle, and function again in work, home and in society at large.

Research has proven that treatment can help patients addicted to drugs stop using, help them to avoid relapse, and regain control over their lives.

Those seeking drug and drug rehab help should consider the following:

–Remaining in treatment for an adequate period of time is critical.

–Counseling can help treat underlying issues which contributed to the abuse

–No treatment program is “one size fits all.”  Each person’s treatment plan must be continually reassessed and fine-tuned as treatment progresses.

–Treatment does not need to be voluntary to be effective.

Counseling and therapy are both important elements of a process that often begins with drug addiction detox, followed by treatment and finally, relapse prevention. A balanced spectrum of care should include a customized treatment program which addresses all aspects of the addict’s life, and should include medical and mental health services. Each of these components, in it’s own way, is crucial to a person’s success in creating and maintaining a drug–free lifestyle.

Addiction is a very complex disease that affects brain function and behavior, but it is treatable. No single treatment will suit every person but tailored, personalized treatment is readily available in our quality program.

12 Step Recovery Programs, The Final Steps

Continuing our deeper look into the 12 Steps of Alcoholics Anonymous, the basis of 12 step recovery programs, steps 6-12 provide a strong foundation for a recovering addict to move from humiliation and despair into a healthy new life free of drugs and alcohol. Read on for more FAQs on rehab and recovery los angeles, Picking up from the sixth step:

6. We are entirely ready to have God remove all these defects of character

When we are working this step we remember that we are human and should not place unrealistic expectations on ourselves.

7. Humbly asked God to remove our shortcomings

Step 7 is similar to step 3, but is more specific. We have completed our personal inventory and have a better idea of the roots the addictive behaviors we learned we had when we sought drug rehab help.

8. Made a list of all persons we had harmed, and became willing to make amends to them all

Step 8 is the beginning of making amends, of healing the past with others.

9. Made direct amends to such people wherever possible, except when to do so would injure them or others

When we make amends to those we have harmed, we pay back debts. We apologize and do things to help heal the damage that we have done.

10. Continued to take personal inventory and when we were wrong promptly admitted it

Step 10 lays the foundation for the rest of our lives.

11. Sought through prayer and meditation to improve our conscious contact with our Higher     Power.

Step 11 provides us with daily spiritual maintenance.

12. Having had a spiritual awakening as the result of these steps, we tried to carry this message to other addicts, and to practice these principles in all our affairs

We move from the despair of addiction to a state where we act as instruments of our Higher Power and live by example.

Practicing these steps is a life-long commitment, but taking the first step is the most important. If you or someone you love is seeking affordable alcohol rehab or drug treatment, please contact us.

12 Step Program Addiction, The First Five Steps

Everyone’s heard of the 12 Steps of Alcoholics Anonymous, but what do they really mean?  Though structure is not enough to solve every single case of drug or alcohol dependency, there are certainly enough accounts of success in california rehab centers that make the 12 steps of AA truly worth trying. Let’s take a closer look at the first five steps

1.We admitted we were powerless over our addiction – that our lives had become unmanageable.

For most addicts who enter 30 day rehab programs, the power of choice has totally vanished and willpower becomes non-existent. When we admit our powerlessness and the inability to manage our own lives, we open the door to recovery.

2.Came to believe that a Power greater than ourselves could restore us to sanity.

The only guidelines are that this Power be loving, caring and stronger than ourselves. A person doesn’t have to be religious to accept this idea.

3.Made a decision to turn our will and our lives over to the care of God as we understood God.

A common recovery phrase heard in long term drug rehabilitation, is “Turn it over.” For the recovering person, it means turning over every aspect of life to a higher power – whatever you understand that to be.

4.Made a searching and fearless moral inventory of ourselves.

This means taking stock honestly of our flaws. Perhaps for the first time in our lives. 

5.Admitted to God, to ourselves and to another human being the exact nature of our wrongs.

The fifth step is not easy but allows us to live clean in the here and now by setting us free to live in truth.

These are just the first five steps, in some ways the most difficult, but there is much more knowledge to come in the following steps. Visit again to read more in the coming weeks, or get alcohol addiction help now, by contacting us.

Recovery Stories on Drug Rehab Blogs

As our sobriety continues and we begin to feel better, we may see our lives rebuild in a material fashion.  They may even be re-upped or improved upon with the things we lost while we were getting loaded; be it car, house, job, partner, etc.  There is also the distinct possibility these things may not come our way.  We are guaranteed nothing in the material.

We may hear stories on drug rehab blogs or from people in 12 step program addiction groups who have received everything they lost and then some.  There are times when, while listening to someone sharing and/or a speaker in a meeting, we may hear that person say they live a life beyond their wildest imagination, all the while delivering a message that is only connected to the physical items they now have.  Perhaps after the statement regarding “A life beyond… imagination.” they relay their tales of material acquisition without covering what brought them there.  They may have left out the important details of how they got to that place in their life and focus solely on all of the seemingly fine and fabulous things they now own.

It can be frustrating and maybe even feel near-deceiving when we don’t have those same results.  Perhaps we’re thinking we are supposed to have those very same things, on a similar timeline, to whomever we’re listening.  Maybe then we begin to think the program isn’t working.  We cannot understand why we feel like whatever program to which we are affiliated isn’t doing what we think it should.

The fact of the matter is participating in a program is not an insurance policy regarding acquiring “things” we may want to have.   If worked as instructed by the suggestions in the Big Book of Alcoholics Anonymous, we are given the ability to connect with our Higher Power, who subsequently allows us to match calamity with serenity.  That ability is a gift that far outweighs any material item.

Affordable Rehab and Recovery

“(b) That probably no human power could have relieved our alcoholism.” – The Big Book of Alcoholics Anonymous, pg. 60

With reading that statement, we may not entirely grasp the gravity of its suggestion.  Many times, in a drug rehab  in California, we may put the counselor or therapist to whom we feel the most connected on a pedestal.  Perhaps after leaving this affordable rehab, we begin to refocus our attention from the counselor/therapist to our sponsor, assuming we are working with one.  If not our sponsor, maybe we put the onus of our belief of that power greater than ourselves on another person, boyfriend, girlfriend, wife, husband, public figure, etc.

This is a definitive problem and can further the concept of having a lack of power.  As we attempt to rely on others, we find that, invariably, the human condition, which includes the inevitable mistakes and whatnot, is not a stable and reliable source for us.  We find this direction, if we attempt it, isn’t the best within where to reach/attach our faith.

It may be a struggle to come to the notion that we cannot rely upon others as an insurance policy against our drinking and/or using.  With everything we hear about working with others, being available, being of service, it can be, especially in early sobriety, confusing as to where we are to place our firm assurances.

When we rely on others for our sobriety, we are setting ourselves and the other person up for failure and for the possibility of him or her building a large resentment toward us or, conversely a resentment from us toward the person with whom we want to believe will save us and/or keep us sober.  When that other person doesn’t act, behave, give, respond, in the way we need, this can be used as our impetus to drink and/or use, before we have a spiritual foundation on which to stand.  This can, given resentments are our number one offender, propel us toward taking a drink and, therefore, quite possibly drive us straight through the gateway of misery into the waiting arms of death.

In order for us to follow the well-worn path to success in the program of Alcoholics Anonymous using the design for living provided for us in the The Big Book, it is strongly suggested we find a power great than ourselves and that power may very well need to come in the form of a burgeoning concept of our Higher Power. This is to be a power greater than ourselves and that does not mean another living being or inanimate object, as people can let us down and material items can get lost and/or break.  We are not saviors for others, as they cannot be for us, & just as we cannot, of our own will, save ourselves.

Considering Short or Long Term Drug Rehabilitation

How long should inpatient treatment last in a 12 step recovery program? Can a short 30 day program really make a life-changing difference, or would a longer stay encourage better results? Although the choices can be overwhelming, if you or someone you know is searching for help, it’s here. Below we’ll explain a few of the differences between short and long term rehab.

Short term treatment is the most common form of drug and alcohol rehabilitation and is classified as continuous in 30 day treatment programs, while long term treatment ranges from 60-90 days to a full year.

Some studies have demonstrated longer lasting results with longer treatment times. Addiction takes time to develop and recovery can also take time. The most obvious benefit of long term care is that the individual is given time in order to discover and resolve the bedrock issues which led to the use in the first place.

One unavoidable problem with short term care is that the initial drug addiction detox period may extend one or even two weeks into treatment. Depending on the substance of addiction, patients can still feel the fog of addiction until week three. This leaves just one week of care, free of the acute withdrawals, for the person to deal with their issues and get back to their lives. Most people begin their  stays in rehab  ready to do whatever it takes to get clean and sober, but by the end of their stay, they simply focused on doing whatever it takes to get out.

It is not uncommon for addicts to require multiple 28 day stays before the rehab “sticks.” That can be   an emotional and financial drain on  both the addict and the family supporting them.

The bottom line is that every  person is different and the rehabilitation they undergo needs to be customized for them. In choosing what length of time to put into treatment it is most important to remain as objective as possible regarding the situation. To speak with an intervention specialist Los Angeles and learn more, contact us.

Help for Parents of Addicts: Alarming Trends from The NIDA

Looking for help for Parents of Addicts? You are not alone. According to the most recent findings from the National Institute on Drug Abuse, drug use among teens in the United States is on the rise – especially in young teens. The Monitoring the Future (MTF) survey has measured drug, alcohol, and cigarette use and related attitudes among adolescent students in the U.S. since 1975.  At its inception, the survey included high school seniors only, but in 1991 it was expanded to include 8th- and 10th-graders as well.

One major factor thought to be impacting the current statistics is the overall lowering in perceived risk, perceived social approval, and perceived availability for several drugs. The more risky or less accepted a drug is thought to be, the less likely it will be used by teens. Perceived availability often correlates with social approval – meaning that a drug that’s readily available is considered socially acceptable and will be more commonly used.

Teens don’t just consider the physical risks when using drugs, but also emotional, social/relational, and aspirational factors. Physical risks include may include addiction, and social risks include disappointing friends or family, entry into long term addiction program and losing friends. Aspirational risks include losing a job, or getting in trouble with the law. All of these perceived risks – physical, emotional, social, and aspirational – are different with each drug, and contributing factors include things like anti-drug campaigns, family counseling and discussion.

The following information was gleaned from the most recent study may be frightening to parents, but you will do well to be armed with this information and be aware of behavioral changes in children. If you suspect your young teen is using drugs or alcohol, please contact our addiction counselors for information on affordable rehab.

Daily Marijuana use is on the rise in all age groups. Among 12th graders included in the study, use is now at its highest point since the early 1980s. The study also found that perceived risk of regular marijuana use is definitely on the decline, which may predict a future upward trend in use.

Second to marijuana, prescription and over the counter medications account for the drugs most often abused by 12th graders. While non-medical use of Vicodin has decreased slightly, OxyContin use remains steady across the 9th and 12 graders, and actually increased in 10th graders over the past 5 years. Non-medical use of Adderall and over-the-counter cough and cold medicines among 12th graders remains high.

After declining for several years, use of the dangerous party drug Ecstasy has risen among 8th and 10th graders. From 2009 to 2010, lifetime use of ecstasy among 8th graders increased from 2.2% to 3.3% which also demonstrates a marked drop in perceived risk in using the drug.

The challenge in curtailing teen drug use is that the so-called “benefits” of using a given drug spread faster than perceived risks. The “benefits” of a drug are immediately evident, and electronic forms of communication like chats and text messages allow these “positive” experiences spread quickly among groups of young people.  Gathering information about the drug’s risks takes time, but when aggressively distributed through discussion with friends and family, the results are dramatic and positive.

Acceptance in Early Recovery

“And acceptance is the answer to all my problems today.  When I am disturbed, it is because I find some person, place, thing or situation-some fact of my life-unacceptable to me, and I can find no serenity until I accept that person, place, thing, or situation as being exactly the way it is supposed to be at this moment.”  – The Big Book of Alcoholics Anonymous, pg. 417 in the 4th edition.

Within the scope of acceptance, our biggest challenge, especially in early Recovery after drug addiction detox, can be the acceptance of ourselves.  While in our addiction, we’ve lost ourselves and when we begin to get sober, often barely know where we are much less who we are and how to accept our current situation.  Our confusion and remorse for the things we think we’ve done, whether the action was actually enacted or a mis-perceived idea on our end, may, in fact, keep us at a great distance from accepting what actually is.  When we can’t accept the truth of our situation, we can have difficult times accepting people and situations around us. Even the satellite players in our sphere may be an irritant to us and/or leave us with a disconcerting sense of discontentment.

Many times it seems that accepting others becomes easier the more we accept who we are, how we act and where, in the scope of our lives, we live.  From that perspective, where we are isn’t our actual geographic location, though once in a while that can seem that way. Comfort and an internally serene state of being, it is more about our station in life at this time.

The staff at this drug rehab in California can be an example of how to live in acceptance.  With their knowledge of early Recovery and 12 step program addiction becomes easier to understand. They are able to relate and, many times from their own experiences, they provide a living portrayal as well as a way to learn to achieve this invaluable trait.  Of course, most people cannot maintain a perpetual sense of acceptance but the more this life lesson permeates our existence, the greater chance we have of maintaining a sense of serenity and, therefore, our sobriety.