If you’re thinking about seeking substance abuse treatment for yourself or a loved one, you may have heard about inpatient and outpatient treatment. What’s the difference? How do you know which is best? If you’re in Florida, you may have wondered if Florida drug rehab centers offer both inpatient and outpatient care. Yes, they do. Both inpatient, or residential, drug treatment and outpatient drug treatment are widely available in Florida. You will have plenty to choose from. However, first you must determine which one you need. Residential drug treatment isn’t necessarily superior to outpatient treatment. It’s more a matter of which one best serves the needs of the person who needs help.
Inpatient and Outpatient Rehab in Florida
Residential drug treatment means that the client lives at the treatment facility 24 hours a day for a specified period of time. This can be anywhere from 30 to 90 days or even longer. These facilities offer detox services, evidence-based therapy, safety, security and a highly structured environment. Some may also offer alternative therapy, which could involve art, music, writing, animals, especially horses, yoga, biofeedback and meditation. Medically supervised detox is the first step. After that, the client will participate in the facility’s approved therapy activities. This will always include group and individual therapy.
Inpatient drug treatment is best for people with advanced addictions that have existed for long periods of time, although people with lower-level addictions may choose residential drug treatment, too. Because inpatient therapy is more intensive and constant than outpatient treatment, it’s recommended for those who have tried to stop using their drug of choice before and failed. Those who have histories of long-standing drug addictions are also good candidates for residential treatment. This is especially true if the person has experienced multiple relapses and prior treatment failures. Just because you have failed once, or even numerous times, to maintain your sobriety after treatment doesn’t mean you won’t succeed this time. When it comes to drug treatment, failure is part of success. The worst thing you can do is to give up.
Outpatient drug treatment is designed to accommodate a working person’s schedule. You can continue to work or attend school while you receive treatment. You will live at home and attend a scheduled program of meetings and therapy. Many offer medical detox services, but these will not be nearly as closely supervised as those at a residential drug treatment center. In fact, if you are addicted to alcohol or benzodiazepines, you should consider attending inpatient treatment or at least a hospitalized detox program.
If your addiction is still fairly low-level, outpatient therapy may be a good choice. It’s much less expensive than inpatient treatment, and it doesn’t require a lengthy absence from your regular life to complete. However, outpatient treatment does require a high level of motivation on the part of the client. You will still be out in the community. Drugs are available and will be a constant temptation. Of course, your outpatient therapy program will address these issues and give you tools to cope with them, but it takes time to learn these things. Expect to be drug-tested at random.
Consult with a Drug Treatment Professional in Florida
Inpatient drug therapy or outpatient drug therapy? It’s partly a personal preference, but you should discuss the matter with an addiction treatment professional before making a final decision. For example, severe addictions to alcohol and certain stimulants can leave the body severely malnourished. Partly because alcohol is high in calories, alcoholics often drink instead of eat. Their bodies don’t get the nutrients needed for health. Those addicted to stimulants, such as methamphetamine, may be dangerously underweight and may have advanced malnutrition issues. This is because amphetamines depress the appetite. These are two examples of situations best served by an inpatient treatment program, preferably one that offers nutritional therapy as part of its program.
On the other hand, although all addictions are serious, not all are as advanced. Someone who has just become addicted to their prescription opioid, for example, may do fine with outpatient detox and treatment. It’s very possible that an outpatient treatment program can stop and reverse the progression of the addiction without causing a major disruption in the person’s life.
Always seek professional advice before choosing a treatment facility. If you would like guidance, you can call us at 844-639-8371 24 hours a day. We are professional drug treatment counselors qualified to help you find the best treatment facility for you. We look forward to your call.