Couples that have experienced an addiction together may find it helpful to go through recovery together. Struggling with co-dependency can make it difficult for couples to go through recovery individually. For this reason, several couples opt to go to a rehab that accepts couples. However, when determining if a couples’ rehab is the right option, it’s important to assess the mental health and severity of addiction for each partner. With couples therapy, the issue of codependency can be treated more readily. This issue is often found in individuals that have formed close relationships with others while one or both partners are battling an addiction. While codependency can be addressed with one partner in rehab, this therapy is likely to be more effective with both couples present.
Finding Sobriety as a Couple
In a couple, codependency occurs when a partner feels the need to meet the emotional and physical needs of another partner. When both partners use drugs together, this codependency fuels the addiction. These couples will often do whatever is necessary to appease their partner, including using alcohol or drugs together. These codependent partners will typically neglect their own needs, making it even harder for them to find treatment. Many partners that want to get clean find that this codependency prevents them from choosing recovery for themselves. By making the decision to go through recovery as a couple, both partners get to experience the path to sobriety together.
Benefits of Couples’ Rehab
If a rehab center decides that both partners are good candidates for receiving treatment at the same facility, they are likely to experience the following benefits:
- Couples are More Likely to Complete Treatment: Individuals that are part of a couple and are experiencing recovery alone are more likely to abandon their treatment due to them missing their loved one. This is especially true for partners in a codependent relationship. When going through recovery together, couples can provide each other with emotional support that will help them with the challenges of withdrawal.
- Couples Will Undergo Treatment for Codependency: Codependency is often associated with issues like low self-esteem, absence of boundaries, a caretaker mentality, or a lack of monetary resources. These issues can fuel the couple to continue their addiction, making it harder to quit. By going through codependent treatment together, couples will be able to break the cycle and avoid enabling each other to continue the addiction.
- Couples Will Reduce Their Risk of Relapse: Couples that seek treatment together will experience a reduced risk of relapse. Once the couple has left rehab, they have each other as accountability partners to help guard each other against falling back into addiction.
- Couples Can Go Through Couples Therapy: As therapy is a significant part of recovery, couples that go through it together will be able to undergo couples therapy as well. This therapy will help strengthen the couples’ relationship, helping them rebuild their foundation as a couple.
Is Couples’ Rehab the Right Option for You?
While there are many benefits for couples seeking treatment together, couples’ therapy isn’t always the right option. Couples that are facing differences in their needs or are experiencing ongoing relationship issues should consider getting treatment at separate facilities. Partners that must seek treatment on their own need to be prepared to go through the recovery process alone. While they may be separated from their partner, they should remember that they have a commitment to each other to get sober. This thought should keep couples focused as they go through the hardest moments in rehab.
Considering couples’ rehab? If you and your partner do choose a couples’ rehab, you’ll likely experience the following treatment methods:
- Behavioral Couples Therapy: Known as BCT, this form of therapy assists couples in recovery by using behavioral adjustment methods. These coping tactics are established between both partners as a way to solidify the commitment to abstain from alcohol or drugs every day.
- Alcohol Behavioral Couple Treatment: This form of treatment, known as ABCT, makes use of various psychotherapeutic methods to improve the abstinence from alcohol. This treatment promotes self-control, contingency-management, and analytical abilities as a way to help both partners to become sober.
- Medication-Assisted Treatment: This treatment for addiction uses medications like buprenorphine, naltrexone, or methadone to help reduce withdrawal symptoms.
Couples that experience recovery together will likely be more supportive as recovery continues once both partners have let rehab. If you’re interested in learning more about couples’ rehab, call us today at 844-639-8371. Our counselors are available 24 hours a day.