Even under the best of circumstances, going into treatment for an addiction problem can be very intimidating. How often is someone entering rehab under the best of circumstances? Not very often is the right answer. Sometimes, there are things about getting treatment that forces some people to avoid getting the help they need. When that happens, that’s a tragedy because it leaves the individual vulnerable to the ravages of their addiction. It’s for this very reason, the addiction treatment community now does a good job of making sure clients have access to a wide range of treatment options. One thing a lot of prospective addiction treatment clients are looking for is facilities and programs that involve gender. A lot of addiction sufferers don’t mind getting treatment in a coed environment. They tend to see dealing with both sexes as something that is a normal part of life. At the same time, there is a lot of addiction sufferers who aren’t comfortable airing their dirty laundry in a coed environment. For them, a gender-specific environment would likely be preferable. This is something that top rehab facilities clearly understand. In response, we are seeing a lot more rehab facilities, including ours, now offering access to gender-specific addiction treatment programs. Of course, gender-specific treatment does offer certain advantages to clients who prefer getting treatment under such circumstances. Let’s take a look at what gender-specific treatment is and some of its advantages.
What Is Gender-Specific Treatment?
As the title would imply, a gender-specific treatment program would be a program that restricts participation to a particular gender. In your mind, you would assume that means specific programs for men and women. For what it’s worth, it would also include programs for the gay community or any of the other “lettered” groups. The primary reason these programs are gaining in popularity is that these options offer a treatment environment that some clients consider to be more comfortable.
That matters because rehab facilities work hard to make sure all clients can enter rehab and be comfortable with the facility and the other clients. Of course, people who prefer gender-specific programs do so for a variety of reasons. While specific reasons might not matter, you might gain some understanding by understanding the advantages often cited by clients who choose this option.
The list of potential advantages includes:
- A diminishing of the inappropriate fraternization and sexual tension that sometimes occurs in coed programs
- Rehab facilities can design treatment programs and amenities that appeal to singular gender
- Increases the likelihood people will share during treatment because of having no pressure or judgment from the opposite sex
- Increases the likelihood clients will bond and build meaningful support resources
Let’s look at a couple of these advantages in more depth.
Lessening of Sexual Tension
Nothing will put a treatment facility in disarray faster than issues related to inappropriate fraternization and sexual tension. Unfortunately, it happens. It happens because men and women will be men and women even when facing a distressful disease like addiction. The best way to eliminate these kinds of problems is to offer gender-specific programs. By eliminating the potential of inappropriate fraternization and sexual tension, it increases the probability people with be able to focus on dealing with their addiction issues.
Increasing Likelihood of Openness in Sharing
A big part of resolving addiction issues is being able to openly communicate without feeling unnecessary pressure. Admittedly, society has different expectations for men and women. Men are expected to be strong and responsible.
Having an addiction issue is presumed to be a sign of weakness and irresponsibility though the reality is very different. For women, the expectation is they will be prim and proper with a strong grasp of morality. People who use drugs or alcohol are not prim and proper or moral, right? Wrong. It’s a disease. Given society’s biases, it’s hard for some people to risk judgment from the opposite sex. In a gender-specific environment, a lot of that pressure is removed. If you want help with your addiction issue, we can offer you that help. We can also offer you the option of participating in a gender-specific treatment program as a means of creating a safer treatment environment to meet your needs.
If you would like more information about what we have to offer, please call one of our representatives at 844-639-8371. We would be happy to discuss your specific needs and invite you in for the help you need.