Aftercare Is Essential For Recovery

Addiction treatment can be a crucial first step towards a drug-free and alcohol-free lifestyle. You will learn how to prevent relapse and other useful tools to help you avoid falling back into addictive behavior. The ideal environment to keep clean and sober is in treatment facilities, where you can be supported by peers and staff.

Aftercare is an integral part of any recovery treatment program. Aftercare does not mean that you have to leave the supportive environment of treatment. It allows you to transition from the higher levels of care. Aftercare helps you transition from intensive treatment to your daily life. For more information, you can consult essencehc.com.

What’s Aftercare?

Often, addiction treatment begins with detox from drugs. After they have successfully and safely detoxified, they can transition to an inpatient program. Their whole life revolves around building a foundation for their recovery.

Aftercare is the portion of treatment that occurs after someone has completed their treatment at a higher level. It is a collective plan that supports an individual in their early recovery and helps them avoid relapse as they move on to a new life.

Relapse rates would skyrocket if treatment facilities allowed people to return to their daily lives without any ongoing support after they have completed their program.

Instead, treatment provides tools that can be used to help individuals stay sober and clean one day at a time. Aftercare is another option for ongoing support once an individual has left the facility. Aftercare plans can help them feel less alone as they make the transition.

The Components Of An Effective Aftercare Program

An aftercare plan can include many resources, activities, as well as other services. They will vary depending on the individual’s needs as well as the options offered by each facility to its alumni. Your case manager will likely meet with you to create your plan as you near the end of your treatment.

An effective aftercare program should include the following components:

  • For a time, you can transition to sober living
  • Transition into an intensive, outpatient program
  • Talking to your counselor or case manager
  • Participating in individual or group therapy sessions
  • Participating in the alumni program at your treatment center
  • Participating in recovery meetings such as 12-step, or another option
  • Locating a mentor or sponsor
  • To support you after treatment, establish a set of support systems

An effective aftercare program includes both individual counseling and group therapy. Individual sessions allow you to work through things that you haven’t been able to do during treatment. You will feel less isolated as you move on to group therapy.

While your plan may not cover all the items on this list, these are great options to get you started. You may be able to have some input on the design of your aftercare program depending on the treatment program you are enrolled in and your case manager.

Prevention Of Relapse With Aftercare

Aftercare’s ultimate goal is to assist program alumni in using the tools they have learned during treatment to avoid relapse. Your case manager will help you create a plan that you are willing to follow through with after treatment. If you do not follow up on your aftercare plan, you are less likely to stay sober once you leave the supportive environment at the facility.

Do you struggle to stay sober even after completing your treatment program? Recovering from addiction requires that you are honest with yourself and others. If you feel your aftercare plan is not as effective as you expected, please reach out to your treatment program. Your facility staff wants you to stay sober and will make any necessary adjustments.

More From Author

How to select the best CPAP mask?

Why Is Therapy Important In Addiction Treatment?