Drug Rehab

Drug rehab is the collective term used to refer to the medical and psychological therapies, as well as alternative healing practices for the treatment of drug dependencies, from prescription drugs to alcohol and street drugs like cocaine, heroin and methamphetamines. 

Drug rehabilitation  focuses on  treating the physical and psychological dependency  of the person on the drug, with the physical dependency being addressed by drug detoxification and the psychological aspect managed by a series of counseling services  and  group therapy sessions. 

Individuals suffering from addictions may seek the help of drug rehabilitation centers in an effort to stop drug usage, simply because they no longer want to live the life of a drug addict. In other cases, the person may be forced to enter a drug rehab center at the order of a judge or because they were pressured to do so by family members. Individuals suffering from addictions can opt for voluntary admission, but in cases when the drug abuse has reached a point when it starts to produce life-threatening consequences to the individual and the people around him, then his family can opt to have him admitted into a rehabilitation facility, even without his consent. This is very common in drug addicts who do not or cannot realize that they have a drug problem and thus have to be forced into treatment.

Types of Drug Rehab Treatment

Rehabilitation can be done on an in-patient or an out-patient basis. Detoxification may be done with the help of support groups, extended recovery centers and sober houses.  In most cases, those suffering from severe addictions are given a program that has a mix of pharmacological therapies and psychological counseling, whether through one-on-one sessions with a counselor or psychiatrist or through group sessions with fellow patients. Outpatient drug treatment programs last longer than inpatient rehabilitation programs and it does not provide the kind of supervision from licensed and certified personnel as inpatient treatment programs do.

Difference between Drug Treatment and Rehabilitation

Oftentimes drug rehabilitation and drug treatment are used interchangeably but the two are very different. Drug treatment is given to a person who is addicted to alcohol or drugs, while rehabilitation is the process that helps the patient recovers from the addiction. Rehabilitation is a longer process, and involves the use of different modes of treatment to help the patient recover, not only physiologically but psychologically, mentally and emotionally as well. While the main goal of treatment is the removal of the addiction, rehabilitation takes it a step further by returning the individual to his former state of normal functioning. Some experts say that while drug treatment is a one-time thing, rehabilitation, on the other hand, continues for the entirety of the person's lifetime.