From Drug Rehab Wiki

Residential Rehab

Residential rehab, also called residential rehabilitation or inpatient rehab, describes a drug and/or alcohol or process addiction treatment program that is provided to patients in a residential setting. The patients receive treatment at the residential treatment facility and they reside there for the duration of their treatment program.

Length of Time for Residential Rehab

There is short-term (30 days or less) and long-term (more than 30 days) residential rehab. The length of time for a patient in residential rehab depends on the type of addiction, duration and frequency of use, any co-occurring addictions or mental health disorders, and other factors.

Some residential rehab is time-limited due to the patient’s insurance coverage. Or, the individual may have exhausted his or her coverage for substance abuse treatment but still requires treatment. In such cases, either the patient or his or her family has to pay out of pocket or transition to outpatient treatment or other form of support, including 12-step self-help groups (Alcoholics Anonymous and Narcotics Anonymous, to name two) or other community-based support.

What Happens During Residential Rehab

In most cases, detoxification is required before any formal program of treatment can begin. Detoxification is the clearing out of all the harmful toxins from addictive substances such as alcohol or drugs (or both) from the body.

Following detox, patients in residential rehab usually receive different forms of treatment, depending on their specific needs. Such treatment may include one-on-one counseling, group therapy, other forms of therapy (such as cognitive behavioral therapy or CBT), educational lectures and discussions, participation in a 12-step program, and relapse prevention training.

It may be best to think of residential rehab as occurring in stages, although the stages often overlap. The first stage is intensive therapeutic intervention and the immediate responses to living drug- and alcohol-free (or free of process addictions such as gambling, workaholism, compulsive sex, overeating, and the like).

The second stage of residential rehab is more focused on the development of life skills, reintegration through education, training, or employment-focused needs, and learning the skills required to maintain a drug-free lifestyle while still participating in and receiving intensive support from the residential rehab program.

Most residential rehab is voluntary. Only rarely is a person forced into residential rehab, although it may occur as the result of a court order.

See also intensive outpatient drug rehab