Every drug addict presents a unique array of holistic needs when he or she enters rehab. A treatment option that works for one addict may not work for another. Because a holistic rehab center focuses on healing people in body, mind, and spirit, it may offer a diverse range of treatment options that includes approaches like therapies used in addiction treatment and also medical support for people who suffer from physical maladies tied to drug use. People can work with their admissions team when they enter the facility to choose therapeutic approaches that will work best for their physical, mental, and emotional needs as they journey toward sobriety.
Addressing addicts’ physical needs is only one aspect of helping people get clean. While drug addicts do typically suffer from illnesses like anemia, malnutrition, HIV, and other diseases, they also suffer mentally and emotionally as well. While they undergo treatment for their physical conditions, patients likewise will be introduced to therapeutic methods of recovery designed to help them heal from inner traumas that will not respond to medications or surgical procedures. People with deep emotional wounds often must work these issues out in therapy sessions with qualified counselors. It is only after they put their inward traumas to rest that they can move forward in life and overcome their addictions.
A rehabilitation center like detoxlocal.comor others that specialize in holistic healing then will typically offer different therapy sessions from which addicts can choose. If they are not ready to discuss their feelings in front of others, they may start out with individual therapy during which they will meet with a licensed therapist. Their sessions may last an hour or longer each time, and they may meet with their counselor at least twice a week during the first few weeks of their stays in rehab. As they become stronger mentally and emotionally, their therapist may move them to a group therapy session.
In group therapy, addicts gather to discuss their feelings and experiences with each other. Their sessions are guided by a counselor, and the patients talk about a host of topics like what led them to start using and what inspirations they are finding to help them recover and become sober again. The people in the session can support each other, but also learn to objectify their situations based on what they hear others talk about in the session. When they hear a fellow addict say that he or she started using because of a childhood trauma, for example, they can empathize and objectify that person’s situation. In turn, they also learn to examine their own situation objectively and start to identify for what reasons they started using in the first place.
Some people would rather express themselves creatively instead of talking in front of others. For people who shun individual and group therapy, they may find healing through art therapy. They can draw, paint, or create anything they want to show what they are experiencing inside. They are guided by an art therapist who may be talk to them while they paint or draw. As they heal, their works of art take on new dimensions and levels of creativity. Some addicts need to see their traumas come to life on paper or canvas in order to deal with them effectively. Art therapy allows these patients the outlet they need to begin healing.
Healing completely also involves bringing addicts’ whole families together toward the end of the sobriety journey to ensure that the family is totally supportive and understanding of what their addicted loved ones went through in rehab. Counselors need to know that the family will be supportive of ther loved ones outside of rehab and also that they will avoid triggering whatever trauma led to the addiction in the first place. If an addict started using because of constant fighting in the family, the family will need to find a way to resolve their conflict without fighting again once the addict returns homes. If the addiction started because of physical or sexual abuse in the family, the family will need to learn whom the abuser was and find a way to ensure that the abuser is held accountable and kept away from the addict.
Holistic healing from drug addiction is possible when people use therapy to help them overcome their physical, mental, and emotional traumas. They can choose the right approach to therapy by working with their admissions team and choosing a facility that focuses on whole recovery.