When rehab doesn’t work, it ignites hopelessness that ultimately leads to worsening one’s current condition.
However, at Lumina Recovery, there’s always a way. We don’t just offer the most personalized rehab tactics. Every recovery journey has a unique set of needs, challenges, and tools necessary to address those needs. No one has the same completion timeline. That’s why we work to make certain you’re never overwhelmed or underprepared for any phase of your recovery.
Why Rehab Doesn’t Always Work
The primary reason rehab doesn’t work is that it is not personalized to meet individual needs. It’s often a generalized treatment program designed to provide a general “blanket” of minimal treatment. This is why we at Lumina Recovery take a personalized therapeutic approach, to avoid treatment shortcomings that may affect long-term recovery.
However, this isn’t the only reason rehab may not work for someone. Other reasons include:
Inadequate Preparation
Total transparency and preparation going into treatment is one of the most important tools in completing treatment. Comfort, confidence, and progress can be initiated by adopting the right mindset before treatment even begins. Contrarily, inadequate preparation techniques by therapists inadvertently squash any progress or growth opportunity before treatment starts. Being honest with mental health professionals from the beginning provides them with the tools they need to design a treatment plan that truly helps.
Lack of Patient Involvement Post-Detox
After a successful los angeles detox, some people tend to stop their efforts toward recovery. They may think that they’ve accomplished sobriety. But in reality, they’ve let their guard down and ceased their recovery efforts. This can ultimately lead to relapse. In reality, detox is just the start of addiction treatment. While medically-assisted detox programs can make the rest of treatment easier, it’s only the introductory phase of rehab. It takes continued effort after detox to ensure you don’t slip into old habits.
Unshakable Shame
The reason self-acceptance is one of the most important attributes of rehab is that shame is a frequent stumbling block. If you can’t shake the shame of struggling with addiction, it will be much harder to shake the addiction itself. This sense of self-loathing can root itself in the core of your addiction battle, hindering any opportunity for progress.
Not Planning For Aftercare
Not Enough Time in Rehab
Unfortunately, many rehab centers are focused on achievement rates rather than the personalized timeline of each patient’s needs. This marketing-focused mentality rushes many into believing they’ve accomplished sobriety when they haven’t. Unlike generic recovery centers, we at Lumina Recovery understand that everybody’s treatment timeline is different.
Not Taking Advantage of the Full Extent of Rehab Tools Provided
Rehab often fails because patients are so focused on the goal of achieving sobriety. All the tools and techniques provided at rehab (such as therapy, support groups, and knowledge about resources available in the “real world”) are there to be used. We encourage you to utilize the full extent of the recovery tools available to maximize the effectiveness of treatment. Whether through coaching sessions, individual therapy, or relapse prevention techniques, it’s possible to find helpful information in many places in rehab.
Next Steps After Post-Rehab Relapse
If you’ve relapsed after achieving sobriety, you may be wondering “What now?” While it can be easy to give up on sobriety after a relapse, there really is no need to do so. What matters most is reacting in a healthy and constructive way.
Don’t Be Hard on Yourself
The most common response to relapse is to be overly hard or judgmental of yourself. But this is arguably the most unhealthy response to relapse, as it can fuel deeper substance misuse and abuse to cope with shame. This is where mental health training techniques come into play, to help you deal proactively in the event of relapse. Accept what has happened and move on. Remember that relapse isn’t an end, but just a setback that you can recover from with the appropriate responses.
Revisit and Reevaluate Your Current Support Structure
Your support structure is your last line of defense against relapse. When relapse occurs, it’s time to reassess your current support structure. This means evaluating what went wrong, why it went wrong, and where the defect in the coping process occurred.
Consider if There is An Underlying, Undealt with Issue
It’s possible to deal with a current addiction disorder but still fail to address substance dependency at the source. Any untreated underlying mental conditions will be an addiction recovery roadblock. When relapse occurs, consider the possibility that you may be self-medicating a deeper, underlying condition. Dual diagnosis treatment that takes mental health conditions into account can help solidify sobriety with specialized treatment techniques.
Focus on the Positives
Once a relapse (or other setback) has happened, regret and sorrow may set in. When this happens, as difficult as it may be, it’s important to dwell on the positives. Consider that you have still made great strides in your recovery, and this setback cannot erase that fact. All the progress and training has taught you how to read and react to this moment
Immediately Contact a Supportive Person
The first response to relapse should be to get in touch with someone in your support system. Whether that means contacting your therapist, a friend, or a family member, reach out to someone who supports your efforts to become sober. Be openly honest with them and allow them to guide you to the right steps to help you get back on track. Your contacts are an essential lifeline throughout the entire post-relapse process.
Stay Motivated
Nothing can be more deflating to motivation than relapse. Nonetheless, the moment of relapse is the most important time to maintain the same determination that got you this far. In these moments, such motivational inspiration can be difficult to muster. That’s why the effort in regaining and maintaining the drive for sobriety is so worth it.
Types of Addiction Treatment
No single addiction treatment is generically more effective than the other. However, what works for one person may not work for the other. Keep that in mind as you consider what form of addiction treatment may be most effective for you.
Inpatient Treatment
Residential treatment is geared toward serving the needs of individuals who require a more hands-on approach to treatment. They may have relapsed post-treatment and want to devote more attention to their treatment. If you don’t live in an environment that’s fully supportive of your efforts to get sober, working on your recovery in an inpatient setting may be very helpful for building up post-rehab resilience.
Outpatient Therapy
For some, the settings and structure of outpatient programs are more effective in accomplishing independently sustainable sobriety. The smoother transition to daily life allows for individuals and their support structure to work in a comfortable, neutral environment. The ability to live at home while going through treatment may be a source of strength for people going through treatment.
Intensive Outpatient Programs
Partial Hospitalization Programs
For the most comprehensive, structured, and intensive treatment that is still outpatient, partial hospitalization programs in Los Angeles are one of the best rehab formats. A PHP can offer doctor-to-patient attentiveness, full-time access to various treatment approaches, and the ability to still live at home and practice skills in the “real world.”
Get Help with Addiction at Lumina Recovery
When rehab doesn’t work, the only real solution is to seek help. A relapse doesn’t mean failure. It just means that what you tried before didn’t work, and it’s important to figure out why.
At Lumina Recovery, we understand that healing from addiction isn’t always a straight line. Our facilities across the United States are set up to help people at all levels of addiction treatment, including those with co-occurring mental health conditions.
Not sure where to start? Contact us today and we’ll help you figure out your next step.