Why Traveling for Addiction Treatment is a Good Idea
If you’re considering going to rehab for yourself or for a loved one, you likely have a lot of options. Not only do most areas have local outpatient programs, you can travel to one of the over 16,000 treatment facilities across the United States. Those treatment centers off inpatient care to local and out-of-state visitors – with an estimated 4 million patients each year. While that’s less than 10% of the total number of people who need treatment, it does mean that you have significant options to seek out treatment away from home.
And, while traveling to rehab treatment can seem like a big deal, it may be a good idea for your needs. That’s especially true for professionals who need discrete treatment to protect their career. Or, if you’re not yet ready to share about treatment with your community or your workplace. However, there are many reasons other than privacy that might mean traveling to rehab is a good choice for you.
You Want a Choice of Different Treatment Options
Most treatment centers in the United States offer 12-step treatment. If you’re going to an outpatient program, chances are it’s made up of counseling and 12-step and potentially cognitive behavioral therapy on a group basis. If you want something more intensive or more diverse, you might have to travel to find it.
For example, one-on-one motivational therapy, cognitive behavioral therapy, and dialectal behavioral therapy are proven to be effective in helping people to recover from a substance use disorder. In addition, you may benefit from family and relationship therapy, child care, pet care at the facility, EMDR, or any of a number of other treatment options that aren’t available locally.
That’s especially true if you have a co-occurring or dual diagnosis, where you might need specific treatment to offer support for getting substance abuse treatment while continuing medication. Or, if you want to go to a program that offers support for LGBTQ+, female-only, male-only, or medication assisted (or the lack of) programs.
The further out you’re willing to travel, the more options you’ll have. And, those will extend to complementary therapies and options like mindfulness, music therapy, physical therapy, nutritional therapy, etc.
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Taking Time Off Shouldn’t Feel Like a Hospital Visit
It’s also true that if you go to a local rehab clinic, especially on an outpatient basis, you’re essentially taking a lot of time out of your life for what will feel like work. It is important to note that rehab is work. You will have to spend a significant amount of time and personal effort on changing yourself, your behavior, and the way you think.
Traveling for rehab allows you to reduce the stress of that investment by making it something of a vacation. You also don’t have to go to a luxury rehab to get that feeling. Almost every rehab center has activities, group exercises, and entertainment, designed to help you to be happy and healthy throughout the program – while building the life skills you need to be happy and healthy outside of treatment. That means you can:
- Let go of daily responsibilities and focus on treatment
- Dedicate all of your time to recovery and building yourself up
- Get to relax in a private and safe environment
- Step away from the possibility of relapse into an environment where you can’t drink or use
Going to rehab doesn’t have to feel like you’re visiting a hospital everyday or staying in one. That’s stressful and demotivating. Traveling to a rehab center in a nice location means you can enjoy weather and nature and get to relax and destress while you work on yourself, and that should improve the quality of your experience and how much you can learn.
Getting a Fresh Start
Most people build habits around where they live and who they live with. This means that if you’re going to rehab and not changing the habits of how you live or who you hang out with, chances are, you are likely to relapse again. Stepping out of that environment means you get a fresh start, away from the people, places, and things that could trigger you to use.
That’s especially important if you frequently drink or use with friends or family. Or, if you have habits built around getting home and drinking or using. The more barriers you put between yourself and falling into automatic habits, the easier it will be to actually get clean or sober.
Of course, that does come with a caveat as well. If you travel to rehab, you’ll have to readjust when you get back and you’ll have to learn to avoid those triggers, to cut them out, or to mitigate them with better coping mechanisms or strategies. That can mean you’ll want to stay in a sober home when you get out of rehab, it may mean you’ll want to move, and it may mean you’ll want a new set of friends. However, getting the fresh start will be an important first step in helping you to step away from habits and give yourself the opportunity to build new ones.
You Need Extra Help
If you’ve tried to quit drugs or alcohol in the past and didn’t manage, have been to outpatient care, or qualify as having a significant substance use disorder, you may benefit from the extra support, hands on treatment, and higher rate of personalized attention in an inpatient center. While personalized treatment and more one-on-one time with counselors and therapists doesn’t guarantee better outcomes, it does mean you get the benefit of a program that is built around your needs, adapted as you move through therapy to match your progress, and based on your personal treatment history. And, when you graduate, you can move into aftercare programs, often via virtual therapy, so you can continue getting support as you navigate early recovery.
There’s no one right way to go to addiction treatment. In fact, if you’re choosing between outpatient treatment at a local facility or no treatment at all, the outpatient treatment is always better. However, traveling to treatment can offer a lot of benefits that will help you as you progress through your recovery journey.
If you or your loved-one struggles from alcoholism or other substance abuse please contact us today and speak with one of our experienced and professional intake advisors about our detox, partial hospitalization, and residential treatment programs. 10 Acre Ranch also has specialty tracks like our pet friendly drug rehab and couples substance abuse treatment programs. We’re here to help you recover.