Are there Inpatient Hospital Services for Drug Treatment?
The harmful effects of addiction severely compromise the brain and body’s health and well-being. The longer a person engages in drug abuse the greater the damage done.
After a certain point, the extent of the damage far surpasses any help one drug treatment program stay can provide. These effects account for why so many addicts go in and out of treatment programs with little to no progress to show for their efforts.
Inpatient hospital services for drug treatment do exist and these programs fill a vital role in the recovery process for people coming off long-term drug addictions. Inpatient hospital services cover a wide range of issues within the addict’s life.
We can help you find the treatment you need. Call 800-430-1407Who Answers? toll free anytime.
Addiction’s Effects
Chronic and long-term drug users face an especially hard time in addictions recovery. Addictive drugs in general have cumulative effects over time, damaging chemical pathways throughout the brain and central nervous system. By the time, chronic users enter drug treatment, widespread deterioration of bodily systems has taken place.
While the physical effects of addiction take a considerable toll on a person’s health, it’s the psychological effects of addiction that make it so hard to abstain from drug use for any length of time. Addictive drugs create chemical imbalances in the brain that worsen with ongoing drug use. These imbalances eventually start to affect the brain’s executive functions, most notably the brain reward system.
According to Columbia Health, persistent imbalances essentially rewire how the brain reward system works, which lies at the heart of an addiction problem. This area of the brain organizes a person’s belief systems, determines what motivates him or her and defines daily life priorities.
Once chemical imbalances reach a certain point, the brain reward system becomes dependent on drug effects just like the rest of the body. In essence, addicts become psychologically dependent on the drug’s effects.
Inpatient hospital services treat both the physical and psychological effects of addiction. More oftentimes than not, those requiring inpatient hospital services have developed co-occurring physical and psychological disorders as a result of long-term drug use. Disorders commonly associated with long-term addictions include:
- Diabetes
- Heart disease
- Anxiety disorders
- Depression disorders
- Antisocial disorder
Inpatient Hospital Services
Inpatient hospital services take place within a highly structured treatment environment. Patients reside at the facility for the duration of treatment taking part in daily scheduled treatment sessions.
Compared to residential and outpatient programs, inpatient facilities offer the most intensive level of addictions treatment. Likewise, the people most in need of inpatient hospital services struggle with the most severe forms of addiction.
Considering the extent of problems patients typically have, these programs conduct an extensive evaluation process to identify any problems or issues contributing to the addiction. Areas examined during an evaluation include:
- Substance abuse history
- Family history of substance abuse
- Medical
- Family’s medical history
- The presence or absence of sexual/physical emotional abuse, be it past or present
- Motivation for treatment
- Support system (family, friends, clergy)
From there, any needs identified during the evaluation process determine what types of inpatient hospital services a patient receives.
For help finding treatment call 800-430-1407Who Answers? toll free anytimme.
Services Offered
Talk Therapies
Talk therapies fulfill a vital purpose within the addiction recovery process. Treating addiction entails helping addicts replace addiction-based thinking, emotional and behavior patterns with a healthy mindset. Talk therapies provide a means for identifying destructive patterns and confronting addiction tendencies.
According to the Substance Abuse & Mental Health Services Administration, talk therapies commonly incorporated within inpatient hospital service offerings include:
- Cognitive-behavioral therapy
- Group therapy
- Motivational enhancement therapy
Patients engage in some form of therapy on a daily basis, which characterizes the intense level of treatment offered through inpatient hospital services. In effect, this level of structure and practice enables a person to develop the type of mindset that supports ongoing abstinence.
Behavioral Treatments
Behavioral treatment interventions make up a big part of any addictions treatment process, especially with inpatient programs. Over the course of drug use, addicts develop habits and routines that perpetuate the addictions cycle.
As much of this behavior stems from drug-induced emotions and thinking patterns, identifying and eradicating addiction-based behaviors becomes a primary focus of inpatient hospital services. Behavioral treatment interventions typically include:
- 12 Step support group work
- Drug counseling
- Drug education training
- Stress management training
- Relapse prevention training
Ultimately, helping addicts develop the types of behaviors that support a drug-free lifestyle becomes the overall goal of inpatient hospital services.
Medication Therapies
For certain forms of addiction, medication therapies work to restore normal brain chemical balance, which in turn reduces the level of emotional and physical discomfort those in recovery experience. Currently, medication therapies exist for opiate- and alcohol-based addictions.
According to the U. S. Department of Health & Human Services, inpatient hospital services may include medication therapy depending on a person’s individual treatment needs. For people coming off chronic opiate addictions, medication therapies used include:
- Suboxone
- Subutex
- Naltrexone
- Methadone
- Clonidine
For people coming off alcohol addictions, medications used include:
- Vivitrol
- Naltrexone
- Antabuse
As a few of the medications used fall under strict government regulation, an inpatient hospital service setting makes for an ideal environment in which to administer this form of treatment.
We can help you find treatment. Call 800-430-1407Who Answers? toll free today.
Family-Based Interventions
The family’s role in a person’s day-to-day life can be a source of considerable influence when it comes to addiction recovery. Dysfunctional family dynamics can quickly derail the addict’s recovery efforts unless some form of treatment intervention takes place, according to the National Center for Biotechnology Information.
For these reasons, inpatient hospital services work to include family members in the recovery process. Family-based interventions address unresolved issues among family members as well as help in developing the type of healthy communication styles that support a stable home environment.
Family-based interventions offered may include:
- Marriage or relationship counseling
- Family therapy
- Parenting training
These types of inpatient hospital services not only help addicts progress in treatment, but also prepare the home environment for his or her return.
Overall, inpatient hospital services provide long-time addicts with a solid foundation in recovery and equips them with the tools and supports needed to maintain a drug-free lifestyle.