Pros and Cons of Local Drug Rehab Centers

Local drug rehab centers are often the go-to choice for many individuals who need treatment for drug addiction and abuse. If you choose a local clinic, there are many positive aspects this type of facility, including just being near to your home and loved ones. However, like all treatment types, local drug rehab centers have their own drawbacks as well.

When you are considering whether or not to attend treatment at a local drug rehab center, make sure you know both the pros and cons of this type of treatment in order to make a well-informed decision.

What is the Draw of Local Drug Rehab Centers?

A local live-in rehab center can provide you with the privacy, care, and support you need to recover from addiction.

For many individuals, the draw of these facilities is comfort, being closer to home and not having to deal with extra issues like flying or otherwise traveling to the facility. The NIDA states, “Treatment needs to be readily available,” and local drug rehab centers are if the individual patient can find one that fits their needs and be able to get in for treatment.

Many individuals need more treatment, guidance, and help than what a twelve step program can give them which is why these facilities exist in many places, especially in cities where drug abuse is common. The draw of local drug rehab centers is that most people feel that they can attend treatment close by so that, if they do have to go away for inpatient treatment or if they are constantly traveling each day to outpatient treatment, they will not have to drop their lives for too long.

Local drug rehab centers give patients a sense of still being able to manage their lives, even when they need inpatient treatment. Still, though, there are those who do not consider both the pros and cons of local drug rehab centers which can be very important to your overall recovery.

Pros of Local Drug Rehab Centers

First, searching for local drug rehab centers isn’t difficult. You can use an Internet directory, like the one at InpatientDrugRehabCenters.com. With these types of directories, individuals can start at the state level and find the closest, most local centers and choose between them. There is usually a map, a phone number, and often a website which can help you choose the local rehab center that is best for you.

Some other pros of local drug rehab centers are:

• Families and friends can visit more easily which, according to NIDA, is especially beneficial. “Support from friends and family can be critical in getting people into treatment and helping them to maintain abstinence following treatment.” Those who receive visits from their loved ones while in treatment also do better during this time because of the added encouragement.
• Local drug rehab centers give people a sense of calm; they know the area they are in instead of being someplace with which they are even more unfamiliar.
• These facilities can also be found more easily by checking with local doctors, government offices, friends, outreach centers, and free clinics.
• Local drug rehab centers usually help avoid some of the expense of attending rehab. For many individuals who become addicted to one or more substances, their “financial and legal problems get worse” and it may be difficult to find affordable treatment (NLM). People looking for less expensive treatment may want to stay local because:
  • They won’t have to pay for airfare, gas, travel expenses, or any other costs that have to do with relocating to another place to receive treatment.
  • They can stay at an outpatient center if they are doing well enough to do so, as “such treatment costs less than residential or inpatient treatment” (NIDA).
• At a local drug rehab center, patients can still feel that they are in touch with their lives as they are closer and can either go home every night or be close enough to receive news of what is going on. Some patients who attend outpatient treatment may even do so partly because they don’t want to leave their jobs and other responsibilities behind. If the treatment suits them, this can be highly beneficial.

Cons of Local Drug Rehab Centers

One of the biggest drawbacks to limiting yourself to choosing only a local drug rehab center is that there may be more beneficial treatment programs that are specifically tailored to your needs in other places. Choosing to only attend local drug rehab centers can limit you from finding other facilities that may be more suited to you which could be elsewhere; you are essentially cutting out any facility that is not nearby, thinning your choices out considerably. This is why you may want to take a look at other facilities before you choose to stay local.

Some other cons of local drug rehab centers are:

• Some local rehab centers can be full. If you live in a city where drug abuse, addiction, and crime rates are high, these facilities could have extremely long wait-lists and it could be difficult to get the treatment you need, when you need it.
• Staying local is not always the best choice. Some individuals need to get away because there are too many triggers for them where they are currently living, or they may be having issues with other people who are not willing to let them recover the way they need to.
• In addition, other patients might be in danger of people who they used to use drugs with. Some patients know people who may want to harm them living in their local area, so for them, staying close to home for treatment could be a mistake.
• You could discover that the centers in your area, after research, are:
  • Less inclusive
  • More expensive
  • Not as varied
  • Or have a number of other issues which may cause you to want to seek treatment elsewhere.

Local drug rehab centers help many people stop abusing illicit and prescription drugs and start a strong basis for recovery. But they do have their drawbacks which should be considered the way those of any treatment program should. According to the NIDA, “Effective treatment attends to multiple needs of the individual,” so consider all of your needs before you choose a local or non-local drug rehab center (NIDA).