If you or someone you love are having trouble controlling alcohol consumption, it may be a sign of alcohol abuse, or alcoholism. For treatment for this illness, turn to one of many alcohol abuse treatment centers.
What is Alcohol Abuse?
Alcohol abuse and alcoholism refer to patterns of drinking that disrupt the drinker’s health, personal life, or work or school performance. Drinking may also lead to legal problems, like arrests for driving under the influence. If you’re worried that your drinking has crossed into alcohol abuse, alcohol abuse treatment centers can help you evaluate and control your drinking.
What are Alcohol Abuse Treatment Centers?
Alcohol abuse treatment centers are specialized facilities that help people with alcohol abuse issues transition into sobriety. These centers teach life skills and coping strategies, so patients learn to deal with stress and emotion without turning to alcohol. At alcohol abuse treatment centers, recovering addicts undergo therapy of many kinds, to help them deal with negative emotions and trauma, and to help them prepare for their lives as non-drinkers.
Types of Alcohol Abuse Treatment Centers
Treatment centers offer several different basic types of treatment, to maximize the number of people who can receive help for alcohol abuse. Alcohol abuse treatment centers generally offer one or more of the following:
- Inpatient treatment. For addicts who have a long history of problem drinking, inpatient treatment may be the only way to truly achieve recovery from alcoholism. In this type of treatment, patients live at the treatment facility and receive intensive therapy on a daily basis.
- Outpatient treatment. Outpatient treatment does not require the patient to live at alcohol abuse treatment centers. Instead, he can continue living at home and even going to work, while attending therapy for several hours a day, several evenings a week.
- Intense outpatient treatment. In this type of outpatient program, patients spend more time at the treatment facility—usually about six hours a day. However, they still live at home.
Treatment at Alcohol Abuse Treatment Centers
Treatment for alcoholism at a treatment center consists of many parts, including:
- Detoxification. In this initial stage, patients’ bodies must adjust to no longer consuming alcohol. Long-term alcoholics may experience severe withdrawal symptoms.
- Individual therapy.In one-on-one sessions with a counselor, a patient explores his reasons for drinking and learns new strategies to cope with his emotions.
- Group therapy. Patients at alcohol abuse treatment centers often spend time in group therapy to learn from others’ experiences and gain new insight into their own lives.
- Family or couples therapy. Many alcohol abuse treatment centers recognize that an addict’s family or spouse is also affected by his alcohol abuse. In sessions with the spouse or family members, recovering addicts explore how their drinking affected and was affected by people in their lives.
Treatment plans are tailored to each patient’s needs, to make sure that all of his issues are addressed and his recovery process is solid.
Alcohol abuse treatment centers have helped millions of people move beyond their drinking and live sober lives. If you’re worried that your drinking has taken over your life, don’t wait—call an alcohol treatment facility today.