Understanding Addiction Treatment

In an attempt to optimize treatment outcomes, ideally a person’s treatment should be tailored to the individual and include the types of addiction treatment that are best suited to that person’s needs and goals. These needs can be based on a number of elements that include: ²

• The severity of addiction.
• How long the substance use has been going on.
• Whether or not the person has a social network of support.
• The person’s adherence and response to certain therapies.
• Continued access to the substance in the person’s daily life.
• Certain risk factors that could have some bearing on outcomes (age, gender, etc.).

Oxford’s Levels of Rehab Care

A wide range of treatment options, available at our renowned Etta and Oxford treatment facilities, provides a higher chance of creating an addiction treatment plan that will work for you. Because your needs will change over time and throughout treatment, it’s important that your treatment program continually adapt as needed so it keeps pace with those developments.

What Is a Continuum of Care for Addiction Treatment?

Continuum of care refers to having different levels of treatment available, sometimes at different facilities, so the rehab program can be adjusted based on a person’s changing needs for more or less intense treatment over time.³ It also means making sure the right therapies are available for the person at each phase of treatment to provide the greatest chance of long-term recovery.

For example, let’s say you enter a relatively low-intensity outpatient rehab program based on your initial evaluation by a treatment professional. With good continuity of care, if at any point your treatment team determines that your recovery progress isn’t optimal, arrangements can be made to shift your level of care to a higher intensity, for example to a partial hospitalization program or an inpatient rehab program. The treatment is adjusted to fit the person, rather than the person being expected to thrive in a one-size-fits-all setting.

Similarly, if you’ve completed an inpatient program but still want a fair amount of treatment support, you may wish to step down to an intensive outpatient program or move into a sober living facility.

Initial Evaluation When You Arrive at Rehab

People with substance use issues often receive an initial evaluation by a treatment professional to better assess their addiction severity and treatment needs. It is around this point that you commit to entering treatment. This leads to seeking out a facility and working with its staff to develop an initial treatment program.

Medical Detox for Drugs & Alcohol

If the person is still under the influence of the substance and/or will require some level of withdrawal management, he or she typically undergoes detox before any other treatment elements are introduced.

Detox protocols will vary depending on the substance of use and the degree of physiological dependence and withdrawal risks. The abrupt discontinuation of certain substances, such as alcohol and benzodiazepines (a group of prescription anti-anxiety medications), are associated with dangerous withdrawal symptoms during detox.

Other acute withdrawal syndromes, such as those associated with opioids, may include symptoms that, while not often immediately life-threatening, can be extremely uncomfortable and risky in terms of relapse likelihood.

The staff at our medical detox facility in Mississippi is experienced in managing detox and withdrawal, and can make the process safer and more comfortable. Detox patients stay in semi-private detox rooms, receive around-the-clock monitoring and care, and are also encouraged to attend daily programming and group sessions.

In many cases detox programs and longer-term treatment centers are connected, or at least have a relationship that facilitates patient transfers to encourage a continuum of care. However, even if this isn’t the case, a reputable treatment center can help you make a smooth transition from the detox facility into a treatment facility of your choice.

Residential Addiction Treatment

There are several different ways a facility can approach residential treatment, or inpatient rehab. The various aspects of an average day in inpatient rehab can include:

• Medical support of co-occurring medical and mental health issues, if necessary.
• Various behavioral therapies to help the person better understand and manage triggers and cravings.
• Family or couples counseling to strengthen support for abstinence outside the program.
• Education and skills development for better relapse prevention and a smoother transition into post-rehabilitation life.

In residential care, the treatment team can provide round-the-clock supervision and support while focusing on the individual’s progress through treatment; treatment adjustments can be made based on that progress.

Residential treatment makes it possible to give patients access to the full range of therapies for drug addiction and treatments that can benefit that particular person, depending on the circumstances of the person’s specific substance use problems, other mental health issues, and family, work, school, or other issues in the person’s daily life that may have contributed to the addiction.

This is where Oxford Treatment Center’s programming really thrives: The facility has offerings ranging from:

• Experiential and recreational therapies like equine therapy.
• Access to 12-step groups.
• Access to medical staff.
• Family programming.
• Access to lecture and education courses about addiction.

Research has shown that the length of time spent in treatment can influence recovery, with the length of time needed in treatment varying from person to person.¹ For this reason, it could be beneficial for you to make a commitment to completing the residential treatment program for the period of time recommended by the treatment professionals.

Outpatient Addiction Treatment

Many people who complete a course of treatment in an inpatient or residential program step down into our outpatient addiction treatment program in Oxford, MS for continued recovery efforts, though outpatient substance use treatment may also serve as the first point of entry into the treatment continuum.

With this type of addiction treatment, the person can go back to living at home and return to a mostly normal daily life, while regular contact is still maintained with the treatment facility.

The outpatient program at Oxford Treatment Center, like any level of care, is customized to your recovery path. The amount of time you spend with a counselor or therapist will be based on your needs. You may continue with therapy and skill-building programs, as well as taking part in self-help support groups, such as 12-step meetings.

Support for continued recovery is readily available, helping with the transition from living with 24-hour support to managing your addiction with less help. The aim is to help the person reach a point of managing the addiction with a minimum of support, leading to the next treatment level.

Intensive Outpatient Treatment

For some people, living at home and returning to daily life outside the treatment program may create a higher risk of relapse than it would for other people. You may have more daily exposure to the substance, social networks that encourage substance use, or co-occurring disorders that require management for longer periods of time after you complete residential treatment. That’s where intensive outpatient treatment (i.e., intensive outpatient program, or IOP) comes in.

Designed to provide a higher level of transition support for those who have these types of challenges, Oxford’s IOP focuses on education, therapy, and building accountability. Morning and evening sessions—lasting about 3 to 4 hours each—will help you gain and reinforce skills to help avoid relapse and recognize triggers.

Partial Hospitalization

In cases where more support may be needed, Oxford Treatment Center’s partial hospitalization program (PHP) might be the best call. This type of addiction treatment requires 20 hours a week and provides you with access to medical staff, as well as focuses you on reinforcing skillsets and trying out real-world scenarios in a safe environment.

These outpatient treatment options are available at Resolutions Oxford, a sober living facility just 16 miles from the Oxford residential campus.

Aftercare or Post-Treatment Support

Once the treatment portion of the program is complete, you can return to a new daily life of recovery maintenance; however, this doesn’t mean that your care is complete. Even after treatment is over and you are able to manage the addiction alone, stress or other emotional or physical challenges might occasionally increase the risk of relapse.

Oxford Treatment Center’s discharge planners will work with you to create an aftercare plan that works for you. In the aftercare stage, Oxford provides access to weekly meetings on campus, and to its expansive alumni network.

Programs that include aftercare demonstrate they are committed to giving you the best chance at recovery from addiction. These programs prepare you for long-term maintenance of your substance use disorders.

If you or someone you care about is ready for recovery, Oxford’s drug and alcohol rehab in Mississippi can help. Call to speak with an admissions navigator and learn more about the admissions process. Whether you plan on paying for rehab with health insurance or are interested in other ways to pay for rehab, we can walk you through the process and answer any questions you may have. Start treatment today.