However, there’s little research showing that forcing someone into drug treatment helps them in the long run. Mandatory rehab turned out to be a good thing for Gordon’s son, whose only other option was jail time with no treatment at all. Make sure the facility can meet your specific needs and that they have experience treating people whose age and life circumstances are similar to yours, Earley says. And if the representative says that “everybody who calls needs to go to residential treatment, that’s not credible,” Ventrell adds. Jarvis and Earley both recommend using the online tool ATLAS (Addiction Treatment Locator, Assessment, and Standards Platform) on the nonprofit site Shatterproof.org.

Certain prescription medications can also interact poorly with other substances and medications. As always, it is critical that people take medications as directed by a medical professional. One major concern is the type of treatment the addicted person will receive when involuntarily committed. No matter how they enter rehab, the individual should receive addiction treatment customized to their needs.

Medications and Patient Rights

These statements will end with a request for your loved one to enter treatment and explain the consequences if they refuse. Because this may be the first time family members and friends have been truly honest about their feelings concerning their loved one’s substance abuse, professional interventionists make sure they’re present to keep the plan on track. Hopefully, this is the stage when your friend or family member makes the decision to willingly enter the recovery process. Group therapy is one of the most frequently used techniques
during primary and extended care phases of substance abuse treatment programs. Most controversial is whether confrontation or support should
be emphasized. Least intensive is outpatient treatment with scheduled attendance
of less than 9 hours per week, usually including once- or twice-weekly individual,
group, or family counseling as well as other services.

• Forcing someone into a rehab program against their wishes is known as involuntary commitment.
• The more ACEs a child experiences, the more at risk they are for developing SUD at some point in their life.
• You can go through detoxification in both inpatient and outpatient settings.
• However, you may need to stay in treatment for several months if you have a severe addiction.
• The best way to determine how long you’ll need to stay in treatment is to talk to a doctor or a treatment specialist.
• Syringe service programs provide harm reduction services to people who use drugs.

These facilities range in intensity and duration of care from long-term
and self-contained therapeutic communities to less supervised halfway and
quarterway houses from which the residents are transitioning back into the
community. Naltrexone is considered to be the safest and most effective treatment for opioid abuse because it is easy to use, and also comes with minimal side effects and risk of dependence. Naltrexone works by completely blocking the activation of the brain’s opioid receptors, which is why it is called an opioid antagonist. But medicines like buprenorphine are considered partial opioid agonists, so they only partially activate the brain’s opioid receptors.

Prevent Overdose

Diagnosing drug addiction (substance use disorder) requires a thorough evaluation and often includes an assessment by a psychiatrist, a psychologist, or a licensed alcohol and drug counselor. Blood, urine or other lab tests are used to assess drug use, but they’re not a diagnostic test for addiction. However, these tests may be used for monitoring treatment and recovery. Buprenorphine, methadone, and naltrexone are the most common medications used to treat OUD.

In some states, families, medical professionals, and law enforcement officers can petition the treatment facility directly, without a judge’s order. The ethics piece is really important because as treatment centers have boomed, sober house there are some charlatans out there. Some people with a substance use disorder really need residential care. But there are many facilities to choose from, and not all of them may have your best interests in mind.

Start a Career in Addiction Services – Scholarships Available

The Adult Rehabilitation Centers have a proven track record of helping people move to independence by offering classes, counseling, spiritual care, and opportunities to aid the rehabilitation process by developing strong work habits. ​For services and supports related to behavioral health, mental health, substance use and problem gambling, contact your Community Mental Health Program. For diagnosis of a substance use disorder, most mental health professionals use criteria in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-5), published by the American Psychiatric Association.

• Early identification occurs at the first signs of a problem — before anyone has suffered a traumatic event, dropped out of school, or lost important relationships, jobs, health, or self-respect.
• There is no universally mandated minimum duration for participants in work therapy, but all ARCs adhere to a maximum of 40 hours per week.
• OBH Prevention Services provides family-focused, evidence-based, outcome-driven and cost-effective services.
• Our treatment facility offers everything required to handle withdrawal and detox symptoms, and we have a complete team of medical professionals to handle every aspect of addiction recovery.

If you or someone you know is struggling with addiction or mental health issues, we encourage you to give us a call today to learn more about this exciting new treatment option. Before investigating involuntary commitment options, concerned family and friends should make every effort to exert more informal pressure on their loved one to enter rehab. This approach is less extreme and will often prove effective in encouraging someone with an addiction to seek help. One such approach is to work with a professional interventionist who can guide a non-confrontational group intervention. At some point, changes happen in the brain that can turn drug and alcohol abuse into addiction. The national substance abuse crisis has only been exacerbated by the COVID pandemic.

Mental health condition classification systems, including the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM), have become more sophisticated over time. The term “substance use disorder” allows for more clarity in diagnosis. SUD also recognizes a spectrum of problematic substance use, not just physiologic addiction. With physical dependence, your body has adapted to the presence of the substance, and withdrawal symptoms happen if you suddenly stop taking the drug or you take a reduced dosage.