Residential Drug Rehab and Alcohol Rehab

For those who are unable to remain abstinent in After Work/After School outpatient or day treatment, a two to four week stay in a residential rehabilitation center may be needed. Residential treatment is a combination of education, group counseling, individual counseling, self-study, and family education and counseling. By living in the rehabilitation center, patients receive the round-the-clock support they need to concentrate on their substance abuse recovery. As in all treatment, the interaction with other patients, especially during the "off hours", can be very effective in helping them break through denial and get them on the road to substance abuse recovery. As soon as the client becomes stabilized and engaged in the drug rehab and alcohol treatment process, they become a candidate for transition into a less intense level of care such as day treatment or intensive outpatient.

For those in intensive After Work/After School outpatient programs who may need more structure and support or for those transitioning out of residential programs, day treatment may be appropriate. Those participating attend treatment in a residential center for a minimum of six hours per day, six or seven days per week for one to four weeks. The program includes the same education, group and individual counseling, and family education as residential, but allows the patient to go home at night. The patient can then be transitioned either to intensive outpatient or directly to weekly substance abuse aftercare.

All clients are referred to weekly substance abuse aftercare for a minimum of twelve to twenty-four weeks. These 1.5 hour group counseling sessions are designed to help patients transition from more intense levels of alcohol and drug rehab care during the early stages of substance abuse recovery. Clients help each other by sharing "how it's going" and what they have found successful in coping with the challenge of living clean and sober, often for the first time in years. The substance abuse aftercare sessions are also very supportive of their involvement in self-help.

For those who may not be able to return home after residential treatment or for those in outpatient care, Gateway Alcohol and Drug Rehab has a limited number of recovery homes for adult clients. These are rehabilitation centers occupied by people in substance abuse recovery who desire to live in a clean and sober environment. They may still be involved in After Work/After School outpatient, day treatment or substance abuse aftercare and are often in the process of seeking employment and more permanent housing.

In practically all cases as part of discharge planning, Gateway Alcohol and Drug Rehab recommends that a person become heavily involved in the substance abuse self-help recovery community. Founded in 1935, the worldwide fellowship of Alcoholics Anonymous has more than a million members in the United States and it has spawned similar support organizations such as Narcotics Anonymous. Those suffering from alcohol and drug addiction seek to help each other remain clean and sober by sharing their experience, strength and hope. While not part of Gateway’s levels of care, we recommend active participation in substance abuse self-help. It may not be for everybody, but over the years, it has proven to be what works best for most.