Our Drug and Alcohol Rehab Aftercare Programs

Why is Aftercare an Important Part of Recovery?

You’re about to transition out of a residential facility, and you don’t know where to turn for more help and support. Alcohol rehab aftercare is likely the solution that you didn’t know you needed. A robust aftercare program allows you to practice what you learned and is key in preventing relapse.

Aftercare programs prevent relapse by establishing necessary supports in the form of family therapy, ongoing counseling, recovery meetings, and medication management. This establishes accountability with other people who can help you stay sober. It also aids in living a fulfilling life if you have a dual diagnosis.

Icarus Nevada offers residential treatment and aftercare programs so that you get the help you need at the level you want. Keep reading to learn more about why aftercare matters and how you can implement it in your recovery plan.

Why Does Aftercare Matter for Alcohol or Substance Use Recovery?

When you leave our recovery center, you don’t want to jump headfirst into the waters of your old life. Why does aftercare matter so much to former patients?

The first reason is that you can often prevent relapse with the necessary supports in place. This means reaching out for help from a qualified treatment team, loved ones, and others living in sobriety. Support allows you to think through your decision to use again and to implement those life skills you learned.

The second is that it provides accountability for your actions. It would be easy to turn to substances if you felt bored, depressed, or upset. If you know that you have to answer to someone else for choices like these, you’re less likely to cave when the craving pops up.

Aftercare treatment options can also help you to live a more fulfilling life. A recovery plan can include help for mental health conditions like mood issues or anxiety. These need to be treated in addition to substance use disorders if you want to maintain your sobriety.

The right aftercare plan is essential to your long-term recovery, but there isn’t a one-size-fits-all plan that works for everyone. Instead, you can pick and choose from among these treatment options after your residential facility stay.

What Will You Need in Aftercare Programs Following Addiction Treatment?

Substance abuse treatment doesn’t end just because you transition from a rehab facility to a lower level of care. Instead, you’ll want to explore addiction aftercare programs in your area to sustain support for your hard-won recovery process.

Here are just a few of the aftercare services to consider putting in place as you return to your home and your life away from treatment.

Ongoing Therapy with an Experienced Substance Abuse Counselor

When you were enrolled at Icarus Nevada, you had access to counseling sessions with trained experts in the addiction treatment space. You’ll want to continue on with therapy sessions regularly, sometimes once a week and sometimes more frequently, depending on your needs.

Ongoing support from a counselor allows you to keep pressing into your reasons for substance abuse. As you start to make your way in the world, more support is needed as you start to implement coping skills you learned in our program. It takes practice and guidance to make those second nature.

You’ll also want to find someone who can utilize the best of several treatment techniques. For example, you may want someone who can offer EMDR for trauma therapy, cognitive and dialectical behavioral therapy for skills training, or acceptance and commitment therapy as you grow.

Keep in mind that these therapy sessions can also be excellent for anyone with a dual diagnosis of a substance use disorder and a mental health issue. Look for someone experienced with both.

Support Groups and Recovery Meetings in an Outpatient Program

Your treatment program should also utilize community-based resources in your local area. The good news is that these are easy to find. Alcoholics Anonymous and Narcotics Anonymous are found in just about every corner of the country.

These meetings follow the proven Twelve Step framework to aid in your recovery journey. Plus, these support groups allow you to connect with other like-minded people recovering from alcohol and drug abuse, learn from their stories, and accept their advice as you try to navigate without rehab.

These are great if you need to find something to occupy your downtime between therapy appointments. If you don’t like the Twelve Step methodology, you can also turn to programs like SMART Recovery. It may not be as widely available, but it does offer virtual, national meetings where you can learn more.

Managing a Support System with Family Therapy

Being newly sober comes with a slew of challenges. You’ll have to learn new life skills that you might have forgotten along the way, but you’ll also have to rebuild a robust support system. Your friends and family may have been hurt by your substance abuse. Repairing relationships is essential.

A family therapist can help you to bridge those difficult conversations with loved ones (even if they may not be your biological family). It opens the door to healthy, two-way communication. Therapy can also educate them on your substance use issue and teach them how to talk with you and support you.

Sobriety isn’t something that you can do on your own. You need other people to help you and support you if you want to remain sober. If you don’t have close loved ones to help, lean on support groups.

Medication Management for Mental Health and Addiction Medicine

According to the National Institute of Health, there is significant crossover between people with a drug or alcohol issue and those who need help with mental health concerns. In addition to attending a Dual Recovery Anonymous meeting, you may also need medication management with a skilled psychiatrist.

Mental health medications for mood disorders, anxiety, and more are tricky to handle. You’ll need to be under the care of a doctor to monitor progress and dosing. It can take a while for medications to take effect, so find someone you can communicate honestly with about your progress.

Addiction medicine is also an option. Some drugs will help you to stay sober when leaving rehab centers where drugs and alcohol were off-limits. These drugs affect the way you experience drugs and alcohol and make it less likely that you will relapse. However, you need to check in with a doctor regularly to ensure that these are still a good fit.

Sober Living Homes as Part of an Aftercare Plan

For some people, the recovery process doesn’t mean that they should return home after they leave our rehab facility at Icarus Behavioral Health in Nevada. Home might not be a safe space where you avoid drugs and alcohol, especially if family members aren’t as supportive as you would like.

Instead, you may transition from our treatment program to sober living homes. These homes have more experienced people alongside those who are still struggling with sobriety. They may have counselors on staff and host recovery meetings daily so that you have the level of support you need.

People who attend sober living homes tend to have greater chances of employment and are less likely to relapse upon graduation from a facility.

Alumni Programs at a Rehab Facility

If the rehab facility you attended was close to your home, then you may decide to take part in alumni programs. Icarus Nevada can help you step down into outpatient programs. We offer both intensive outpatient and partial hospitalization for those people struggling to locate aftercare services on their own.

When you enroll with a treatment team, you’ll want to ask what they offer in terms of aftercare programs because this can set you up for success more than anything else.

Completing treatment in a residential treatment center is just step one of embracing a sober lifestyle. You will need more support as the world opens up for you and you return to everyday life. An extended period of care and sober living arrangements in an alumni program can be essential to managing new skills.

Get Started With Icarus Nevada’s Comprehensive Programs

Are you ready to start thinking about what long-term recovery looks like for you? Icarus Nevada can help you put together an aftercare program that meets your unique needs with several levels of support and guidance. From IOP to residential care, we offer our clients a holistic approach to recovery.

Our enrollment team is here to answer your questions and verify your insurance benefits with a simple phone call. Everything we discuss with you is completely confidential, and you’re under no obligation to utilize our services. We accept many private and public health insurance programs to offset the cost of care.

Let us help you support the start of lasting success in recovery today with same-day admissions into our robust treatment programs!

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