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What comes to mind when you think of drug rehab? Most Americans would think of a group of people sitting in circles for “28 days” or so, discussing their addictions. But the group-therapy model of treatment for addiction and/or alcoholism is not the only method of drug rehabilitation. In fact, many drug treatment experts would argue for a more individualized approach. What's Wrong with Group Therapy for Drug Rehab? Hardly anyone considers addictions to be lifestyle choices (to the end) or moral failings. The dominant thinking on addiction today is that addiction is a disease. However, recently some treatment experts are going further, arguing that addiction is more often the symptom of an underlying ailment, with substance abuse being a kind of self-medication. Rather than treating a “disease” through behavior modification, real addiction treatment would heal the underlying causes. An analogy would be to compare it to an itch from poison ivy. Rather than learning to just live a life without ever scratching, a more appropriate solution would be to cure the poison ivy with the proper cream or antibiotics—to heal the underlying issue behind the itch. Yet even if addiction is thought of as a disease, the group model of drug rehab does not immediately seem appropriate. Doctors rarely gather a group of people suffering from the flu together in a room and treat them all at the same time and in the same way. Even if ten people have the same disease and need the exact same medicine, doctors will take the time to examine and treat each patient individually. Why not take the same approach with addiction? There are good reasons to consider a more individualized treatment approach to drug rehabilitation. For one thing, every person, including every addict, is different. Even if all addictions were the same, each individual addict would respond differently to treatment. Some people enter treatment reluctantly, some whole-heartedly. For some it's their first time trying to break free of addiction, while for some it follows a string of repeated rehabilitation failures or relapses. Moreover, if addiction is considered as a symptom of an underlying problem rather than a disease in itself, individual treatment becomes all the more important. According to Chris and Pax Prentiss, founders of Passages Malibu, a renowned California drug rehab, the causes underlying an individual's addiction are always unique. Why do some people choose not to pursue individual treatment? The major reason is cost. It goes without saying that a drug rehab program built on individualized treatment provides a much higher level of care, one that will cost more than standard treatment programs that rely on a group approach. In fact, this is almost certainly the primary reason the group approach is relied on in most drug rehabs. Of course, group-based drug rehab can very easily end up being a false economy if the addict relapses. Even if a 1-on-1 drug treatment program costs twice as much as a group program, the price difference is a “wash” if the addict has to go through rehab twice. In fact, traditional group-based drug rehab programs usually have very high rates of relapse among graduates within one year of completion. It's not uncommon at all to hear of addicts who have been through rehab several times. In reality, few things are more expensive than addiction, whether the costs take the form of lost wages, legal costs, medical bills, or an ultimately shortened lifespan. The very real economic and human costs of addiction mean that rehab is something that should never be economized. While group-based drug rehab programs do work for some people, a more holistic and 1-on-1 approach offers clear advantages and tremendous effectiveness.
Article Source: http://www.envispire.com
Abhilash Patel writes for Passages Malibu, an Alcohol and Drug Rehabilitation Center located in California. For more information about their groundbreaking Drug Rehab Program, please visit the website: www.passagesmalibu.com
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