Residential alcohol treatment is an environment full of promise and hope. It is a new beginning, a chance to leave behind the old ways of thinking and acting.

Detox

The first step in residential alcohol treatment is detox, the process of ridding the body of toxins accumulated through prolonged alcohol abuse. This is a process requiring close medical supervision by a licensed physician, as the body’s withdrawal from alcohol can trigger severe physical side effects. These can include anything from sweating to delirium tremens or even seizures.

Individual and Group Therapy

A licensed therapist will provide counseling in individual, family or group settings. In the group setting, recovering alcoholics can encourage each other by sharing their own personal stories of addiction recovery. In the family and individual settings, the recovering alcoholic will be able to work through underlying issues that contributed to the alcohol addiction in the first place.

Social Outings

Socializing is important in residential alcohol rehab. Organized outings will be scheduled for groups to hike, canoe, volunteer for community service projects, etc. It is encouraging for recovering alcoholics to interact with others who are experiencing similar struggles, yet have similar determination to beat their addiction.

Goal Setting

Another important facet of residential alcohol treatment is setting goals. It helps recovering alcoholics stay on track with their treatment plan. Goal setting, along with social outings, also helps keep a person’s mind off their addiction. With each new goal achieved, the recovering alcoholic becomes more focused and encouraged in their addiction battle.

Aftercare

When residential alcohol treatment is finished, it will be time for recovering alcoholics to enter the world and deal with daily life. They will not have around-the-clock support from treatment staff, and they will try not to use the alcohol as a means for coping with stress. Many treatment programs offer aftercare, which is essentially continued counseling and therapy. As long as the recovering alcoholic participates, aftercare provides some form of continued support, encouragement and accountability.