Drug Rehab Programs That Work and Their Stats

Drug and alcohol addiction ruins families. The majority of calls I get are from the loved ones of drug & alcohol abusers, not the abusers themselves. Parents, spouses and kids of abusers suffer more. They're the ones calling for help.

As an aid to the people I work for, here is a study I've done on rehab programs, their costs and posted effectiveness.

First a clarification of rehab programs:

• 95% of rehab centers follow a 12 Step / medical approach to rehab; aka "you've got a disease, accept it and we can help you mitigate the problems"
• 5% use Social Educational, alternative, self help, empowerment, psycho-social-behavioral methods of recovery
• The national average success rate in the US and Canada is around 22%. This is lower in my hometown (10%) according to our past mayor

Why is this significant? For those of you strong in math, you'll quickly realize that the majority of rehab programs or traditional rehab, is getting a majority of rehab clients relapsing back to abuse with 75% + returning back to abusive practices. I believe the term 'spin dry' came about due to this fact.

What about the remaining 5% of rehab program methods?

I've made a listing of some of their posted success rates and costs. By the way, I believe in focusing on what works and have made it my career to find alternative (non-12 Step and non-medical) programs that actually end addiction.

If you're looking for results, then we are both on the same page.

4 Rehab Programs or Strategies That Work

• Emergency room use of Brief Interventions and CAGE (see "Drug Addiction Tests You Can Do Right Now" Palatinus) reduced damage to individuals by 47% (6 months). These intervention approaches are usually done by professionals, doctors and therapists
• Motivational Interviewing, a method of Social Educational rehab, is showing promise
• Bio-physical combined with Social Educational or lifestyle modification approaches. These get 70% to 90% long term success. Usually take 1 to 6 months on average. Prices range from $6,000 to $18,000 per month
• Alternative, results oriented 'high end' rehab centers. Costs are $40,000 + per month, gets 70% to 80% long term recovery

So Why Aren't More People Using These Methods?

1. Centers either don't make a lot of money for the centers or therapists and don't promote internally enough aka 'lobbyists'; or the centers are available to those of higher income levels only. Being the new guys on the block, not often funded by health plans et al, both types are relatively unknown.
2. People in crisis don't often think rationally. I'm talking now about families in the crisis of drug or alcohol abusing loved ones. States of shock can last longer than many would suspect. Some are in shock for years following a crisis.

The lesson to learn here is: Realize you're in a tough time if you've got a loved one abusing drugs / alcohol. This will one day pass, but can you afford the cost of doing nothing or the same thing and getting similar results?

Drug rehab programs work if done correctly. Professionals in rehab, especially those unbiased to traditional methods of recovery, 'because that's how they recovered', can greatly improve your chances of having a happy conclusion to treatment.