Drug and alcohol recovery can be a journey to look forward to:

Often, you will find that the family members of drug and alcohol addicts are disappointed, angry or saddened by their loved one's seeming lack of effort in taking their drug or alcohol recovery more seriously. Parents of addicts have a hard time because they are often placed in a situation where they feel helpless as their child deals with drug and alcohol withdrawal and then drug and alcohol recovery. In addition to the emotional turmoil that is involved with any type of drug or alcohol addiction, parents need to accept the fact that the recovery drug and alcohol recovery process is one that is prone to drug and alcohol relapse as well as other minor setbacks.

Realizing that recovery is a lifelong process and encouraging your child through patience and support can help him or her on their path to a life of sobriety. Here at Mark Houston Recovery, we have all struggled with drug and alcohol addiction and we continue to work on our own recovery each and every day. The dedicated staff at Mark Houston Recovery is constantly augmenting its knowledge and skills and can help educate you on what you need to know as a parent as well as what you can do to get through this difficult time. Working together, drug and alcohol recovery can be a journey to look forward to. That being said, let's take a look at process involved with drug and alcohol recovery where a continuum of care is involved.

What is a “Continuum of Care”?

Drug and alcohol addiction isn't like a broken bone; there isn't one easy way to fix it. Rather drug and alcohol addiction is often characterized as a “chronic and progressive” disease, insinuating that there is no cure for it. It also means that it has a very good chance of becoming progressively worse if left untreated. It is a serious matter. That being said, the term continuum of care is often employed when trying to convince a recovering drug or alcohol addict that he or she must continue their drug or alcohol recovery process for an extended period of time- typically long after they have already received initial treatment for their addiction. Clinicians use the term continuum of care to describe the recommended steps involved from getting from illness to wellness. Broken down even further, the word 'continuum' is defined as anything that goes through a gradual transition from one condition to a different condition without any abrupt changes. Therefore, clinicians feel that the recommended treatment of a chemically dependent patient should include the gradual transition of the physiological, psychological, and spiritual conditions from an unhealthy (or chemically addicted) state to a healthy state.

At Mark Houston Recovery, our objective is to model the realization that we are physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual beings. We demonstrate how to integrate all four of these elements to experience the sense of inner peace necessary to achieve permanent recovery, happiness, and joy in daily living. Let's now take a look at each level of care which can be broken down as follows:

Primary Treatment

Physiological - This phase includes detoxification, neurological reparation and nutrition.

Psychological - This phase includes psychiatric disorders, crisis abatement, early stages of intensive therapy, early stages of intensive mentoring and education.

Spiritual - This phase includes having a sense of self, having a sense of others, practicing humility, having faith as well as having a sense of community.

Extended Care Treatment

Physiological - This phase involves continuing neurological reparation and focusing on nutritional habits.

Psychological - This phase focuses on psychiatric disorders, early stages of moderate therapy, early stages of moderate mentoring, education and stress management.

Spiritual - In this phase, the recovering addict is made to focus on his or her sense of self, their sense of others. They are also encouraged to practice their faith and get involved with their community.

Transitional Sober Living

Physiological - Here, the recovering addict is again, focusing on continued neurological reparation as well as nutritional habits.

Psychological - Here, the focus is on relapse prevention therapy, early stages of mentoring, life skills education and stress management.

Spiritual -As always, the resident is encouraged to show a practice of faith as well as willing participation in community events.

Sober Living

Here, the recovering addict is still focused on continued neurological reparation and is also practicing his or her faith by exploring their spirituality.

The above is a mere model of what a continuum of care should look like for a person who is recovering from a drug and/or alcohol addiction. However, each recovering addict will progress with their continuum of care at different rates and with different results. Therefore, like with anything else, it is difficult to construct just one approach on how to handle chemical dependency and continued care. According to some studies, in general, recovering alcohol addicts will require anywhere between one to five years in order to find some sort of a balance between the mind, body and spirit, but as a general rule, the continuum of care should be applied for at least a minimum of twelve (12) months following initial treatment for an addiction.

At Mark Houston Recovery, we have first hand experience with drug and alcohol addiction as well as drug and alcohol relapse prevention and intervention. We know how important it is to live a life characterized by sobriety as well as the importance of making a decision to integrate a continuum of care into our residents' recovery efforts. We know that you have a choice when it comes to choosing the right kind of drug and alcohol recovery program. This is part of the reason that we are proud to offer our residents a minimum 30-day recovery program as well as a 90-day recovery program, transitional sober living, a one year monitoring program and more! Additionally, we have some of the best staff members, staff members who are equipped with the knowledge and experience to fully explain the benefits and challenges of a long term plan of continued care for you or your loved one. They are excellent resources with a wealth of information, and we encourage you to talk to one of them today. Call Mark Houston Recovery at 1.866.905.4550 to find out what a life of permanent sobriety and abundance can be like.