Once you’ve made the courageous decision to get intensive help for alcohol addiction, you have some choices to make around the type of facility you feel will be best suited to your circumstances, personal preferences, budget and treatment specialities available.
Below we’ll look at some of the major considerations when choosing an alcohol rehabilitation center, then the different styles of programs available in Australia that will help you find the right fit for you to succeed in your new alcohol-free life.
ALCOHOL REHAB TREATMENT CENTRES
Questions to consider that will help with your choice
BUDGET
Do you have the funding to choose a private alcohol rehabilitation center, or will you need a referral to a Government-funded facility?
Many rehab centers offer various funding models enabling you to subsidise payment with contributions from your superannuation fund, private health fund, NDIS, Veteran’s Affairs, or your business (if self-employed).
These funding options will vary greatly between public and private facilities – as will their fee structures- so you’ll need to speak with your shortlisted options and request all-inclusive quotes to compare against your budget.
If you are seeking a place in a Government-funded facility, you will need a referral from your GP or mental healthcare professional. If you are eligible for any of the subsidies mentioned above at a private alcohol rehabilitation centre, you will most likely need a referral from a qualified psychiatrist to establish eligibility. Each centre can advise you on the requirements and process for accessing subsidies.
LENGTH OF STAY
Are you planning a short or long term stay?
Your individual situation will determine the length of stay that is best for you – your budget, work and/or family commitments, extent and length of the addiction etc.
Short-term programs generally begin at two weeks, whilst long term alcohol treatment centres offer programs anywhere from two weeks to six months.
CLINICAL OR HOLISTIC
Would you prefer a clinical or holistic rehab treatment center?
Clinical centres employ a medical approach to alcohol addiction treatment and will prescribe prescription medications under the supervision of a psychiatrist. These centers tend more towards a clinic or hospital-style setting, often with security staff on-site and strict attendance requirements for each program component.
Holistic treatment centers take an integrative mind/body/spirit approach to treatment and will offer program components that repair and grow the client’s awareness of a wide array of activities and interactions that become part of their new life beyond therapy. Holistic, in-patient alcohol rehabilitation centres will administer and handle client’s medication, but will not prescribe medication. Holistic rehab centres generally have a range of qualified health professionals on call such as GP’s, psychologists, osteopaths, kinesiologists, chiropractors, acupuncturists, pathologists, radiologists etc.
ACCOMMODATION
What style of accommodation will you be comfortable with for the duration of your stay?
Residential rehab treatment centres will offer a range of accommodation styles and quality standards. You will want to consider:
– Your comfort
– Your budget
– Your privacy
– Your recovery
Your comfort requirements will be unique and individual to you, so you’ll need to research and compare facilities, look through their photo galleries and accomodation options to narrow down a shortlist that you’ll be truly comfortable with. Your recovery is the priority. Make a list of the things that would make things easier or harder for you. These things might seem small now, but may become huge obstacles down the track. Only you know yourself. Or your loved one. Put thought into the faciity, surrounds, comfort and atmospheric feel of the setting.
Budget will unavoidably be an influencing factor in the type of treatment centre you choose, as well as the style of accommodation you can afford. Rest assured that all facilities will maintain a good standard of cleanliness and hygiene. It may be the difference between “luxury” and “homely” that determines your choice.
Your privacy will be very important during a residential stay. Accommodation on offer will include private, single rooms or shared, multi-guest rooms. Keep in mind that throughout your stay you will be receiving deeply intensive psychological treatment and participating in therapies and group sessions that will at times be triggering, exhausting or upsetting.
You may find yourself needing time and space to process what you’ve uncovered or experienced. Some people need to process in a space of solitude and privacy, reflecting within their own internal world. Others process best when they talk with others, bouncing ideas, concepts and solutions off one another and receiving advice and alternative perspectives. Choose an accommodation style that suits your processing style.
TYPES OF ALCOHOL REHABILITATION PROGRAMS
Choosing the program that's best for YOUR recovery
CORE PHILOSOPHY
Each rehab facility will offer customized programs that are formulated according to their core philosophy around recovery from alcohol abuse. In some cases this may be based on a platform promoting recovery through Christianity or other religions, such as The Banyans, or it may be based on a 12-step Alcoholics Anonymous model, such as Currumbin Clinic. However there are many rehab centres that are ideology neutral and/or holistic in their approach, such as Palladium Private.
THERAPEUTIC MODALITIES
Each rehab center will also feature different therapeutic modalities depending on their program model and the career specialisations of their staff. If you’re seeking a particular treatment modality you feel will be beneficial for your situation and personality type, request information on staff qualifications and career backgrounds in support of this specialisation.
Read the PREVIOUS ARTICLE in this series for a comprehensive rundown of treatment modalities that are most effective in recovering from alcohol addiction.
INPATIENT OR OUTPATIENT
Rehab centers will offer a range of program styles from outpatient to residential to inpatient alcohol rehabilitation. As we touched on earlier, inpatient rehab programs will generally be in a government-funded clinical setting, whereas residential programs will generally be in a private setting.
Depending on where you’re at in your battle with alcohol dependance, you will need to determine the level of accountability and focus you truly need to recover – once and for all. If you’ve tried numerous times to give up or cut back your drinking unsuccessfully, choosing a residential program will give you the headspace, focus, tranquil surroundings and support to focus on your healing.
If however, you have commitments and obligations that don’t allow you to focus solely on your recovery, you may need to opt for an outpatient program that can work in with your lifestyle, work and family commitments.
One question to consider that can be controversial and confronting for many is this – Am I worth taking the time out of “my normal life” to switch off, reset, focus on myself and build the future I crave?
AFTERCARE
Whilst all your thoughts at the moment might be focused on getting INTO recovery, give a little brainspace to AFTER recovery. This is a critical part of the healing journey because it’s the difference between feeling alone and relapsing, or feeling supported and reaching out. Aftercare is a critical part of any good alcohol addiction specialist program.
This may not be advertised on the centre’s website so when making your shortlist, make sure you ask:
– Do you have an Aftercare Program?
– What does it entail?
– Are there additional costs involved?
– What happens if I need extra support?
For more information on Palladium Private’s holistic BioPsychoSocial program, fees or professional team, please feel free to call anytime and speak to one of our Intake Team consultants who can answer any of the questions you may have.
Click through for further information if you’re looking for alcohol rehab in Brisbane, Queensland or alcohol treatment centres in Sydney or Melbourne.
