Drug rehab & addiction treatment centers: what aspect do you value?

[Alfa]

I have no experience with rehab centers and drug addiction treatment centers. I would like to know what a qualities good rehab center would have to have?
What should it not have?
What aspects are important when evaluating or choosing a rehab center?

EDIT:

Originally Posted by Alfa

The reason I started this thread is actually that I need criteria to rate rehabs on.

Once the International addiction treatment center index is nearly complete, I will add criteria members can rate centers on. So what criteria should these be? Please post your list.

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this is a good question , a topic that is near to my heart

[~lostgurl~]

I think the quality of the therapists is the most crucial point to consider. Psychiatrists, psychologists, psychotherapists, counsellors, specialist adddiction counsellors etc. Although similar they often use different techniques in their therapy.

Also what programs/treatment options are provided ie cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT), Emotive behavioural therapy (EBT) Relapse prevention education, AA/NA programs etc.

Whether the treatment facility allows or provides any drugs/medications for the detox period.

$$$$ Cost and whether the cost is subsidised by the government or covered with medical insurance.

[Lucidity]

In the UK, as I guess in US, Rehab is expensive, I had a 1 week just detox, and it was 2000 pounds 4000$. Just to sit about on a bed for a week. I had an NHS one too, which wasnt great, exactly the same format for the way they speak to you and treat you. I actually think there a bit of a rip off, because its a last hope, they know people will pay absolutely anything to save themselves, or there son/daughter , I think thats why there so pricey, obviously doctors are expensive, but there never at them, have to be called, so that cant be expensive, just to have a doc on call and maybe visit once a week to access everyone. Maybe some have more, and ones that are on the premises full time, I dont know, that would be one side to look into.

All Substance Misuse/Abbuse, is treated like were absolute scum
I guess they've been taught thats what were like, by media or whatever
Were not the first person youd give your bank card to, to hold but some people have gotta come down off there high horses, there no better, at least we took the risk to have a bit of fun in our lives, it just went wrong and we admit the mistake and feel very stupid because of it, whats risks have they ever taken to maybe get a better quality of life, or just for 1 day, see absolute paradise, I actually feel very sorry for people that go through life without ever once experincing a drug, it can be life changing, or just make you see things a bit clearer, for good or bad. Its like an exerience, if you miss it, you've only lived 2/3's of the world
At my NHS detox I wasnt given my sleeping pills, that I was prescribed on a repeat prescription (didnt have to hardly ever see the doctor), so it was just a routine drug that I'd been on for quite a long time. I was in the detox for a completely diffeent reason, but they "decided" not to give me my sleeping pills, as they thought I shouldnt have them. However it had already been discussed, what I was going in for, all my meds would be the same, just the one Iwanted ti give up was supposed to be taken away. But when I arrived in there opinion I shouldnt be on the sleeping pills, so wouldnt give them to me, this wasnt even discussed with me. I am actually now off of them as I decided to give them up, they dont seem to realise that if you dont want to give up something, you wont, whatever treatment they use. I wanted to give up the drug I was in there for so had mentally prepared myself for it. The no sleepers was virtually a joke, why didnt they decide I needed to get a bit fitter, give up smoking, have my hair a bit longer than they decided was best, lol.
The first one I in was initially for an alcohol detox, but my GP doctor had prescribed me a sedative to deal with that a month earlier (waiting list time is a thing to look into as well), I didnt drink for a month before I went in to the detox but was now addicted to these sedatives, my doctor knew all about it etc, that I hadnt drunk, the reason to go in was now to give up this sedative but they just assumed it was alcohol, when they had been told it wasnt. I expained that it must have been mis communication etc, but of course they just treated me like any addict and gave me treatment for alcohol as that was what was written in there diary perhaps and I was too thick, I'd explained it to the doctor and everythnig when I arrived, as they said alcohol and I said no, hemaneverin (sedative). Of course, they just ignored me, gave me stuff for alcohol, a few librium and then went and watched tv, whilst I went through the worst experience of my life just cause they didnt really care. Believe me, I've been through heroin cold turkey quite a few times and that is an easy ride compared to that. I had been taking near death amounts of it every day for about a month, as it was stopping me drinking and I was assuming all was in safe hands and they would treat me for the sedative addiction once I arrived. A clucking Heroin addict was having to help me walk about everywhere, as I could hardly see cause of the withdrawel. The reason for saying that is - keep in constant communication with them before you go in, I now know that if I'd had made a few phone calls first, all would probably have been ok. I kind of assumed it was all being taken care of and all was in safe hands.

I also dont like looking for someone else to solve your problem for you, but they do have tonnes of experience at it, so are obviously far better than doing it alone I guess.
People often get rehab and detox confused, not thinking what the word rehab is short for. So you want a nice relaxed enviroment. Yeah in detox if they want to be all strict with you, fair enough, at that point your pretty much still out of control.

Empathetic workers, from the highest up doctor down to the cleaner.
Too many rehabs use the method of treat the losers like shit, till they prove themselves, I think this is totally crap, I have only been at one and visited another and thought they were appaling, were all human beings, we just made a few stupid choices.
So non judgemental, empathetic, obviously as highly qualified isnt always the best, its the way they apporoach it that I think makes or breaks it.
If you feel there understanding you, your understanding them, you have equel respect for each others, doctors dont expect to be treated like gods, as there not, and Iwould be the first to ttell them that as Ipacked my bag to leave. That idea of me leaving may stick in that doctors head, the next guy through the door might get treated better. I can just find somewhere else.
They've used the same format, the whole sale set up in most rehabs, amybe one with a twist would be differrent, memorable. You gotta remember that even the colour of the building is gonna effect for a relapse, you'd see that building in your head, youd remember someone being rude to you there, or all of them. Think Fuck them, wheres the off licence or my dealers number. My councillor told me that the other day, its called passing the buck, you blame them fro you buying that drink, so you are blameless- no guilt

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Thanks for sharing on such a personal level

[Lucidity]

Sorry to post again
f you've never waked into a rehab and seen how they work, you maybe are thinking like millions of people, that there like hospital/hotels (although US might be different from UK)

there often not, the decoration may be nice, but that isnt anything, if you look at a rehab leaflet/book i.e advertising, probably more than 50 % of it is pictures of lovely rooms and cosey lounges.

Look at the ones that give you hard facts, not just tryin to rip you off.

Who pays for there lovely rooms, and there very professional advertising. We do, cause were being way over charged. Thats not a bitter angry comment, just a true fact

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some good advice

[beentheredonethatagain]

this is a good topic, and just as there are many different members here, I would bet that the answers will be as diverse. I would look first at their program , what do they base their recovery on, is it the 12 steps of alcoholics anonymous, is it based on the 12 steps of narcotics anonymous,
do they have meetings there , do they have open meetings allowing in recovering addicts from outside the facilitys. How about their reputation, their overall success rate.

Is the treatment set up for you to stay 30, 60, or 90 days, do they just turn you back out upon completion or is their sober living facilities available.

Things like is it co-ed or men only or women only, how much time clean does the staff have. is it a clean well kept enviroment, costs, is it approved by the county or state.

I wouldnt want to go to a facility that was men only , I wouldnt like it if they allowed weekend passes home either. And it wouldnt be much use if afterwards they didnt have a sober living dorm or apartments (flats) available.

Too much chance of relapsing .

[rocksmokinmachine]

The UK (SWIM's native country) have the best rehab centres. SWIM was made subject to a DTTO (drug treatment and testing order) 4 and a half years ago. The chemist was around the corner where the clients could pick up thier methadone/buprenorphine, or chlorodiazepoxide/diazepam.

He was a little sceptical at first, but found it very comforting. There was a 'chill out room' covered in beanbags and other comfy items. There was also a kitchen with a fridge with chocolate spread, jam, and butter. There was also a fresh loaf of bread every day, aswell as the usual tea bags and coffee. The 'group room' as it was called had sofas all around and a television and DVD player that all could see. It also had an interactive 'smartboard' for presentations. There where seperate rooms upatairs for one to one 'key work' with SWIM's personal worker. There were also computer rooms and teachers who would come in from the local college to help people gain qualifications in maths and english. This was known as the 'skills' room. There was a doctor who would come in once a week, who would write prescriptions as needed and monitor people on thier medication or reduce as necessary. There was a testing room, where SWIM would give two tests a week. SWIM would be tested for opiates, methadone, cocaine, benzodiazepines and amphetamines, as would everyone else attending. The good the thing was, the staff were really great. SWIM was never penalised for giving positives tests, and so was SWIM's probabation officer. The courts commended SWIM even though he had only given one negative test for opiates in 6 months.

SWIM would usually arrive at around 10:00am, make a cup of tea and 2 slices of toast and chill out in the group room watching TV. Then at 10:30 we would watch as drug related educational video (actually quite good, don't think reefer madness...infact i've found a few one this forum). Afterwards The staff would come in an we would do some work on harm reduction, such as safer injecting, personal hygiene etc. It was always interesting to learn something new. Then later on towards the end of the session SWIus would go to the chillout room and lay down on the beanbags. A member of staff would come through and do auricular accupuncture with clients, believe me SWIM was always the first one asleep. It was so relaxing. It really reduced cravings. Health workers would also come in often and offer advice on smoking cessation along with other things. There was always a clinical nurse specialist around ask for advice. They offered a needle exchange, with clean needles, barrels, citric acid, vitamin C, pans, sterile water and isopropyl alcohol swabs.

Overall SWIM found it fantastic, he actually misses it.

I think the centre should be free to start off with, as almost all services are in the Europe, it should be an outpatient type clinic. These inpatient clinics are too expensive and no good IMO. One will find that the staff have been there and done it all before, and are perhaps recovering addicts themselves and can become part of SWIYour support network. This is probably the most important aspect when choosing a rehab centre.

Reputation Comments on this post:

	Interesting and very different experience from swim
	educational--swim had no idea rehab could be like that!

[Lucidity]

Note: Sorry if this posts slightly long at all, icludes some bits about SWIM (he really doesnt know kind of the do's and the dont's yet, although has read it), SWIM is new to this, and also sometimes cant just shut up for a while lol. Any advice of any kind is totally appreciated. He should maybe just write all his stuff down in Word or something regularly, it might help a bit.

SWIY worded that post very well about his friends experince in the rehab, SWIMs never very good at putting down what he thinks into writing often, he feels he never has been much good at in IHO.
It sounds like that rehab that SWIY went through was absolutely perfect, thats the kind of rehab that he would love, and he imagined didnt even exist in his native country UK, as both Swimmers come from UK, SWIM guesses he just hasnt seen even 0.1% of them. SWIM actually thinking about it now thinks to have see one and briefly another as well and to judge them all by the same is a pretty silly thing to do. Its like seeing one girl and saying, "ah so all girls look like that then", lol. Maybe even SWIY could point SWIM in the direction of that rehab, as both of our friends are UK based. SWIM has been pointed in the direction of a rehab that is supposed to be the best in UK, and it would all be funded. But as we know, one person or even a million other peoples opinion of what helps or is good about anything can be totally different to our own. Thats what adverts are for lol "oooh, everyone goes there, it must be good, and it costs a fortune, it must work for everyone that ever goes!". Thats why I also think this thread is good, as its personal opinions, rather than advert type things. Maybe rehabs should publicise there known relapse %, after the peoples stays, then that would be a good way to see how succesful one was.

It sounds like SWIYs rehab had some great things going on and sounds like a really great, relaxed atmosphere. It sounds totally ideal. SWIM isnt quite ready for rehab yet, as has been doing an outpatient style detox, its now been a year on Methadone, without one dirty sample He's always pleased to be able to say that, it reminds him that he is doing well, although he did use one of these legal high things lastnight for the first time, thats mainly because of a health matter, as his way of coping has often been alcohol so far, so the livers giving SWIM evil stares at the moment lol, and giving threats that it will refuse to work under these conditions soon . But SWIMs keeping an eye on that one, and it will just be occasionally for health to give his liver a break, but to not sit totallly depressed, just thinking about drink or gear. Legals I'm sure are no way safer than illegals
Also has cut from 60ml's to 20ml's methadone in the first 9 months, so now on 20ml and comfortable. SWIM asked about it cause he's not sure if that is good, as he hasnt really had much feedback about that from anyone, whether its good or not from SWIMs key workers opinion and experience, I think the keyworkers idea is not to tell him so that he just kind of does what he thinks is best and comfortable with (not comparing himself to others), so he guesses she is probably doing what works best, she's seen it a million times I guess, so knows what works a lot better than SWIM does. maybe someone can let SWIM know, is that pretty normal? or is it quite a big step? or small step? any relevant info will be passed onto SWIM and he will really appreciate it, as at the moment he has absolutely no idea, as the whole previous set of friends has been cut off, for the best SWIM thinks, too many temptations lay there. So nobody to compare it with or even ask them about there opinion. He's even gone to the trouble of totally dry cleaning his mobile phone lol, just to make sure that there is no possible way, I think that was a really hard thing for him to do, but also very much dealing with his problem, as now the option isnt even there. Anything would have to be searched for amonst the general public (which as SWIM is UK, UK residents probably know this, is a damn hard thing to try to find very often, in SWIMs area anyway, luckily)

all in all, SWIM totally agree's with the post from SWIY about SWIY's rehab and what to look for in one, sounds like the one SWIY was at was great, SWIMs not suprised that they miss it. Was there ever any chance to go to secondary or anything? or can SWIY still use that centre as somwhere to go sometimes? like drop in type thing, SWIM thinks that would be an ideal thing, if you can pop back to a rehab centre whenever you want, just to kind of hang out there if needed, perhaps on a difficult day, so that its not a massive change when leaving, and your kind of left totally alone again with your problem (big chance for relapse I'd think). You'd feel there was somewhere you could go that was 100% safe, and 100% clean, and people that you can so easily relate to. One of SWIMs detoxes, he was actually asked not to come back for visits, as he would then begin to rely on it, he thniks that was a damn horrible thnig to say to him, even though I guess it wasnt totally enforcable in there rules and stuff, he never went back. He thinks that re-visitng was an ideal thing, and really helped him when he'd obviously just been through a very tough thing going there for the detox. But had made some good friends there and felt it was perfect, he never saw why they didnt see that, maybe it was kind of down to resources or something, or even personality (he hopes it wasnt that ).

SWIM doesnt really know that much about rehabs, only detoxes, but of course that was all SWIM needed lol, as he is always convinced, very stupidly that he can do the rest by himself, that and money, so is gonna keep an eye on this thread, and SWIM hopes you dont mind SWIM maybe asking a few questions about them, will try not to waffle as its gonna be time for SWIM to go to a rehab soon if he chooses to. SWIM wants the rehab for the actual rehabilitation, as the detox is kind of going along real smoothly as it is at the moment.

Oh one other quick thing, SWIM is about to go onto Subutex, and is really looking forward to it as he see's it as very positive progress, as he is now down to a low enough does or methadone to be able to switch to it. Sorry, SWIM is waffling a bit about SWIM, he doesnt mean to, as you can see, its about SWIMs 3rd post or somethnig, so kind of just getting the hang of it. is there maybe any threads that would be helpful for SWIM to get involved in? I havnt looked at all that many of them yet. SWIM will really appreciate any help or guidance towards threads or whatever that anyone can give.

If this post about SWIMs experiences and rehabs and detoxes etc here is too off topic (its not purely about rehabs, although that is the general reason for the post), then if anyone can guide SWIM to the right area, I'm sure he would really appreciate it. He tells me he's been looking for this kind of support network for ages, and he is pleased to have found this one. SWIM for the last 8 months has been using Second Life (not sure if you've heard of it), building businesses, making a bit of cash, and totally given SWIM something to concentrate on. SWIM feels he's ready to kind of leave that now, feels strong enough. Although will keep the investments etc in there. SWIM has even been asked to do media interviews about it even!! because of some of the big successes, but hasnt done any as yet, he thinks when it came to the question of drive, that would be a very difficult one to answer honestly lol, also because of SWIM's attitude at the moment, he would just play it down a lot, as he is not ready to accept being at all a success at anything. Also SWIM is 100% sure of the reason for his drive and so why perhaps the success, he just kind of turned all that previous energy and drive to somewhere else. If he was to give a true answer to that question in an interview it could maybe make people think, oh I'll do it the way SWIM did it, perhaps a year first and then join Second Life, it worked for him! lol, not a very good message or encouragement to be giving to people.

Thanks
SWIM
------------

Theres nothing you ever "should" do, everything in life is your choice - 'SWIMS keyworker'

P.S. if SWIM is not very good at swimming, sorry, he's just learning (lots of editing lol), he hopes his use is ok, maybe in the future he will give his more regular name (the one he usually uses for the internet) and so a bit more of his personality type thing, that and its actually a bit of fun swimming, he will have to think of some ideas and pass them onto me, a bit of fun, and also I think this type of thing totally takes your mind of what is probably often in it, even if you dont actually realise it, sometimes totally ignoring the issue and thinking about something else can really help, not for long term I guess, but for the start when it all seems impossible. Any advice about SWIM use or any other things, useful criticism or whatever, please let him know.
Also mods, if you think this post should be moved to a different section then thats no problem, is just this is the thread I've been most interested in so far, but I know I've gone slightly off topic in places

Reputation Comments on this post:

I'm sure your posts on this topic are quite helpful to some members.

[Ilsa]

Originally Posted by rocksmokinmachine

The UK (SWIM's native country) have the best rehab centres. SWIM was made subject to a DTTO (drug treatment and testing order) 4 and a half years ago. The chemist was around the corner where the clients could pick up thier methadone/buprenorphine, or chlorodiazepoxide/diazepam.

He was a little sceptical at first, but found it very comforting. There was a 'chill out room' covered in beanbags and other comfy items. There was also a kitchen with a fridge with chocolate spread, jam, and butter. There was also a fresh loaf of bread every day, aswell as the usual tea bags and coffee. The 'group room' as it was called had sofas all around and a television and DVD player that all could see. It also had an interactive 'smartboard' for presentations. There where seperate rooms upatairs for one to one 'key work' with SWIM's personal worker. There were also computer rooms and teachers who would come in from the local college to help people gain qualifications in maths and english. This was known as the 'skills' room. There was a doctor who would come in once a week, who would write prescriptions as needed and monitor people on thier medication or reduce as necessary. There was a testing room, where SWIM would give two tests a week. SWIM would be tested for opiates, methadone, cocaine, benzodiazepines and amphetamines, as would everyone else attending. The good the thing was, the staff were really great. SWIM was never penalised for giving positives tests, and so was SWIM's probabation officer. The courts commended SWIM even though he had only given one negative test for opiates in 6 months.

SWIM would usually arrive at around 10:00am, make a cup of tea and 2 slices of toast and chill out in the group room watching TV. Then at 10:30 we would watch as drug related educational video (actually quite good, don't think reefer madness...infact i've found a few one this forum). Afterwards The staff would come in an we would do some work on harm reduction, such as safer injecting, personal hygiene etc. It was always interesting to learn something new. Then later on towards the end of the session SWIus would go to the chillout room and lay down on the beanbags. A member of staff would come through and do auricular accupuncture with clients, believe me SWIM was always the first one asleep. It was so relaxing. It really reduced cravings. Health workers would also come in often and offer advice on smoking cessation along with other things. There was always a clinical nurse specialist around ask for advice. They offered a needle exchange, with clean needles, barrels, citric acid, vitamin C, pans, sterile water and isopropyl alcohol swabs.

Overall SWIM found it fantastic, he actually misses it.

I think the centre should be free to start off with, as almost all services are in the Europe, it should be an outpatient type clinic. These inpatient clinics are too expensive and no good IMO. One will find that the staff have been there and done it all before, and are perhaps recovering addicts themselves and can become part of SWIYour support network. This is probably the most important aspect when choosing a rehab centre.

wow, swim wishes there were places here in the US like that when she was coming off coke. actually, there probably are, but swim wishes there were ones available (read affordable) to her back then.

[Dickon]

In a frog's stomach a microbe guffawed the following tripe:

Please just read the numbered points and *) paragraphs if you want the short version:

I suppose it is natural to attempt to answer this question from personal experience. Mine is that I once spent about 7 months in rehab, 6 weeks in one place and 5 1/2 months in another.

In the UK, quite a lot of 12-step based rehabs (and probably many others) are divided up into primary (first stage), secondary (second stage) and third stage (I've never heard them being called tertiary which would be the logical thing).

Although some primary care facilities expect a prior detox and there are I think NHS (that's the UK's National Health Service if you don't know) detox beds available, this is not normal so let's think of a primary care centre as a place to spend about 4-8-maybe even 12 weeks, to get off drugs, and learn a few basic life lessons.

Primary care centres are very intensive. Constant groups, writing tasks, therapeutic duties (once one's well enough, at least in theory), drug-related lectures, videos, 1-1 counseling etc. etc. Food is provided, and one doesn't really have to do that much to care for oneself; maybe a little washing.

I'll list the main criteria by which I'd rate such a place, followed by my own experience of Clouds House in Wiltshire (bear in mind this was 10 years ago, so treatment provisions might have changed, and the sadistic doctor, we called him Doctor No as he never gave anybody any extra meds to help with any bad symptoms, might even be gone!)

1) Detox provision - THE absolute essential - this must be the rock and cornerstone of such a place. If you can't hack the detox then all the therapy will count for naught, as clients will just run screaming for the doors. I refer the reader to my "Screaming in the Night air" thread for details of the brutal detox I underwent. However I survived, and so, on one level, I can not fault it! Something of a paradox.
2) A Safe environment - Not much fun being bullied or sexually predated when vulnerable eh! Clouds was very good, except for my "minder" (someone supposed to show me the ropes) who just happened to be a prick.
3) Creature comforts - within reason. My primary treatment centre had no music and only one film a week. No books were allowed. I did sneak in a couple and a walkman with some tapes after we were allowed out shopping later on but someone grassed me up and so I lost the walkman again. Actually this somewhat harsh regime was useful. 6 weeks is a short time and learning about interacting with people rather than just zoning out was a very good thing.
4) Counselors. Mine was very good.
5) Groups. I think this was for me the most important lesson, to learn I wasn't simply a one-off freak. OK I figured out later on in life that I was a one-off freak, but only when I'm clean! When using drugs I've done a lot of things and felt like a lot of other people. That was a complete revelation, as was the support I often got. Again Clouds was great for that.
6) Tolerance. Although the only major discriminated-against group I fall into is the public school/Oxbridge educated elite (yah boo sucks), I didn't notice any discrimination against me or others for being gay, women, black (or being straight, men, or white), or anything else. Maybe a mostly-friendly rivalry existed between the addicts and the alcoholics. This resulted in the odd "we're not like them", and of course we resented the alcoholics for sleeping !!!
7) Funding. I got all my rehab state funding, so great. The cost of Clouds was I think £6,000 for 6 weeks, but it's no doubt a lot more now.
8) A drug-free environment. I think the odd one or two tried to sneak stuff in by mail, but anyone caught was rightly kicked out. This is absolutely essential, a sub-clause of 2) above really.
9) Countryside. Absolutely gave Clouds a spiritual aura, and I need green and fresh air to feel healthy, I grew up in the middle of nowhere (at least in an English sense!)
10) A Programme. Clouds was NA/AA based - this suited me well at the time, despite subsequent ambivalence. NA/AA gives a pretty much worldwide support network of non drug-users. I know people on here gripe and moan, but if you're desperate use it, it can work, and there's a lot to learn from others who've been (roughly) where you have!

I probably could think of a couple of more things but that's enough - ed.

In Secondary treatment one has cleaned up, and the longer time period is essentially a next step up the ladder to normal living. In my own experience and I think this is normal in secondary (my own secondary treatment was Nelson House in Stroud) we did groups/projects/therapy in the mornings along with therapeutic duties (cleaning up the house etc) leaving the afternoons free, except occasionally one had to do shopping or cooking duties. The house members in pairs were expected to cook, and do a weekly food shop, after eveing meals were decided by those cooking. Lunch and breakfast were essentially free for alls, and about the only people who cooked lunch as opposed to eating sandwiches were me and my friend Robbie. I really learnt a love of cooking from him which was great. The size of this place was much smaller 10-16 people as opposed to 26-42 or so at a time in Clouds. One had a lot more freedom, and the longer duration of treatment made the possibility of friendship. I am still in touch with one guy from there, and I looked up to him a lot at the time. We played chess together, teamed up in Groups, and shared a lot of humour! We were from diametrically opposed social backgrounds, and very different. I think we both learnt a lot from each other.

*) Friendship making, and learning from other peers. Even if the friendships are only perceived as long-lasting, the telephone numbers one has of people one can contact after leaving treatment is important.

*) How to look after myself. I'd always been cared for at home, school, etc. So I learnt how to cook, to shop for food, to do laundry, ironing and to do housework.

*) Getting a bit of clean time under your belt in a supportive environment. Time is the great healer

I read a few days ago on a rehab-page a study linking shopping/cooking in rehab with better relapse outcomes, and I believe (I'm guessing but it seems likely at least plausible) that the same would apply for all the life-skills I'm mentioning. Although I didn't much care for my individual counselor in secondary I thought all in all the place was good.

I hope at least the short version adds something. If anyone is thinking of going to Barley Wood rehab, please feel free to PM me. It was run by some really dodgy people a while ago. I'd be careful, although this may be completely changed now.

Dickon

[Perception Addict]

I think this is a really valid thread. Is it reasonable to start a rehab rating system, and could that be done due to the need to reference the name of the center? If this is doable, perhaps a rating scale similar to that which was developed for book reviews could be used so that people could compare based on the qualities that are most important to them (ie treatment, atmosphere, effectiveness, cost, etc.) These categories could be chosen from the statements above, as well as other member suggestions.

If this is a viable option swim would be happy to get it rolling. She's just not sure if it already exists (but doesn't think so, she searched) or if it would be kosher, since the names of facilities would probably have to be mentioned.

[rocksmokinmachine]

These out-patient style rehab centres are all over the country in every city and every town. The only problem being one has to be a prolific offender committing drug related crime to get there (i.e shoplifting, theft from vehicles, burglaries etc.)

That is the great thing about the British justice system when it comes down to drug related crime, keeping addicts out of prison (where we all know drugs are available) and into rehabilitation where they can get the help and treatment they desperately need.

On a side note, SWIY should wait till he down and comfortable with 10mg/ml of methadone before going on to buprenorphine. SWIY will quite like it when he does, it does not make ones head feel cloudy like methadone does.

The only way, after that is to cut off all ties with the drug world. Which was prevelant where SWIM lived. So he moved as far away as possible (abroad infact) and is as happy as larry

[beentheredonethatagain]

As I get ready to face the day, I am remembering this thread, and have some more to say:

As many of d-f 's memembers take an opposite view than mine in reguards to AA & NA, I must remind myself that the members of those groups have something I want, the ability to not use " one day at a time ".

When I used to attend , I made friends with people who knew and understood my story. I made aquantances with people who are my peers, some higher and some lower. But I good lot of them were staying clean.

How ever they do it , with a higher power or no higher power, at the end of the day it wasn't them doing it alone, they have a phrase " I can't but we can ".

Sure are there those who are fronting or posing? of course, there is always going to be that in any group. The druggies arent the least flakiest people on the planet either.

That raps up my rap on the subject, the mess NIK has been doing has him re-thinking his steps. ONLY the best I pray your way BTDTA

[jerbles]

When I was 17 I went to a juvenile rehab. More of a youth center or some shit really. The minimum stay was 4-6 months, which is just ridiculous. I myself had been feeding a nasty junk habit since I was 15, and my right before my mom took me, I had scored some shit and was nice and high when I got there. I remember thinking, "this can't be that bad". It was. The first day was fine up until about 9pm, an hour before "lights out" and I was starting to have mild withdrawls. I managed to get to sleep, but was woken at 7AM for a morning group discussion and was feeling horrible.

The thing about this place was that every other kid there was there for smoking weed or doing a little coke or eatin a few pills. The staff there was bent more on changing the kids' lifestyles rather than just get them off drugs (which I don't even consider weed a drug). So here I was, only the second kid to have ever come in there for heroin, NO meds, not even a fucking sleepaid, and they expected me to sit through 2 hour group sessions on these hard ass seats. The thing was, once you started a group or something, they had these strict ass rules where you couldn't get up until it was over, even if you needed to piss/shit, and they didn't seem to realize that swim had diahrea out the ass. You also had to work your way up from level 1 to 4, lvl 1s having absolutly no privelages, lvl 2s being able to sit on the couches (lvl1 had to pull up a foldout chair), lvl3 get a pass and like a soda a week or someshit and so on.

this was the worst rehab I could ever imagine. One of the big things I would do in the "real world" when I was dopesick was smoke ciggarettes/weed, lye around, watch tv, take sleeping pills when needed etc. And here I was, stuck in this lame ass place, the whole day was filled with shit from 7am to 10pm (none of it leisure stuff), expected to discuss what he's feeling all day long?? I was always getting in trouble for stealing food and shit from the cafeteria, or from the fridge, but the motherfuckers wouldn't didn't let me eat any other time than the 3 daily meals.

they pretty much banned everything you would be used to on the outside. No snacks, soda, tv (lvl3-4s could watch tv at select hours), computer (again,lvl3-4). So you see all these lvl3 and 4 kids doing this shit but you're expected to just sit there and do whatever the hell they tell you? Needless to say, I only stayed about 27 days before I couldn't take it anymore. I had even gotten over all my withdrawls/cravings and still couldn't do it. I did manage to stay clean up to a month after that though.

I'm sorry, this post really has no input on the topic, this was just a horrible experience I had when I was younger. I really just couldn't believe they thought that place would help any one of those kids.

Reputation Comments on this post:

thanks for input, different story

[Fight Club]

NIK went to rehab March - April 2006 at Father Martin's Ashley, Havre de Grace, MD USA.

Father Martin believes that all people are entitled to be treated with dignity and respect, and that attitude was reflected in every aspect of the facilities program for the 28 days NIK was there.

The center had beautiful, comfortable rooms, great food, and sat on a cliff overlooking the Cheasapeake Bay with a 20-mile vista. There were cousellors, physicians, and psychologists on staff and on-site Monday to Friday during the day, and counsellors and nurses on on-site 24/7.

The treatment protocol was primarily Twelve-step facilitation (TSF) and the disease model of addiction, but borrowed heavily from Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) and Relapse Prevention Therapy (RPT) as well.

Community members (as they were called) participated in lectures, group counselling, individual counselling, and in-house 12-step meetings from 7 AM to 9 PM daily, and outside AA / NA meetings at least once a week.

The program cycle was 28 days, and the staff began preparing NIK to return to the outside world after about about 18 - 21 days.

NIK had the opportunity to participate in weekend workshops with his wife, workshops for his kids, spiritual retreat workshops, and 1 and 2-day Sobriety Enrichment Training workshops.

NIK participates in an alumni group that makes contact with and guides new graduates, and returns to the facility at least once every 3 months as a speaker at their 8 PM 12-step meeting.

NIK is sorry for those of you that have had a less than ideal experience in rehab. He received everthing he could have asked for; including a program that works for him, (one day at a time) in the 18 months since he left the Ashley inpatient community.

FC

Reputation Comments on this post:

you pointed out some good stuff

[greenapple]

this is a great thread....

detox in australia is designed to pretty much address the physical withdrawal of the drug of choice. depending on the individual, swiy could be in for a week to two weeks. some detoxs run a 28 program but it depends on where you go (and if you are paying for private health or if you go the public route).

swim thinks that it depends on the kind of rehab swiy are after as to how well they will services what you want to achieve. in sydney, there are some rehabs that are very strict. swim has heard terrible stories about how clients are made to scrub walls with toothbrushes and that there are "point systems" that go up the longer you are there and the longer you abide by the rules. for some people, that may work, some people may need alot of structure and boundaries. but this is not for everyone....

there are other rehabs that are very flexible, where each person is treated individually. by saying that swim means where the rules are flexible enough to get your needs met. obviously there are rules and gudielines that are in place to protect the community of the rehab to ensure that everyone who stays there is safe (ie. not using, no self harm, no drugs or alcohol on the site, etc) and if these rules are breached you could be discharged.

swim could write alot more about different rehabs but when it comes down to it, swim thinks it is up to the individual to decide what kind of place to go to. swim has come across many people who want to get in anywhere that it doesnt matter where as long as it means they are safe and are not using. in australia it can be very hard to get a place anywhere, and if swiy has alot of shit going on (like court, involvement with DOCs - removal of children, etc) sometimes the safest place to be is the first place that can take swiy...

Reputation Comments on this post:

	good post
	Interesting post, good points
	thanks for the input

[sjonnygee]

Swim switched from Methadone to Subutex over a year ago - ( Make certain you are in withdrawal before taking the Subutex, don't try & fool yourself like swim did because he was impatient !! There's no need to suffer if you switch correctly ! ) - It's a huge step towards getting your life back. Swim understands this thread is about detox/rehab and getting off methadone was a huge step closer to getting clean for him. Subutex altered swim's perception completely, swim's clarity of thought returned & the insanity (well, a lot of it ! ) vanished immediately. It's a strong opioid and satisfies completely. One of it's great values is being able to reduce/taper very quickly without pain and begin to believe one can actually get clean and go to rehab. Swim is presently on 3mg Subutex from starting on 32mg, it's taken swim this long because he only got serious about stopping about a month ago and dropped the dose without any nasties/withdrawals. Swim is going to rehab again around March next year, the last rehab was a truly great rehab but a benzo (Diazepam) habit knocked swim sideways. Swim never realised how terrible benzo w/drawals were going to be and thought he was a. Dying & b. Going insane - swim was warned about coming off a very high dose ( bought off street ) & tried to detox too quickly, big mistake ! But now off those damn benzos, swim is looking forward to rehab this time & very optimistic about getting clean. One learns through one's mistakes & if swim had listened to his peers in NA without thinking he knew it all, he would have kicked the benzos slowly & before anything else. Look at different rehabs, check them out & empower yourself, ask questions. I think swim is privileged to live in the UK, there's some extremely good help here & a lot of rehabs are run by ex-users who can empathise like no one else. NA keeps swim focused and is the reason he is doing so well, he was very sceptical at first but it just works for him, simple as ! Take Care

[infekt]

I've been through In Patient rehab 3 times in my life, and I think the best aspect about rehabs that will help an individual stay clean is communication with the other patients. I think if you hang around the more positive recovering addicts, this will help you in becoming a positive recovering addict yourself. And positivity is, to me anyways, is the most important thing you need to kick a habit. Getting to know people who have hit rock bottom and are honestly trying to quit has inspired me, and it's more than a big chunk of the reason why I am clean from opiates and benzos today.

This is also why NA and AA are great. It's not the steps or the texts, its the people. The people you can relate to and talk to. I think something an addict really needs is a real friend, we have been cheated, lied to, and more by our so-called friends, who we've ultimately concluded were just our using buddies. How often did they call when they knew you didn't have money, how often did they when it was payday?

anyways, just a little input. Of course therapy is always a good thing to have while in inpatient, specifically group therapy (in my opinion), and you always need good doctors and nurses who will cater to your every medical need. But to me, the magic lies in the smoke shacks, the cafeterias, and the free time...

not a professional opinion, just a kid putting his 2 cents in..

[JaWill88]

swim hasn't really read the above posts and just giving his opinion. good rehab centers have a good staff. that is the most important part. people who genuinly care for you and don't treat you like your 1 of a million. they listen to what you have to say and what your problems are. based on this they work with you to create a plan for while in treatment as well as leaving treatment. a good treatment center will not be biased as to wether 12 steps is the only way or something else is the only way. they are open to all solutions. swims last treatment center shoved the 12 steps down his throat. The Big Book (of lies) was the only book we could read. thats very biased and isn't going to help anyone. also a good treatment center treats you with respect and doesn't look down upon. swim liked his treatment center because the staff made him feel like he was just like them (an adult, with a mind). the staff didn't see swim much differently from themselves and treated swim and everyone else as they treated each other. they also work with you and your insurance companies and all that and help with a plan to pay. these are some of the most important things in a treatment centers. btw swims been to inpatient 3 times, detox twice, and outpatient 5 times so he at least has some experience to back this. sorry if any of this was said above as swim didn't look over it. the one thing that bothers swim more than anything about a treatment center is affiliation with 12 steps (AA, NA, MA, ect.) and if swiys think there is no affiliation they have quite a bit to learn. anyways good look to anyone who decides they've had enought and want help.

Reputation Comments on this post:

good comment

[cyndi]

A lot of drug rehab places in the US are based on the AA model. A negative to this is if one is not an alcoholic, he feels he has to stand in front of a group of people and profess hi I am soandso and I am an alcoholic since AAs usually don't care for addicts. This always set swim up for failure since she felt she was lying right away.

A lot of addicts have underlying issues. A good center will address these issues through emotional and behavorial therapy. Also a good center will have some sort of an aftercare program since a high percentage of addicts relapse in the first couple of months.

Another negative is cost, a good treatment center is too high for the average person to pay. Also once someone has bottomed out, there is usually little to no money for treatment. This really stinks.

[rocksmokinmachine]

Originally Posted by Trose

A lot of drug rehab places in the US are based on the AA model. A negative to this is if one is not an alcoholic, he feels he has to stand in front of a group of people and profess hi I am soandso and I am an alcoholic since AAs usually don't care for addicts. This always set swim up for failure since she felt she was lying right away.

A lot of addicts have underlying issues. A good center will address these issues through emotional and behavorial therapy. Also a good center will have some sort of an aftercare program since a high percentage of addicts relapse in the first couple of months.

Another negative is cost, a good treatment center is too high for the average person to pay. Also once someone has bottomed out, there is usually little to no money for treatment. This really stinks.

This is really sad to hear. In America it seems treatment costs money, in alot of European countries the government and health services put alot of money into getting addicts into treatment.

[cyndi]

Everything medical is very high on costs from the doctor you go to to get a shot from the treatment center. We also need medical insurance to cover all those high medical expenses. Personally swim can't afford over a grand a month in insurance payments so she and family are without at the present. She hopes something is done soon as insurance is less and less affordable.

[rocksmokinmachine]

Originally Posted by Trose

Everything medical is very high on costs from the doctor you go to to get a shot from the treatment center. We also need medical insurance to cover all those high medical expenses. Personally swim can't afford over a grand a month in insurance payments so she and family are without at the present. She hopes something is done soon as insurance is less and less affordable.

I think maybe the Bush adminsistration should put the money they are spending on the so called war on terror into a national health service, based on the British model. The sooner he is out of office the better. I don't suppose any of the other presidential candidates have this on the agenda?

[Fight Club]

Originally Posted by rocksmokinmachine

The sooner he is out of office the better. I don't suppose any of the other presidential candidates have this on the agenda?

You worry about your politics, we'll worry about ours.

If I need to go to rehab, (which I did in 2006), I called, got right in, lived in a beautiful facility with top-notch doctors, nurses, therapists. I had a great room with a comfy bed, and 3 square meals a day for 28 days. My insurance paid most of the bill; I paid $3,000 US. Best deal ever; got me clean, saved my life.

Guess it works just like that in the UK as well, eh?

That's my point.

FC

[mouthwater]

Originally Posted by rocksmokinmachine

The sooner he is out of office the better.

Hell, the sooner everyone is out of their offices the better.

[lorzapmail]

If swim was to invest, he would invest in rehab centers. Big profits for people who cannot handle things there self. What a world where people need others to solve there problems. Except for law situations its poinless. Though when you leave these places, they have you convinced they cured you. The cure is in yourself. Read about what you need for withdrawal and be prepaired to act.

You got into this situation, be man or woman enough to fix it yourself. I know many will disagree, but isn't that the way it always is.