Overcoming addictions to alcohol and other substances or behaviors can be a significant challenge. Even those who have the support of friends and loved ones often benefit from professional intervention to teach them skills and habits that support their long-term success. However, not everyone has the time or capability to commit themselves to a full-time inpatient recovery process. If this sounds like you or someone you love, do not feel discouraged. Studies show that intensive outpatient programs are just as effective as inpatient options for conquering addiction.
Northern Virginia and DC residents who are struggling with alcohol or substance abuse and are seeking rehabilitation should consider intensive outpatient programs as a valuable resource on their journey to success.
How Does an Intensive Outpatient Program Work?
An intensive outpatient program, or IOP, is a type of addiction therapy that teaches participants essential life skills and patterns of thought that can help them conquer their addiction. It includes both group and individual therapy and other helpful classes that equip a person with the coping skills they need to avoid relapse and find new meaning and focus in their lives.
Intensive outpatient programs are called “intensive” because they require a time commitment, often every day at the start. Most participants use their time to meet with professionals and others like them for anywhere from 8 to 12 hours each week. However, these visits are just that — visits. The patient is not required to stay at the facility, and they go home each day. This outpatient nature allows participants to maintain many of their responsibilities, such as childcare and education.
As a patient gains mastery of the skills they need to overcome addiction, their professional team will gradually reduce how long they spend in the program until the person sees success full-time and no longer needs to attend. For most participants, this takes around 12 weeks.
In some cases, a person may join an intensive outpatient program following participation in a more confined addiction recovery treatment, such as inpatient care. This provides a longer-term runway through which the individual can practice their new skills with support instead of ending their treatment abruptly after their inpatient stay.
Are IOPs Effective?
Studies indicate that outpatient programs are just as effective as inpatient options in terms of success rates. While outpatient care lasts longer due to breaking up the treatment into just a few hours each day, this extended framework can help set patients up for success by providing multiple weeks for establishing positive habits. Multiple studies have shown that after six months, patients who used intensive outpatient programs achieved similar levels of abstinence as those who went through inpatient care.
The most effective intensive outpatient programs incorporate not only peer support and life skills but also cognitive behavioral therapy to equip patients with skills to adjust independently. CBT teaches coping mechanisms that are unique to each person and effective based on how they think and what they value. This individualized approach sets them up for success and provides a tailored means of avoiding relapse and maintaining newly set goals and practices.
Who Is a Good Candidate for an IOP?
Intensive outpatient programs are one possible tool for addressing addiction in anyone who is facing substance abuse, alcohol challenges, and more. However, IOPs are most suited for those with a support network, such as family and friends, who can help them apply their new knowledge until it becomes a habit outside the IOP.
Additionally, IOPs are ideal for individuals with life responsibilities that are too urgent to delay due to inpatient care. These responsibilities may include childcare, employment, or care for an elderly relative. Because IOPs only take a few hours each day (and some can even be attended virtually), individuals still have the option to participate while maintaining the general structure of their lives.
Those who are facing severe addiction with life-threatening medical symptoms upon withdrawal, as well as individuals with suicidal ideation, are more suited for an inpatient program. This allows them to receive not just the mental and emotional support that they need but also to take advantage of medical care that will keep them safe as their body acclimates to lower levels of the addictive substance.
Reach Out to Aquila Recovery’s DC Intensive Outpatient Program
Addiction can feel like it occupies all of the space in your life, but you do not have to continue to tolerate it. If you or someone you love is struggling with addiction, professional help is available through intensive outpatient programs without the need to commit full-time to inpatient care. The professionals at Aquila Recovery Clinic can guide you during intensive outpatient care so that you can embark on a new chapter in your life with the coping skills necessary to succeed. Contact Aquila Recovery to sign up for an IOP.