You can’t believe it’s happened. Your adult son has come to you and said he’s ready to seek treatment for his heroin addiction. You are now faced with what feels like the biggest decision of your life.
What rehab will you send him to?
There are so many factors to consider, including location, cost, insurance coverage and length of stay (research shows that 90 days is best). But those are really just logistics. What you’re looking for is so much bigger than that. You’re in search of a place that will do everything that is humanly possible to help your son get well.
Here are three questions to ask a heroin rehab facility to help you find the best place for your child:
1. What Training Has Your Staff Had and What is the Patient Ratio?
You’ll obviously want to see a strong staff-to-patient ratio. But there should also be a full range of clinicians, including psychiatrists, therapists, nurses and even a nutritionist. What’s more, you’ll want to know how much experience the staff brings to the table. Ask to have a conversation with the director of the treatment center. If he or she has a passion for addiction treatment, you’ll likely hear it in their voice.
2. What Do They Treat?
Of course they treat heroin addiction. But what you have to ask yourself is how did your loved one get here? Is there a co-occurring condition that needs to be treated in order to get to the root cause of addiction? If, for example, a person is struggling with depression, it would be extremely difficult to treat the addiction while letting the depression go unchecked. The best heroin rehab centers address every facet of a person, including physical, mental, emotional, nutritional and spiritual.
3. What is Daily Life Like at the Best Heroin Rehab Centers?
It happens all too often. A family finally convinces their adult daughter to go to rehab and, after two weeks, she’s out of there.
Now, of course, there are many factors that go into such a decision. But, remember, patients are at a heroin rehab center, ideally, for 90 days. Imagine spending three months of your life in a place that felt like an institution and offered little (other than therapy) to do. Now imagine staying at a rehab center where you could amble into the bright and cheery kitchen, grab some fresh fruit and sit outside to read a book on the back patio before going to a yoga class with your new friends later on.
Not only would you be more likely to stay at the nicer place, it would also be better for you. That’s because recovering addicts don’t just need to get over heroin, they need to develop all the facets of themselves they have neglected since they began using. They need to find their interests and hobbies. They need to learn how to socialize. They need to learn how to enjoy life—all over again.
Hope Lies Ahead
If your loved one is ready to seek treatment for heroin addiction, that is a huge step. At The Raleigh House , located in Denver, the first thing we do is make sure our residents feel safe and comfortable. They are then assigned master’s level therapists to work with them to create individual treatment plans and goals. Interesting in learning more? Fill out our form or call today.
