For decades, most addiction treatment centers followed a similar, standardized model. There were 28 days of inpatient treatment consisting of group therapy and lots of AA meetings, followed by a simplified discharge plan and a list of local 12-step meetings to attend.
Sure, lots of people managed to stay sober with this style of substance abuse treatment, but many more, sadly, did not. Many would re-inter drug and alcohol rehab several more times over the years. Others were not so lucky.
Where Ohio Addiction Treatment Centers Fell Short of the Mark
What these early addiction treatment programs in Ohio and other states did not do a great job of is preparing people for life in recovery. The assumption was that people would root themselves in AA or NA, work all 12 steps, and undergo a personal transformation. Many of them did, but the fact is that the available treatment for substance use disorders was falling short of the mark.
It’s not that drug and alcohol rehabs weren’t doing the best they knew how to help people in the past, of course. They provided education about addiction and exposed people to the 12-step fellowships as a tool to build lives in recovery. The main problem was that many of the people in Ohio with opioid addictions or dependence on alcohol, meth, or other drugs needed more help than most people realized if they were going to build lasting sobriety.
They needed to learn critical life skills that are often taken for granted, and they needed support above and beyond that initial month of drug treatment. Otherwise, their chances of successful recovery would have been pretty grim.
This Redepemption Recovery article looks at how addiction treatment in Ohio and other states has evolved to emphasize life skills and building a foundation for more durable long-term recovery.
Where Do Life Skills Fit Into Addiction Recovery?
Lots of things fall under the category of life skills. The truth is they were overlooked or given short shrift in the past in drug treatment programs. Why? Well, many of them are things most of us simply take for granted. We assume that everyone’s parents would have taught them how to do certain things or that people would have figured them out by adulthood.
The reality, though, is that we all grow up differently. Some people have challenging childhoods or traumas that may have interrupted their learning processes. Many people with addiction also began drinking or using drugs as children or in their early teen years.
Why Do Life Skills Need to Be Taught and Reinforced in Drug Rehab?
It’s been said that our emotional development is “frozen” at whatever age we begin drinking or getting high—and there’s a lot of truth to that.
For still other people they may have had some of these key life skills at some point, but living in addiction has brought them out of the habit of managing their lives effectively. They may be out of practice or have simply forgotten how to do certain things or how important they are.
Life skills need to be taught and emphasized in alcohol and drug rehabs because mastering (or remastering) those skills is essential to building enduring sobriety. Recovery is challenging enough as it is. When a person lacks the skills to manage money responsibly, find gainful employment, or de-escalate conflicts, for example—it can put them and their recovery in danger.
Why the best addiction treatment centers are reinforcing life skills:
- Many people who’ve been living in active addiction may have never fully developed the life skills necessary to lead a successful, sober life as an adult.
- Some people who have battled addiction are out of practice when it comes to functioning in the “real world” and will benefit from a refresher course on life skills in recovery.
- Life skills training is evidence-based treatment. Recovering people with strong life skills and a support network are proven more likely to be sober one year after drug treatment than those without these success factors.
- The best addiction treatment centers in Ohio are focused on evidence-based care and long-term outcomes, not just getting sober on day one. Teaching life skills in rehab markedly improves long-term outcomes for people in recovery.
10 Examples of the Life Skills Taught in Rehab
1: Self-Care
Learning to prioritize personal health and well-being through activities like exercise, proper nutrition, and sleep hygiene. Self-care builds esteem and confidence and that becomes a ladder to greater and greater success.
2: Setting Goals
Setting short-term and long-term goals to provide direction and motivation. This also gives people a sense of achievement and purpose, which are important for self-esteem.
3: Financial Wellness
Learning how to respect and manage money, saving, and managing expenses to ensure financial stability.
4: Healthy Meal Planning
Learning to shop for groceries, as well as plan and prepare nutritious meals to support physical health for yourself and your family. This is both a matter of physical and financial well-being.
5: Time Management
Organizing daily schedules to balance work, leisure, and self-care. Good time management also means getting to appointments on time, which is an easy way to reduce stress and anxiety and improves both esteem and earn respect from others.
6: Healthy Relationships
Learning how to build positive relationships with family, friends, and support networks is key. Romantic and platonic relationships alike require mutual respect, understanding, and awareness. These only come naturally to some, so this is a skill.
7: Stress Management
Developing techniques to cope with stress, such as mindfulness, meditation, or hobbies. A lack of healthy coping tools and techniques for managing stress can make you vulnerable to triggers and can lead to relapse.
8: Patience and Problem-Solving
Learning to address challenges and setbacks in a constructive manner is a must. Successful recovery requires calm, patience, and the ability to “work a problem” methodically and thoughtfully instead of reacting emotionally.
9: Communication Skills
Improving the ability to express thoughts and emotions effectively. The ability to speak and write clearly can unlock a world of opportunities to you, making all of the other life skills listed here easier to implement. There’s no overestimating the value of solid communication skills.
10: Finding and Keeping a Job and Building a Career
Job search skills, resume writing, and interview preparation are just a few of the skills that fall in this category. Whether you know what you might like to do for work or not—-you must have the skills to find work, present yourself well and work responsibly. Being gainfully employed is an important cornerstone of recovery.
Redemption Recovery Opens Doors
At Redemption Recovery, our focus is on helping Ohioans get sober and stay that way. Our no-nonsense, evidence-based addiction treatment program offers everything you or your loved one needs to become who they were always meant to be.
No matter how bad you think addiction has become, even if you or your loved one has been to alcohol and drug rehab many times before—-it isn’t too late to recover. The only thing you need to start is to be willing to pick up the phone and follow some simple instructions. We won’t tell you that recovery is easy—-it’s not. But it is simple and accessible to anyone willing to do the work and refuse to give up.
One call can change it all.
It’s time for Redemption: (419) 528-8007
Find out what addiction treatment your insurance will cover here.
