Positive Outcomes From Virtual Outpatient Addiction Treatment

What Is Virtual Outpatient Addiction Treatment? 

Virtual Outpatient Addiction Treatment, or VOAT, is a form of treatment that occurs virtually for those in recovery. VOAT allows outpatients to still focus on their work, school, and families outside of a rehabilitation center. If you can’t fully commit to intensive care that comes with inpatient rehabilitation, you can use VOAT as your way to keep yourself on track and stay grounded. It’s been predicted by the Partnership to End Addiction (drugfree.org) that virtual outpatient treatment will outlast the pandemic due to its reach, its accessibility, and the lack of travel one needs to consider. There are a myriad of benefits to consider if you’re thinking Virtual Outpatient Addiction Treatment could be right for you.

Interaction With a Person Amid the Pandemic

As everyone is hunkered down or closed-off amid the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, it’s nice to have a trusted adult to talk to and have some human interaction. It can get lonely when social distancing and, although you’re being safe, you could be questioning the effect being at home is having on your sobriety. 

Having someone to talk to is crucial to help lift your spirits and know that you are not alone in your journey. It’s also important to keep tabs with your therapist, your sponsor, and your team for support and guidance through your sobriety. The goal is to keep yourself safe, healthy, and sober. Your choice to speak and interact virtually with your team could be your safest option. Your team will be there for you, and you are not alone. It’s been demonstrated by the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) that telehealth and virtual rehabilitation options are helping those in recovery. VOAT can help you too. 

Accountability and Prevention 

Having a person there to check in with you can help keep you accountable in your journey through recovery. Knowing that a therapist or sponsor will be calling can help you make those good, healthy decisions for yourself to abstain and commit to your sobriety, even when it’s hard. You’ll also have a consistent schedule requiring you to take part in activities, therapy, and talking with your support team. This can fill the time and gaps you may have in your daily routine where before you would have engaged in addictive behaviors. 

Having someone checking in consistently is also beneficial for relapse prevention. Your brain will be used to the routine of checking in with your therapist and you’ll be able to form natural preventative strategies. As you know from your first experience of recovery, prevention is crucial for avoiding relapse.

News, Updates, and Strategies for Change

As with any recovery practice, you’ll get to learn the next-best-thing and new discoveries about addiction as you work out your recovery plan. It can be interesting and stimulating for you to learn how your brain works and how the process of VOAT is helping you personally. As you work with your therapist, you’ll learn new tools and strategies to infuse within your everyday life. 

Record-Keeping

As you talk it out with a therapist, they’ll keep tabs on how you’re progressing. Together you can work out tendencies, patterns, or triggers from past emotional trauma that drive you to repeat addictive behaviors. You can also learn that times of the day are important and what aspects of your routine should be changed. It’s important that you’re both keeping records of these meetings for your future, your knowledge, and how you cope with your recovery.

Allows for ‘Normal’ Life to Continue With Family, Work, Etc.

As you progress in your recovery, you still get to be an active part of your work, your school, your family, and your overall home life. Unlike inpatient treatments, VOAT allows you to focus on other things and still make progress in recovery. Maybe you have a young family to support or parents or siblings that need to be taken care of. You’ll have the ability to be present in their lives while you take time for yourself to recover.

However, you and your therapist may quickly realize that some of your triggers or habits are tied with your normal work and family life. An incredible benefit of VOAT is how you can adjust and change these triggers in real-time, at home. You are able to recognize them, find a way to change into a healthier routine, and explore ways to reduce stress at home already, rather than in the facility where you can’t yet make those changes at home. 

Virtual Outpatient Addiction Treatment (VOAT) comes with so many benefits for you and can help you get your recovery back on track. If you’re trying hard to figure out if inpatient or outpatient care is right for you, remember that RECO Intensive is here to help. With our excellent programs for both inpatient and outpatient care, RECO Intensive is fully-equipped to guide you through your journey to recovery. Our expert staff includes alumni of RECO Intensive, giving us a unique perspective when it comes to your care. We’ve been in your shoes. We know you can achieve sobriety and maintain your recovery. We want to help you. RECO Intensive understands that you have unique and specific needs, and we can make VOAT a part of your unique recovery plan–especially amid the COVID-19 pandemic. We know your safety is just as important as your sobriety. For more information, please call RECO Intensive at (561) 464-6533 today.