Setting up Your Aftercare Program

Aftercare is an important part of treatment for addiction. It helps transition a person into the real world after being in a rehab program or a detox. Aftercare is planning for the future and planning for any challenges you may face. 

Risks of relapse are high after rehab and/or detox, so it is important to have a plan in place when rehab ends in order to prevent relapse. Relapse prevention can help mitigate further physical and mental issues that it may cause. Relapse can happen at any point, so living drug-free is important. Relapses can be particularly dangerous following detox or rehab as the brain is adapting to the neurological changes and tolerance decreases. 

There are different ways to go about setting up an aftercare program as each person struggles with addiction differently. Substance use recovery is a lifelong process that requires a person to continuously adapt to the changes that they experience. While it may seem like a lot of work at first, with regular practice, it will eventually become an everyday habit. There will be challenges, but there is also the freedom of not being tied to something that kept life from being lived. 

What Is Aftercare?

After the detox and/or inpatient treatment, there is often an optional aftercare treatment to follow up on the patient. Having an aftercare program is vital because substance abuse often changes the brain’s functioning for the long term. It changes hormones and neurotransmitters that are often associated with substance use. These changes in the brain’s functioning can not be easily reversed as the brain has learned to associate certain hormones and neurotransmitters with particular substances. 

There are also physical changes that take a long time to return to normal or may be permanent. These changes include cardiovascular issues, respiratory damage, liver and kidney damage, along with gastrointestinal damage. These changes are why aftercare is essential to help ease the transition from rehab to the real world. As such, RECO Intensive offers aftercare programs that work with you on the growth. 

Aftercare programs also help hold a person accountable for their actions and behaviors. The environment that they have to return to may not have changed even though they have changed. It also helps them with challenges they may face when returning home and trying to create a new normal for themselves. Oftentimes, they will have to change their environment to match how they have changed. Changing the environment may include changing locations or ending unhealthy relationships to live a more happy and healthier life. 

How to Plan for Aftercare

To plan your aftercare, you need to know what areas you struggle with and what environmental and behavioral triggers can cause the temptation to return to substance use. In the planning, understand that some situations may need backup plans. Not everything can be planned as the world around you changes and you have to adapt your aftercare program. RECO Intensive offers programs to help the transition and adjust to changes.

A sound support system also helps the recovery process. Surrounding yourself with people who have also struggled with similar problems and understand what you have gone through will be able to support you and hold you accountable. You can even start new hobbies to occupy the mind and discover a new passion. Many people who have lived with substance use disorder have found new outlets to improve their mental and physical health. 

The most commonly used aftercare programs are 12-Step programs. These programs may vary but they have similar steps and goals behind it. It also has no set schedule or time period so that it can be taken at different paces. Common aftercare programs include Alcoholics Anonymous (AA), Narcotics Anonymous (NA) and SMART recovery.

There are other options out there that can also support recovery and improve mental health and physical health. RECO Intensive offers excellent programs and products for personal care. With their aftercare programs, you can get therapy along with other treatments and resources. 

The best way to plan is to try different options to see what works best for you. Not everything will work for everyone, so explore different programs and meeting options to find one that fits your particular needs and goals.

Becoming an Alumni

Being an Alumni is the label used after a person is done with rehab but continues to work in recovery and is involved with the recovery community. Being in aftercare is a part of becoming an Alumni and it offers a way to make friends while helping your community. It also provides new outlets for clients. RECO Intensive’s Alumni program offers events and a buddy program to introduce people to others who can help hold them accountable in recovery.

Being an Alumni is being a part of a community and helping others achieve and maintain sobriety. You can also learn and grow more in a community of people who have gone through similar problems and can better understand each other and grow closer than other communities. 

There are many resources RECO Intensive has available to help those struggling with addiction to drugs or alcohol, including detox, rehab, and aftercare programs. Aftercare is an essential part of the recovery process as it helps prevent relapse and improve mental and physical health. Recovery is not over once detox or rehab ends and relapse is something that can happen to anyone. Relapse is dangerous as physiological changes reduce tolerance to substance and can increase the likelihood of an overdose. RECO Intensive provides many different options and works with you to personalize your aftercare. They also create a community for people who have finished rehab to come together and support each other in creating a new, sober  life. As you continue in aftercare, you become an Alumni and join a bigger community that can support you and hold you accountable in your recovery. RECO Intensive is located in Delray Beach, Florida, and provides inpatient and outpatient care, as well as aftercare programs. For more information, call (561) 464-6533.