Private Rehab: What should you expect and not expect

Choosing a private rehab for your alcohol and drug addiction recovery needs is a smart choice. However, there are considerations you should be aware of prior to and upon admission to the program.

1) Be aware of spa programs: Being in early recovery, there is so much to learn and so much to purge in order to move forward with a recovery that is sustaining. To integrate massage, acupuncture, movement therapy, aroma therapy, etc. into your treatment is recommended for a holistic program attending to a mind, body, spirit approach. The program should offer several individual psychotherapy per week, family/loved ones sessions, traditional and complimentary medical staff, and relapse prevention training. These critical services are a MUST, in conjunction with spa services.

2) Be aware of a penitential model: Some programs have a heavy emphasis on being punitive and punishing their clients. Often these programs have "gurus" who have answers for all your recovery needs. You have punished yourself way too much, you don't need someone allegedly in recovery, playing power games with you and pretending to know you and what your needs are in a matter of days. The staff at the private rehab should respect you and attempt to approach your issues with a solution-focus, resiliency approach.

3) Be aware of "The Cure" model: The current scientific literature on addiction is clear that there is no cure for addictions of any kind. However, we have many strategies on managing our illness. We have medications, self-help groups, personal transformation, spiritual support, physical fitness and improved self-esteem is all aids in sustaining a recovery and managing your lifelong illness. Some programs will tell you they have a "cure" with unscientific research findings. Some would say, its unethical.

Overall, you need to interview key staff prior to admitting to a private rehab. If key staff (clinical director, program manager, etc.) are not available to you, then you may want to move on to another program. There are many choices...choose the right one for you!

If you, or a loved one needs rehab services, please contact one of our recovery counselors on our 24 Hour HelpLine at (866) 478-9898.

Always direct your thoughts to those truths that will give you confidence, hope, joy, love, thanksgiving, and turn away your mind from those that inspire you with fear, sadness, depression.
- Bertrand Wilbertforce

Recuperatio Primoris!

Crystal Meth and Gay Men: Can't stop Tina?

Crystal Methamphetamine, or "ICE," or "Tina" still remains a significant problem in the gay community. A quick search on Amazon.com will show you the number of books written on the topic. The immediate, intense effect on apparent self-esteem and sexual performance makes the drug immensely popular among gay men who are emotionally struggling with an affirming relations with sexually and non-sexually intimate others. Crystal Meth is a treatable addiction and admitting to a holistic drug rehab could assist you with detox and addiction treatment!

Cystal meth is a stimulant drug that makes the Kama Sutra look like an issue of National Geographic! Those who use crystal meth and their partners, report an intense, exotic experience and have a hard time returning to non-meth sex!

Some reporters have spoke about the connection between crystal meth and a collective "community of grief" in the era of AIDS and the losses that most of us had to endure and continue to endure. The drug is a synthetic way of feeling great for a while. However, you become a slave to the drug as it eats away the intelligent network of your brain and other staggering physical destruction secondary to the drug. Also, it terribly alters your mental status and the meth addict often engages in non-safe sexual behaviors and becomes careless about their careers and loved ones.

A most recent case is the international correspondent for CNN, Richard Qwest, who was found in NYC's Central Park with crystal meth and in a public sexual exhibition. He is currently in treatment and we wish him well. It shows you the power of the drug and the disease of addiction.

There is a treatment for crystal meth addiction...its called RECOVERY! Many clients have come to our facility, gay men who were addicted to crystal meth and often had co-morbid diagnoses of sex addiction and HIV. Crystal meth is often used with other addictive substances including: alcohol, marijuana, heroin, etc.

If you, or a loved one has an addictive problem, please call our 24-Hour HelpLine at (866) 478-9898 and speak with one of our counselors.

Recuperatio Primoris! (Recovery above all else!)

Salvia Divinorum: A harmless herb?

Salvia Divinorum, or commonly known as "Salvia", "Lady Salvia," "Sally-D," or "Magic Mint" is a powerful hallucinogenic and psychoactive herb with a long religious use with Mazatec shamans to induce a "religious experience". It is sold in the U.S. in small bags with varying strengths, and it is TOTALLY LEGAL. Yes, even your 10 year-old can buy Salvia at a local store. It can be chewed, smoked, or taken as a tincture. A search on YouTube can offer you video proof of the bizarre and scary looking effects of the herb.

Some of its bizarre effects are: uncontrollable laughter, altered mental states, dysphoria, confusion, or visual illusions. The duration of the high is about 3-4 minutes depending on the strength. Ironically, Salvia reportedly has been used to curb addiction cravings and can put a depressed person in an elevated, less depressed mood.

The herb may be non-addictive, but the use of Salvia with other drugs and alcohol may be deadly. Of course, who is the first in line to try Salvia? You've guessed it...adolecsents and addicts! Both groups have a great deal of difficulty handling affect and mood. Adolescents have enough to worry about regarding mood stabilization and control. Salvia is not going to assist in the emotional control department. Addicts have already put Salvia on their radar, since it another way to "run away," even for a few minutes, from life's happenings and responsibilities.

So, if you or someone you know if regularly using Salvia along with other drugs, please call our 24-Hour HelpLine at (866) 478-9898 and speak with one of our counselors in recovery.

Lets keep its use to Mexican shammans and restrict its use to growing adolescents and addicts, who may be convinced that Salvia is another "weed type high" and it can't be further from the truth!

Salvia Divinorum. Hmmm...personally, I prefer another Latin phrase:
Recuperatio Primoris! (Recovery above all else!)

When is the best time to enter drug treatment?

If you are wondering, the answer is probably "right now!" Addiction is a disease that insidiously kills you, your family, your friends, your life as you know it. If your life has begun to erode in front of your eyes, it is time to get treatment. It is actually past time to get treatment because damage is already being done. The sooner you start treatment, the faster you will be able to begin the healing process.

Even though addiction causes so much damage, it is still difficult to commit to coming in for drug rehab or alcohol rehab. It is a very brave move. However, it is the best move you will ever make.

Imagine if you had cancer. You ask the doctor and family "when do you think I should start treatment?" Of course, the family and doctor says "right now!!". You have to start a treatment course as soon as possible because the cancer is not going away. It will only get worse with time. Not to say that it doesn't feel scarey to start treatment or that you won't have anxiety or apprehension about what it is going to be like. Of course you will. That's only natural. But that is not going to stop you from saving your life.

Alcoholism and drug addiction are diseases that are also deadly. They don't just go away. Engaging in an intensive drug or alcohol treatment program might feel scarey or anxiety-provoking. But please don't let that stand in the way of saving your own life.

Drug Treatment Centers are not all the same

Private drug or alcohol treatment centers vary vastly in what they offer, treatment philosophy, and treatment milieu. Many centers simply are not private. They are private pay, but there is nothing private about being in a large facility with 100 other people! Those that truly are private, such as Paradise Recovery and some of the treatment programs in Malibu can vary in treatment philosophy.

Sometimes you can tell a little bit about the treatment philosophy by looking at the staffing page. Look at the staff's credentials. Does the program believe in holistic treatment? Part of doing a holistic program means looking at individual core issues that have served to either trigger the addiction or continue to foster it. These issues, given enough time, need to be treated! Make sure that the staffing of the program is equipped from an educational perspective to navigate those delicate waters.

Not all addiction treatment centers are the same. Choose the one that offers you what you really want. If you want privacy, a holistic approach with high level staffing, individualized care, and a beautiful, healing location, there are very few choices out there!