When people think of going to detox for drugs and alcohol, typically the obvious thing they think about is the process of detox and the medications used to help them go through detox with manageable withdrawal symptoms. For many, detox is simply a process of going through withdrawals while safely and effectively medicated, to stop using dangerous drugs and alcohol and reach a place of feeling physically better. And, in a general sense, it is.   However, detox is also a vital first step in what should be a long-term process of recovery and an on-going process of healing. Addiction, alcoholism, and substance use disorder is often a long and arduous journey undertaken by an individual against their will. They [...]

Addiction is a complex, chronic illness that, in order to ensure sustainable recovery, requires a long-term continuum of care. However, while numerous studies have demonstrated high recovery outcomes are supported by long-term care, monitoring, and community recovery engagement, not every individual’s continuum of care will look the same and that continuum may not always be linear. Not every patient requires the same continuum, and supportive recovery care needs to appropriately take into account not just the clinical needs of the patient, but also the many other biopsychosocial aspects of their individual needs associated with their substance use disorder.   Therefore, one patient’s continuum of care may look very different from another patient’s continuum of care, each one obviously based on [...]