Tag: Addiction Treatment Resources

Understanding Addiction – Taking Care of Your Mental Health When a Loved One is Battling Addiction

Addiction is a chronic disease that affects all aspects of a person’s life, including their relationships, career, health, family dynamics, and psychological well-being. When a loved one struggles with the disease of addiction, you may find yourself struggling as well. Anchored Tides Recovery has 20+ years of experience of understanding addiction, an all-female staff, and an all-female client base. Many generations of women find their path to recovery with our treatment options. We have also learned some methods of coping with the challenges of loving someone who is struggling with addiction. Here is some vital information to keep in mind to avoid losing your mind…

Help Yourself First

It is natural to be ready and willing to do whatever it takes to help your loved one in their time of need, especially if you are a parent. Believe it or not, this is often detrimental to their process and does more harm than good. Trying to be the hero who saves the day can come at the cost of your relationships, finances, physical health, and sanity. The road to recovery is a long and personal process. When you try to involve yourself too much, it can have an adverse effect. You may end up pushing the person further away or even trigger drug abuse to cope. Accepting that a loved one has an alcohol or drug problem is extremely difficult. Until the person is ready to take the first step, you cannot do much to help them.

Taking the First Step to Overcome Drug Addiction

For many people trapped in the vicious cycle of drug addiction, the most challenging step toward recovery is the very first one. They have to decide on their own that they want help. This concept is crucial to understand. You can not force a person to get help if they’re not ready to admit they have a problem. It can be very frustrating to be willing to do anything to help someone but have your efforts yield no results because that person isn’t ready to accept your help. For this reason, it’s essential just to make sure you’re focusing on your mental health problems and not enabling them further. People with an addictive behavior may feel uncertain about whether they’re ready to attend treatment facilities. You need to understanding addiction and know that strong emotions such as anger, shame, guilt, depression, and anxiety usually come along with the thought of needing help. Usually, a person needs to hit their own personal version of “rock bottom” before they even admit they need help. Hitting rock bottom is personal. For some users, this part of the journey may take a long time to happen or may not ever happen at all.

Raising the Bottom

“Raising the Bottom” is a term that describes helping a person hit their version of rock bottom sooner. It requires a lot of discipline and strength, but many counselors agree that understanding addiction may be the best way to help someone who isn’t ready to admit they need help. Your role in raising the bottom is to stop any enabling behaviors and make it so their drug habit becomes inconvenient. Here are some examples of “Raising the Bottom.”

Cutting them off financially.
If they’re using drugs in your house, tell them they can’t stay there anymore.
Call the authorities if you find them using drugs.

To many, this is considered “tough love,” which makes it difficult to do when you care about someone. It helps to change your mentality and keep in mind the long-term goals of raising the bottom. Making it harder for them to live comfortably with their choices does not mean you do not love them. The more difficult it is for them to live this lifestyle, the more likely it will be that they come around to the idea of accepting help.

Is Addiction A Family Disease?

Here are some reasons why addiction is considered a “family disease”:

Addiction’s impact extends to the entire family. When one family member struggles with substance abuse, it can negatively affect everybody else who cares about them. Family and friends may get stuck in a cycle of trying to fix the person and then feel resentful when they see no results or see that their efforts are not appreciated.
Mental health conditions, such as addiction, are hereditary. According to a study by the American Psychological Association (APA), more than half a person’s susceptibility to drugs and alcohol addiction is linked to genetics.
Families play a large role in the drug rehabilitation process. Spouses, parents, children, siblings, and friends need to forgive past mistakes and be empathetic towards the current efforts. Empathy will help you to provide the love and support they need to make progress.

Be Patient and Understanding

The road to recovery can be a long and complicated process, both for the person in treatment and for the people around them. They may try and fail multiple times. They will have some good days and some bad days. Don’t assume that a good day means they’re “cured,” and try not to get frustrated if a string of bad days makes it seem like they will never recover. Just remember always to prioritize your own mental health no matter where they are in their recovery process. Don’t enable or do anything to help facilitate their drug use. You can not help someone who is not ready to accept help. You are not responsible for their sobriety, but you are responsible for your well-being. Have you found your mental health being affected by a loved one who struggles with drug or alcohol addiction? You are not alone; We are here to help you. At Anchored Tides Recovery Center, we always recommend family members to take part in our family programs. Once the client has completed drug addiction treatment, we recommend the family continue working with support programs to better learn about relapse conditions and understanding addiction. Call us today to get started on the road to recovery and addiction-free life. We will educate you on what the process looks like to begin a drug addiction treatment and what is needed to support your loved ones.

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Partial Hospitalization Programs: Who Are They For?

If you’re addicted to drugs or alcohol and seeking treatment, you’re going to be faced with numerous options. Some you may have heard about before, and others can seem totally foreign. Addiction treatment is an investment (one you’re making in yourself), so it’s important to choose the right treatment for you. At Anchored Tides Recovery in Huntington Beach, California, we provide women with a safe environment to recover from addiction. One type of treatment we offer is called partial hospitalization.

What Is a Partial Hospitalization Program?

A partial hospitalization program (PHP) is a type of intermediate addiction treatment option between inpatient and outpatient treatment. When attending PHP, you will come to our treatment facility daily and spend the day undergoing different addiction treatment therapies. At the end of the day, you return home and are free to do whatever you please in the evening.

This type of addiction treatment can be completed after you complete inpatient treatment or as a stand-alone treatment. It’s a great option if you want to participate in intensive addiction therapy but can’t remove yourself from society for 30 or more days.

Our partial hospitalization program at Anchored Tides Recovery includes a variety of therapies:

Individual therapy
Group therapy
Dialectical behavior therapy
Adventure based therapy
Mindfulness & meditation
Trauma resiliency
Relapse prevention

Benefits of Partial Hospitalization Programs

There are many benefits to completing a partial hospitalization program for addiction treatment, one of the biggest being you don’t have to remove yourself from ‘normal life’ to receive treatment. A lot of recovering addicts find it helpful to completely go off the grid for a period of time in the beginning of their sobriety so they can focus solely on recovery. The downside is that it can sometimes be challenging to remerge into society. A partial hospitalization program offers the best of both worlds; our clients can spend their days focusing on sobriety 100%, and return to their life when the day ends. If you have pets, you’ll be able to tend to them in the evening, or even take night classes at a college and continue your education. While you’re getting sober, you will learn how to integrate sobriety into your everyday life.

Partial hospitalization can also be used as a transitional tool for recovering addicts leaving inpatient treatment. Like we mentioned before, it can be difficult to go back to ‘everyday life’ after leaving inpatient treatment. By attending a PHP, you can slowly start to rebuild your life , like securing a safe place to live, or returning home to the place you lived before treatment. You’ll be able to spend your days working on your recovery and spend the evenings tending to personal needs, like cooking for yourself or going to the gym.

Another benefit to partial hospitalization is it’s less costly than inpatient treatment. Because you live and receive treatment at an inpatient treatment facility, and eat all of your meals there, it tends to be the most expensive addiction treatment option. At Anchored Tides Recovery, we work with a number of insurance providers and also offer financing options to our clients. We want addiction treatment to be as accessible as possible for all women, and don’t want anyone to feel like they can’t get the help they deserve because they can’t afford it.

Call Us Today

If you’re in the process of seeking addiction treatment for yourself or a loved one, congratulations for taking the necessary first step to a better life. A partial hospitalization program is for you if you’re looking to start your recovery journey, or completed inpatient treatment and are looking to continue treatment. At Anchored Tides Recovery, we provide addiction treatment for women and are a women ran facility. We offer partial hospitalization, intensive outpatient, and outpatient treatment programs. Reach out to us for more information regarding our programs!

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Outpatient Treatment: How It Leads To Long Term Success

Outpatient Addiction is a multifaceted problem that affects all kinds of people from all walks of life. It stands to reason that addiction treatment should not be a “one size fits all” solution, yet the sad truth is that many rehabilitation programs remain generalized and outdated. In fact, many follow treatments designed for men, despite modern research that shows women face unique sets of challenges when it comes to addiction.

That’s why we are a women-specific treatment center at Anchored Tides Recovery, with a focus on individual needs and long-term recovery. We also realize that many women feel the need to delay treatment because of busy everyday lives and feelings of obligation towards others.

Sound familiar? It’s time to get the treatment you deserve and give yourself a new lease on life. And because we offer outpatient addiction treatment at Anchored Tides, you can retain some schedule flexibility and return home each night. Here’s what you need to know.

What Is Outpatient Addiction Treatment?

Whereas inpatient treatment is more traditional and involves actually being admitted to a facility under 24/7 medical supervision, outpatient is a more modern style of treatment that allows for some flexibility and goes far beyond just the detox process.

While the exact experience varies for everyone, the outpatient program generally involves highly focused treatment during the day, after which you are allowed to return home each day with guidance on how to continue working towards sobriety.

There are a naturally a lot of benefits to this arrangement, specifically:

Recovering addicts can maintain their basic everyday routines and keep up with responsibilities
In many cases, the ability to go to work and not have to forfeit a job
Medical care only as needed, not necessarily required 24/7
Ability to build a support network with friends and family much earlier on
Family and friends are actively able to witness the patient making progress
Ability to engage in community activities and hobbies — keep living life!
Greater personal responsibility helps keeps patients dedicated to becoming sober and actively learning coping skills
No grand re-entry into the “real world”, meaning no shock or dramatic adjustment period following treatment
More affordable costs than most inpatient programs, thanks to fewer hours of onsite treatment and medical care

At Anchored Tides, we firmly believe in outpatient care and how allowing patients to spend time at home contributes to their successful treatment. And because different people require different levels of care, we offer three types of outpatient programs of varying degrees: Outpatient Program (OP), Intensive Outpatient Program (IOP), and Partial Hospitalization Program (PHP). Those with more severe addiction problems may require PHP for closer medical monitoring during detox, while others may do well under the programs with lower medical intensity aspects.

How Outpatient Treatment Paves the Way for a Lifetime of Sobriety

With outpatient treatment, one of the greatest benefits of all is the ability to actively make changes in everyday life. With inpatient care, the “real world” comes later, after detox and early counseling have been achieved. But because outpatient participants have their treatment worked into their everyday schedules, they are allowed to continue living their lives in the real world and make more steady, gradual changes each day. Though this means treatment is usually spread over a much longer period of time, it also means that long-term recovery is more feasible.

And rest assured; when you’re a patient at Anchored Tides, we do not just cut off ties once your treatment program reaches its planned completion. In addition to running outpatient treatment, our team at Anchored Tides practices long-term recovery monitoring for our patients. This means regular follow-ups and wellness check-ins, as well as encouragement for you to stay involved with counseling groups. We help you stay accountable to yourself now and well into the future.

Tips to Help Your Loved One During the Recovery Process

Addiction is a terrible disease and it can take a tremendous toll on not only the addict but the rest of the family as well. When someone first agrees to get help for drug abuse and addiction, they often think that detox is the only step during the recovery process. People who are addicted to alcohol might even come out of the detox process and think they can drink socially. This is not the case. Sobriety represents a lifelong commitment and people need to embrace this commitment every day. Having support from friends or family is one of the main factors that keep a recovering addict determined and disciplined. It’s a great idea for friends and family members to familiarize themselves with ways they can help an addict through the recovery process.

How to Tell if Addiction is Taking Hold of a Loved One?

In order to be able to support someone throughout the recovery process, you’ll need to be able to spot the signs of addiction. There are a few key signs that someone is suffering from addiction:

Defensive behavior: Addicts tend to become defensive during their addiction. If you start to ask them why they don’t have money or why they’re losing weight, they’ll get angry and most likely try to turn the conversation around on you. Although this can be hurtful, remember that they aren’t doing this maliciously.
Hiding their use: People drug and alcohol abuse are generally not socially acceptable, addicts hide their use. An addict may stash alcohol or drugs in their car so no one can find them. They’ll often lie about what they’re doing as well to hide their use. If you ask an addict to come over for dinner, it’s common for them to make up an excuse because they want to get high.
Mood swings: Drug and alcohol use can cause unstable moods. Someone using a stimulant will be down one minute, then up the next. Someone who is addicted to alcohol may start their day out feeling happy and normal, but the more they drink, the more depressed they can become.
Financial problems: Sustaining an addiction can become very expensive. If you suspect someone is struggling with substance abuse, and they ask to borrow money, they might have a problem. If you find someone going through your personal belongings to steal money, they most likely have a problem.

When is it Time for Help?

It’s never too soon to get help. Once you recognize that someone you love is suffering from substance abuse, it’s time for help. Addiction is a progressive disease, the longer it manifests, the worse it gets. It is critical to stop addiction in its tracks as early as possible to limit the collateral damage that might result.

How To Help Someone with Addiction

It may feel hard at first to try to help someone who is suffering from addiction. It’s normal to feel angry, or sad, or confused, especially if someone’s addiction has impacted you directly. The most important thing to remember is your loved one is sick. If they did something to hurt you, it wasn’t purposefully. It’s important to approach someone who is suffering from addiction with care and compassion. If they feel like they’re being attacked or misunderstood, they may resist getting help.

There are different ways to approach someone about their addiction. Because everyone is different and every addiction is different, it can be hard to determine what is the right thing to do. If your loved one is struggling and is an introvert, try having a private conversation with them. They may get overwhelmed if too many people confront them at once. If your loved one gets agitated easily, you may want to confront them with someone else present.

After you confront the addict, the most important thing to do is let them know you’re here to help them. You can offer to help them with researching different treatment options and even help by calling different facilities to learn more about their program.

The best thing to do when helping someone during the recovery process is to not judge them and lend a shoulder to cry on. You’d be surprised at how much it can mean to someone by just saying “I’m here for you if you ever need to talk”.

Let Us Help You With Your Addiction Treatment

At Anchored Tides Recovery, we are a complete, dual-diagnosis enhanced addiction treatment program, designed specifically for women, by women. This program provides a variety of levels of outpatient services, which include a Partial Hospitalization Program (PHP), an Intensive Outpatient Program (IOP), a traditional Outpatient Program (OP), and long-term recovery monitoring. Our goal is to help women overcome addiction and mental health disorders. If you are interested in learning more about how our professionals can help you overcome the bonds of addiction, please contact us today!

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Why You Should Travel to Huntington Beach for Addiction Treatment

When someone is suffering from addiction, it’s important to seek help as quickly as possible. The sooner people ask for help from trained professionals, the faster they can get on the road to addiction recovery. Because there is a sense of urgency associated with seeking treatment, it’s common for people to look for treatment programs close to home. At first, this may seem to make sense because home is familiar and comfortable, but upon further evaluation, it actually makes more sense to travel for treatment. It’s important to leave the toxic environment that led to your addiction in the first place.

What Are the Benefits of Traveling for Addiction Treatment?

There are a lot of benefits to traveling for addiction treatment. Traveling to Orange County is a chance for someone to start a new life. It’s critical to break the normal routine that allowed addiction to take hold in order to seek recovery. In a new environment, people will be able to look inward and learn more about themselves. They’ll have the chance to close the book on a destructive period in their life.

We feel by escaping the old, destructive environment, someone can leave behind bad routines, bad relationships, and the other consequences caused by substance abuse. It’s important to be able to reflect on the habits that were built that led to addiction. The best way to do this is by separating yourself from your old environment. Go on a journey of self-discovery by seeking treatment in a new place.

Reasons to Seek Addiction Treatment in Huntington Beach

There are going to be more opportunities for people to seek help from specialists in Orange County. Everyone’s addiction is different. Not only are people addicted to different substances but their reasons and circumstances for using are different as well. Therefore, people need to have the ability to seek help from specialists who have seen similar cases in the past. When people travel to Huntington Beach, they will have access to experienced professionals who can help them break free.

Huntington Beach is home to gorgeous weather. Unlike other parts of the country, Southern California is pleasant all year round. The sun is always shining and there’s zero humidity. This can help people cope with some of the challenges that are going to come up with addiction treatment such as withdrawal and depression. Do not underestimate the power of fresh air and sunshine.

There’s also access to the beach here in Huntington Beach. It’s fantastic and recommended to incorporate physical activity into the process of addiction treatment. Hiking, swimming, running, etc, are all great activities to clear someone’s head. There is something very therapeutic about spending time outdoors and connecting with nature. Nature also has a way of focusing on one’s priorities. People who come to this area love taking advantage of the beach and it’s healing components.

The biggest benefit of traveling to Southern California by far is that people can prioritize themselves instead of their addictions. There is so much room for exploring in a new area. Once you are in a sober state of mind you’ll probably realize there are a lot of things you’d like to start doing. Huntington Beach is the perfect place to rediscover yourself, new hobbies, and what makes you truly happy.

Let Us Help You with Your Recovery!

At Anchored Tides Recovery, we are a comprehensive dual-diagnosis enhanced program that has been created specifically for women, by women. We provide a wide variety of outpatient services including a Partial Hospitalization Program (PHP), an Intensive Outpatient Program (IOP), a traditional Outpatient Program (OP), as well as long-term recovery monitoring. If you would like to learn more about how we can help you find recovery in Orange County, then please contact us today!

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Why You Should Meditate in Addiction Recovery

Overcoming addiction comes with its own challenges and can be particularly stressful if you are just beginning your journey to recovery. Dealing with the urge to use, cleaning up the messes you made while using, and rebuilding broken relationships is no walk in the park. Anchored Tides puts a big emphasis on developing skills to help you deal with real-life struggles at the beginning of recovery. One of the best coping mechanisms we’ve found so far is meditation and we make sure to include it in our treatment programs.

What is Meditation?

This is a complementary and alternative approach to mainstream addiction recovery services like group counseling and psychotherapy. It is a general body and mind connection practice that focuses on inducing serenity and relaxation to improve both mental and physical health. Anyone can take part in meditation irrespective of your religious or spiritual life. There is no set of time for meditators but beginners can start with a few minutes and then advance to longer sessions.

The practice focuses on the physical sensations, mindfulness, awareness of present feelings and surroundings. It also involves the mindfulness of accepting thoughts and feelings as they are. This is particularly effective in helping individuals fighting addiction to thinking about sobriety, prevent relapse, and ultimately lead to addiction recovery.

Benefits of Meditation

Aside from promoting inner peace, calmness, increase self-awareness and proper mental functioning, meditation also improves mindfulness which helps decrease cravings and aid recovery. Practicing mindfulness means that you are in control of your attention. You are taking the role and attitude of an observer of what you are doing and feeling.

Improves Resilience

Individuals dealing with addiction are among the most resilient people you will ever come across. Bouncing back to a healthy, quiet, drama free, sober life, and adapting to the new changes is not easy – even for the most dynamic individuals. It takes patience, persistence and strong will to recover fully. Meditation helps you cultivate massive levels of resilience. It helps you become more mindful of your fears, anxiety, and pain. Frequent practice helps reduce and manage stress levels.

Acceptance

Too often we get down on ourselves and doubt our abilities to live a happy, sober life. The addiction recovery journey can be more difficult if you remain too hard on yourself. Since meditation focuses on attentiveness and observation to your own feelings and thoughts, it is much easier to learn, watch, and be patient with your emotions and self. The more you practice, the more you get to know yourself. You’ll also learn to treat yourself better and exercise some patience and acceptance as you would on other people who are in the same situation.

Improves your overall health

Meditation focuses on body and mind connection. That means it also focuses on your physical and mental health. When you discover self-awareness, you embrace sobriety and realize that you can actually cope with life challenges without alcohol or drugs.

Your anxiety and stress levels lower through the practice of meditation which can prevent lifestyle-related illnesses such as high blood pressure, stroke, and heart conditions. Aside from reducing anxiety and stress some health benefits gained from meditation include reducing your chance of depression, which is common in individuals battling addiction.

Improves your attention span

Meditation and being mindful means thinking about what and how it is right now and not worrying about the past or the future. You are concentrating on your present and the positive things in it. Practicing mindful meditation means taking time to enjoy the current moment as it is. We can’t fix the past and we can’t control the future, all we have is the present moment. Focusing on the present improves your attention span and allows you to enjoy the little things in life. Becoming more attentive will also help you strengthen or repair broken relationships.

Start meditating

While meditation and addiction would never be used in the same sentences a few decades ago, research has now proved that it is the new recovery agent to addiction. If you have cravings, feel depressed, or are stressed, practice meditation. It’s free and you can do it anywhere!

Anchored Tides Recovery Wants to Help

We want to help you get sober and stay sober. Reach out to us today with any questions you may have regarding our program. We’re happy to talk about all of the resources we provide women seeking sobriety. You can do it!

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Women’s Addiction Treatment: Why It’s Necessary

Dealing with treatment and recovery from substance abuse is a hardship for all involved, and that can be compounded by generic programs that don’t take into account the needs of different clients. The fact is, women have a very different path more often than not when trying to pick up again after addiction. Unlike men, women are more frequently in the role of needing to be a direct care provider for children or elders at the same time that they need to address their own mental, physical, emotional and personal needs. As a result, a women-only rehabilitation program is oftentimes a far better approach than a mixed audience option.

Why Women’s Specific Treatment Is Important

Finding addiction treatment specifically geared for women, however, can be challenging. Many programs are geared for all-gender therapeutic treatment and don’t cater to a women-only environment request. And that can leave a patient uneasy or exposed and vulnerable to male clients in the same residential setting. Granted, many programs provide a very high level of security and treatment care for clients and don’t intend to create an unsafe environment. That said, the mixing of vulnerable clients has sometimes been a negative factor in treatment conditions versus an improvement.

The other factor that a mixed audience treatment program can’t directly provide is that women going through similar scenarios may often build bonds in their commonality and strong friends who reinforce each other far better through treatment than any external person could provide them, including medically-trained staff. Those kinds of personal synergies can help a client stay on track, even well after the addiction treatment has ended because the close friendship connection has not.

Is A Women’s Only Rehabilitation Right For You?

There is no one-size-fits-all approach to substance abuse treatment. Regardless of the fact that people are frequently categorized by the type of addiction, demographics and even economic background, people’s situations are fundamentally different from each other when one gets into the details. One situation may very well be a cascading problem of job loss, divorce and family strife contributing to addiction for distraction and trying to get away from the problems. Another situation may be rooted in one’s family history from decades before. Another may be triggered by abusive relationships that act as a catalyst for substance abuse. If a treatment program applied a generic approach to every case coming in the door, a good portion of clients would fail, which is a big problem with many generic treatment providers.

With a women-only rehabilitation center, a patient could very well be a good fit for the gender-specific treatment approach if there is a history of relationship problems with men that act as a catalyst for addictive behavior. In other cases, female patients may be very apprehensive in mixed crowds but in a women-only environment, it becomes easier to open up, which contributes to adjustment and learning versus being defensive. Still, other female clients may want to stay close to their children during treatment and can’t do so in a mixed-gender addiction treatment program. Female clients who find strength in common experience will frequently find benefits in recovering with other women who’ve lived similar lives too.

Women Need Enhanced Rehab Treatment

Many generic programs again only provide the same approach for all patients that come through the door. However, because of the physical toll substance abuse can take, withdrawal effects can be far stronger on women than men. As a result, a second particular aspect female clients or their families need to consider is that the program can address the additional help a female client will likely want or need in the recovery process. These issues often include mental and psychological conflicts of personal worth, sensitivity to groups and societal norms, or fear of the legal system being aggressive towards women in general. Childcare, as mentioned before, is also a big concern for many female patients afraid they might lose their children committing to an addiction treatment program. So, treatment approaches that accommodate mothers are essential to alleviate this fear and reason for not seeking help.

Getting Help That Works

Anchored Tides Recovery is a comprehensive dual-diagnosis enhanced program designed specifically for women, by women. We offer various levels of outpatient services including a partial hospitalization program (PHP), an intensive outpatient program (IOP), an outpatient program (OP), and long-term recovery monitoring with aftercare. If you’re a woman finding treatment for yourself, another female friend, or a loved one, it can be challenging. Call us today. We can help you get the support your need.

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