What Are Reasons Treatment Can Fail?

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A man wonders why his treatment program failed.
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If you or someone close to you is struggling with addiction, you may have dealt with situations in the past where treatment was tried but failed. There are several reasons treatment can fail, and it doesn’t mean that there is no hope but rather that a different type of treatment should be attempted at a different time.

Top Reasons Treatment Can Fail

So, what are the main reasons treatment can fail? One of the biggest is that a person simply isn’t ready. Another is that they had the wrong level of care. One of the final reasons treatment can fail is that someone wasn’t given enough support after their immediate inpatient or outpatient program.

Poor Motivation

One of the biggest reasons that treatment can fail is that someone doesn’t have the right motivation. This is not a personal shortcoming or indicative of failure but from time to time clients will check themselves into an inpatient or an outpatient program at the behest of a loved one.

A close friend or family member may have requested or even demanded that someone seek help for addiction, but deep down, it wasn’t a personal choice, and that individual simply wasn’t ready from a motivational standpoint.

Things like motivational interviewing can certainly help with this, and so can a more holistic approach to treatment.

Lack of Support 

There are times when treatment fails because an individual doesn’t have the right type of support.

For example:

  • Studies indicate that individuals are more likely to succeed in an addiction or mental health treatment program if they have support from their families
  • Individuals who have an underlying mental health disorder might need co-occurring treatment and fail to get it
  • Those who struggle with addiction to things like opioids or alcohol might require FDA-approved medication for medication-assisted treatment and fail to receive it because the facility they are using is unqualified 

Wrong Level of Care

Another big reason treatment can fail is that an individual client is participating in the wrong level of care.

There are several levels of care for addiction, ranging from a full residential program where an individual resides at a treatment facility full-time and has supervision twenty-four hours per day to outpatient programs where individuals participate in support group meetings once per week.

Sometimes a client will participate in a level of care that is inadequate for what they need. This often happens when someone looks at healthcare coverage or tries to pay for treatment out of pocket and they opt for the cheapest or most affordable option which is generally the lowest level of care. However, not all levels of care are created equally and sometimes people struggle because they are getting the wrong level of support.

Inadequate Aftercare

Tangentially, people can complete a program successfully but fail to have supportive aftercare, which means they leave something like a residential program without any type of peer support or assistance with things like housing. Then, they find themselves reverting to old habits with old friends and dealing with a relapse.

Getting Treatment with The Differents

At our facility, we know that there are several reasons treatment can fail and that is why we prefer a personalized approach that incorporates several levels of holistic treatment.

Non-Verbal Communication

If you are not someone who is comfortable sharing intimate information with a therapist in a traditional office space, you can participate in our equine therapy. With guided interactions, you’ll be able to focus more on self-reflection and nonverbal communication with your therapist. This opportunity can facilitate emotional insight and deeper connection without the pressure of sitting in a sterile office space. 

Connections to Nature

At The Differents, we understand the importance of connecting to nature as part of your recovery. Sometimes the reasons treatment can fail have to do more with feeling confined in a hospital space or not being able to connect with majestic landscapes and deep reflection. To help overcome this hindrance, we provide winter adventures with snowshoeing and skiing, ice skating, and sledding escapes in the nearby Tahoe mountains. We also offer opportunities to observe wild Mustangs across vast expanses of public land, reconnecting with the world.

Amenities

We also know that a lack of amenities can make it difficult to find peace during your treatment and stay focused on long-term recovery. That is why we offer top-tier beauty professionals at our luxury drug rehab to give clients exclusive pampering ranging from luxurious massages, revitalizing facials, or rejuvenating manicure and pedicure sessions. All of this works in tandem with the rest of your treatment plan to support a holistic recovery approach and improve your level of self-love. 

Overall, there are several reasons treatment can fail, but thankfully, each failure is an opportunity to learn. If you or someone close to you has tried treatment before and struggled with failure, take time to determine whether you might do better with a different level of care, a different type of treatment, or continuing aftercare.

Reach out to our team today to discuss why our amenities make recovery easier. 

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