Traveling For Treatment
Choosing a rehab center is an essential step in overcoming addiction. Sometimes, it might be more prudent to select a location that’s out-of-state for your addiction treatment. There might not be anything wrong with the treatment centers in your home state, but there are many reasons why traveling to another state might benefit you in your quest for addiction recovery.
The environment can play a crucial part in recovering from addiction. Addiction is fueled and maintained by a person’s environment in many cases. Additionally, some cities may not have high-quality addiction treatment centers. The quality of a treatment center is vital to a patient’s long-term recovery. Thus, choosing to travel for recovery opens the doors to world-class facilities that use technology and modern methods to help their patients.
Do People Travel for Addiction Treatment?
It’s not far-fetched to hear of people leaving their home state to find better treatment options. Traveling for rehab can give a person the mindset of setting out on a journey, similar to the idea of the road to recovery. However, there are other important reasons why people choose treatment in a different place. Since checking into these rehab centers is all voluntary, not having friends or family nearby can reduce the temptation just to walk out and leave.
Another significant reason people opt for out-of-state rehab is the stigma around rehabilitation for drug and alcohol use disorder. Some people are afraid that staying in their home state for treatment might leave them or their families vulnerable to ill-treatment because of their former lifestyles. It’s a lot easier to explain to an employer that one is leaving for a mini-sabbatical than admitting one is planning to go to rehab. Doing so out of state gives them the excuse to leave the things that might have promoted or supported their addiction behind.
We accept most Major Insurance Providers.
Benefits To Traveling for Rehab
Traveling for rehab brings with it several unique benefits that a person might appreciate, as opposed to remaining local for their treatment. These include:
- New Environment: There’s less chance of a person being lulled into relapse by old friends. There are also fewer places where the person knows they can get the substance, making it harder for them to give in to their urges.
- Confidentiality: Going out of state for rehab ensures that people within a patient’s local area or community won’t be aware of what they’re doing. Sometimes, this can help them by not having to worry about gossip.
- Better Focus: Traveling for rehab removes the potential for relapse from loss of focus. Because there aren’t a lot of distractions in a new locale, a person can spend more time focusing on their recovery.
- Harder to Leave Rehab: As mentioned before, it’s much more challenging to leave rehab when a person is in a new city. In some cases, this might be what a person needs to remain in rehab throughout the entire course.
Traveling for rehab shouldn’t be something scary. A person should see it as a way to put some distance between themselves and their past.
Being Committed to Remaining In Treatment
Staying in treatment is crucial to overcoming addiction. Because many of these rehab centers are voluntary, the onus is on the person who is trying to recover to stay through the course of treatment. Individuals who attend therapy out of state tend to have a much lower abandonment rate than those who stay locally. Some individuals believe that recovery ends with detox and that they can handle the rest of the struggle on their own. Unfortunately, this isn’t strictly the case.
In addition to detox (which breaks physical dependence), a person needs to consider the psychological impact of the substance. Part of addiction has to do with the conditioned response to the substance. Therapy can help with this, allowing patients the tools they need to remain sober over the long term. Being committed to treatment is the only way a person can learn the techniques to avoid relapse when back in the real world.
Disadvantages To Travelling for Rehab
Unfortunately, it’s not all rainbows and sunshine for people traveling long distances for rehab. Doing this out of state has its own issues. For people who choose to search for rehab outside of their home state, there are a few disadvantages that may impact them, including:
- No or Few Visits: Loved ones may not be able to visit the recovering person. While this might be a benefit if the family environment contributes to their addiction, it’s a drawback in most cases. Family interaction is essential in developing a social network that can support a person post-rehab.
- Aftercare Challenges: Aftercare happens when a person leaves rehab. Usually, a rehab center will help set up a support group or introduce the recovering person to one of the existing ones in the area. This approach becomes complicated if the person resides out of state.
- Potentially Expensive: While a rehab center might be affordable, the trip itself might not be. If a patient must fly across the country to get treatment, it could impact their decision.
Risks And Temptations Close to Home
One of the main reasons people leave their local area for rehab is the inherent risks and temptations that exist close to home. Among these are:
- Early Quitting: With a family unit so close by and friends that may not have the patient’s best interest at heart, quitting early might be an option they might want to explore. The problem with leaving rehab too early is that it may lead to relapse because the patient isn’t adequately equipped to deal with temptation.
- Too Many Distractions: While friends and family are essential in helping a person quit, they may also be why it takes longer for them to overcome their condition. With the temptation of friends or family a few miles away, a patient might simply decide they’re better off staying there and hoping to overcome addiction on their own.
- Lower Quality Care: Some places simply don’t have the professionals or the facilities to offer high-quality long-term rehab. In choosing a local facility, a patient may be settling for a lower quality of care in the interest of expediency.
Transportation To Out of State Treatment
Leaving the state for treatment has several options for a person. Depending on how far away the treatment center is and the number of things the patient intends to carry, their travel options are flexible.
- Car: Using a car to get to a treatment center might be a good option for some. the car offers easy storage for bags for travel. It may also be affordable, depending on the fuel price and efficiency of the vehicle. Unfortunately, a car also has the drawback of giving a patient an easy way to leave rehab and return home if they so choose.
- Bus: Buying a bus ticket is an affordable way to go a long distance to a rehab center. The downside of a bus is that the patient is limited in what can be carried. Since the rehab center is far from the patient’s home, they need to plan to avoid forgetting to bring things. The bus also makes it more difficult for patients to leave before completing rehab.
- Airplane: The fastest way to get out of state is via airplane. Even with low-cost budget flights to different states, it might still be more expensive than some patients can manage on their income. It also comes with the limitation on how much a person can carry.
Travel And Aftercare Integration
Aftercare integration is a critical part of recovery. Unfortunately, because a recovered patient might be traveling back to their home state after rehab, some rehab centers have difficulty setting up aftercare for their recovered patients. Facility-based aftercare would not be possible in many cases since the patient will no longer be within the state to take advantage of those programs. Sober living homes can be an option for individuals who want to stay on a little longer. These facilities allow a person to get acquainted with life outside of a rehab facility by allowing them to remain in a controlled environment.
Therapy and counseling sessions are also a crucial part of aftercare that some people overlook. While a person living out of state may not be able to benefit directly from these facilities, they can seek out similar facilities closer to home. Group therapy and support groups may also provide much-needed aftercare for a person who is going back to their own home state. These are available in most cities, so there’s always a chance for availability.
We accept most Major Insurance Providers.
Choosing A Rehab Facility
The choice of a rehab facility is critical for the success of a patient’s recovery. The choice of whether to stay locally or leave the state to seek treatment. Both options have pros and cons and choosing one that most suits the patient is the best bet to ensure success.
South Shores Recovery incorporates behavioral therapies in helping clients overcome their addiction. Through a dedicated approach that is unique for each patient, we offer personalized care for each of our clients. Contact us today to find out what you’ll need for your visit to our amazing facilities in beautifulSan Juan Capistrano, California!