Intensive outpatient program, which is short for “IOP” is a form of drug abuse treatment where the patient can get treated a few times in a week at a rehab facility and then come home or go to work and go about their life. Unlike inpatient treatment, it is less expensive and is for people suffering from mild form of addictions. People who have depression, eating disorders, alcohol disorders etc. are recommended this treatment for drug abuse. This program does not ask the patient to stay at a facility for a specific period of time—it offers freedom to do what one used to do. So, if someone is suffering from mild form of addiction and is looking for an austin iop to treat this condition, they should make sure they understand the risks, its chances of working, and the procedure, which will be discussed below.

Wouldn’t Outpatient Program Be Risky?

Intensive outpatient programs can be risky. Many do not provide the detox procedure as well, as they consider it just a mild treatment for drug abuse. There is a high chance of relapse happening due to it being a part of outpatient program because the patient is only at a facility for 2 hours, and rest of the time, he or she is either working or with people. It is known that different places and different people as well as objects can trigger people and make them relapse, outpatient program solves this issue by only recommending this type of treatment for those that have good and supportive family member as well as friends.

How Does Intensive Outpatient Treatment Work?

The procedure is quite simple. A patient meets a health professional that will check them and see if the case is mild or severe, if it is mild they will recommend them for an intensive outpatient treatment program. The program works in a simple schedule, it usually starts around on weekdays, happens in the morning or in the evening. The program involves different types of therapies, they also give guidance about relapsing and the drug addiction the patient has been going with. They offer services such as counselling, some intensive outpatient treatment programs at numerous rehab centers offer the detox process. Some do not offer medical detox; it varies from rehab centers to rehab centers. Therefore, it is advisable to ask if detox is available in the rehab center’s austin iop treatment.

It is also important to note that one should not confuse outpatient program with intensive outpatient program. Outpatient program asks for 10-12 hours of treatment per week while intensive outpatient program asks for 8-9 hours of treatment 3-5 days a week. The treatment is called intensive because overall hours in a treatment day are higher as compared to the basic outpatient program one.

Aside from counseling as mentioned above, medication management, individual and group counseling/therapy is offered, support groups are given to the patients so that they won’t feel alone, they go through psychiatric screening and their case is managed through telling them about the drug addiction, the substance they were abusing at the same time what they can do now to no relapse.

What Are The Main Goals One Should Have While Going Through Intensive Outpatient Treatment?

The following are the main goals of intensive outpatient treatment:

• The first goal is to maintain abstinence.
• The second goal is to achieve a change in behavior.
• The third goal is to participate in support groups.
• The fourth goal is to address any psychological issues.
• The fifth goal is to improve skills when it comes to solving problems.

Therefore, look for an austin iop program that can offer detox treatment if you are looking for one in your mild addiction case, other than that, any intensive outpatient treatment you choose, your addiction to drugs will be over and you can resume you daily life as you used to, again.