Holistic Alcohol Treatment

A happy man

There are many choices for alcohol rehab, with one of them being holistic alcohol rehab. For certain types of people, this would be their first choice. For others, once they have been to other types of rehabs and found them unsuccessful, they may realize that what they really need is a holistic alcohol rehab to address the many facets of addiction.

Any holistic healthcare service addresses the whole person when a plan is developed to resolve ills affecting the body, mind or spirit. And certainly, the need for alcohol rehab includes components of all three aspects of one’s survival. When a person is addicted to alcohol, it definitely affects their mind, decisions and choices. Since high levels or consistent alcohol consumption are very hard on the body, a person’s physical health suffers. As well, a person addicted to alcohol struggles spiritually.

A holistic alcohol rehab would therefore include therapies that benefit all three areas of the person’s life. Treatment that is holistic would improve a wide range of an individual’s concerns, health, life situations and attitudes. If all these areas were benefitted as part of a holistic alcohol rehab program, it could be much more likely to succeed than a narrower address to the problem of addiction.

Contrasting Holistic Alcohol Rehab to Other Types

A group speaking

A holistic alcohol rehab must improve a person’s ability to resolve the problems in life that they might not have been facing. When these problems are resolved by teaching the individual better life skills and attitudes, they become able to resolve these problems through their own decisions and action. When they can do this, then they are more likely to be able to continue the same action after they go home.

If an individual simply consults with a counselor, advisor or even a group (as in group therapy) for advice on how to better face their own life, they may not build these same skills on which they can rely in the future.

Many people benefit from Twelve Step programs and there are actions incorporated into the Twelve Steps that would be universally therapeutic. The emphasis in this type of program is not on improving the physical aspects of addiction, however, nor on broadly developing life skills so life can be faced better in the future.

A holistic drug rehab program is intensively concerned with generating a more positive attitude in those who go through the program, benefiting health, and building those life skills that will be essential in the future.

What Can Detoxification Do for a Person in Holistic Alcohol Rehab?

In most alcohol rehabs, detoxification has a very specific meaning. It only refers to the period of time when a person goes through withdrawal from the drug they were taking. When the drug was alcohol, those entering rehab may need medical support and supervision during this period. Withdrawal for a constant drinker can trigger a high fever, seizures and even delirium. In very serious cases, alcohol withdrawal can be fatal.

Some people who drink too much and too often may yet not need admission to a medically supervised service as they go through withdrawal. A review of the person’s drinking and medical history along with a medical examination will be able to determine what type of support they will need.

Detoxification gets a person ready to start rehab. They need to have at least a fairly clear vision to be able to participate in their own recovery.

Even after a person has completely withdrawn and is no longer suffering from the immediate effects of alcohol, many symptoms may remain. The “Post Acute Withdrawal Symptoms” can persist for days, months or even years after a person has completely detoxed from their alcohol use. A holistic approach to alcohol addiction can improve these persistent symptoms as well as the immediate ones.

Addressing barriers to sobriety that might exist because of toxins in a person’s body is an essential part of a holistic approach to recovery.

Enjoying Life in the Present

A period of one’s life spent trapped in alcoholism or alcohol addiction creates a sense of guilt and upset. Creating a new, positive life is so much easier when this guilt and upset are relieved. A holistic alcohol rehab would address this aspect of alcohol addiction recovery as well. Freeing a person’s mind of these burdens is an important aspect of holistic alcohol rehab.

New Sober Living Skills

Addiction to alcohol becomes a never-ending round of telling lies, hiding alcohol bottles and planning one’s life around access to drinks. But now there needs to be a new pattern to one’s life that does not involve lies and intoxication. Two women talking

Planning for Lasting Sobriety

The simple act of returning to life and work after rehab can be very challenging and the holistic approach provides solutions for this as well. Since addiction is not viewed as a disease, but rather a barrier to living life, it is possible to plan for sobriety. Taking up new hobbies, getting a new job or participating in a new spiritual practice are all ways that the holistic approach can be put into a daily lasting plan.