Recognizing when you have an addiction and exploring your treatment options is the first step toward recovery. Knowing when to seek help can seem challenging at first, but knowing which signs to look for can help. You should consider treatment options if you or a loved one experiences any of the following habits or behaviors:
Dishonesty is a sign that substance use has become a problem. If someone is addicted to a substance, they may deny their actions or create excuses for why they are using the substance. They may also make great efforts to hide their substance use from loved ones.
Using substances such as drugs or alcohol to self-medicate is another sign of addiction. If you use harmful substances to cope with feelings such as anger, sadness, anxiety, depression, or frustration, addiction treatment can help. Using a prescribed medication as a doctor recommends is safe, but using any substances outside of a doctor’s recommendations is unsafe and a sign that treatment is necessary.
Substance use often causes negative consequences such as job loss, school expulsion, financial difficulties, and health complications. It’s important for an individual to seek addiction treatment if they continue using substances even when they experience negative consequences. Effective treatment can help you stop using substances when negative consequences are affecting your life.
Addiction hinders a person’s ability to function without drugs or alcohol. Someone with an addiction may find it difficult to attend social gatherings, spend time with family, get through their day, or sleep at night without using substances. If you often use substances to make it through your days or nights, addiction treatment can help you find freedom from addiction.
Losing relationships is another sign it may be time for addiction treatment. If using substances strains relationships with your family, friends, coworkers, or significant other, entering treatment can help you pursue recovery and work toward repairing lost relationships.
Addiction treatment tailored for women has the following benefits:
Women-only recovery programs address specific experiences and challenges young adult women and adult women may face during recovery. Substance use disorder often occurs with or as a result of other disorders, conditions, and traumatic experiences women are more likely to experience than men. Women in recovery often need support addressing challenges and topics such as the following:
Women are more likely to leave their treatment program before they are ready when they face childcare challenges. Women-specific recovery can appropriately support women who lack familial support systems at home.
With the right support, women can face distressing situations such as seeking childcare and addressing potential state intervention regarding their children. Assisting women with these challenges can help them remain in recovery until they are ready to return home or begin outpatient treatment.
Addressing experiences, challenges, and emotions in group or individual therapy with other women provides a safe space to discuss gender-specific topics. Women might be more open to talking about female-specific challenges one-on-one with another woman or in a group therapy setting with other women.
It can be challenging to explore sensitive topics in a co-ed group, so women-specific recovery provides a safe space for women to discuss these topics comfortably.
When women work through recovery with other women, they gain friendship and community. Gender-specific treatment programs give women opportunities to bond and build lifelong friendships. Recovering with other women experiencing similar challenges helps women foster honesty, trust, and compassion as they support one another.
Gender-specific treatment can also offer more support for women as they recover physically from substance use. Women can become addicted to a substance and experience physical side effects of substance use and withdrawal faster than men.
Women with substance use disorders can also experience health complications related to fertility, menopause, pregnancy, hormones, their menstrual cycle, and breastfeeding. Drinking also carries a higher chance of breast cancer in some women. Substance use disorder professionals with the clinical experience to address these factors are invaluable in women’s recovery. A women-specific recovery program can effectively care for women’s health as they recover.
Addiction treatment can help you begin your path to a healthier life. If you want to learn more about addiction treatment, you can refer to the following frequently asked questions:
Both women and men can use Vivitrol or Suboxone in addiction recovery. These medications can help individuals avoid relapse by partially activating opioid receptors. When medication partially activates these receptors, it eases physical withdrawal symptoms and decreases discomfort during detox.
Gateway Foundation offers treatment for various addictions such as alcohol, process addictions, and the following drugs:
You can call Gateway Foundation and talk with our experienced staff to begin treatment. We will walk you through each step of the admissions process by asking you questions about your unique needs and answering any questions you may have. Your conversation will be entirely confidential, and you can make the process even quicker and easier by having the following items ready when you call:
Care providers will help you determine the level of care you need based on several factors. Medical professionals conduct initial assessments to learn about patients’ needs, addictions, lifestyles, health and co-occurring disorders. During your initial assessment, your care provider will talk with you and determine which level of care is most effective for you.
The American Society of Addiction Medicine (ASAM) provides criteria to help care providers develop the safest and most effective treatment plan for each patient. ASAM criteria allow medical professionals to accurately evaluate clinical information, initial interviews, patient goals and field knowledge to determine which treatments will benefit patients the most.
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