Regular readers of this blog know that when we talk about substance use disorder treatment, we are generally looking at residential treatment. After all, there are benefits to getting help in a residential treatment facility. First and foremost among those advantages is that residential treatment takes you away from the temptations and stresses of your everyday life, letting you focus your full attention on doing the work to get yourself ready to launch your recovery journey.
Starting treatment with medically supervised detoxification that is immediately followed by rehabilitation in a residential setting can be an extremely effective way to go through treatment. In rehabilitation, you can be treated for co-occurring mental health disorders while benefiting from group and individual therapy sessions. Along the way, you gain resources, learn strategies, and create a network of support that can serve you well when your time in treatment comes to an end.
Sounds like a good plan, right? It absolutely is.
However, it is not right for every person in every situation. Some individuals are better served by what is known as an intensive outpatient program (often known as an IOP). Let’s take a look at the ins and outs of intensive outpatient programs and consider who might best benefit from them.
What Is an Intensive Outpatient Program?
Let’s start with the middle word first. “Outpatient”—which is the opposite of “inpatient”—simply means that you do not stay in the hospital or in a treatment facility around the clock. In the case of the Wooded Glen Recovery Center IOP, the program lasts 12 weeks, meets three times each, and each meeting lasts three hours. The Wooded Glen IOP has sessions scheduled on Monday, Wednesday, and Thursday from 9:00 a.m. to noon and 5:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m.
Okay, we know what “outpatient” means. Let’s consider “intensive.” You have perhaps encountered this idea in other contexts. Take, for example, a summer program that is intended to quickly teach you all that you would normally learn over the course of a semester. To do that, the work is going to be pretty intense—and that is why such a program is called an “intensive.”
Look back at the schedule we laid out in the first paragraph of this section. The IOP is an “intensive” because it seeks to provide all the treatment and support you might get in our residential program in a condensed format.
Wooded Glen’s intensive outpatient program is built around several evidence-based treatment curricula, including Seeking Safety, Living in Balance, Women in Recovery, and Men in Recovery. The IOP effectively addresses substance use disorders and mental health disorders over the course of the program. We also offer family education, case management, alumni services, and individual therapy through our IOP.
Those who participate in the program receive weekly individual sessions with a master’s-level clinician. Clinicians also assist with discharge planning to ensure a smooth transition to the next level of care and to ensure the client has the support they need to keep building on their early recovery efforts.
Who Benefits From an Intensive Outpatient Program?
Under what circumstances might a person choose an IOP over residential treatment? We can think of at least a couple of situations that could make an outpatient program preferable.
First, an IOP can be used as a kind of follow-up program to residential treatment. In this case, the intensive outpatient program gives a person whose recovery is just getting started significant, regular support—which can be absolutely essential in the early days after residential treatment has come to an end.
People who have significant responsibilities they cannot leave behind to seek out residential treatment for a substance use disorder can also benefit from an outpatient program. While participating in the IOP will still require you to make arrangements with a range of folks—including your partner, your kids, your boss and coworkers, and more—so that you can attend the required sessions, the IOP is generally less disruptive to your day-to-day life.
That is a balancing act, of course. Yes, the IOP is less disruptive, but it is also less tightly focused due to its intermittent nature and leaves you open to various temptations and missteps that simply can’t come up in a residential program.
We Would Be Happy to Talk it Through With You
One blog post (no matter how beautifully written or how bursting with information it may be) is unlikely to answer all of your questions about the pros and cons of residential approaches to treatment and intensive outpatient programs. Our team is always ready to discuss your options with you. If you are struggling with drugs or alcohol, the most important thing is that you get treatment of one kind or another right away.
Let Wooded Glen Provide the Help You Need
Located in Henryville, Indiana, Wooded Glen Recovery Center boasts a team of caring staff members who believe that it is time for you to start living again. We will help you learn how to leave drugs or alcohol in your past so that you can build a more positive future for yourself.
Our beautiful campus sits on 500 acres of scenic private forested land. This serene environment offers the perfect setting for reflection, renewal, and exceptional care.