Ethos23

I am at a crossroads. I have long put off going to any formal type of treatment. Just thought I didn't really need it. I recently did some honest sould searching and determined that I need to get help for my alcoholism just as one would get help for any other type of disease. There is a wonderful treatment center very close to my home. The problem is, the outpatient treatment is from 9 am to 3 pm and the inpatient is 28 days. They are also pricy, $4K and $18K, respectively. I believe the monetary cost is well worth it, given all of the damage I'm currently creating with my behavior. My problem is, I own my own business. I cannot be gone from 9 to 3 for a month, or be gone for an entire month. On the flip side, after this month hiatus, I would start each day with strength and vigor, rather than being hung over. What has everyone else done in this same type of situation?

I have been reading posts on here for some time now and I appreciate any feedback anyone can give me.

tomvlll

Have you considered AA?

AA does not require that you go to a treatment center.

Part of most most treament centers is the initial detoxification from drugs or alcohol. that usually takes ~ a week.
An unsupervised detox from any addictive substance can be dangerous but a unsupervised detox from a combination of drugs and alcohol. VERY dangerous.

Ethos23

tomvlll. I have considered AA and might just go in that direction. I do not require a detox. I have not reached the point of having DTs or anything like that (yet). Its just that everything is escalating.

RV GTO

tomvlll had a great idea with AA, and it's free. Also, I know some places offer outpatient at night but I don't know what's available close to you.

Mark75

Start going to some AA meetings, as others have suggested... but get a big book and find someone to help go through it with you. You may find what you are currently (seemingly) lacking.... HOPE!!

Reset

My therapist told me that, by far, the program with the best track record of success is AA, and that many of the expensive rehab programs aren't worth the money.

Take that for what it's worth (second hand advice on the internet ) but he pretty much talked me out of the rehab program route, and so far I'm glad.

I don't do AA but you can look around SR for threads for things people have done to devise their own programs.

Ethos23

Thank you for your reply. That is another factor I am considering. I don't want to be away from my family and spend a lot of $$ for something that is inferior to AA.

bigred95

If you live in a big city AA is also flexible with times. They are lots of places and times

Zebra1275

I would definitely try AA first if I were in your situation. You could go to the intensive out patient, or the 28 day in patient but both of those options are going to end at some point in time. At that point they are likely to recommend that you go to AA, so you could just skip ahead and go to AA now.

A lot of folks would recommend 90 meetings in 90 days and I know alot of successful people in AA who have done that. In most decent size communities you should have your pick of several meetings at various times each day within a short drive. If you do 90 in 90 and find that doesn't work for you, you still have the option of inpatient or intensive out patient treatment.

Supercrew

Ethos, being that you own your own business, have you ever thought of creating a daily program for yourself?

When I realized I needed help I thought hard about a rehab facility, but after reading all the different options regarding recovery I was convinced that I could create a workable program for myself. The support I was able to receive from this website made the difference, and it still allowed me the freedom to not leave my family or my job.

AA is also a great option, but I have an entrepreneurial spirit and I sometimes have problems following others instructions if I do not completely buy into a concept. As stated above AA is a great resource, but I found that I enjoyed the process of doing it myself, then using SR as a support mechanism.

Good luck!

auxilio

The main thing is not to do it by yourself! It is so much easier to learn from people who have been able to stay sober. I have learned the hard way. I drank in isolation and tried to stop drinking in isolation. It didn't work.

CarolD

When my doctor diagnosed me with situational depression
he suggested I abstain and go to AA.

It's been my choice of recovery program for years
and remains an awesome adventure in living sober...

Here is a list of structured programs for you to explore

http://www.soberrecovery.com/forums/...formation.html

welcome to our SR Alcoholism Forum

TheEnd

Maybe you could find one that offers and evening outpatient, they have one at the rehab I am currently at.

wes1

I was in a similar situation almost a year ago. I owned my own business and didn't want to be away from my family for so long, but needed to stop drinking as I was killing myself with alcohol. I entered a facility and did 7 days of in-patient and then completed 12 weeks of on-line recovery work that required 9 hours per week of participation on my own time/schedule.

The 4 primary things that keep me sober (off the top of my head) have been: 1) my strong faith in God, 2) proactively giving time, love, understanding, compassion, etc. to others (I'm constantly trying to improve on this one) 3) the tools. insights and things I learn from recovering addicts and expert counselors 4) having a solid support structure around me

Good luck.

Ethos23

Thank you so much for this post. I have kicked that idea around before, but never put too much thought into it. I too have a very hard time following a highly regimented program. I find it difficult because in all other areas of my life, I am striving to be unique and think outside of the box.

Thank you again. That post meant a lot.