Mae09

I was wondering how many people were able to kick this thing without inpatient rehab, I clearly am not. I am waiting to hear back within the hour from an intake specialist, my insurance does cover the majority of the costs, that hasn't been the hesitation of going, I am having a hard time thinking about being away from the family for 28 days, work security, in the process of trying to sell our home, living with strangers, dealing with past issues, etc.... In fact this same rehab knows who I am by all of my calls and said "are you ready yet," "we hope you are." I am ready I just wish there was an easier way. I quit outpatient treatment, tried AA, have ready every book on recovery. I am running out of options at 37 years old drinking a large bottle of rum everyday for for YEARS can't possibly last much longer... Thanks.

DayTrader

No rehab here. I did and still do some outpatient counseling but it's only because my therapist is on board with her own powerlessness. I went through 3 or 4 substance abuse counselors and not one of them was worth a...... well.... I didn't get anything from them other than the realization that they wanted me IN therapy and paying them......for a long time.

I've met far too many ppl who go to rehab expecting to get fixed.....only to come out, relapse and wonder what happened - what was that $2, $3, $5-grand spent for??? I'm glad rehab wasn't on the table for me. I'm sure I would have loved it but I know it would have kept me away from the one thing that's been working for the past several years.

I know rehab works for some ppl but my experience is that, if you're a real alcoholic, you'll need to find a power a whole lot greater than human-power - especially after rehab ends.

Anna

I didn't do rehab either.

I turned to books, which have always aved my life, and I reconnected with my spiritual self. Recovery is a lifelong journey.

I hope you find what works for you.

julez

Well I only have 24 days sober, but I'm feeling really great, and I haven't used rehab or anything else structured. So far, I am changing my lifestyle and point of view through reading, and also being on this website A LOT. Its been enough for me, but if it wasnt I would definitely do something more.

aasharon90

Hi, Im Sharon and Im an Alcoholic.

By the grace of my HP an people
like you here in SR I havent had
a drink of alcohol since 8-11-90.

For that and you I am truely grateful.

Family stepped in for me with an
intervention getting me help I so
needed at that time in my life.

They did for me what I couldnt
do for myself and Im extremely
grateful.

2 weeks into rehab and I was
to be sent home. Them letting
me know if i was released and
went home, I wouldnt stay sober.

So they wanted to send me to
a halfway house out of state
away from my 2 little ones and
family.

I pleaded I would do anything
to stay there just to not be sent
away any longer than I was.

In agreement i spent 28 days in
treatment with a 6 week outpatiant
aftercare program tacked on.

I did whatever it was needed to
get back to my 5 and 6 yr old.

Rehab gave me the tools and
knowledge and set me on the
path of recovery living one day
at a time.

That was 20 yrs ago as I continue
on the path of recovery incorperating
what was so freely passed on to me
by many living sober and free.

Suzie12

Hiya hun,

I did not use rehab either, but as you say you are clearly not able to quit solo atm. Everyone is different. I can understand how hard it is for you to be away from home, work and all the committments that go with it, BUT 28 days is such a short time to be away and think how wonderful the rest of your life will be after it. If you have tried and cannot do this without inpatient rehab then it may be your only option.

Suzie x

LaFemme

Ditto.

I used to think Rehab was a great idea...mostly because it sounds like a chance to check out of life for a month. The problem is you have to be sober in real life.

My perception of Rehab is also that it is essentially AA on steroids...as someone who is not interested in AA most rehabs don't appeal to me:-)

stanleyhouse

Rehab was the best money i ever spent. I learned so much, received a ton of one on one therapy to deal with all my depression and alcoholism. And had time away from alcohol while my body recovered from the physical addiction.
I'll be thinking of you.
Sh

Chloe60

Everybody is different. We are all at different stages of dependancy too. It seems that ALL success stories that I have read about relied upon some kind of Greater Power, even if they did go to inpatient rehab. I have a friend who is a fabulous priest, and he went to inpatient rehab. I'm positive he brought a Higher Power with him! That was about 15 successful years ago. Best wishes!!!!!

keithj

My experience with both rehab and long term sobriety in AA is that rehab is a very watered down version of AA.

If rehab were AA on steroids, I wouldn't see so many people finally get sober by taking AA's 12 Steps after coming out of their 8th rehab stint.

A detox and rehab can be a great start to recovery. But it is only a beginning. A life-long, fundamental change in one's reaction to life is generally required. Rehab never makes that promise. It promises, instead, to point you in the right direction for that fundamental change.

trixieisme

I did not do rehab. I almost did. Actually went last December to do an inpatient assessment, and from the answers that I gave, and the anxiety attack that I had when they showed me the actual unit I would be staying on, they didn't want me to leave that day. They were ready to find a room for me right then and there, and worry about the insurance and everything afterwards. But, I had to go home that day, and never went back. I have been able to stay sober now, without rehab, but with the help of SR and AA and a few close friends that I have. Without that, I would not be where I am today.

DayTrader

I'll second that....
... but it IS a great start for most everyone that goes - whether it's the first, 2nd, 3rd or 4th, etc time there.

TenNinetySix

I tried on my own & couldn't do it. I have the utmost admiration for the people who can.

The having to be in a place with a lot of strangers really, really threw me for awhile too because I am a loner by nature, a hermit. And most of the people I went through with have already relapsed; but then I don't think the odds are any better for the people who try to stop on their own. It's the nature of the beast, I guess. And I think Rehab is like everything else in life... you get out what you put in. I wanted desperately to be sober, to stop. I couldn't, for whatever reason, do it on my own. For one thing, I was pretty far gone & needed medical supervision for the detox part & I live in a small town where there is one doctor & no real hospital... that's 100 miles away. Nobody WANTED me to try to detox here after they saw me try, including the one doctor. He said it would be too dangerous.

I went through with people who claimed the facility failed them because they couldn't hack life on their own out in the real world but I personally feel like that's crap-- We got handed the tools to stay sober; they just get heavier to carry when you're on your own, like everything else & at that point it becomes a choice. You either keep doing it or you decide it's too hard & you don't. You have to make that fundamental change in your life like Keithj wrote. Rehab, just like doing it at home, is just the beginning. In fact, it's kinda the easy part, isn't it? Getting sober is easy. LIVING sober is the hard part. I had a friend tell me the other day, also a recovered alcoholic, that 'Recovery ain't for Sissies'-- she used another word for Sissies but I don't want to break the forum rules. And she is soooooo right Getting sober is just the first part. Staying sober, being in Recovery, actually FEELING & having to deal with all the stuff in your head that you were drinking to avoid in the first place-- THAT is the tough part. You have to want it & you have to make major changes & it takes a lot of guts whichever way you do it.

Fandy

ditto for me too....and as someone else said "different stage of dependency"

SR is my main source of support and changing my mindset.

flutter

I didn't go to rehab, but pretty much had to work just as hard on my recovery, without staying somewhere else overnight.

Dee74

Hi Mae09

I didn't do rehab myself, but I know several other people here who did and who found the experience positive, so I hope maybe you'll hear from them.

D

aasharon90

Rehab for me put me in
a controled inviroment
away from temptations
of alcohol.

Sure I got po'd at times
in rehab but I couldnt reach
for a drink. I had to listen
and absorb what I could
and work it out the best
I could.

With exercises there I was
able to swet out all the
alcohol from my system.

I also learned about getting
into a healthy routine each
day.

Waking up, exercises, group
sessions, meetings....

If I had to do it all again....
Id go to rehab.

Of course today I will keep
working what I learned yrs.
ago in my every affairs.

It works if you work it and I
believe that saying.

LexieCat

I didn't do rehab, but I promised myself that if going to AA on my own didn't "work" that would be my next step. I went to AA, did 90 meetings in 90 days (which, many will tell you, isn't a magic bullet to keep you sober), and I will have two years sober at the end of this week.

I think it might be beneficial for you, simply because you haven't had any success without it. It might work to get you really focused, away from the regular distractions, and help get you started on good footing. As others have pointed out, though, you still have to cope with "real life" when you get out.

It's really up to you--you can always go back to AA and work the program as if your life depended on it. It just might.

justjo

Do what works for you. Listen to your own heart, what is your body telling you to do. If you decided to go to a live-in rehab for 28 days away from your family, its not along time. It could be the beginning for you.
Image if you keep drinking, putting off your recovery and you get worse, your family may never see you again. Worth thinking about isnt it?
JJ

artsoul

I did go to rehab (twice, infact) and had two small children at home and lots of responsibilities. I think I needed it because of the constant pressures and distractions - it really gave me an opportunity to work on me for a change.

It also gave me 30 days sobriety, which I wasn't able to do on my own (even with AA) and a lot of tools. Furthermore, I got attention for some OCD issues and was treated for the first time for depression (which had been with me off and on since my late teens). So, all in all, it was a great gift.

As far as being similar or dissimilar to AA, I guess that depends on your point of view. We attended a few meetings and started on the 12 steps, but I'd say 90% of both treatment centers I went to were more counseling/medical/education in nature.

Best of luck to you in your decision!!:ghug3