Whether it’s drug or alcohol addiction, or some other behavioural addiction that you or a loved one are struggling with, knowing the success rates of rehabilitation could help you move forwards with confidence and actually seek the professional support you need.
To be clear, studies from across the world, measuring different success rates for recovery from different addictions ranging from drugs and alcohol to sex, shopping, and other behavioural addictions, found that success rates (defined, in this case, as no relapse after the first year) sit at around 30-70%. Of course, there are a range of factors that affect these success rates, which we’ll explore below.
The biggest factor affecting long term sobriety after rehab is commitment. Commitment to abstain from the addictive behaviour and commitment to seeking support when that abstinence is tested. But we’ll talk about this more below.
What Is Rehab?
Most people wrongly assume rehab is for those dealing with drug and alcohol dependence only, but there doesn’t have to be any substance or drug abuse involved in a person’s addiction. At InnerLife Recovery, we offer addiction treatment for a range of behavioural as well as substance abuse addictions.
But what exactly is rehab?
That’s much more difficult to define than most people realise, too. Rehab treatment is essentially where a person engages in a variety of intervention therapies and activities to stop their compulsive behaviours or compulsive return to certain substances. Rehab aims to tackle underlying causes of addiction and provides the person struggling with addiction new coping skills and techniques to prevent them from returning to their addiction in the future.
That’s fairly clear cut, but what rehab actually looks like will differ from rehab programme to rehab programme. Some are residential, some are hospital based. Others are at-home, and others still see a hybrid of all of the above. Different therapies are used, different activities are focused on and some will have a medication assisted treatment approach, and others won’t.
Rehab looks different from treatment provider to provider, but they all aim to support you with tackling your addiction and turning your life around. That’s certainly always our aim at InnerLife Recovery.
What Are The Success Rates Of Rehab?
Success rates vary considerably based on addiction, treatment approach, and aftercare support, but generally they sit at around 30-70%, where success is measured as abstinence from the addictive behaviour one year after treatment.
Alcohol and drug addiction treatment is obviously much more heavily researched than other behavioural addictions, so much of the research is surrounding alcohol and drug rehab specifically, but the results are often similar.
Measuring success is also a difficult thing. The example above defines success as having engaged in the addictive behaviour 0 times in the year following treatment. But is that a fair measure of success?
How Do You Define ‘Rehab Success’?
If you think that 30-70% success sounds quite low for addiction treatment, just remember that other chronic diseases like asthma and diabetes see similar results after intervention. And more importantly, success can be measured in different ways.
Not all success rates reported are based on the same definition of success. For example, success rates can be reported based on the % of participants who:
- completed the treatment programme
- reduced their addictive behaviour following treatment (but didn’t stop entirely)
- continued engagement in aftercare recovery
- relapsed less than X amount of times following treatment
- never took part in the addictive behaviour ever again
There are countless ways to define success rates for rehab, and all will have differing results based on addiction relapse. Success rates and addiction recovery definitions differ based on treatment provider and for the individuals taking part in the treatment, too.
Why Do Success Rates Vary So Much?
Behavioural addiction and substance abuse treatment have almost as much variation in success rates as mental health treatment outcomes, because what works for some people won’t work for others. It’s often not helpful to look at success rates for individual programmes or facilities because it doesn’t tell the full story.
For example, if there’s a treatment programme that reports a 30% success rate for abstaining from addictive behaviour one year after treatment, then you might raise your eyebrows and think that rehab doesn’t work. However, what that success rate really tells us is that the specific rehab treatment didn’t work for 70% of people, but worked wonderfully for 30%. That doesn’t mean rehab as a whole doesn’t work.
In fact, research by the CDC and the National Institute on Drug Abuse found that 75% of people who experience addiction and receive treatment for it will, eventually, recover – no matter how many times different programmes failed for them in the past.
What this teaches us is that whilst certain programmes and treatment approaches might not work for certain people, eventually the vast majority of people suffering from a behavioural addiction or substance use disorder will recover – it’s just about finding the right approach for them, which is something we pride ourselves on at InnerLife Recovery. We work tirelessly to create a treatment plan that prioritises finding what works for you.
What Factors Affect Rehabilitation Success?
Different factors will affect relapse rates for an individual but four of the most key factors in our experience are:
Commitment And Attitude
Without doubt, the single biggest factor that will impact a person completing treatment and then abstaining from their addiction is their commitment and attitude towards rehabilitation.
For those simply using rehab to appease family members or loved ones, rather than actively trying to make a change because they want to improve their lives for themselves, success rates plummet. But for those who come to a treatment programme with a genuine hope for and commitment to change, successful treatment outcomes are far more likely.
Whether it’s alcohol treatment or treatment for substance use disorders, or even rehab for behavioural disorders, if you attend treatment with the right attitude towards it, you’ll get far more out of it.
Residential Rehab vs At-Home Treatment
Although the following is American research, it’s widely believed that the results can be generalised because of the high participant numbers (1,722,503). The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, 2019, found that 73% of hospital/residential rehab participants completed the programme. This compares to only 42% for outpatient rehab participants.
Whilst numbers will inevitably vary from treatment approach to treatment approach, it is consistently shown that those who spend time in a rehab facility to support their recovery see better long term recovery and treatment outcomes than those who attempt to tackle their addiction whilst remaining at home.
Home Life
This third factor affecting rehab success actually relates very closely to the above point. Even if an individual receives expert treatment in a residential centre or hospital, their environment when they return home will have a huge impact on whether or not they have success long term.
Take Person A, for example. If Person A has: a loving, supportive family at home who encourages them in their recovery journey; avoids their previous contacts who engaged in addictive behaviours with them, and is in a home environment that allows them to actively fight against addiction triggers, then they’ll have a great chance of recovery long term.
Now look at Person B. If Person B lives alone, only has friends who engage in addictive behaviours who actively encourage them to revert back to their old ways, and is in a home environment that is surrounded by their triggers, they are much more likely to relapse.
That’s often why residential facilities are better for treatment completion outcomes, but unless a person’s home life changes significantly whilst they’re away, they may find themselves slipping back into old habits.
Personalised vs Standardised Treatment Approach
There are so many different treatment options for those battling addiction, but in many cases, if you access rehab support via the NHS and public services, those approaches are fairly standardised. That means that everybody facing the same addiction as you will likely have the same rehab programme offered to them.
The problem here, as we’ve already discussed, is that not everyone requires the same support and what works for one individual won’t necessarily work for another. Instead, there are far better outcomes for individuals who receive a personalised treatment plan.
Most private rehabilitation programmes offer personalised treatment plans because they have more options open to them. This allows professionals to work with you to find what works, giving you a better chance of long term success after completing treatment.
What Are The Completion Rates Of Addiction Treatment?
Talking of completing treatment, some rehabilitation programmes rate their success based on completion rates. Individuals who complete their full treatment programme for drug and alcohol use see substance use diminish by 50-70%. This could be life saving in some situations.
Unfortunately, only an estimated 42% of participants in drug and alcohol rehab actually complete the full course.
This can all be increased with the right attitude and commitment to the rehab programme, of course, but again completion rates highlight that some rehab methods simply don’t work for an individual. Whilst completion rates may be low, often it’s the people that complete the full course that have better success post-treatment.
Part of our treatment approach at InnerLife Recovery is to make your stay with us as comfortable as possible, giving you more reason to stay. Tackling your addiction head on can be an emotionally draining and difficult thing to do, which often leads to people quitting because it can be uncomfortable. By offering our services in a modern residential treatment centre in Spain, you’ll feel a greater commitment to treatment, reducing drop-out rates dramatically compared to if you were fighting your addiction at home.
What Does Continued Success Post-Treatment Look Like?
At InnerLife Recovery, continued success after a stay in our residential rehab facility in Spain means you make use of the aftercare support we put in place as part of your rehab treatment package. For us, continued success simply means you continue to work against your addiction, and our aftercare support can help you there.
Addiction is a lifelong battle, but with the right support network in place, you’ll be able to face your addiction and win every day.
Why Do We Achieve Higher Than Average Success Rates?
We see high success rates at InnerLife for a number of key reasons:
- Residential – by moving away from your home life you remove all temptations and distractions and instead get to focus on you and your recovery.
- Group and individual therapies – when you face your addiction head on with individuals in a similar boat, you find a support network, and when you face your addiction during one to one sessions with a professional, you find yourself.
- Holistic approach – we treat the whole person meaning we offer more than just standard therapies to ensure you leave our facility with a range of coping skills.
- Individualised treatment plans – at InnerLife we offer personalised plans that ensure we can support you in the best way possible during your stay.
- Aftercare support – aftercare is offered as standard with our services meaning you’ll get ongoing support to ensure continued success.
Work With Our Experienced Team Today
If you or a loved one are in need of addiction support, reach out to our team today. Our rehab success rates and dedicated team of professionals ensure your success. With a solid support system at our modern rehabilitation centre in Spain, you give yourself the best chance of recovery from your addiction.
Contact us today and find out how our treatment programme can help you.