The Concept of Non 12 Step Drug Rehab

How Non 12 Step Drug Rehab is Different

Perhaps the largest difference that we come across between the two approaches is the fact that the 12-step program sees the dependence on drugs or alcohol as ‘the primary problem’. This means that according to the traditional approach, the problem stems forth from addiction. Address that issue and the patient should start recovering.

Meanwhile, the non-traditional treatment options look at recovery in a different light. They believe that dependence plays an important role in the issue, but there are also underlying issues that have to be addressed. The big difference is the perception of what actually constitutes ‘treatment’. We will try to elaborate the difference by giving you a (simplified) medical analogy.

If you happened to fall and break your ankle, you would likely head to the doctor. You might be surprised if your doctor refused to look at the ankle, did not tape it or do an X-ray, but rather just gave you a few prescription painkillers to make you feel more comfortable with a broken ankle. You would likely want your physician to look at the ankle, determine the fracture and make sure that the bone would heal properly. Both instances deal with the immediate problem (i.e. intense pain caused by a broken ankle) but only one of the two would ultimately address the underlying issue. The same goes for treating the dependence on illicit substances, you cannot hope to provide long-term change without addressing underlying causes.

The Motivation is Different

However, the underlying approach is not the only thing that is different in non-traditional programs. The twelve-step approach emphasizes the need for a Higher Power and promotes the acceptance of subjection to addiction. When you hear that, you may ask yourself “Where does personal responsibility factor in here?” The truth is that accepting that you are powerless means taking personal responsibility out of the equation. Because you are suggesting, “It is not up to me whether I succeed or not”. Meanwhile, the non-traditional facilities do the exact opposite.

They try to find ways to empower the client, to let them know that if they ever want to make a change in their lives, it has to come from them – no one else can do it for them. By offering change, help and support, it means that patients have to come up with their own intrinsic motivation to find something that can help them overcome dependence. Sometimes this does push people further than they expected and it may get uncomfortable. However, ultimately what matters is whether the patient has the intrinsic motivators to make a lasting change. If not, everything done in recovery is only temporary, because the second the patient is unsupervised they will return to their old ways.

An Alternative Treatment Plan

If you go through the basic stages of the traditional twelve-step plan, you may begin to notice that they feel inflexible. Patients all undergo the same procedure and are expected to make improvements following the same steps. If the user does not improve at the expected pace or has a setback, the program is never to blame (considering many of its followers consider the 12-step program to be infallible).

Blaming the patient, a person who is already feeling sad and disillusioned because of their struggles, is only going to push them even further away from recovery. Perhaps you can take a moment and imagine how jaded you would feel if someone told you that you did not put in the effort, even though you have just tried to make it through one of the most difficult things anyone could hope to do.

The alternative programs rely on highly individualized treatment plans. These plans remain flexible, meaning that if the patient does not move at the pace of the program (whether this be positive or negative), the program adjusts to the needs of the patient. If something does not provide the desired results, you have to change the approach until something starts to improve. This clearly speaks to the idea that there is no one-size-fits-all approach when it comes to patients in recovery.