Q1. What are the ways in which I can find a good detox program in Indiana?

Your surest bet would be the Internet. Go to any search engine and search for detox program in Indiana. You will get thousands of results. Some of these will be direct websites of the detox centers and some of them will be directories that contain listings of detox centers. Look at them carefully, weed out the ones you don't want and consider the ones that seem appealing to you.

Another method is to directly approach your family doctor or any treatment center in Indiana and ask them to help you locate a detoxification program. Most of these treatment centers will be affiliated with addiction centers and they will help you find what you are looking for.

If you are interested only in looking for centers that are state approved, then you can take the help of the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration website. You will find a Facility Locator link on this website from where you can search for various options that are present in the state. Of course, your telephone directory is of help too. Look under the section for Substance Abuse in Indiana.

Q2. Do all rehab centers in Indiana have their own detox treatment programs?

Most of them do, but don't expect all of them to have a detox program. If you are looking for a complete rehab package, you must look at their website to find out if they have a detox program or not. Some centers don't have detoxification facilities within their own center, but they might refer their patients to outside centers. Some of them would expect patients to get the detoxification done on their own steam and will then welcome them for the aftercare program. That is the reason you have to check out the website of the treatment program carefully. This will help you see if the center has what you are looking for.

Q3. What are the most important things that I must check on the website of a detox program in Indiana?

The first thing to look for is licensing. They must be licensed to provide the detoxification treatment in Indiana. If you are looking for a specific kind of addiction treatment, then they must have the special licenses required. This is usually the case for heroin and methamphetamine addiction treatment.

You must see if the treatment providers at the detox center are well-experienced or not. They must also have their requisite qualifications for providing the treatment, preferably through a federal body such as the American Society of Addiction Medicine. You will usually find licensing information in the About Us section of the website of the center.

Then you must see what kind of program they will be following. Do not just read the name of the program; check out its implementation also, because this is where most of the differences come in. You must also find out about the facilities that the center will provide you with. In short, you must ensure yourself that you (or the patient you are searching the treatment option for) will be comfortable during the treatment.

In case of addictions such as heroin, you will also have to make sure what kind of medication will be followed. There are two forms of addiction medication for heroin treatment in Indiana, methadone and buprenorphine. The treatment largely depends on what type of medication is used. Research on the pros and cons of the alternative medicines and see which detox program has a medication that you would like to be treated with.

Q4. What should be the ideal length of the detox program?

This is an aspect that confuses people who are not quite conversant with the way addiction treatment programs work in the state. A general treatment program could go on from three days to seven days. But that would depend mostly on the kind of addiction the person is in, the extent of the addiction, the length of time for which the person has been addicted, the frequency of use and the overall addictiveness of the substance in question. The withdrawal that the patient will experience will depend on all these factors.

In case of some strong addictions like those of heroin and methamphetamine, patients are known to experience withdrawal for up to a month even. Hence, you must not ask for a definite time limit for the detox treatment, but you can ask for an approximate idea.