In drug rehabilitation, both the physical and psychological dependencies of the patient are addressed. Similarly, drug rehab therapy combats both the physical and psychological aspects of drug addiction. It helps fight physical dependency via detoxification to help the patient cope with withdrawal symptoms. It also helps fight psychological dependency by using some coping tactics that are based on psychological principles.

A type of therapy that has played a big part in drug rehabilitation programs is pharmacotherapy. It involves the use of medical drugs like methadone and buprenorphine to reduce a person's dependency on drugs. The mentioned medicines are said to be successful in lessening drug and substance dependence as they bring stability to an otherwise abnormal opioid system.

Detoxification therapy is a process that gets rid of poisons or toxic substances in the patients system. A patient gets to answer a series of questions from a physician to determine the right detoxification program suited for him. Detoxification is based on the principle that the body condition should be understood and cleansed before getting into any other form of medication or recovery program. This is the reason why the opinion of a health professional is needed before engaging into any form of drug rehabilitation program.

Detoxification is also connected with treating chemical imbalances in the patient's body. You see, drug addiction is believed to cause a chemical imbalance in the body. Therefore, a biochemical restoration is necessary. It has been discovered that the way a patient copes with the chemical imbalances in his body is crucial to his recovery. Along with detoxification, one must improve his diet (which includes taking in nutritional supplements) and live a healthy lifestyle.

Another treatment type is psychotherapy, although this has been given less attention that pharmacotherapy. Psychotherapy is a common element in most drug rehabilitation programs. It involves counseling and a continuous evaluation of the patient's improvement. However, studies have yet to conclusively identify the best form of psychotherapy for drug abuse related cases.

Dialectical Behavioral Therapy (DBT) involves looking at the patient's behavior (particularly the problematic ones) and the events that led to the behavior. The therapist can go as far back as the recent week or the past few days. By studying the events and the reactions of the patient, the therapist can then suggest some adaptive behaviors that can help the patient face the situation instead of dodging it.

DBT deals with the behaviors and issues starting from the highly crucial ones down to the least important ones.

There is also what is known as the Brief Strategic Family Therapy (BSFT). Studies showed that parents negativity towards an adolescents drug abuse problem increases the drive of the adolescent continue with the addiction. Through this program, a counselor initiates a series of discussion with family members and makes them understand the value of positive interaction, to help the child fully recover.

The family's closeness is a great contributing factor towards the speed and ease of the patient's recovery. As the patient becomes less dependent on drugs and decreases his problematic behavior, psychologists urge family members to positively interact with the patient to provide him with the support he needs.