Addiction treatment is not just about detoxifying a patient and sending them home. This is quite well understood by every detox center and intervention in Maine. There is a very conscious effort in this state not only to cleanse the patient from the toxins that the addiction must have created in the body, but also to help the patient recover completely from the temptation of the substance and return to a fully sober life.

This is what we must understand. An alcohol or drug addiction is not just a physically compulsive habit. It is a mental disorder. It is an obsessive compulsive disorder in some people. Even when there is no urge for the substance, they might want to consume it just to maintain regularity of usage. But in most people, the consumption of the substance is because of an underlying mental reason, which again is created by the substance itself. When the person consumes the substance for the initial times, it creates a deep impact on the central nervous system of the person. This is akin to making the brain release pleasure inducing chemicals that are what causes the typical euphoric feeling in the person. Whenever the person consumes the substance again, it is in answer to this feeling of euphoria. Gradually, the person's brain becomes immune to the feeling as time elapses and that is when the person feels the urge to consume more and more of the substance.

This is definitely a vicious chain and it takes all the treatment centers have got to break it. That is the reason why a person can be detoxified completely, but still the addiction might not go away. The addicting lives in the brain of the person and unless and until that is treated to come out of the temptation, the patient will never be treated.

For that reason, the treatment centers and the intervention program both plan out their own relapse prevention programs. The intention here is to keep the treatment sustaining and to ensure that the person does not fall back into the addiction. This is what the treatment centers and the intervention in Maine would do towards this end.

Contribution by a Detox Center in Maine towards Relapse Prevention

One of the most important things that any detox center in Maine would do is to put the person on a regular schedule of maintenance medication. Most medications that are used during the detox to allay the withdrawal effects are habit forming in themselves and cannot be stopped abruptly. For that reason, it becomes important to gradually phase them out. This can take a very long time, and that is the reason the patient may need to keep visiting the center at regular intervals.

During these visits, the treatment centers will also monitor the patient and see if there is a chance of a relapse to occur. They will counsel the patient on staying sober.

But the most important contribution here is the inclusion of the family training program. This normally runs for three days and is a period when the families of all the patients in the center are invited and counseled on how they must help in the complete recovery process. This is a good time for the families to bond together and share their mutual experiences.

Contribution by an Intervention in Maine towards Relapse Prevention

An intervention program will have a relapse prevention strategy of their own, which will come into play as soon as the patient is discharged from the treatment center. They will first counsel the family of the patient as to how they must react when the patient comes back home. On the appointed day, they will bring the patient back home. This is important because they need to orient the patient to the familiar surroundings again and to prevent any stressful awkwardness.

They will then have a representative stay with the patient for a number of days. The main job of this representative would be to mentor the patient on staying sober. This can take a while. The mentor will train the patient various holistic techniques, including Yoga and the breathing exercises of Pranayama, which would help them in vanquishing the urge for the substance if it occurs. They will also train the patient on how to identify any signs and symptoms of an impending relapse and what they must do about it. A similar form of training will be provided to the family of the patient also.

They will also conduct regular counseling sessions for both the patient and the family involved, which will ensure that the patient moves from addiction towards complete recovery.