Holistic vs. Traditional Addiction Treatment

Today, the word “holistic” has become a buzzword, and you might be wondering what it means. When it comes to substance abuse and addiction, the term “holistic” outlines an approach that includes the patient’s mental, physical, and spiritual well-being. The new-age holistic drug and addiction treatment centers offer conventional treatments like group and one-on-one therapy. But they also provide various holistic approaches. It is essential to know about a holistic addiction treatment center before choosing the correct one for you.

What is a holistic addiction treatment center?

The conventional addiction treatment is usually a blend of medication, group and individual therapy as and when apt. It can comprise experiential therapies such as art therapy, EDMR, adventure therapy, and others. The experiential therapies enable you to identify the association between your behavior, body, and thoughts. The holistic treatment centers provide these therapies along with various alternative approaches.

In the past few decades, alternative and experiential therapies have become more vivid in the treatment space. These kinds of therapies complement the conventional approaches by focusing on the entire self. Hence, the treatment centers with such options are considered holistic. To know more, you can check out detox centers in Wyoming.

The holistic treatment centers enable you to process your emotions in multiple ways. These centers also teach you some of the healthy practices which can prevent a relapse. Attention is given to stress management, nutrition, sleep patterns, and exercise, essential for recovery. The therapies also help you to teach coping skills.

The holistic therapies

Other than yoga and mindfulness meditation, two of the essential therapies in holistic treatment centers are:

• 
  

  Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR)

The EDMR therapy can be described as an evidence-oriented intervention that can ease depression, anxiety, trauma, and various other challenges. These practices directly tap into the brain’s innate ability to heal from any distressing experience. Any past trauma can activate the flight, freeze, or fight response to your present. When the stress response gets started, then your body can’t separate if any perceived danger is taking in the past or now. It moves into survival mode. That makes it challenging to process any traumatic event and move beyond it.

EDMR is a mild trauma therapy where you don’t need to relive the challenging memories. It simply works on certain brain parts accountable for flight, fights, or freeze response. The EDMR can reduce the distress and arousal associated with past trauma. It doesn’t eliminate the distressful memory. Instead, it trains the mind and body to feel safe when a challenging memory arises.

• 
  

  Biochemical Restoration

When a person is struggling with alcohol or drug abuse, it can profoundly impact the reward center of their brain. Substance abuse can result in an imbalance in various other physiological systems, like:

• Nutrition
• Hormones
• Amino acids
• Adrenaline
• Blood sugar

The toxic drug substances can accumulate in the body. It is essential to flush it out and ensure that your digestive system, glands, and circulatory system are healthy. It can include mineral and vitamin supplements for reversing any imbalance. Few holistic addiction treatment programs offer lab tests to decide if there is a need for nutritional support. To know more, you can check out alcohol treatment centers in Mississippi.

Other holistic treatment approaches

While the two holistic treatments mentioned above are frequently used techniques, there are few other therapies as well. They are:

• Massage therapy – It uses massage techniques to address physical pain, enhance mood, and maximize relaxation.
• Art therapy – Makes use of sculpting, painting, and other types of art for moving through and expressing challenging emotions.
• Ayurveda – It promotes health via diet, plants, and exercise.
• Nutritional therapies – The approaches here might comprise nutritional counseling, cooking classes, and nutrition classes.
• Aromatherapy – Makes use of oil scents for impacting mood.
• Guided imagery – It’s a type of medication that makes use of imagination for relaxing.

Why is a holistic addiction treatment effective?

Any addiction can impact your spiritual, mental, and physical health. The holistic treatment programs work well because they root from an “entire-person” perspective, which addresses all how addiction has affected a person. Also, with a mix of experiential, alternative, and conventional therapies, you can better decide which approach best supports your addiction recovery.

Traditional or holistic treatment – What is correct for you?

Both traditional and holistic addiction centers make use of group and individual therapy in their addiction treatment program. The therapy enables you to know and understand the hidden issues and causes that resulted in substance abuse, which holds the secret to long-term recovery. For example, therapies such as CBT (Cognitive Behavioral Therapy) has been considered influential in changing a patient’s negative behavior and thought pattern. Hence, you will come across research-oriented therapies such as CBT in both holistic and traditional addiction treatment centers.

The principal difference is that a holistic addiction treatment enter adds in alternative treatments. It enables you to address and remedy your substance abuse from various angles. The recovery includes your physical, mental, and spiritual planes as well.