NIDA: Treatment and Recovery
Federal research institute explainer on how addiction is treated, why a return to use does not mean treatment failed and what effective programs include.
Treatment 101
What should I understand about treatment before deciding?
Thinking about rehab or another kind of treatment, for yourself or someone you love? Find answers about how care works, what it costs, what to ask a program and what happens after it ends.
Questions to settle before a first call.
Treatment covers many kinds of care, from outpatient appointments and medication to residential programs. These guides explain how care is chosen, how to check a program and plan the practical arrangements, and what support continues afterward. They are written for the person considering treatment and for the people calling on their behalf.
Free to read
Questions by collection.
Choose a question below. Every guide opens without an account.
Understand the care
Guide · 3 min read
Can I ask for help before I know whether I want treatment?
You can want things to change and still be unsure you want treatment.
Guide · 4 min read
How do I know whether my drinking or drug use needs treatment?
You may have noticed something that worries you and still not be sure it is serious enough to count.
Guide · 6 min read
Can addiction be cured, or does treatment keep going in some form?
You may be hoping that one stay, one course of medicine or one hard month will end the problem for good.
Guide · 4 min read
Is it safe to stop drinking or using on my own?
You may want to stop tonight, quietly, without telling anyone or waiting for an appointment.
Guide · 5 min read
What is the difference between detox and ongoing treatment?
You may be trying to find help while different services use detox and rehab as though the distinction is obvious.
Guide · 6 min read
What is detox actually like?
You may be frightened of feeling ill, being away from home or not knowing what staff will do.
Guide · 5 min read
What happens in an assessment, and who decides the level of care?
You may have been told you need an assessment before anyone can say what kind of treatment fits, and wonder why so many questions come first.
Guide · 6 min read
What is the difference between inpatient, residential, outpatient, PHP and IOP treatment?
These names describe where care happens and how much organized clinical support is available.
Guide · 5 min read
Why was I told I need a different level of care from the one I called about?
You called about one kind of treatment, perhaps a residential stay or evening outpatient sessions, and were told something else would suit you better.
Guide · 5 min read
How is the length of treatment decided?
Treatment length depends on the care you need, the setting, how you respond and what support is arranged next.
Guide · 5 min read
How do treatment approaches differ, and how can I understand a program’s expectations?
You may have heard several treatment names without being able to picture what someone would actually ask you to do.
Guide · 5 min read
Are there medications for alcohol or drug problems, and how do they fit with counseling?
You may have assumed treatment means only talking, groups or willpower, and be surprised to hear a doctor mention medicine.
Guide · 5 min read
Is taking medication for addiction just trading one drug for another?
Someone may have told you that methadone or buprenorphine is “just swapping one addiction for another,” or you may be worried about that yourself.
Guide · 4 min read
How long might I take a treatment medication, and does insurance cover it?
You may be willing to try a medication and still want to know whether it means months, years or the rest of your life, and what it will cost.
Guide · 5 min read
Where do twelve-step and other mutual-help groups fit with treatment?
You may have heard of Alcoholics Anonymous long before you heard of any other kind of help, and wonder whether meetings are treatment, a replacement for it or something programs will expect you to join.
Guide · 5 min read
What if I have depression, anxiety or trauma as well as a substance problem?
You may have started drinking or using to get through panic, low moods or memories you did not want, and now wonder which problem to deal with first.
Guide · 5 min read
What should treatment account for during pregnancy?
You may have found out you are pregnant and be frightened about what drinking or drug use has already meant, what stopping will involve and what telling a doctor could lead to.
Guide · 4 min read
Can treatment happen by phone or video?
You may not be able to leave work, arrange childcare or travel to a clinic several times a week, and wonder whether that rules treatment out.
Guide · 5 min read
How can I tell what a program's success figures actually measure?
A program's website may say that most of its patients stay sober, or quote a percentage that sounds reassuring.
Guide · 5 min read
What might happen on my first day of treatment?
You are about to arrive somewhere unfamiliar, and even knowing where to go or what to say may feel difficult.
Guide · 5 min read
What might an ordinary treatment day include?
You may be trying to picture how you will spend the hours in treatment, especially the time between appointments.
Guide · 5 min read
What is the next step down after residential care, and how does that move work?
You may be partway through a residential stay, or about to start one, and wondering what happens when it ends.
Guide · 4 min read
What should a plan for after discharge include, and when should I ask about it?
It can feel too early to think about leaving a program you have not started.
Guide · 5 min read
What is an alumni or aftercare program, and what should I ask about it?
A program's website may mention aftercare, continuing care or an alumni community, and it can be hard to tell what any of those actually involve.
Guide · 5 min read
Why does support after a program matter to how treatment turns out?
You may think of treatment as the main event and whatever follows as optional extra.
Guide · 5 min read
What is sober living, and how is it different from a treatment program?
Sober living may have come up as a place to stay after a program, or as a cheaper option instead of one, and it can be hard to tell where housing ends and treatment begins.
Guide · 6 min read
If someone drinks or uses again after treatment, does that mean treatment failed?
You may be reading this after it has already happened, or because you are afraid it will.
Make the practical arrangements
Guide · 5 min read
How can I understand what treatment may actually cost me?
Ask for the cost of the specific services and period being proposed, then separate the provider’s charges from insurance payment and your expected share.
Guide · 4 min read
How do I check what my insurance covers for treatment?
Contact the plan using its official member-service route with the specific program, clinicians and services you are considering.
Guide · 4 min read
What can I do if I do not have insurance or cannot afford treatment?
Ask about publicly supported services, coverage eligibility and provider financial assistance while explaining the care you need and what you can realistically pay.
Guide · 4 min read
How can I arrange time away from work for treatment?
Ask the person or office responsible for leave about the process, then coordinate the required dates and documentation with your treatment provider.
Guide · 6 min read
Who may learn that I am receiving treatment, and what can I ask about privacy?
You may want treatment and still be afraid of who could find out.
Guide · 4 min read
How can I arrange care and home responsibilities before treatment?
You may be ready to seek care while worrying about the child, relative, pet or household responsibility you would leave behind.
Guide · 4 min read
What should I bring to a treatment appointment or overnight program?
Use the program’s current written instructions, then check any item essential to your health, access or everyday functioning that is unclear.
Guide · 5 min read
A program said it cannot take my insurance or cannot admit me. What can I do next?
You may have finally made the call, only to hear that the program does not take your insurance, has no place for you or is not the right fit.
Guide · 5 min read
Why does insurance approve only some days at a time, and what happens when it stops?
You or someone you love may be settled into a program when a staff member mentions that the insurer has approved only a few more days, or is reviewing whether to continue.
Guide · 5 min read
A program offered to pay for my travel or waive what I owe. Is that allowed?
An offer of a free flight, a paid-for place to stay or “we'll cover your deductible” can sound like exactly the help you need.
Guide · 5 min read
Can I keep my phone, and can family call or visit?
Losing your phone, or not knowing when you can speak to your children, partner or employer, can be enough to make you hesitate about a residential program.
Guide · 5 min read
What rights do I have while I am in a program?
Signing an admission agreement can feel like handing over control, especially if you are unwell or in a hurry.
Start the conversation
Guide · 5 min read
What can I expect when I first contact a treatment program?
You have found a number, but making the call may feel like agreeing to more than you are ready for.
Guide · 4 min read
What should I ask a treatment center before deciding?
You are being asked to make a consequential choice, perhaps while tired or worried enough that every reassuring answer sounds tempting.
Guide · 5 min read
How should treatment account for my other health needs and existing medicines?
You may worry that entering substance-use treatment will mean another health problem or an existing medicine gets overlooked.
Guide · 4 min read
What should I do if treatment cannot start right away?
Clarify whether you are waiting for an assessment, a clinical service, payment approval or a place in a particular program.
Guide · 4 min read
What should I do if I want to leave treatment before the recommended time?
You want to leave, and you may be counting the hours until you can get out.
Guide · 5 min read
I have been to treatment before. What is different about going back?
You may be dreading the call because it feels like admitting that last time did not work, or worrying that a program will see you as a lost cause.
Guide · 5 min read
What does it mean that a program is licensed, certified or accredited, and how can I check?
A program's website may say it is licensed, state-certified or accredited, and it is fair to wonder what those words guarantee.
Guide · 5 min read
Who am I actually speaking to when I call: admissions staff, a clinician, a call service or an automated system?
You dialed the number on a program's website and someone answered, but you may not know whether they work for that program, are qualified to answer medical questions or are a recording.
Guide · 5 min read
How do I raise a complaint about a program?
Something happened in a program that worried you, or that you or someone you love was harmed by, and you may not know whether it is serious enough to report or who would listen.
For the person calling
Supporting someone.
Questions for a family member or friend: calling a program for someone, what the program can tell you, your part in treatment and staying safe when they come home.
Guide · 4 min read
What can I do when I contact treatment services for someone else?
Someone you care about is struggling, and making a call may feel like the only thing you can do today.
Guide · 5 min read
Can I make an adult family member go to treatment?
You may be watching someone you love get worse and be desperate for a way to make them accept help.
Guide · 5 min read
Once they are in treatment, what will the program tell me?
You helped someone get into treatment, or you are paying for it, and now you call the program and hear that staff cannot confirm anything.
Guide · 4 min read
What part will the family play in treatment?
You may be hoping to be involved, dreading being blamed or simply unsure whether the program wants you there at all.
Guide · 5 min read
Should the people around them keep naloxone, and why does the risk change after treatment?
Someone you love is in treatment for opioid use, or has just come home, and you may be torn between relief and a fear you do not want to say out loud.
Guide · 4 min read
How do I start a conversation with someone whose substance use worries me?
You may have rehearsed this conversation and still dread starting it.
Guide · 3 min read
What can I do when someone does not want the help I am offering?
They have said no, and you may feel that the help you worked to find has been thrown back at you.
Guide · 4 min read
How can I help while someone I care about is in treatment?
Someone you care about is in treatment, and you may be relieved they are there while feeling shut out of what is happening.
Guide · 4 min read
What should we agree on before someone comes home from treatment?
You may be glad someone is coming home and afraid of what home will feel like.
From across SoberSphere
Related reading.
Guide · 3 min read
How can I keep court, probation and treatment obligations clear?
Maintain one calendar supported by the actual orders and notices, with a separate entry for each obligation and the office responsible for it.
Beyond SoberSphere
Public resources for treatment.
These links open education pages on the publisher’s website. No SoberSphere account is needed. SoberSphere does not link to treatment listings or rank programs.
NIAAA: Treatment for Alcohol Problems
Federal booklet on signs of an alcohol problem, behavioral treatment, approved medications, mutual-support groups and questions to ask a program.
NIDA: Principles of Drug Addiction Treatment
Research-based guide setting out principles of effective treatment and answering common questions about length, medication, family and mutual-help groups.
NIDA: Naloxone DrugFacts
Federal fact sheet on recognizing an opioid overdose, how naloxone works and why families may keep it nearby.
Independent education, with sources alongside the information. SoberSphere does not rank treatment centers or choose a route for you. Need urgent support?
01 / A foundation
Treatment is
how you start.
Read about the structure, professional care and planning a program can provide, its limits, and the support you may need afterward.
What can treatment do for you?02 / What comes next
Recovery is a
lifelong journey.
Recovery continues after a program ends. Read about ongoing support, the months after treatment and the question to ask before you go in: what happens after I leave?
What happens after treatment?Life beyond a program
Information and support
throughout recovery.
Find information about staying sober, relationships, work, bills and things to enjoy. The Early Recovery path introduces these concerns; Topics lets you browse them individually.
These resources are for you whether or not you have been in treatment. See all five starting points.