The One major, legitimate critique of traditional 12-step recovery that I hear a lot (and agree with) Dogma.

Santa Monica Luxury Addiction Treatment

Adam Mindel

Men’s Addiction Treatment, Recovery Blog, Sober Living, Treatment

If your loved one struggles with addiction, you probably have more questions than answers.

Questions like:

Where do I find help?
What level of treatment does my loved one need?
Where can I find addiction treatment where my loved one will be comfortable?
What happens when detox/residential treatment is completed?
What is the difference between outpatient and IOP in Santa Monica?

And, most of all, How do I begin?

Finding Addiction Treatment in LA

One of the most important first steps is reaching out to an organization that makes you feel comfortable. Do your research. Get referrals from trusted professionals. Family and friends may also know someone that got help at an inpatient or outpatient addiction program.

Eventually, you will find a place that resonates with you.

Of course, there are a lot of LA addiction treatment centers around. Some provide luxury amenities, and others are more stark and economical.

If you are of a particular means, you may want a facility that allows your loved one to feel secure, safe, and tranquil. A private place where they feel empowered to take the critical first steps of their recovery. Where they can stay engaged in treatment and face the complex challenges of staying sober early in their recovery.

Santa Monica luxury addiction treatment offers unique opportunities for recovery in one of the most beautiful areas of the country. This beachside city provides plenty of natural beauty, outdoor recreation, and an active recovery community.

Sharing Your Story

You did your research. You found an addiction treatment facility in Santa Monica.

Now what?

Most facilities have an intake counselor who will listen to your story and concerns. Intake counselors are trained, experienced professionals that can help guide you toward the best recovery opportunities for your loved one. Together, you can determine the most appropriate level of care based on your loved one’s situation and your budget.

My Loved One Is Completing Detox Soon. What Happens Next?

So what happens when your loved one gets out of detox or residential treatment?

In most cases, they are transferred to a lower level of care–outpatient or intensive outpatient addiction treatment, to be specific. Which level will depend on your loved one’s drug history, the severity of their addiction, and how they progressed through more structured care.

Santa Monica men’s outpatient treatment is an excellent option for locals and those from out of town looking to distance themselves from certain addiction triggers. The fresh air, gorgeous landscapes, and vibrant recovery community of Santa Monica inspire many to continue their recovery journey here.

Santa Monica IOP

Intensive outpatient addiction treatment (IOP) is a higher level of care than outpatient treatment. It provides more structure and support than OP. Some find a men’s IOP treatment program is beneficial for building life skills and staying focused on recovery.

Many IOP addiction treatment programs require up to 12 hours of therapy a week (sometimes more). The ongoing support may last over 6 months. Of course, many factors come into play, including the individual’s willingness to go through the treatment program, their progress, and the quality of their home support system.

IOP programs typically use various treatment modalities, including:

Individual therapy
Group therapy
Family therapy
Medication management
Life skills training
12-step support
Sober leisure

IOP programs can be a good option for people who are ready to commit to recovery but still need some extra support to stay sober. They can also be a good option for people who cannot afford inpatient treatment or have other obligations making residential treatment difficult.

If you are considering IOP treatment, it’s essential to find a program that resonates. Not all IOP programs in Santa Monica are the same. There are many different programs and treatment approaches available.

It is important to find a program that individualizes its treatment planning around your loved one’s needs. Programs that offer various treatment methods are typically the best for more individualized treatment. Usually, combining group therapy, cognitive testing, individual and family therapy, and psychiatric care allows for a better chance of treatment success.

If you need to learn more about intensive outpatient treatment, we invite you to talk to one of our intake counselors by calling 310-294-9030.

Nov 20 2020

The Need to Control and Addiction

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Addiction, Rehabilitation Process, Yeshaia Blakeney

One of the common things that I come across with people that are trying to recover. So I sort of look at more universal elements that mean the thing about addiction, is it’s not really appropriate, it’s not accurate. To say… oh addicts do this, addicts do that. Because there’s a huge amount of personality, and… diversity, in the addicted population. Right? I mean, people– people are not the same, at all.

One of the things you want to understand is what are the characteristics, that you do seem to cross boundaries.

you can say, okay, those– these would definitely want to get to, and I’ve talked about in another piece, around people-pleasing which I see you know, something like 75%, of people over accommodated people-please. And they don’t have healthy boundaries and they don’t know how to assert themselves, to create a sense of self in their lives. [/vc_column_text]

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The other thing I see is issues around control.

Human beings in general, addicts in particular, are people suffering from addiction, in particular, tend to be control freaks. And there are lots of ways that– that manifests.

Somebody who’s a control freak isn’t necessarily an overt control freak.

Like if I look at myself, and I say, what are the ways that I defended against the world and attempted to predict and control outcomes so that I could feel safe? I was– I was never overtly controlling. As you can imagine, I did it with words… and rationale. Right, if you hear me speak… my biggest defense mechanism, the way to keep people away from me, was to understand what was happening around me, try to be predictive and to use a language, as a barrier.

I could hypnotize people with my speech, that was one of the ways that I maintain control.

It’s why for me, it took me a long time to figure out how to do individual therapy, talk therapy because I’m good with words. And so I can… talk and talk and talk and talk and I’m not necess– you know, once I had worked on a lot of the shame, I can even talk about the issues but it wasn’t having a transformative impact.

The talk therapy, group therapy was really good for me.

Group therapy I had so many eyes on me, that I couldn’t control… each person, because I got some you’re looking at me over here, and over here and this and it was too much. And so it made me more vulnerable, which is what I’m trying to do and try to let go of control.

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Find out if we can help you raise the bottom

Dec 15 2019

The Reality of Treatment Success Rates

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Addiction, Recovery Blog, Rehabilitation Process, The Field of Treatment, Therapy, Video, Yeshaia Blakeney

Coming to treatment has always been a hard threshold to cross – but more so now… Working in treatment for a long time, I’ve experienced greater consumer wariness.

People are more hesitant to send their loved ones to treatment and people who are looking for treatment are more hesitant to come. I think one of the reasons is the discourse about addiction, treatment and recovery has hit the mainstream, and one of the things that has come out is that the success rate of treatment is like, 15%.

But why are success rates so low? Several reasons:

– Poor treatment. Treatment that’s not set up well & doesn’t understand the various personalities of the population they’re working with and their underlying conditions and problems. Like a bad mechanic.

– Shady treatment that just isn’t trustworthy. Meaning their intention wasn’t to figure out how to help people recover. Their intention was to make money. That type of intention can be disasterous.

– The nature of addiction and recovery. The nature of addiction is… it’s chronic. It is not a problem that can be solved with an event. It’s something that has to be worked with over time.

A good analogy to understand why treatment success rates are low is to think about something like the gym. My guess is you’re going to see like ten, fifteen percent success on those goals of fitness of people who signed up for memberships. Right?

Recovery is the same way. Recovery is similar to a muscle you have to exercise consistently. Lots of people will sign up for something that they won’t follow through with. It’s the really hard part of treatment and recovery.

It’s this mysterious question of the will, why some people have the will to change certain parts of their lives and other people don’t, and honestly it’s not a place where we have good answers.

Many times we just wait for people to be ready to change, but if you have a loved one or a spouse, or kid who is – shooting heroin – you really don’t feel like you have the luxury to wait around for them to change.

So people intervene, and people are in different stages of readiness for change, and there’s not an easy solution for that.

Schedule a 30-min consultation with Yeshaia

We are Rooted in the Foundation of the 12-Steps and Believe in Long-Term Care

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Nov 26 2019

Dogma in AA: Trusting in the Spirit of Reality

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Addiction, Recovery Blog, Rehabilitation Process, The Field of Treatment, Therapy, Video, Yeshaia Blakeney

Dogma is not actually something I would want to get rid of within Alcoholics Anonymous.

I would also say dogma is not something that I want to get rid of in alcoholics anonymous. On some level, what it means to be a person in recovery, who’s engaged in traditional 12 steps is to have some sense of acceptance, that you are not in charge of the world.

And it’s sort of like trusting the spirit of reality and they call it God’s will, right. It’s a little bit more loaded of a term, I’ll just call it the spirit of reality. Meaning, I have to accept what is. Right?

I could fight it, but I’m going to lose, because – what is. And so if what is, is there are dogmatic personalities in alcoholics anonymous, who am I to fight that?

Am I in charge of how people should be in meetings? And the answer is no, I’d be a hypocrite. Right? Am I dogmatically against people who are dogmatic? Well, no.

There’s another reason why I wouldn’t get rid of dogma in alcoholics anonymous. It’s helped a lot of people. There’s a, sort of a spectrum of meetings, there are meetings, a late-night Hollywood meeting, it’s like a comedy show fiasco. It’s totally insane and foul and people yelling. A bunch of jesters all in one space acting out. There’s no order. It’s total chaos. Great Energy. I thought I sober was gonna be boring, this meeting is wild!

And then you have very rigid (you have to wear a tie) and other groups that have developed their own culture which is much stricter, much more dogmatic, much more rule-bound, and all are helpful for a lot of people.

That kind of container and that rule of structure and not having to question everything, and just being able to take direction feels really safe, and it feels good and it helps them build lives.

So there is dogma in the personalities in alcoholics anonymous. It’s not a bad thing, and if the traditional 12-step is something that’s going to help you, there are ways for you to belong that work for you.

Schedule a 30-min consultation with Yeshaia

We are Rooted in the Foundation of the 12-Steps and Believe in Long-Term Care

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Nov 10 2019

AA tries NOT to be dogmatic

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Addiction, Recovery Blog, Rehabilitation Process, The Field of Treatment, Therapy, Video, Yeshaia Blakeney

Alcoholics Anonymous

Although somewhat known for dogma – actually has gone out of the way to NOT be dogmatic.

Everything is languaged from a place of suggestion as opposed to declarative statements for how you are supposed to be.

When you see it in the literature of Alcoholics Anonymous, you notice that these were people who were not only NOT particularly dogmatic, but they were also sensitive to the fact that people would be sensitive to dogma.

I am half African-American, and when I read the core text, the Big Book of Alcoholics Anonymous, I’m shocked that the word “negro” isn’t in there.

It’s 1936, pre-civil-rights-movement. It says nothing about who can come and who can’t…

So there is dogma in the 12-steps, it’s not my cup of tea, but it largely has to do with the personalities that exist in certain meetings within the fellowship.

Schedule a 30-min consultation with Yeshaia

We are Rooted in the Foundation of the 12-Steps as We Believe Fully in Long-Term Care

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Oct 21 2019

How to Deal with Dogma in Traditional 12-Step Recovery

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Addiction, Recovery Blog, Rehabilitation Process, The Field of Treatment, Video, Yeshaia Blakeney

The One major, legitimate critique of traditional 12-step recovery that I hear a lot (and agree with) Dogma.

Which is basically some authority prescribing rules or structure, usually rigid or fixed rules, to a system.

You find that in AA, and for some people that’s a big turn off

I don’t like that, I’m a questioner, a doubter, I’m curious… and it doesn’t work well with me or a lot of people.

So how do you deal with this? You can choose not to participate, but maybe 12-step or traditional recovery is a huge part of what is going to help you change.

What people need is some clarity. The program itself is actively not dogmatic. It’s not hierarchical, there is nobody in charge. In order to be dogmatic, really, there has to be someone prescribing the rules.

People project dogma because they experience dogmatic personalities in Alcoholics Anonymous, and that makes sense. Often dogma comes from pain and brokenness. In response to my difficulty, I might create a whole crazy rule structure to how I have to be… …and if I go too far down that road, I might create a whole crazy rule structure about how you have to be.

Schedule a 30-min consultation with Yeshaia

We are Rooted in the Foundation of the 12-Steps as We Believe Fully in Long-Term Care

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Aug 16 2019

The Rebel Side of Alcoholics Anonymous

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Addiction, Recovery Blog, Rehabilitation Process, The Field of Treatment, Therapy, Video, Yeshaia Blakeney

What to expect in this episode:

Alcoholics Anonymous is for Rebels

The other thing about Alcoholics Anonymous; addicts and alcoholics often feel rebellious inside.

There’s a rebel piece that grows inside of us during the teenage years and sometimes we have a hard time growing out of.

(…Maybe we shouldn’t grow out of it.)

I would say Alcoholics Anonymous is very rebellious.

Alcoholics Anonymous is completely disconnected from the market place

When I say its free, that’s a big deal, it also is completely disconnected from the market place. Its not only that it doesn’t cost any money to go there. There are non profits that you can go to that don’t cost money; but it actually has little to no relationship to the market place at all other than people putting a dollar in a basket to pay some cheap rent at a particular building.

SO it is totally disconnected from our economic system, and I would invite anybody to name any other institution that’s completely disconnected from our market economy. I think that’s important.

There are no commercials or advertising for it, somehow it’s just its own temple, or sacred space. It hasn’t been invaded by a lot of economic forces that we are all at the whim of. So I think there is something special about that.

Alcoholics Anonymous Hierarchy

The other thing about AA is that it’s not hierarchical, not that there is no hierarchy, it just a very flat hierarchy.

There’s nobody in charge; when you go to a meeting, there is someone leading the meeting, that rotates every 6 months based on a democratic process usually, that people vote on.

You might ask, “Who is in charge of these millions of people in Alcoholics Anonymous?” nobody knows, no one is in charge. It is people coming together to help each other in a way that has now worked for 80 years. It’s incredible to have that kind of flat hierarchy and it’s worked now through 3-4 generations of people.

That’s deep, religion is not like that, corporations are not like that, and my family is not even like that… well sometimes it’s like that…

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Our program follows the 12-Steps Foundation & Provides Long-Term Care

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Jul 02 2019

The Controversial Nature of Alcoholics Anonymous

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Addiction, Recovery Blog, Rehabilitation Process, The Field of Treatment, Therapy, Video, Yeshaia Blakeney

What to expect in this episode:

The Controversial Nature of Alcoholics Anonymous

The resistance that people have to the 12 steps can be overcome.

What it takes is a person understanding specifically where your resistance is and walking you through it; allowing you to see it and understand it in a way that’s palatable for you. Showing you that in the beginning you can tolerate it and in time come to enjoy.

I’m not into force or coercion, so a person has to say, “I am open to learning about this”. For a lot of people 12 step recovery is the biggest resource they’re going to have. There are quite a few things about 12 step that are really incredible and are not replicated anywhere else as of now, in terms of support for addicts and alcoholics.

The first thing I would say that is really radical about the 12 step program is that it’s FREE. I hear a lot of critique from psychologists and psychiatrists, and honestly I don’t like it, about the 12 step program. That it’s not sophisticated enough, it’s a religion; the same critique that clients have, they parrot those (opinions) back in NPR.So I will ask, “What is your solution then, for addicts and alcoholics”? They will say CBT, which is particular therapeutic modality or DBT (another therapeutic modality), or psychiatry, etc.

That’s great, but what about the hundred million people who can’t afford to go see a therapist 3 times a week, at $120-$180 per hour in LA. What about the million people who can’t afford $400 per hour to see a psychiatrist monthly? What about those folks? What is going to be their consistent support? SO they critique it, but they don’t have another good solution in the end. If you were to ask me, “How many people do you know in recovery”? I’d say, “I know about 2500 people in recovery”. If they said, “how many of those people had a 12 step experience as a foundation for their recovery”? I’d say, “Probably about 2475”.

Now that’s not evidence that this is the only way to do it, or the only way that works, it’s the most available way to do it, so that makes sense. However, if you were to say, “Yeshaia, how many times have you seen people use an alternate route to recover successfully”? My answer would be 330-40, or something like that.

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We are Rooted in the Foundation of the 12-Steps as We Believe Fully in Long-Term Care

Interventionit Leading drug abuse intervention

Mar 26 2018

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How to Stage an Intervention

Adam Mindel

Adam Mindel, Addiction, Recovery Blog, Rehabilitation Process, The Field of Treatment

WHAT TO EXPECT:

What is an Intervention

An intervention is often the very first step taken by loved ones in helping someone with addiction. Whether it be an alcohol intervention, or a drug abuse intervention, there is an organized, planned approach for success. The purpose of the intervention is to confront the addict in hopes of promoting acceptance of the addiction and to show comforting support for the rehabilitation process to come.

How to Stage an Intervention

Gather a team

This is the foundation of an intervention, the team. Family interventions are most common however friends and colleagues of the addict can also be present. The ideal size for an intervention team is typically between 3-5 people the addict has a close relationship with. 3-5 team members are large enough to show the addict that there is an obvious addiction, but small enough to not overwhelm them and allow for easy communication amongst the group.

Intervention professional

Selecting the right interventionist is key to a successful intervention. Make sure the professional you choose is certified, and they should hold some sort of counseling degree or license. Experience counts too! The number of interventions they’ve conducted and their approach to interventions is also highly important. Have they had much experience with family interventions?

Planning an intervention

Interventions can be highly stressful for everyone involved and are crucial to beginning the drug rehabilitation process. It is, of course, most important to identify exactly what the issue is and the reasons why an intervention is needed. Given the dramatic and emotional nature of interventions, thought must be given in selecting your intervention team. Decide who the addict is closest to and with whom they have comfort and trust.

Rehearse

Not too many of us have interventions as commonplace in our lives. For this reason, rehearsing and practicing the intervention with your team, and your chosen interventional professional is a must. Go over the initial approach, discuss and prepare exactly how the intervention should go. Perhaps most importantly, prepare yourself and your intervention team for the likely refusal or resistance from the addict to participate.

Define consequences

Accepting that one has an addiction is a very difficult thing. There is a very good chance the addict will deny the issue, or refuse to participate in the intervention and planned follow up care. Situations like these are why the intervention team should have planned some consequences to the addict if they refuse help. The consequences, of course, are dependent on the situation but oftentimes a proposed consequence may be taking away a vehicle, denial of visitation rights to children, or loss of employment. Your interventionist will be able to discuss these with you.

Choose a location

Remember that when choosing your intervention team, you must consider how comfortable and trusting the addict will be with the team members. The same consideration should be taken when deciding on where to conduct the intervention. Family interventions are personal and can be very emotionally charged. For that reason, public venues should be avoided. Consider where the addict is likely to be comfortable. Make sure the venue is a commonly visited place by the addict but not somewhere that may have a negative association. Perhaps some dramatic events related to the addiction have occurred at the addict’s home; choose a more neutral location for the intervention.

Be prepared for anything

Anything can happen during an intervention. This is one major reason why a professional interventionist should be present. Consider the viewpoint from the addict. Will they be defensive, offended, confused? There is an added element of unpredictability when dealing with those suffering from drug or alcohol addictions. Give some thought to the addict’s personality, the type of addiction they suffer from, and recent behaviors. Consider the possible reactions during the intervention and use that when considering your team members. A professional interventionist will be well versed in a variety of possible scenarios.

What Happens After an Intervention?

Detox

Time is of the essence post-intervention. It is imperative that the intervention team be ready for the addict’s acceptance for help and have a follow-up plan in place. The team should have a treatment facility chosen and registered. There needs to be an immediate transfer of the addict to their treatment facility following acceptance of the intervention and agreement to therapy. Have necessary items ready to go for the addict so no distraction can occur with packing. Have what they need ready, and ensure them everything is planned.

Extended care

Also known as Aftercare, extended care is the step following Detox. Here the addict may enter an inpatient care facility or an outpatient care center that allows the patient to return to some normal life activities. More information on Extended Care can be found at this link:

Sober living

A version of Extended Care where the addict can live in a designated housing community amongst other recovering addicts. This type of aftercare allows for a sense of normal life while still maintaining recovery strategies like group therapy, counseling, and structured behavior. This type of care may or may not suit all recovering addicts but should definitely be considered as a type of aftercare.

What if your Drug Intervention Fails?

What to do

Convincing an addict to seek treatment isn’t usually easy. Staging a successful intervention is tough and even if you do everything right there is a chance the addict may resist treatment. Don’t be discouraged if the first intervention attempt fails; plan, and try again. However, your post-intervention behavior is crucial to future success. Whatever ultimatums you made during the initial intervention should be maintained. This means you may have to move out of the house, cut off money supplies, or even make the addict leave the home. However difficult, you must stand firm on promises made during your intervention. Again, the most important thing you must do after a failed intervention is – try again.

What not to do

The things you shouldn’t do following a failed intervention fall in line with what you should do. Firstly, do not give up. It could very well take several tries before your attempt at intervention is successful. Secondly, do not make compromises. Remember the promises you made during the intervention; to leave, to file for divorce, to take away child visitation rights; this may be difficult but it is an absolute must for future success.

Why might your intervention fail?

Interventions are tough. They are tough to plan, tough to initiate, tough to go through, and tough to accomplish. Many will fail and if your intervention fails it is important to consider why. Perhaps the planning fell short. Maybe the flow of conversation wasn’t there or maybe the addict wasn’t comfortable with the group or location. Perhaps the intervention went in too many directions. Were there solid ultimatums given? Were those ultimatums committed to? Another reason interventions fail is because no clear solution to the addiction was presented. If too much focus is placed on the problem and not the solution, the intervention may stall. Focus on the solution!

Schedule a free consultation with Adam