28 or 90: How Many Days Should You Stay in Addiction Rehab?

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You’ve finally come to terms with the fact that you’ve got an addiction to drugs or alcohol. You know it. You’ve known it, but you just couldn’t admit it before. But now, you’re tired. Tired of using. Tired of the rat race. Tired of the constant chaos of addiction. And you’re ready for a change. You’ve already made the decision. You’re going to go to inpatient rehab.

Yet you don’t know what to do. The person you spoke to on the phone recommended you stay for 90 days. Ninety days! That’s a lot longer than you thought it’d be. What happened to a month? You thought drug and alcohol inpatient treatment was 28 days, in and out. And now you don’t know what to do.

The Longer the Better

28 or 90

The longer you stay in rehab, the easier it will be for you to remain sober.

While you may want to hear that 28 days is sufficient for rehab, that’s not necessarily the case. Research shows that there is a direct correlation between the length someone stays in addiction treatment and that person’s success rate.

Now, that doesn’t mean you have to stay for the better part of your twenties to stay sober for the rest of your life. People get sober every day without any inpatient treatment. But the fact is, the longer you’re there, the less trouble you’ll have staying sober when you leave.

You’ll still have trouble, it will just be easier to manage. Because the longer you’re there, the more skills you gain, the more support you’ve grown, and the more time you’ve earned. And time means everything.

Any Treatment Is Better Than No Treatment

For many people, long term treatment isn’t a realistic option. There’s single mothers who can’t leave their children for months on end. There’s middle-aged adults with aging parents that need their assistance. Family obligations, work, and finances can all impact how long you stay in treatment, but that doesn’t mean you can’t get sober in the time you do have.

While there is something to be said about a 90 day stay in rehab, the fact remains that any treatment is better than no treatment. If you can’t afford long term treatment or your insurance only pays for 14 days, take those 14 days and make them enough.

If you’re in a situation where you can’t get away for more than a week, go to detox, then find the best outpatient addiction treatment center you can and enroll in an intensive outpatient or a partial program. Do what you can to get the treatment that works for you and your life, but just make sure you do it.