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Meta: Young individuals who are suffering from addiction can find the hope and help they need through rehab for young adults!
Rehab for young adults with substance abuse can be challenging for both the patient and their loved ones. But it is vital that you embrace the goal of a lasting road to recovery. It’s also important for young individuals to get help instead of continuing to try to hide the problem.
Addiction rehabilitation (also known as rehab) is hard work, and it will take a lot of effort to help your loved one come out of denial and embrace treatment. However, with the right program, drug rehab for young adults can be successful. Here at Daylight Recovery Services, we are here to help you and your loved one start this important journey.
How do Young Adults Get the Most Out of Clinical Recovery?
Starting a road to recovery is hard, but it is important. In order for your loved one to get the best they can out of their clinical treatment, they have to take an active role in their own recovery.
Family therapy is a standard at Daylight Recovery Services to help not only your loved one heal but also for you to start to heal as a family. We also use holistic treatments, such as meditation and exercise therapy, to help your loved one return to health across all areas of their life. Below are just some of the therapies we offer:
- Individual therapy
- Psychotherapy
- Family therapy
- Group therapy
- Holistic therapy
- Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT)
- Dialectic Behavioral Therapy (DBT)
How Can I Help My Loved One Start to Heal from Substance Abuse?
Being in rehab for young adults means that their caretaker or guardian family members have dealt directly with their loved one on a day-to-day basis. Older adults often move out of the house and share a living space with a significant other or child. Young adults living with their parents often do not have to worry about childcare when their loved ones are available.
Going to and from therapy, doctor’s visits, and other medical necessities after clinical treatment can be difficult. Transportation is especially helpful when a driver’s license has been revoked, and public transportation is unavailable. This can make a big difference in helping your loved one sustain their road to recovery.
Causes of Substance Abuse in Young Adults
Young people may use alcohol or drugs for reasons that differ from those of older individuals. Teens and young adults may turn to substance abuse for reasons such as peer pressure, grief, loss, low self-esteem, self-medication, emotional issues, mental health challenges, and more.
Peer Pressure
Teens and other young adults often face a closed environment shared with many other students. This might make peer pressure more intense as young individuals see other students almost every day. That means young people might have exposure to peer pressure frequently.
Being around other young people who use drugs or alcohol can cause individuals to turn to the same devices. The fear of missing out or a lack of self-confidence can lead to substance abuse. This can cause young adults to begin walking down the long road of a life of addiction.
But for young individuals seeking help, it’s important to encourage them to speak with a professional. This will enable them to learn about the problems and obstacles that they will face on their road to recovery. But it will also give them the tools they need to engage in a lifelong journey to freedom from addiction and its negative effects.
Self-Medication
One of the most common reasons why young adults may turn to substance abuse is a co-occurring mental health disorder. This is also known as dual diagnosis. The term “co-occurring disorders” refers to when someone has an addiction as well as another mental health disorder.
One example of a mental health disorder that might cause your loved one to self-medicate is Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD). Some of this may stem from how easy it is to get and misuse Adderall and other substances that are commonly used to treat ADHD. Often, college students will abuse substances like Adderall, believing that they will help them perform better on exams.
Ritalin, another common treatment for ADHD, operates similarly to cocaine. It often costs just a few dollars at a school and a little more than that on the black market. About 3.8% of 12th graders reported having abused Ritalin in 2007. Approximately 11% of college students sold their Ritalin medication, while 21% gave it to friends.
As of 2018, 39% of college students were self-medicating. Often mental illness will go undiagnosed if the person who suffered from mental health issues such as ADHD and did not receive treatment.
More About Self-Medication
People who need psychiatric medication sometimes do not get help because of parental disapproval or lack of funds. Those who do seek treatment might be given doses under or over what is best for them. This fine-tuning can lead many to write off any psychiatric medical help right away.
It is important to remember that medical science does not completely understand how the brain works. Ritalin takes 20-30 minutes after swallowing to take effect. However, non-stimulant medications for ADHD, such as Strattera, can take up to 6 weeks to work.
Medication for depression and other mental health disorders can take up to 6 weeks for the full effect. Many people want an instant solution, and when it is not available, they may turn to self-medication using drugs and/or alcohol. Although people may view it as a “quick fix”, self-medication will very likely lead individuals down the path of addiction.
Prescription Drug Abuse Among College Students
One of the major stumbling blocks that sends young adults down the path of addiction is stress. In college, many students are living away from home for the first time. This can cause both positive and negative behaviors.
Some students take up new interests with electives such as art history, as well as starting to find their way in the world in general education courses. However, binge drinking and other substance use disorders are common in most colleges. Some students might abuse substances such as Adderall to help them study.
As many as 76% of students who use substances such as Adderall use it to try to increase their concentration while studying or taking a test or exam. Students will still abuse these substances even if they are not prescribed to them. They believe that these substances help boost their grades in exams and help them concentrate better while studying.
How Alcohol Addiction Affects the Young Adult Population
Alcohol consumption is a major cause of death among 15-24-year-olds, including homicide, suicide, and accidents, such as young adults driving while drunk. People who are driving under the influence of alcohol and/or other drugs may have their license taken away by the authorities. They might also face jail time, probation, and/or mandatory community service.
More on Young Adults, Mental Illness, and Addiction
Most mental illnesses do not suddenly appear. Often the symptoms gradually build up until it causes the person who is affected a lot of pain. These changes often creep up little by little.
Indicators of mental illness
- Withdrawal
- Illogical thinking
- Nervousness
- Unusual behavior
- Problems thinking
Some people develop mental illness(es) very early in life. This can lead to frustration, as people often tell them, “That’s just the way you are.” Early development of a mental illness will not cause the person to “grow out of it” or “learn to live with it”. Young adults who have an early developed mental illness may also be at risk for an addiction disorder.
What to Expect During Rehab for Young Adults
One of the most unpleasant parts of rehab for young adults is detoxification (detox) from substances. The body naturally flushes out the harmful substances, but it is not pleasant. Medical detox, a process that uses certain medications to ease detox, can make the process much more comfortable. It is important to go to a reputable detox center instead of trying to detox at home.
You should never try to withdraw from the use of these substances without professional help:
- Alcohol
- Benzodiazepines (Benzos)
- Opioids (Especially Methadone)
Detoxification from these substances can be very dangerous and might be life-threatening. Having a trained staff at a detox center can help make your loved one’s detox safe and, using medication management, more comfortable. Detox for young adults in rehab might make their loved ones worry. However, this is a very important first step during their clinical road to recovery. There is no way around detox.
Young Adult Rehab: Treatment for Co-Occurring Disorders
Mental illnesses are sometimes masked by your loved one’s addiction if your loved one has already started down their path of addiction. This is why it is important for your loved one to be diagnosed by a professional. It is important to find a clinic that offers treatment for their other mental illness(s) as well as their addiction disorder.
Many of the people who suffer from a mental illness will develop an addiction disorder and vice versa. You cannot treat the addiction disorder and the other mental health disorder(s) separately. If you only treat the addiction disorder, the pain from the other mental illness(es) is still there to drive your loved one back to addiction.
A substance use disorder will not go away on its own just because the underlying or newly developed co-occurring mental health disorder is treated.
Seeking out substances can lead people into dangerous places. Individuals who have a dual diagnosis are at an even greater risk. The things people might see and situations that they might end up in, trying to get drugs, might be dangerous.
Some of these experiences might cause them to develop post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Many young adults have to go to rehab after they develop an addiction encouraged by recent and past traumatic experiences.
Other mental illnesses that often lead to self-medication include:
- Depression
- Schizophrenia
- Bipolar disorder
- Eating disorders
- Obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD)
- Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD)
Young Adult Rehab: Residential Treatment
Residential treatment is very important for most people who are trying to start on their long-lasting road to recovery. During residential treatment, you will have a structured day. The structure is often beneficial to many people, whether or not they suffer from an addiction disorder.
During residential treatment, clients are taken into the clinic to live 24/7. This removes your loved one not only from places that might trigger a relapse. It also removes them from contact with people with whom they abused substances and/or people who might encourage them to start using substances again.
What to Expect After Young Adult Rehab
During your treatment, you and our dedicated team will develop a relapse prevention plan that is tailored to you and your needs. This might include helping you find a medical professional who can assist with prescription needs, such as a psychiatric doctor or therapist, if necessary.
Recovery groups and therapy meetings may be necessary and helpful components of life after treatment. Individuals can continue to receive support and motivation as they work on rebuilding their lives.
At Daylight Recovery Services, we are here to help you and your family get back your loved one from the jaws of addiction. It is very important that you find your loved one help as soon as you can. Young adulthood is a challenging and delicate time in a person’s life. You can help them get help before it is too late. Seeing your loved one healthy and on their road to recovery can make it all worth it. Contact us today to learn more about how we can help you or another young person who is struggling with substance abuse.
References
Rebecca Baskett 
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