What is a typical day in inpatient rehab like?

If you are considering entering rehab you might be scared or apprehensive about what you will be doing. Rehab conjures horror stories of “One Flew Over The KooKoos Nest,” an only film starring Jack Nicholson. Fortunately, times have changed drastically and the rehabs of today are vastly different than the rehabs of the 1950s and 1960s.

The typical day in inpatient rehab depends highly on the type of rehab. Although there are different types of rehabs, the typical daily routine does not change much depending on which rehab you are you are doing in the rehab. Most addiction rehabs follow the same format.

Beginning of the Day

Many rehabs start the day with group meditation.

The rehab day begins with mediation or prayer if the rehab is a religious one. Most of the mediation lasts a few minutes and continues through the first 15 or 20 minutes of the day.

Then there is breakfast. Breakfast is usually a simple affair with different selections of cereals, breads, beverages, and milk. Unfortunately, most rehabs do not allow coffee because caffeine is an addictive beverage and anything that is addictive is frowned upon. There is usually decaf coffee and decaf tea.

After breakfast there is normally meditation for a few minutes. This can be prayer or just meditating on what you want to accomplish for the day.

After breakfast and meditation, medication is given and the clients break up into groups. Some groups are educational while others work on self-esteem building and other activities. Sometimes there are exercise classes and yoga.

Noon

After the educational activities of the morning, lunch is usually served. Lunch is often a group activity and this is more of a social time than when group is going on. You can talk to other patients or keep to yourself it is a great time to work on your social skills.

After lunch are individual group sessions. Some of the sessions center around self betterment while others will be different behavioral therapies.

Sometimes after lunch they have targeted group therapies such as:

• emotive therapies,
• 12 step programs,
• anger management,
• group mental health therapies, and
• grief support groups.

These groups might differ depending on the type of rehab you are in and the drug or behavior you are addicted to.

According to the National Institute on Drug Abuse, a variety of therapies works best for treatment for drug addiction. Most rehab centers offer a wide variety of group therapies throughout a day in inpatient rehab.

After Lunch to Dinner

This is a time for crafts and more socializing before lights out. Many groups get together and play games or do other fun activities during this time. Some people hang out in groups while others tend to be more solitary.

Now that you know a typical day in inpatient therapy, you can see that there is nothing particularly frightening about going. If you feel that you need help with an addiction, feel free to call us at 800-430-1407Who Answers?.