Why is long term treatment recommended for addicts? 

Most people, it has been proven, who get themselves into and remain within a treatment set up, end drug use, reduce and even fully stop criminal behaviour and improve their occupational, psychological and social functioning.  Let’s be clear here: Individual treatment outcomes rely on and depend on the nature and extent of the patient’s challenges; the treatment and related services that the organisation has used to address those problems, and, importantly, the level and quality of interaction between the treatment providers and the patient.  

Relapse levels amongst addicts/patients are very similar in likeness to those who have other chronic diseases such as hypertension, asthma and even diabetes.  Like other chronic diseases, addiction can be managed successfully. Long term treatment enables people to counteract addiction’s powerful disruptive effects on the brain and behaviour and regain control of their lives. The chronic nature of the disease means that relapsing to drug abuse is not only possible but also likely, with symptom recurrence rates similar to those for other well-characterized chronic medical illnesses—such as diabetes, hypertension, and asthma that also have both physiological and behavioural components.

 This isn’t the case at all: Similar to the strategy adopted for other chronic conditions, successful addiction therapy often necessitates on-going examination and change as needed. When a patient is getting active treatment for hypertension and their symptoms improve, the treatment is considered successful, even though symptoms may return if the medication is stopped. Relapses to drug misuse do not represent failure for the addicted person; rather, they suggest that therapy has to be reinstated or changed, or that an alternative treatment is required. This is also why long term treatment is a definitive must for those battling addiction.