Drug abuse is growing in North Carolina, in part because it is located along major drug smuggling routes. The stereotypical “drug problem” of heroin has long since been overtaken by crack cocaine, meth, club drugs, and a pharmacy’s worth of prescription drugs being abused by accident or for fun. Recently North Carolina has begun to crack down on drug offenses, which means that families should be proactive in seeking treatment for a suspected substance abuse problem before it is compounded by legal troubles. The network of drug and alcohol rehabilitation and treatment centers in North Carolina is growing in answer to this spreading epidemic, so families have a wide choice when evaluating programs.

For most people, the specter of drug abuse has always loomed over someone else’s family. Knowing where to even begin seeking treatment is a hurdle, but the phone book or a simple internet search for “North Carolina rehab centers” will get you going quickly. After that, it gets a little trickier to evaluate which programs might be best for your particular problem.

Any good drug or alcohol treatment center should offer a wide range of programs tailored to the individual addict and his particular type and scope of problem. A shotgun approach to addiction does not work. In North Carolina, most larger communities will have at least one detox center or mental health facility, but these may not be able to offer the end-to-end continuity of care needed to help an addict stay on track throughout the recovery process. Sometimes intervention is required to get someone to seek help at all; most times, detoxification is required, which very often requires inpatient care. Counseling and behavior modification therapy over an extended period of time is usually required to help an addict overcome the emotional dependency. If your local North Carolina rehab center does not offer all of these elements in its programs, look elsewhere.

While most families would probably prefer to keep their loved one close to home through the treatment process, in fact, such a strategy could prove to be counterproductive. An outpatient is subject to terrible temptation: the medicine cabinet, the liquor store, the guy across town who used to sell him drugs. The stresses are still there: the job, the kids, the strained relationship with a spouse. Even the neighbor’s barking dog might drive a reach for the bottle. Time, peace, and total freedom from distraction is the best way to launch a new, drug-free life, so don’t limit your options to the local area or even to rehabilitation centers in North Carolina.

A healthy new lifestyle involves living clean and living right. Good rehab programs often include nutrition and fitness classes, anger management, and other instruction aimed at reshaping both mind and body. Family outreach to help stressed families move past the addiction is important as well. Ask questions before committing your loved one to a drug or alcohol treatment center, in North Carolina or anywhere else, to help assure the positive outcome you really want.