Traditional ideas about recovery often focus on abstinence. Although abstinence is important to recovery, there are a variety of other components that contribute to healing. Abstinence alone does not account for the roots of your distress. Thus, to address and respond to the roots of your challenges, a continuum of care is vital to the recovery process.

Through treatment, you have learned that an attachment approach considers the whole person. As noted in “Holistic-Based Recovery Services” from the Recovery Research Institute, holistic healing considers your physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual well-being. Therefore, through the continuum of care, you can be empowered to find and maintain balance across all aspects of your life for lasting recovery.

At Driftwood Recovery, we believe finding the right level of care for you is vital to meeting you where you are on your recovery journey. Our ability to meet you where you are can help you build a continuum of care that addresses your individual needs. Whether you are entering early recovery or have been in recovery for a few years, there is a path for you.

However, you may question what is the continuum of care. What does the continuum of care look like beyond treatment?

Exploring the Continuum of Care Model

According to the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA), the continuum of care is a treatment system that addresses your specific needs. In the continuum of care, you are placed at an appropriate level of care that you can step up or down from as needed. Thus, the continuum of care acknowledges that there is no one level or way to approach recovery. Moreover, as Parents Lead states, a continuum of care model recognizes multiple opportunities to address behavioral health challenges. Listed below are the components of a continuum of care model:

• Promotion: Strategies that support behavioral health and resilience in challenges
• Prevention: Resources are provided before the potential onset of a disorder
• Treatment: A diverse array of services are provided to treat SUD and other behavioral health disorders
• Recovery: Services support your ability to live a productive life within your community

The continuum of care model highlights the value of moving through rather than in a treatment program. Thus, a flexible program provides the space to thrive in treatment and build a life in recovery.

The Value of a Continuum of Care in Recovery

A continuum of care is invaluable in the recovery process as it gives you access to support in your moment of need. Through the dynamic process of recovery, the opportunity for triggers and cravings is always possible. However, you do not have to spend your life feeling like you are walking a tightrope between sobriety and relapse. Therefore, through therapeutic interventions offered in a continuum of care, you have access to resources that can bridge care before, during, and after treatment for effective recovery maintenance.

As the Alcohol Research: Current Reviews states, a continuum of care can support the promotion of extended recovery through treatment interventions like:

• Recovery management checkups
• Technology-based outreach
  • Texting and smartphone app programs
• Recovery activities
• Mutual support groups

Despite the benefits of a continuum of care, there are some barriers to care. Increasing your understanding of barriers in a continuum of care can help you learn how to lower those barriers for your long-term well-being.

Understanding Barriers to a Continuum of Care

There have been gaps in treatment that contribute to identifying SUD as a chronic relapsing disorder. Although Substance Abuse: Research and Treatment notes that the continuum of care is not a linear process, insight can still be gained. Looking at the stages of recovery in the continuum of care can provide insight into how to dismantle those barriers. Listed below are some stages and barriers of the continuum of care after treatment:

• Recovery maintenance: Stability to sustain and refine strategies for problem-solving
  • Barriers to continuing care:
    • Lack of proactive encouragement in aftercare services
    • Early exit from treatment reduces referrals for aftercare
    • Geographical isolation from continuing care service locations
• Recovery citizenship: The rediscovery of your authentic self, reconnection of family, and establishing a new social contract with your community and culture
  • Barriers to continuing care:
    • Disconnecting from your recovery community
      • Disengaged from community activities and service opportunities

Despite the challenges of barriers to the continuum of care beyond treatment, sustained recovery is still possible.

Supporting Low Barriers to Care in Recovery

Through the dedication of clinicians, staff, and clients, barriers to the continuum of care can be lowered to support lasting recovery. Moreover, as SAMHSA notes, low-barrier models of care can support engagement and retention throughout the recovery process. A low-barrier model of care works by putting you at the center of planning and decision-making in your recovery. Listed below are the principles and components of low barriers used to support your recovery across the continuum of care:

• Person-centered care
• Harm reduction
• Meeting you where you are
• Flexibility in how you receive services
• Comprehensive services
• Trauma-informed care
• Culturally responsive and inclusive

With lower barriers of care, you have access to a robust range of tools to support your recovery journey.

Empowering Sustained Healing in Alumni at Driftwood Recovery

At Driftwood Recovery, we know how important the support of the community is to recovery. Without community support, you can be left feeling alone in your recovery, which opens the door to relapse. Therefore, we are dedicated to providing a peer-driven network in our alumni and community integration program. With mutual support in a vibrant recovery community, you can learn and grow. You can learn and grow from a place of compassion, respect, and accountability. Through a continuum of care, you are reminded that recovery does not happen alone. Lasting recovery happens in collaboration with your community.

Recovery is about more than abstaining from using substances. Without a whole-person approach, you can lose connection with the supportive resources and social network that reminds you that you are not alone. Moreover, disconnection from support services after treatment can increase your risk for relapse and greater psychological distress. However, engaging in an alumni program with an active continuum of care can foster the tools needed to continue to thrive. Through a continuum of care, you can find the compassion, motivation, and accountability you need to meet the challenges of recovery, like cravings. Therefore, at Driftwood Recovery, we are dedicated to providing a strong alumni community built on connection for lasting recovery. Call us at (512) 759-8330 to learn more.