It’s no overstatement to say addiction recovery is a challenge. However, recovery is possible, especially when you have an experienced team of addiction treatment professionals on your side. At Wyoming Recovery, we’re here for you. Our team of drug and alcohol addiction specialists is dedicated to improving the quality of life of our patients.
We know that starting addiction treatment can be a scary and often overwhelming process. And we also know that you and your family probably have a lot of questions. We’ve provided answers here to some of those questions that are most frequently asked.
Don’t see your question here? Do you need additional information? You can always contact our office directly by filling out this form or by calling (307) 265-3791 to speak with a specialist.
General FAQs
- What Is Addiction?
- What Is Detox?
- What Are the Most Common Symptoms of Withdrawal?
- Can I Detox on My Own?
- How Do I Know When It’s Time for Treatment?
- What’s the Difference Between Treatment and Recovery?
- What Is Inpatient Addiction Treatment?
- What Can I Expect During Inpatient Treatment?
- What Should I Bring to the Inpatient Program?
- What Items Am I Prohibited from Bringing to the Inpatient Program?
- What Is Outpatient Addiction Treatment?
- Do I Need Inpatient or Outpatient Treatment?
- What Addiction Treatments Might You Use?
- How Long Does Drug and Alcohol Treatment Last?
- What If I Have Other Mental Health Problems?
- What Do I Do If I Relapse? Have I Failed?
- Do You Accept Insurance for Addiction Treatment?
- Do You Treat Veterans?
- Do You Accept TriCare?
- Can Treatment Cure Addiction?
- How Can I Tell If I Have a Problem with Drugs or Alcohol?
- How Can I Get Help?
Alcohol Addiction FAQs
- What is Alcohol Use Disorder (AUD)?
- What is Alcohol Addiction?
- What is Alcoholism?
- What Are the Most Recognizable Signs of Alcoholism?
- What Risk Factors Increase Likelihood of Alcoholism?
- What Are the Most Common Signs of an Alcohol Addiction?
- I’m a Binge or Heavy Drinker. Does That Make Me an Addict? Do I Suffer from AUD?
- How Do I Get Help With My Problems with Alcohol?
Drug Addiction FAQs
- Is Drug Addiction a Disease? Why Do People Get Addicted to Drugs?
- What Risk Factors Increase Likelihood of Drug Addiction?
- How Do I Recognize the Symptoms and Signs of Drug Addiction?
- What are the Short-Term and Long-Term Consequences Caused by Drug Addiction?
What Is Addiction?
Addiction is a complex mental health condition that involves compulsive use or behavior, despite harmful consequences. Certain substances like alcohol and many drugs also modify brain and body chemistry, which can result in a chemical dependence.
What Is Detox?
Detox takes place at the beginning of many recovery programs. The detoxification process allows the body to rid itself of any toxins already in the system. The length of time required to detox will vary depending on the substance you are addicted to and the length of time you have been addicted. Most addicts will experience withdrawal symptoms during detox. These symptoms can be mild to severe, again depending on the substance and duration of use.
The safest way to detox is to do so under the care and supervision of a medical professional. At Wyoming Recovery, we offer medically supervised detoxification at our campus in Casper, WY. Patients are monitored 24/7 by trained staff, and non-habit forming medications are administered to alleviate symptoms and keep the patient comfortable.
We also offer a Suboxone Treatment Program for patients detoxing from opioids, including heroin.
What Are the Most Common Symptoms of Withdrawal?
Withdrawal symptoms will vary by person and the source of addiction. Other factors influencing their severity are the individual’s overall health, the length of time of their addiction, and the frequency of alcohol or drug use. These are the most common symptoms of withdrawal from alcohol or drugs:
- Tremors
- Convulsions
- Hallucinations
- Nausea
- Headaches
- Panic attacks
- Fatigue
- Restlessness
- Fever
- Sweating
- Clammy skin
- Goosebumps
- Changes in heart rate or body temperature
- Difficulty breathing
- Muscle aches or tension
- Intense cravings for the addictive substance
- Diarrhea
- Stomachaches
- Numbness
- Tingling sensations
- Chest tightness
- Dizziness
- Delirium
- Paranoia
- Depression
- Anxiety
- Mood swings
- Loss of appetite
- Slurred speech
- Confused mental state
- Memory issues
- Poor concentration
- Insomnia
- Nightmares
- Desire to do self-harm
- Grand mal seizures
- Heart attacks
- Strokes
Can I Detox on My Own?
Theoretically, yes, but we don’t recommend it. Once you stop using a substance like drugs or alcohol, your body will generally start to detoxify itself. We recommend a medically supervised detoxification program because the withdrawal symptoms you will likely experience can be uncomfortable, or even life threatening. The withdrawal symptoms — along with the strong cravings to start using again — are why most addicts fail to detox successfully on their own.
How Do I Know When It’s Time for Treatment?
Addiction is a mental disease, and it’s difficult for addicts to realize they need help. Addicts also often feel embarrassed by their condition or they doubt that treatment will work. This makes it difficult for addicts to seek treatment for their condition, and so they often suffer in silence.
You’re here, which means your likely an addict who has come to the realization that you have a problem, or you have a friend of family member who you believe to be an addict. In either case, the addiction has likely gotten to the point where it is affecting your daily life or the lives of those around you. It’s probably time to consider treatment.
Other signs that it’s time to get treatment for an addiction include:
- continued, strong cravings for alcohol or a particular drug;
- spending excessive money on the substance;
- reduced interest in your favorite activities;
- withdrawal symptoms when you try to stop using; and/or
- you can’t stop using the substance despite understanding the risks.
What’s the Difference Between Treatment and Recovery?
Treatment is the process through which an addict gets to Recovery. The treatment process is going to vary depending on the individual and their addiction. At Wyoming Recovery, we offer several treatment programs and different levels of care, and we personalize each of those programs to meet the needs of our individual patients.
Recovery refers to the time when a patient has stopped using an addictive substance, and can go back to normal life. Our goal at Wyoming Recovery is to get all our patients into recovery, and help them stay in recovery for the rest of their lives.
What Is Inpatient Addiction Treatment?
Some patients need 24/7 support or need to get out of a dangerous environment. In those cases, patients come and stay in an inpatient treatment facility. These patients live in the facility while they recieve treatment for their addictions. Inpatient treatment is typically shorter in duration, and leads to better success rates compared to outpatient treatment.
At Wyoming Recovery, we have 17 patient beds at our inpatient addiction treatment campus in Casper, WY. While patients stay with us they recieve 24-hour monitoring, healthy meals, transportation, medical care, addiction treatment, access to a gym and other recreational facilities, and more. Learn more about our Residential Inpatient Program.
What Can I Expect During Inpatient Treatment?
We’ve produced this short video to explain the admissions process, and give you a brief overview of what to expect when you join us for inpatient addiction treatment.
What Should I Bring to the Inpatient Program?
While you are staying with us, we will provide meals, bedding and towels, laundry facilities, and basic personal care items (including soap and shampoo). Here is a list of what we recommend you bring with you into treatment:
- Medications — If you are taking any prescription medications, bring a 30-day supply. These medications must be in their original pharmacy bottles with the labels intact. If you have less than a 30-day supply, bring the prescription and money and we will help get them filled.
- Bags/Suitcases — Due to storage limitations, patients are allowed to bring up to 2 medium-sized pieces of luggage. Any additional bags or suitcases will be sent home with family.
- Personal Toiletries — Patients need to bring their own personal toiletries, including shampoo, conditioner, soap, deodorant, toothpaste, hairbrush or comb, hair dryer, shaving items, and feminine hygiene products.
- Clothing — Bring a week’s worth of comfortable, seasonally appropriate clothing. Clothing must not contain any alcohol/drug-related messaging, imaging or advertisements. Laundry facilities are provided for your use.
- Spending Money — Patients should bring a minimum of $25 for essentials that need to be replaced. Patients go on recreational excursions, including to places like museums and galleries. Some of these may require entrance fees.
- Records/Information (as applicable) — Bring any mental health or substance abuse testing previously completed, including any information on treatment by a psychiatrist, psychologist, or counselor for individual or group therapy. Bring your most recent medical records for acute, chronic or recurring medical conditions currently being treated.
- Tobacco/Nicotine Products — Although we encourage you to cease use of these products while you are in treatment, we do allow chew, cigarettes, and smoking cessation products such as nicotine patches and chews.
What Items Am I Prohibited from Bringing to the Inpatient Program?
When you enter into our Residential Inpatient Program, all of your belongings will be searched for your safety and for the safety of the other patients. Any prohibited items will be removed while you are staying in our facility. Prohibited items include:
- Drugs and Alcohol — We do not allow these items, other than required prescription medications. Personal care items or medications that contain alcohol are allowed, but restricted (see below).
- Weapons — We do not allow weapons of any kind, including pocket knives.
- Clothing with Alcohol/Drug Messaging or Imagery — We do not allow any clothing items that contain messaging or logos for drug and alcohol products or paraphernalia.
- Nutrition Supplements, Vitamins, or Essential Oils — We do not allow any of these items.
- Vaping or CBD Products — We do not allow any of these items.
- Smartwatches — We do not allow patients to wear any smartwatches while in our inpatient treatment program.
- Laptops
- Tablets
Some items are allowed, but restricted. These items include:
- Medications and Personal Care Items Containing Alcohol — Any items that have alcohol listed in the ingredients will be locked up, and provided to you as needed.
- Cell Phones — Cell phones are locked away throughout the day so patients can focus on their treatment. These items are then provided to patients for use during specific time periods.
What Is Outpatient Addiction Treatment?
Outpatient addiction treatment is any type of treatment program that doesn’t require you to live in a treatment facility. These treatment programs allow patients to continue with their work and family lives while still getting treatment for their addictions. At Wyoming Recovery, we offer several outpatient treatment programs, and we tailor those programs to meet the needs of our patients and their addictions. Learn more about our Outpatient Treatment Programs.
Do I Need Inpatient or Outpatient Treatment?
There are many reasons why either inpatient or outpatient treatment would be a better fit for you, your life situation, and your addiction treatment needs. Inpatient treatment is generally faster and more effective, while outpatient treatment allows patients to continue working, living with family, and being part of the community.
There is no easy answer, so the best way to make a decision is to speak with one of our case managers at Wyoming Recovery. They can help you weigh your options and make recommendations. To speak with a case manager, fill out this form or call (307) 265-3791.
What Addiction Treatments Might You Use?
Your treatment plan will likely look different from other patients in our facility. We treat each patient as an individual and understand each person is struggling with a unique combination of circumstances. At Wyoming Recovery, all of our treatment plans are medical and evidence-based. We use a variety of treatments, therapies and counselling to provide holistic treatment of our patients and their families, including:
- Individual Therapy — Trained therapists work with patients one-on-one to help tackle their addiction in a private setting. During the sessions, patients can discuss their triggers, symptoms, or problems openly. Learn More.
- Family Therapy — We bring family members into therapy sessions to help patients and families connect more deeply. Learn More.
- Group Therapy — Wyoming Recovery offers scheduled recovery-related group therapy sessions at our campus, where patients can share motivations, success stories, and support with their peers. Learn More.
- Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) — CBT helps change a patient’s thought processes. These sessions take place in one-on-one or small group settings and help patients develop coping skills for dealing with situations and triggers that could lead to relapse, including ways to manage accompanying stress. Learn More.
- Motivational Enhancement Therapy (MET) — MET helps patients form a plan to make improvements, build confidence, and acquire the tools they need to change their drinking behavior. Learn More.
- Marital and Family Counseling — Incorporating spouses and family members can help repair and improve family relationships, while also introducing a support system to help patients stop use drugs and remain sober and drug-free long-term. Learn More.
- Nutrition and Exercise Management — Healthy eating is an important part of staying healthy overall, and the foods you eat can also help curb or trigger your cravings for alcohol or drugs. Our licensed nutritionist can help you improve your overall health and manage those cravings. Learn More.
- Acupuncture — Acupuncture is a proven technique to help patients diminish their cravings for addictive substances. We offer certified acupuncture treatments to patients at Wyoming Recovery. Learn More.
How Long Does Drug and Alcohol Treatment Last?
The length of an addiction treatment program varies greatly depending on the individual and their treatment needs. At Wyoming Recovery, we customize our treatment programs for each individual patient, which includes the duration of treatment. Making it to recovery isn’t easy, and you should be prepared to work as long as you need to. That said, regardless of how long it takes, we are here for you and our staff is dedicated to helping you get through treatment so you can live a sober, healthy life.
Patients are generally in our Residential Inpatient Program for 4 weeks, although it is common for patients to transition to an outpatient treatment program aftwards for longer-term care and treatment.
Patients in our Intensive Outpatient Program (IOP) are typically in aggressive treatment for 4 to 8 weeks, although it is common for patients to transition to a less intensive and less frequent outpatient program following IOP for longer-term care and treatment.
What If I Have Other Mental Health Problems?
If you’re struggling with addiction as well as another mental health problem, Wyoming Recovery can still help. We work daily with patients with a dual diagnosis. In fact, many of those struggling with addiction may have an underlying mood disorder or another mental health condition. If this is the case for you, our team will take care to choose treatment proven effective for others who have dealt with similar circumstances. We may utilize cognitive behavioral therapy or take another holistic approach to treatment.
What Do I Do If I Relapse? Have I Failed?
Relapse is not synonymous with failure, and it’s not uncommon. At Wyoming Recovery, we treat a relapse as a bump in the road on your journey to recovery, not a full-blown wreck. Recovery is rarely straight-forward, and there will be obstacles.
The important thing is that you recognize that you’ve encountered a problem, and then get help immediately to get you back on track. That help could be support from friends or family, or it could be through getting back into some form of treatment at Wyoming Recovery. If you do relapse, contact your case manager or therapist at Wyoming Recovery. They can help you reevaluate and get back on track.
Do You Accept Insurance for Addiction Treatment?
We do accept insurance, but not all insurance policies cover addiction treatment. Be sure to talk to your insurance provider about what’s covered under your policy. Many have restrictions on the treatment types, duration of treatment, or maximum amounts they will cover. Our case managers also have experience working with most insurance companies in the area, and may be able to help you.
Do You Treat Veterans?
Wyoming Recovery has been helping veterans recover from drug and alcohol addiction for years. We offer many treatment options that help veterans not only with the addiction itself, but the underlying emotional, mental, and physical problems that led to the addiction in the first place. We work with your existing doctors—including the VA—to make sure we are providing the highest quality treatment that also takes into account any ongoing treatment, particularly if you are also suffering with ongoing physical trauma and injuries.
To make it even easier for veterans and covered family members to access our drug and alcohol treatment services, we have joined the Community Care Network through TriWest Healthcare Alliance. If you are covered by TriCare, you can enroll in our inpatient and outpatient drug and alcohol addiction treatment programs. Talk with a case manager today about getting admitted to one of our programs with TriCare.
Do You Accept TriCare?
Yes, we are part of the Community Care Network through TriWest Healthcare Alliance. Both our inpatient and outpatient addiction treatment services are covered for veterans and family members with TriCare. Talk with a case manager today about getting admitted to one of our programs with TriCare.
Can Treatment Cure Addiction?
Few experts would suggest that there’s a true cure for addiction, and we agree. Although our experienced staff can treat your addiction and help you manage it effectively, we believe that it will always be there, just like any other chronic condition like diabetes or heart disease. Staying in recovery will likely be a lifelong process, but it’s made easier with proper treatment, behavior therapies, and a strong support network.
At Wyoming Recovery, we’ve helped thousands of patients get into recovery and stay in recovery, and we are proud to share the success stories of patients. We also plan regular alumni events, where recovering addicts can meet with each other and draw strength from others’ successes.
How Can I Tell if I Have a Problem with Drugs or Alcohol?
We have online alcohol self-assessment and drug self-assessment tools to help you determine if you have a problem with drugs or alcohol. You can also call us at (307) 265-3791 if you would like to talk to someone about getting an evaluation from one of our addiction specialists.
How Can I Get Help?
You can get help for yourself by calling (307) 265-3791 or by filling out this online form. Wyoming Recovery offers many treatment programs and several different levels of care, including inpatient treatment and outpatient treatment. We can customize a treatment program specifically for you and your needs so you can get the help you need to get to recovery.
The first step is getting admitted to an addiction treatment program. You can start the process by filling out this online form or by calling (307) 265-3791 to speak with a case manager.