Rehab centers are often referred to as treatment centers or treatment programs, and almost invariably refer to a clinical facility that is aimed to help people who have an addiction to alcohol or drugs or some other substance or behaviour.
The term rehab can also apply to any type of recovery from any type of physical or mental injury or disorder, but the term rehab center almost always applies to an alcohol or drug treatment facility.
Rehab centers are essentially an outgrowth of hospitals that were used in the early days of Alcoholics Anonymous to dry out or detox alcoholics prior to admission to Alcoholics Anonymous and prior to embarking on the 12-step recovery program that AA pioneered.
Over time rehab centers or treatment centers started by individual members of Alcoholics Anonymous and others with the express intent of providing a safe and secure environment for a limited period of time that would allow an alcoholic both to have a detox if needed and begin to look at some of their underlying emotional drives that fuelled their alcoholism.
Inevitably people who were what is known as dual addicted required treatment, and rehab centres began to broaden and widen their customer base with a view to admitting anyone was either an alcoholic or had any type of addiction to any substance or behaviour that could be identified as causing real problems in their lives.
Rehab Centers – Addiction
Rehab centres began treating alcoholics and people with other addictions relying heavily on the principles of the 12 step programme of Alcoholics Anonymous as a basis for their addiction treatment programs. No rehab is owned or has any formal connection with Alcoholics Anonymous, but a significant number of rehabs orientate their rehab facilities and programs around the principles of some of the 12 steps of the AA program.
Rehab centres also took a view that the individuals concerned had what they termed an addictive personality, and that the substance or behaviour that they were addicted to became known as their drug of choice. This was and remains a controversial view of addiction, but one that certainly suits rehab centers and treatment centers policy of being able to treat any individual who they believe has an addiction to anything that is causing problems.
Rehab centers and treatment centers focus mainly on alcoholism and drug addiction, but also aim to deal with objections to food, gambling, sexual addiction, internet and video game addiction as well as issues such as addiction to other people, often referred to as codependency.