As a counselor for online substance abuse classes, and a recovering drug addict and alcoholic, I understand the difficult questions and fears faced by addicts. I discuss these issues and questions with my students regularly.
One of the toughest questions we discuss is whether addicts should, once detoxified, enter residential rehab programs, or can they safely stay home and go to outpatient programs. This is a tough question to answer since every person is different. Staying away from former places where the addiction and bad habits occurred is a good idea until you are really strong in your conviction to stay sober. As reported in www.nytimes.com.
This bleeds right into the question as to when it is okay to leave the sober house. This too differs by person.
Another tough situation is asking if adolescent addicts are helped by group sessions with addicted peers, or just intimidated and, occasionally, taught bad new habits? It is entirely possible that both outcomes are possible. This goes along with the theory that prison teaches prisoners how to be better criminals. No doubt some are rehabilitated.
Is Alcoholics Anonymous the best choice? Given that there are no real relevant statistics it is impossible to say. I admit that joining a social support group like AA, if your heart is into getting and staying sober, is an incredibly powerful tool.
If you or someone you care about suffers from substance abuse or addiction issues, please make sure help is sought. If you prefer to maintain anonymity there are online drug classes too.