Written by: THE BALANCE
Medically reviewed by Dr. Sarah Boss, MD
Last updated: January 20, 2026
Fact checked
Quick Summary
  • While the type of treatment and its duration greatly vary from one person to another, studies have revealed that long-term treatment programs are generally associated with better outcomes.
  • These treatment plans are usually residential and require the clients to live in supervised accommodations as they fight toward recovery.
  • For people struggling with addiction for a long time, suffering from frequent relapses, or who have developed coexisting mental health issues, long-term rehab can be the perfect place to begin a new life.

Recovery from drug addiction is a highly variable process. While the type of treatment and its duration greatly vary from one person to another, studies have revealed that long-term treatment programs are generally associated with better outcomes. These treatment plans are usually residential and require the clients to live in supervised accommodations as they fight toward recovery. For people struggling with addiction for a long time, suffering from frequent relapses, or who have developed coexisting mental health issues, long-term rehab can be the perfect place to begin a new life.

Learn more about long-term addiction treatment, what they offer, and how you can benefit from it in this article.

Long-term drug rehab refers to a facility that addresses all issues and removes all barricades that may block the clients from achieving recovery through short-term treatment courses. This is performed in an intimate environment with a progress-based setting that includes world-class interventions with practical esteem-building skills. Each client undergoes advanced level psychological screening, detailed medical assessments, and clinical evaluations to determine the best and the most individualized care plan tailored to their specific needs.

Long-term treatment centres for drug addictions aim to help people struggling with chronic relapses that fail to respond to shorter courses. Such chronic relapses require a community that practices proper therapy, encourages accountability, and prepares them to live fully. The setups provided by such communities are offered for as long as 1 to 2 years or even more compared to shorter courses that last 30 to 90 days. Generally, long-term rehab centres offer inpatient facilities where people live at designated accommodations under round-the-clock supervision instead of outpatient care where they are called for regular meetups at the clinic.

Long-term inpatient rehab is structured to function in accordance with the following goals:

  • Provision of a stable environment to learn and practice coping skills
  • Enabling residents to become self-sufficient
  • Delivery of round-the-clock structure and support
  • Arranging opportunities to connect to the community and build positive professional and personal relationships

While there is no single set of expectations that applies to all long-term drug treatment centres, most of them usually run based on the following four steps:

Patient Assessment

Every new client availing of long-term rehab facilities is usually requested to undergo a detailed psychiatric and medical evaluation by a trained professional. This assessment is critical as it helps determine the level of care and the most appropriate treatment plan that each resident requires.

Drug Detox Programs

The continuum of care for drug addiction usually includes a supervised drug detox but may not be necessarily needed by each client. The detoxification process greatly varies in duration and intensity depending on the type of substance addiction and level of dependence on it. The process can be painful, especially due to withdrawal symptoms; however, almost all rehabilitation programs have detox professionals to ease the symptoms and make the process as safe and comfortable as possible.

Addiction Treatment

Addiction treatment at most long-term rehabilitation centres typically includes a combination of behavioral therapy and group and individual counseling in outpatient and inpatient settings.

Addiction Aftercare

Most rehab centres for drug addiction encourage the clients to keep working with their therapists after they are discharged as a part of the aftercare plan. This aftercare plan aims to maintain recovery and prevent relapses in every possible way.

In addition to a drug detox program, a resident may receive other types of treatment as a part of a long-term care program. The exact type of treatment is determined by the team of professionals and may include one or more of the following:

Individual/Group Therapy: This includes regular sessions with the therapist to devise a treatment plan, connect with other people facing similar addiction issues, and recognize and sort behavior patterns that may have led to the addiction in the first place.

Medication Management: Depending on the type of drug used and the co-existing disorders, the treatment team may decide to incorporate medications to support recovery. Medical professionals determine the choice of medication to use after an adequate assessment of individual needs.

Family Therapy: Most long-term recovery programs include clients’ families in the regular therapy sessions to heal the relationships affected by addiction and keep them informed and up to date about the progress.

Contingency Management: This includes incentive-based programs to promote compliance with treatment as well as abstinence from drug use.

12-Step Facilitation Therapy: This type of therapy includes the role of self-help groups that follow 12 steps to abstain from drug use.

Amenities: Most long-term drug and alcohol treatment centres offer additional amenities to speed up recoveries, such as art therapy, meditation, yoga, and swimming pools.

Treatment provided at long-term drug rehabs is highly structured and usually confrontational. Most programs incorporate activities specially designed to help clients examine self-concepts, identify destructive patterns, recognize and nip damaging beliefs and gradually replace them with newer, more constructive ways of living and interacting with others.

Although quite common, the question holds no right answer as different treatment programs work differently for different people. Generally, long-term plans tend to be a good option for people who have been struggling with drug addictions for a long and failed to maintain sobriety even after completion of one or shorter treatment programs. The reason for these failures can include the need to spend more time in a program to get their footing in a state of sobriety, something that requires enrolling in long-term residential treatment for addiction.

Long-term programs are also beneficial for individuals with a dual diagnosis, for example, drug addiction and bipolar disorder. Such programs are extensive and can easily offer more time to confront and manage all coexisting issues side by side for better and wholesome recovery.

If you are in search of long-term residential treatment for drug addiction, the process can easily overwhelm you, especially in terms of cost. This is because long-term rehab clinics usually cost more than short-term courses since the former include accommodation, meals, round-the-clock care, and other amenities. Fortunately, health insurance and other services like scholarships and grants can cover a significant portion of these costs.

The exact cost for a drug rehab center offering long-term residential treatment may depend on the following factors:

Location: Traveling to a facility far away may cost more than joining a rehab closer to home.

Amenities: Facilities that offer luxurious amenities like private accommodation and gourmet cuisine can increase the overall cost as compared to a standard rehab.

Medication: The need for medication as a part of the long-term inpatient management may bring additional costs.

Duration of Stay: The duration of stay at a rehab directly affects the cost associated with the program. While it may not be possible to pinpoint the length of stay required to recover exactly fully, an estimated cost can be provided after an initial assessment of your case. Contact us now to get a quote on your stay with us.

Looking for long-term residential rehab for drug addiction? As a chronic relapse center, we are trained to handle difficult and advanced stages of addiction that fail to be mended in short-term treatment courses. Many times, a chronic relapse co-develops serious mental health issues directly corresponding to the pattern of their substance abuse. If not managed timely and properly, these conditions can progressively worsen and increase the chances of relapse in the future. 

At our drug rehab clinic, we acknowledge these multi-faceted issues and complexities that a chronic relapser and their loved ones may face. Therefore, we offer special programs to identify and treat chronic addictions along with all concurrent issues in a friendly, private, and peaceful setting. Our staff is well trained and bound by non-disclosure agreements to ensure anonymity while handling patients with utmost care. Get in touch with our admissions team to learn more about our authentic long-term programs.

FAQs

What are long-term rehab programs?
In contrast to the regular short-term treatment programs that extend to 60 to 90 days, long-term rehab programs are the ones that typically last for more than three months and may go as high as two years or even more. Such programs are usually residential and offered to people battling chronic addiction to overcome their active and passive issues in a comfortable setting under 24/7 supervision. These programs aim to minimise the risk of relapses and ensure complete recovery.
How long is long-term rehab?
The exact duration of treatment at a long-term rehab center cannot be determined as it varies from person to person. However, the minimum amount of time required by such treatment programs is 90 days which may extend to over 2 years or more.

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