Treatment centers are designed to help those battling addiction and mental health issues. They are staffed with medical doctors, mental health professionals, and addiction counselors. It is often difficult to get a good idea of what treatment centers offer because they do not publicize their services on websites or advertisements.
There are four main types of treatment centers. These include psychiatric, addiction and alcoholism, mental health or mental deficiency, residential centers for one or two specific diagnoses. For the purposes of this article, we will answer the question, Are there gender-specific treatment centers?
Are There Gender-Specific Treatment Centers Available?
There are gender-specific treatment centers available. The most common gender-specific treatment center is for women who suffer from drug addiction and alcohol addiction. These particular addiction centers specialize in the recovery of female addicts with addictions to prescription pills, painkillers, heroin, and other substances.
The original impetus for these types of facilities was the high number of women turning to various illicit drugs (such as crack cocaine) after becoming addicted to prescription painkillers such as Vicodin, Opana, and Percocet. Part of the problem is that these drugs are actually legal. Women and men who suffer from chronic pain – whether from a medical condition or not often become addicted to these types of prescription painkillers.
Once they become addicted, many women find it particularly easy to switch over to substances such as heroin and cocaine. Many women also have a higher tolerance for drugs and alcohol because they have smaller body frames. This makes them more vulnerable to the harmful effects of addiction than men. The same is true for mental health disorders. Studies have shown that women are more likely to suffer from depression than men. This helps to explain why there are gender specific treatment centers specifically for women who suffer from mental health disorders.
Women and girls who struggle with eating disorders such as anorexia and bulimia are another group of people who usually require gender specific treatment facilities. In many cases, these types of facilities can be found in psychiatric hospitals or mental institutions rather than traditional addiction centers. Studies have shown that women and girls are more likely to suffer from eating disorders than men. This is especially true of the teenage and young adult population.
These gender specific treatment centers exist for two main reasons.
The first reason is that women and girls in the past tended to get the worst treatments for their conditions. They were often shunned rather than treated for their various mental health disorders or addictions. In many cases, however, women and girls would not have been eligible for traditional recovery programs because of the shame that followed diagnosis with a mental health disorder or addiction.
Today, however, treatment centers are more likely to treat women and girls equally with respect to these types of disorders. The second reason is that gender specific treatment centers help to keep women and girls safe from the stigma of addiction. Potential employers, for example, might question a woman’s motivation for seeking rehab rather than thinking it was due to the needs of a sick person in need of treatment. This could potentially harm her career. Gender specific treatment centers can be a good option for women and girls who struggle with addictions or mental health disorders.
In the past, men and boys did not have a lot of options when it came to gender specific treatment centers. Today, however, there are many such facilities available that cater specifically to male patients. For example, there are gender specific alcohol treatment centers for adult men as well as teen boys. There are also gender specific treatment centers for men who suffer from addiction to painkillers.
There are also many co-ed (gender mixed) treatment centers available. These facilities offer more traditional treatment services from medical doctors and mental health professionals but still provide a safe environment for both men and women. This is especially true when it comes to treating patients with addictions to prescription painkillers or other types of drugs. These types of centers can be beneficial for both men and women who struggle with substance abuse or mental health disorders.
In conclusion, there are gender specific treatment centers available. The most common gender specific treatment centers have been designed specifically to help women with addiction problems or mental health issues such as eating disorders or depression. The original impetus for these types of facilities was the high number of women turning to various illicit drugs after becoming addicted to prescription painkillers such as Vicodin, Opana, and Percocet.
Today, however, these types of facilities can also help men who suffer from drug and alcohol addiction as well as mental health disorders such as depression or anxiety. To get a gender specific treatment center, contact us on 833-610-1174.