It goes without saying that men and women experience the world differently in so many ways.
For starters, there’s of course the biological component but on the socialization side, the differences start from childhood with everything from toys to activities and stretch through to adulthood where those differences tend to become further cemented.
That includes addiction.
The National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) notes that “men are more likely than women to use almost all types of illicit drugs and illicit drug use is more likely to result in emergency department visits or overdose deaths for men than for women”.
They go on to add, “for most age groups, men have higher rates of use or dependence on illicit drugs and alcohol than do women”.
In regard to alcohol specifically, the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA) points out that in 2019, 14.5 million had an alcohol use disorder (AUD). Of that, 9 million were men.
What Is Gender-Specific Rehab?
Given those stark disparities, it’s no wonder that treatment options have followed suit in the form of gender-specific rehab.
As you can likely tell, the definition of what it is is right in the name; gender-specific rehab is rehab that’s specialized for men or women. This is as opposed to co-ed rehab where men and women go through treatment together.
What Are the Pros of Going to Gender-Specific Rehab?
This type of dedicated rehab comes with several benefits.
Specialized Care
This one is sort of obvious given what we mentioned at the top with respect to the innate differences in the bodies and minds of men and women; taking those into account and working with professional addiction specialists who incorporate and honor them can be a gamechanger.
Everything from how drugs or alcohol are processed to the aforementioned variation in socialization between men and women means that rehab which takes that into account is bound to be impactful.
Shared Experience and Familiarity
Bonding is a big part of what makes treatment for addiction effective. While individual work with a therapist or psychologist is a hallmark of rehab, group work is equally important to success. Taking part in group sessions with those who have intimately similar life experiences makes it easier to bond. The familiarity with what you’ve gone through serves to make treatment just that much more effective.
Increased Comfort Level
Being surrounded by those who’ve gone through similar things brings with it an increased comfort to truly commit to the treatment program.
Moreover, opening up may just be downright difficult in the presence of the opposite sex. For men, it’s possible that the drive to feel “manly” becomes a roadblock to the level of vulnerability and openness that’s imperative for a successful rehab experience. For women, it could be that a traumatic encounter with a man, i.e., rape, led directly to a substance use disorder and being around men, therefore, makes it extremely difficult to talk about certain things.
So being in the company of the same sex tends to make things more comfortable.
Fewer Distractions
In general, it’s frowned upon to develop or start romantic relationships in rehab because you tend to focus more on that than the program. More importantly, if that relationship implodes after rehab, it can lead directly to a relapse. To that end, gender-specific rehab has fewer distractions by removing the potential for sexual tension.
Why Valley Recovery Center Should Be Your Gender-Specific Rehab
Gender-specific rehab for men is what we do at Valley Recovery Center and our 30-, 60- and 90-day programs are tailored to suit the unique needs and differences which shape the lives of men. And with a limit of just 6 residents at a time, the support you’ll receive here is unparalleled.
To learn more, reach out to us today.
