Pros and Cons of Choosing Gender-Specific Rehab in Florida

There is no one-size-fits-all when it comes to rehab. This is why there are so many rehab centers around the country that offer their unique take on addiction treatment. Men and women experience addiction differently, which is why many addiction solutions Florida has to offer will provide gender-specific rehab options. However, this is not to say that gender-specific rehab is always the best option. There are pros and cons of choosing gender-specific rehab in Florida that you need to know about before making the final decision. In this article, we will explain what gender-specific rehab is, the differences between men and women in rehab, and provide you with clear pros and cons of gender-specific rehab.

What is Gender-Specific Rehab?

For the longest time, addiction treatment was specifically designed for men. If a woman needed to go to rehab, she would get the same exact treatment. However, subsequent research and statistics showed that men and women do not encounter the same addiction challenges. Therefore, the treatment itself needed to change. This led to the creation of gender-specific rehab, where therapy was tailored to the specific need of each gender.

A gender-specific rehab is a therapeutic approach that takes the differences between men and women into account and adapts its treatment to address specific challenges. That being said, gender-specific rehab is not a new form of treatment. For example, Adderall addiction treatment will look pretty much the same whether the patient is a man or a woman. However, the setting is different. Some people simply do not feel comfortable undergoing their treatment in the presence of the other gender.

Does it matter what rehab I choose?

Yes. In fact, choosing the right treatment facility and treatment options is one of the best ways to maximize your chances of a successful recovery. For example, if you have a crack cocaine addiction, you will want to choose one of the specialized crack cocaine rehab centers. Furthermore, you will want to ensure that your stay in the facility is as enjoyable as possible. This may or may not involve the presence of the other gender.

We are all different and have different needs when it comes to addiction treatment. Some people thrive in a multi-gender setting while others may find it stifling. It all depends on what your treatment goals are. Some people may find that creating relationships with the other gender in co-ed treatment helps their recovery, while others may find that they are unable to focus on their treatment unless they are in a gender-specific treatment facility.

Therefore, it does matter what rehab you choose. In fact, it might be one of the most important considerations before choosing your treatment center. To fully understand the importance, however, we need to go over the various differences between men and women in rehab, as well as some of the unique challenges each gender may face.

Differences between men and women in rehab

While there are many differences between men and women, there are four that are most important when it comes to addiction treatment:

• Hormones
• Patterns
• Addiction family genes

You may have heard that “Men are from Mars, and women are from Venus”. This sentence symbolizes the differences between men and women, and it holds true when it comes to addiction. Furthermore, each individual, regardless of gender, requires a specific treatment approach. This is why there are so many levels of care. For example, even the best intensive outpatient program Florida has to offer may be useless if a person requires full hospitalization.

On the other hand, the same person might find it very difficult to focus on their treatment due to the presence of the other gender. Let’s take a look at why this might be the case.

Men and women have different hormone levels

Hormones may play a large role when it comes to relapse. Men usually have a higher intensity of substance abuse but their addiction escalates slower. According to NIM research, sex differences in drug abuse may play a large role when it comes to choosing gender-specific rehab in Florida. In a nutshell, there are two hormones that may influence addiction treatment: Progesterone and Estradiol. It has been found that the fluctuation of these hormones has an impact on increasing negative emotions and cravings, both of which are known relapse triggers.

A gender-specific rehab accounts for these hormones and takes the necessary measures to limit their impact on the recovery process.

Addiction patterns

Addiction does not simply appear overnight, it is the culmination of habits and patterns. In general, men usually form an addiction due to their desire to increase positive emotions. On the other side, women usually suffer from addiction because they want to reduce stress and negative emotions. These addiction patterns are extremely important when it comes to creating the best course of treatment.

For example, it may so happen that an individual enrolls in the very best partial hospitalization program Florida has to offer, only to realize that their addiction patterns do not warrant that level of care. This is why all the best treatment centers in the country are extremely inquisitive about the patient’s addiction patterns.

What gender-specific rehab does is provide men and women with a specialized treatment program, one that takes addiction patterns into account.

Addiction family genes

According to the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism, your genes can heavily influence your risk of developing an addiction. In fact, almost 50% of the risk of addiction is genetic. However, this risk increases if the addiction predisposition genes come from the same sex. An example of this is a male individual whose father has addiction issues. That individual has a much higher chance of developing an addiction than an individual whose mother has addiction issues.

That said, practically any genetic link to addiction increases your risk. However, if you have family members of the same sex that struggle with addiction, choosing gender-specific rehab in Florida may become even more important.

Pros and cons of choosing gender-specific rehab in Florida

Due to the fact that men and women have different treatment needs, it may seem that gender-specific rehab is the best course of action. However, since every individual is also quite unique, choosing gender-specific rehab might not always be the best option. Furthermore, there is also the issue of cost. Before you can choose the best treatment option, you will need to ask yourself insurance-specific questions such as does Aetna cover drug rehab in a gender-specific treatment facility, for example. For the most part, you will not have any issues choosing one treatment option over another but there may be outliers. Therefore, it is in your best interest to carefully weigh the pros and cons of gender-specific rehab before you make your final decision.

Pros of gender-specific rehab

There are three primary reasons for choosing gender-specific rehab in Florida:

• Gender-specific rehab reduces the sexual tension
• Gender-specific rehab provides fewer distractions
• Gender-specific rehab offers solutions to gender-unique issues

Furthermore, most people find gender-specific treatment to be more comfortable. This is due to the fact that this form of treatment offers resources and ways to cope that are tailored to the patient’s gender. Additionally, gender-specific rehab is usually covered by all major insurance companies. If you were wondering whether does Blue Cross Blue Shield cover drug rehab in a gender-specific setting, the answer is usually that it does. It used to be that gender-specific treatment options had limited insurance coverage but all of that changed in recent years.

That said, let’s take a look at why you may want to choose gender-specific rehab for your addiction treatment.

Reduced sexual tension

Individuals that are struggling with addiction often feel shame in admitting that they need help. This feeling is usually exacerbated when in the presence of the other gender, due to latent sexual tension. The fact of the matter is that men do not want to feel weak in front of women and women do not want to be judged by men. Therefore, both men and women might choose to not open up in the presence of the other gender.

A gender-specific environment removes all the sexual tension from the room and allows the patient to be open and honest. The lack of sexual tension promotes recovery and makes it easier for patients to talk about their issues and overcome their addictions. It is important to note that sexual tension is present in both genders, it is not unique to men, contrary to popular belief. In fact, women might even have it more difficult to open up on an emotional level when men are present.

Fewer distractions

When you place men and women under the same roof for a prolonged period of time, it is only natural that they start creating romantic relationships. While romantic relationships are not inherently bad by any means (quite the contrary), they also present notable distractions from the recovery process. Furthermore, if both partners have an addiction problem the chances of relapse are usually much higher. Even though it might seem that your treatment is enhanced by a romantic relationship within a rehab facility, it is usually quite the opposite in the long run.

A gender-specific rehab eliminates any chances of romantic relationships by removing the other gender from the proverbial equation. This allows the patients to focus solely on their recovery process.

Solutions to gender-unique issues

Both men and women face self-esteem, work, and family issues every single day. However, the way that these issues influence each gender is almost completely different. Men simply cannot understand what women are going through (and why), and vice versa. The most obvious example is the connection between addiction and pregnancy. Men simply have no way of knowing how this may influence a woman. Therefore, they cannot empathize with a woman in this situation in the way that other women can.

By choosing gender-specific rehab in Florida, patients are surrounded by people who are capable of completely understanding their issues and providing solutions based on that understanding.

Cons of gender-specific rehab

While it may seem that gender-specific rehab is your best option, there are two important drawbacks to consider before making the final decision:

• Gender-specific rehab does not address misconceptions
• Gender-specific rehab does not prepare you for the “real world”

Additionally, men and women respond differently to therapeutic approaches, be they gender-specific or not. It is entirely possible that the lack of variety in gender-specific rehab actually inhibits your recovery process. Addiction is a very complex disease, after all, and everyone goes through it in their own, unique, way. That said, let’s take a look at the two inherent disadvantages of a gender-specific approach to treatment.

No addressing misconceptions

Both men and women have misconceptions about the other gender, it is only natural. Women may have certain views towards men that might be completely untrue, and vice versa. The issue with gender-specific rehab is the fact that these misconceptions are not addressed at all, as the treatment model is focused on recovery. While this may not seem like a “big deal”, the fact is that these misconceptions might play a large role in addiction recovery. In other words, you will learn all about how to overcome your addiction but might not learn how to correct the behavior that brought the addiction in the first place.

By choosing to undergo a co-ed treatment, patients will have the opportunity to correct their misconceptions by living side-by-side with the other gender. In some cases, this may prove to be all that the patient needs to make a full recovery.

Gender-specific rehab does not prepare the patient for the real world

The fact that gender-specific rehab only involves one gender is both a blessing and a curse, so to speak. Even though you may be able to get better addiction treatment in a gender-specific setting, the fact remains that you will need to go back to the real world at some point. If your addiction was due to the opposite sex, you would still not have any means of coping, your chances of relapse will increase, and you might find yourself asking the question does Cigna cover alcohol rehab in a co-ed facility? Basically, if you have any issues being around the other gender (that are not connected to your addiction), you might want to avoid undergoing rehab in a gender-specific facility.

Before you make the final choice, however, it might also be good to understand how gender-specific rehab benefits your gender, specifically.

How gender-specific rehab benefits women

Women recover differently than men, and they also face a number of issues during treatment that men don’t. For a woman, the connection with others and relationship-driven treatment programs are usually the keys to a successful recovery. With this in mind, the primary benefits of gender-specific rehab for women include:

• Environment of understanding
• Treatment designed for women
• Easier relationships

These three benefits promote a sense of belonging that is simply not possible in a co-ed setting. They can also create a strong feeling of empowerment and self-reliance. Let’s take a look at why that is.

Gender-specific rehab provides women with an environment of understanding

When choosing gender-specific rehab in Florida, you are actually choosing to be heard and understood. In a co-ed environment, men’s natural assertiveness and aggression may prevent you from getting the treatment you need. Therefore, if you have any issues with a lack of assertiveness or low self-esteem, ask yourself does Tricare cover rehab for the 100th time, or feel powerless all the time, gender-specific rehab might be the answer. By being surrounded by other women who are going through similar issues, you will get to understand them and receive understanding in return.

Gender-specific rehab is specially designed for women

If you happen to have children or are pregnant while struggling with addiction, choosing a gender-specific rehab in Florida might be your best course of action. This is due to the fact that specialized treatment can help you address any parenting or pre-natal issues you might have. Furthermore, there are residential treatment options that can house both you and your child for the duration of your treatment. You may want to see whether is rehab covered under FMLA before you start living inside a rehab facility, though. Most of the time you have nothing to worry about but there can be special circumstances that can prevent you from getting your FMLA leave.

Women form relationships easier in gender-specific rehab

Due to the fact of how important relationships are in women’s treatment, choosing gender-specific rehab in Florida brings many benefits. It is, for example, much easier to create healthy connections between women when there are no men around. This, in turn, makes the recovery process much easier and increases the chance of success.

How gender-specific rehab benefits men

Same as women, men also have unique treatment needs. The gender-specific rehab makes it easier to overcome numerous challenges, such as:

• Male bonding
• Sharing difficult experiences
• Understanding the “Male approach” to problem-solving

It is also worth noting that most men, on average, may find it really difficult to be around women during treatment. This is the main reason why there are many more gender-specific rehabs that offer male-only treatment. Now, let’s take a more in-depth look into why choosing gender-specific rehab in Florida for men might be your best option.

It is easier to form bonds with other men

Men who suffer from a substance use disorder usually have considerable power and anger issues as well. This makes it very difficult to connect to women and may hinder the success of the treatment in a co-ed setting. In a gender-specific setting, however, men will usually find greater understanding among their peers. Men can relate to men much more easily than women can, after all, and that can make all the difference. Furthermore, if a man has a history of emotional, physical, or sexual abuse toward women, gender-specific rehab might be their only option.

Sharing difficult experiences becomes easier

Sharing difficult experiences is one of the fundamental aspects of any therapy program. However, many men find it extremely difficult, if not impossible, to share their difficult experiences when women are around. This is especially the case if men happen to be victims of sexual or physical abuse.

While a gender-specific setting does not eliminate all the discomfort, it does make it easier to “open up” and express your emotions.

Men utilize a different approach to problem-solving than women

Men have different ways of approaching and solving their problems than women. Where women might look for trust and warmth in their therapeutic relationships, most men prefer a less-personal and utilitarian approach to problem-solving. Being in a gender-specific rehab allows men to focus on their way of solving problems and prepares them for the challenges ahead.

Overall, choosing gender-specific rehab in Florida is not as clear-cut as you might want it to be. As you can see, there are many factors to consider before making the final decision. There is also the chance that you simply cannot figure out which option is best for you. The best course of action is usually to talk to your medical professionals at length and analyze your own situation, emotional responses, and tendencies, before making the choice. At Bright Futures Treatment Center, we believe that every single individual is completely unique and requires a tailored treatment approach. We will be happy to help you figure out what the best treatment option might be. Feel free to get in touch with us at any point and our medical staff will provide you with all the answers you seek!