After completing a rehabilitation program at Red River Healthcare in Baton Rouge, many patients continue their recovery journey through our comprehensive aftercare planning. For Wickland Terrace residents, we typically recommend several local resources to maintain sobriety and prevent relapse. Many individuals transiton to sober living environments which provide a structured, substance-free living arrangement while allowing greater independence. These homes are scattered throughout Baton Rouge, with several quality options near the Wickland Terrace neighborhood that allow recovering individuals to remain connected to their community while receiving continued support.

Outpatient counseling serves as another crucial component of post-rehab care. We maintain strong relationships with numerous mental health professionals throughout Baton Rouge who specialize in addiction recovery, including several practitioners within walking distance of Wickland Terrace. Additionally, community support groups like Alcoholics Anonymous and Narcotics Anonymous host regular meetings across Baton Rouge, including gatherings at the Unitarian Church near Wickland Terrace and at several community centers within a short drive of the neighborhood. Our discharge planning team works individually with each patient to create a personalized aftercare plan that incorporates these local resources, ensuring that Wickland Terrace residents have convenient access to the ongoing support they need for sustained recovery.

While addiction manifests uniquely in each individual, addiction treatment professionals in Baton Rouge generally recognize two medical and three broad categories of addictive behaviors that require different therapeutic approaches. (1) The first category encompasses behavioral addicts, who develop compulsive relationships with activities rather than substances. For many Wickland Terrace residents, this might present as gambling addiction (particularly with the accessible casinos in the Baton Rouge area), shopping addiction (exacerbated by the nearby Mall of Louisiana), or technology addiction. These behaviors activate similar reward pathways in the brain as substance use despite not involving chemical dependence.

The second category includes psychological addicts, who develop dependencies primarily to manage emotional or mental health challenges. In our work with Wickland Terrace residents, we frequently observe this pattern among professionals and students using substances to cope with anxiety, depression, or trauma. Lastly, physical addicts develop strong physiological dependencies where their bodies have adapted to the presence of substances, resulting in painful or dangerous withdrawal symptoms when use stops. This commonly occurs with alcohol, opioids, and benzodiazepines, substances we unfortunately see frequently misused across Baton Rouge neighborhoods including Wickland Terrace. At Red River Healthcare, we recognize that most individuals experience overlapping elements of these categories, which is why we develop individualized treatment plans addressing the specific physiological, psychological, and behavioral aspects of each person’s addiction journey.

For residents of Wickland Terrace and surrounding Baton Rouge neighborhoods, Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) has consistently demonstrated remarkable effectiveness in treating various forms of addiction. This therapeutic approach helps individuals identify and modify problematic thought patterns that trigger substance use, developing healthier coping mechanisms specifically relevant to the stressors and triggers commonly experienced in Baton Rouge environments. CBT has proven especially valuable for addressing the unique pressures faced by professionals in the Baton Rouge business district and students from nearby educational institutions who often reside in the Wickland Terrace area.

Complementing CBT, Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT) offers powerful tools for emotional regulation and distress tolerance, skills particularly beneficial for navigating the social drinking culture prevalent throughout Baton Rouge. Many Wickland Terrace residents have achieved sustained recovery through our DBT programs, which teach practical skills for resisting peer pressure and managing triggers in local social settings. Additionally, Motivational Enhancement Therapy has shown exceptional results for individuals in the contemplation stage of change, helping them resolve ambivalence about treatment. This approach resonates strongly with our Wickland Terrace clients who often struggle with competing priorities of career, family, and recovery. At Red River Healthcare Baton Rouge, we typically employ an integrated approach that combines elements of these evidence-based therapies, tailored to address the specific recovery challenges encountered by residents of Wickland Terrace and the broader Baton Rouge community.