The question of success in addiction treatment is an interesting one, not least because the definition of “success” frequently depends on whom you ask.
is rehab effective?
For recovery centers in the United States, success is commonly defined as 30 days abstinence post-treatment -- often with the aid of substitute drugs like Suboxone and Vivitrol. For some treatment centers, simply completing the program is considered a successful outcome.
what does ‘success rate’ mean?
At Inscape Recovery, we recently conducted a survey of former clients that asked questions about their quality-of-life post-treatment. The survey included a range of questions that were designed to go beyond binary measurements of success (simple “yes” or “no” answers), and instead give the question of post-treatment success a greater degree of context and clarity.
This is a survey we plan to continue using with future clients, with the hope that we may one day publish our findings in a more formal context. Our survey, of course, has its own imperfections, but we hope by highlighting what those are, we will avoid the confusion or obfuscation typical of similar reports. For now, here are the results of our recent survey, conducted in March:
recovery center in mexico
Since starting Inscape in November 2018, we have had 17 participants complete the program (not including the four participants in our current cycle). Of these 17, eight had received ibogaine before coming to Inscape. Out of the 17, two did not respond to the survey, and two others reported being in active addiction after a short period of sobriety.
Of the remaining 13, the results are very promising. Two of them had brief periods of relapse following treatment (one immediately, and the other after about two months of sobriety), but both are reporting improvements in harm-reduction behavior (using less or less harmful substances). Both have stayed connected to the Inscape program, returning for follow-up care or having online sessions with one of our psychologists.
Alternative treatment for addiction
The other 11 have maintained abstinence from their drug of choice and other harmful drugs since leaving the program (some of them now for a year or more). All have reported significant increases in their quality of life. Most are only using plant-based medicines in a ceremonial context, and a few use cannabis (a significant harm-reduction from heroin or methamphetamine). One is currently living in Mexico, one is traveling the world (including a recent stay with the Huni Kuin tribe in Brazil), one is traveling the world promoting a short-film that has received film festival acclaim, one in a transitional living program in Austin, TX. The rest have returned to their lives, engaged in gainful employment or schooling.
ibogaine for addiction
Of the eight participants who took Ibogaine before coming to Inscape, six report that they have remained sober since leaving treatment at Inscape; of the ten participants we’ve had who did not take Ibogaine, five report that they’ve remained sober.
Compared with conventional treatment outcomes, Inscape has seen a remarkable success rate (granted the small sample size thus far) around improved quality of life and the maintenance of abstinence or practice of harm-reduction with conscious-contracting drugs and alcohol. Eleven out seventeen is a 65% success rate, and even two of the "failures" in terms of total abstinence are in a much better place in terms of quality of life and harm-reduction practices.
demonstrating the importance of iboga aftercare
It should be emphasized that this survey is somewhat preliminary and unscientific. It uses a very small sample size, and contains inconsistencies -- for example, some of those interviewed had only been out of treatment two or three months, while others had been out a year or more. Still, the results are very encouraging, and we hope that as we move forward, we will develop an increasingly reliable and sophisticated method for gauging quality-of-life after Inscape compared with pre-treatment.