Jack C. Montgomery VA Medical Center – Muskogee, OK

Situated in Muskogee, Oklahoma, the Jack C. Montgomery Department of Veterans Affairs Medical Center offers more addiction treatment care than I’ve seen in most veteran clinics. They treat individuals suffering from drug and alcohol addictions, as well as dual diagnosis, or co-occurring, conditions.

Mental health is just as important to address as the actual addiction that an individual may have. Some common conditions in veterans suffering from dual diagnosis include depression, anxiety, bipolar disorder, PTSD, and schizophrenia.

Their levels of care include inpatient and outpatient care. Both have their benefits, depending on your specific needs and availability. Inpatient care will give you access to more supervision round-the-clock, but outpatient care gives you the freedom to return home after sessions are over.

This clinic also offers medication-assisted treatment (MAT). Sometimes, addiction can reach a level of severity that is dangerous to handle on your own, which is why medications such as Suboxone and Vivitrol exist in order to help you on your endeavor. These medications can help reduce withdrawal symptoms and uncomfortable cravings.

What mostly fascinated me about this particular clinic was their variety of holistic options. Aside from medication management, cognitive behavioral therapy, and counseling, they offer ketamine infusion, acupuncture, meditation and mindfulness training, massage therapy, yoga, tai chi, and art studio classes.

Don’t forget traditional therapy methods. They have individual therapy, group therapy and marriage counseling available too. All these counseling sessions are very important in order to help identify triggers, deal with past trauma, and learn new coping strategies that can prevent relapse in the future and help you on your journey.