Clinically reviewed by David Stern, MD, board certified in addiction medicine, Medical Director at Southeastern Recovery Center. Last reviewed: November 7, 2026.
Clinical content by Rhett Owensby, LCAS, LCMHC, CCSI, Clinical Director.
If you or someone you love is in crisis, call or text 988. In an emergency, call 911.
Drinking heavily every day, or taking opioids or sedatives like benzodiazepines? Stopping suddenly can be dangerous. Alcohol withdrawal can be life-threatening, and stopping some sedatives all at once can cause seizures. Please talk to a doctor before you quit.
If you already think you need help with drinking or drug use, the next question is often “What kind of help?” This short guide can point you toward the type of care that may fit your life right now. It takes about 2 minutes. There is no score.
A clinician decides your level of care. This guide can help you know what to ask about. Our admissions team and clinicians make the final call with you, after talking about your health, your history and your goals.
Nothing you choose here is sent to us or saved. The guide runs only in your web browser.
Please read first: This guide is for education only. It is not a diagnosis and does not replace an evaluation by a licensed professional. Your answers stay in your browser. We do not see, save or send them. If you are in crisis, call or text 988, or call 911 in an emergency.
8 quick questions, one at a time. Answer for how things are right now. You can go back and change an answer at any time.
Please get help right now
Thank you for telling us. Your safety comes first. Call or text 988 to reach the 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline, any time. If you are in danger or having a medical emergency, call 911 or go to the nearest emergency room.
Your result shows here when you finish. It is a starting point for a conversation, not a decision.
Your answers suggest your body may depend on alcohol or another substance. When that happens, stopping can cause withdrawal, and some withdrawal can be dangerous. A medical detox lets doctors and nurses help you stop safely.
Southeastern Recovery Center helps arrange medical detox through our partner facilities. After detox, many people step into our partial hospitalization program, then intensive outpatient care. Please don’t stop suddenly on your own before talking to a doctor.
Want to understand how detox and treatment fit together? Read detox vs. rehab: which do you need?
Your answers suggest you may benefit from more structure and support than a few sessions a week. In partial hospitalization (PHP), treatment takes up most of the day, usually for about 30 days, and you go home at night. Many people then step down to intensive outpatient care.
PHP is a daytime program. If that is hard with work or school, ask us about intensive outpatient, which has day or evening options. A clinician can help you weigh what is safest.
Your answers suggest an intensive outpatient program (IOP) may fit. IOP meets three times a week, with day or evening options, usually for 2 to 3 months. Many people keep working or going to school while they attend.
Not sure you have a problem with alcohol? Take our alcohol quiz first.
Your answers suggest you may need more support than an outpatient program can give right now. Call us and we can help with a referral.
A clinician decides your level of care. This guide can’t see the whole picture. A short call can.
Want to compare the options side by side? Read IOP vs. PHP vs. residential care.
Our admissions team can tell you which program fits: (704) 452-4985
We work with many major insurance plans; call to verify your benefits. Detox/Rehab May Be Fully Covered: check your insurance.
This guide is for education only. It is not a diagnosis and does not replace an evaluation by a licensed professional. Your answers stay in your browser. We do not see, save or send them. If you are in crisis, call or text 988, or call 911 in an emergency.
When you call, you talk with our admissions team. They will ask about your drinking or drug use, your health and what is going on in your life. They can also check your insurance. Then a clinician helps decide which level of care is the right starting point.
A clinician makes the final call on your level of care. Here is how our medical director describes who intensive outpatient fits:
“Patients who can structure their own day and have created a stable environment that supports their sobriety will benefit from IOP.”
David Stern, MD, Medical Director, Southeastern Recovery Center
At our center in Concord, near Charlotte, care often follows these steps. Not everyone needs every step.
Many people can. Intensive outpatient meets three times a week, with day or evening options, so many people keep working. Partial hospitalization takes most of the day, so it is harder to work during that phase. Read more about keeping your job while in IOP.
A clinician decides your level of care, together with you. They look at your substance use, your health, any withdrawal risk, your home life and what you have tried before. This guide can help you prepare for that conversation, but it can't make the decision.
No. We offer partial hospitalization (PHP) and intensive outpatient (IOP) programs, and our team helps arrange medical detox through partner facilities. If you need more support than outpatient care, call us and we can help with a referral.
Yes. The guide runs only in your web browser. We do not see, save or send your answers or your result. Nothing is stored after you leave the page, and we never ask for your name, email or phone number to see results.
David Stern, MD is the Medical Director at Southeastern Recovery Center. He is board certified in addiction medicine and holds an active North Carolina medical license. He earned his medical degree from Columbia University and has more than 40 years in practice.