Mental preparation and physical (logistical) preparation.

I suppose it doesn’t have to be old necessarily. It’s just that most people listen to music on smartphones these days. So, what they are saying is that a lot of rehabs do not allow mobile phones for many reasons, including privacy. Since phones can take photos of people, they are a risk to the anonymity of recovery. So, having an iPod or any mp3 player means that you can have access to music 24/7 without a phone.

At Seasons we have ‘tech time’ during which clients can use their smartphones. Tech time is for one hour on Monday, Wednesday and Friday and two hours on Sunday.

It might occur to you that you want to look your best in rehab. If that is important to you, then, by all means, dress to impress. We have found that when the hard work of recovery begins, no-one looks their best, and the importance of wearing clothes well seems to take a back seat to other more pressing issues. At that point, comfortable loose clothing and shoes appear to provide a high degree of comfort, and the last thing you want is to be sitting around in your tight pants. Clothes should be suitable for warm to hot weather.

For footwear, we recommend sandals or open shoes and one pair of closed shoes such as sneakers. You can also bring slippers or ugg boots, although Bali is quite warm. You should also bring clothing suitable for exercise and a bathing suit. We provide you with towels.

Of course, you will need your toiletries bag, but please ensure that all of the products are alcohol-free.

Please speak with your Client Liaison about procedures involved with your medications.

These items will be securely kept locked away until ‘tech time’. During tech time, you will be free to use them. A paper list of phone numbers can also be useful in case you need to make a call at some time when you don’t have access to your devices.

Of course, no-one would recommend that you smoke, but getting off more prominent substances is the priority here. You can focus on quitting smoking later. In the meantime, bring more cigarettes than you would usually smoke.

Being prepared for rehab is a way of making your life more comfortable whilst you are here. The main reason for this is so that you can be free to focus on the mission at hand. At the same time, its important not to get too hung up on things if you cant meet all of the above criteria. The most important things to bring to rehab are your body, mind and a willingness to change.