Standard Outpatient Program
One session a week. The long, steady phase of recovery work, on an open timeline. The level of care that holds the gains made earlier and turns recovery from something you do into something you live.
Weekly counseling, on an open timeline.
Standard outpatient is our weekly counseling tier. Some clients come to us straight here. Most arrive after PHP or IOP, looking for somewhere to put the next year of recovery work without losing momentum the moment the intensive program ends.
SOP is one hour a week with a licensed counselor. Individual counseling, group counseling, or a mix of both, depending on what we build together. There is no preset end date. The right length is the one that keeps you moving forward.
This is the level of care most people in long-term recovery spend the most time in. It gets less attention than detox or day treatment, and it's the stage where people build the rest of their lives around recovery.
What a typical SOP week looks like.
The rhythm is consistent on purpose. One steady hour a week, every week, beats five great sessions and a long disappearance.
- One session a week. Individual counseling, group counseling, or a planned mix. Same counselor each week so the work compounds instead of restarting.
- Open-ended timeline. Most clients stay six months to two years in SOP. Some stay longer. Length is a conversation, not a contract.
- Choose individual, group, or both. Group work keeps you connected to other people doing the same work. Individual sessions go deeper on what is specifically going on for you. Many SOP clients alternate or do both in the same week.
- Family loop-in when it helps. Loved ones can join occasional sessions or do their own parallel work in family counseling. We coordinate so the household is supporting the same recovery, not three different ones.
- Insurance friendly. Most major plans cover weekly outpatient counseling. Private-pay is available if you prefer to keep counseling off your insurance record.
- Built-in step-up plan. If life shifts and SOP stops being enough, we can move you back into IOP or PHP without restarting the relationship from scratch.
The right level of care for the long stretch of recovery.
SOP is the right level of care for clients who are stable enough to live their life and still want a regular check-in with someone who knows the work. It is also the natural step-down from PHP, IOP, or residential care, and a workable starting point for clients whose situation does not call for full-day or three-day-a-week programming.
- You finished PHP or IOP and want to keep the work going at a sustainable pace
- You finished residential treatment and need ongoing weekly support without day-program structure
- You are an early-recovery client whose situation calls for steady counseling, not intensive programming
- You are a family member or partner doing your own recovery work in parallel with a loved one's treatment
- You are a professional whose schedule allows one weekly hour, not three
- You are stable enough to live your normal life and still want the accountability of a regular session
Related levels of care.
SOP usually follows PHP or IOP, but it can also be the starting tier when intensive programming isn't the right fit. Other levels of care nearby:
Partial Hospitalization (PHP)
Two steps up from SOP. Five days a week, five hours a day. Day-program-level structure.
Learn about PHPIntensive Outpatient (IOP)
One step up from SOP. Three sessions a week, six to eight weeks. The bridge between intensive care and weekly counseling.
Learn about IOPGroup Therapy
Ongoing group counseling for SOP clients and program graduates. Trust built over time, in a small private group.
See group optionsWhat people ask before starting SOP.
Standard outpatient is one session a week, either individual or group depending on the plan we build with you. It is designed to fit into a real life without taking it over.
There is no fixed end date. SOP is the long, steady phase of recovery. Some clients stay in weekly counseling for a few months. Some stay for years. The right length is the one that keeps you moving forward without becoming a crutch.
IOP is intensive: three 2.5-hour group sessions a week for six to eight weeks. SOP is one session a week, on an open timeline. IOP builds momentum, and SOP helps you keep it over the long run.
Clients stepping down from PHP or IOP who want to keep the work going. Clients whose substance use is real but does not require day-treatment-level structure. Family members and partners doing their own recovery work in parallel. And professionals whose schedules will not allow more than one session a week.
Most major insurance plans cover weekly outpatient counseling. We can verify your benefits during the first call, walk you through any deductible or copay before you commit, and discuss private-pay options if you would rather keep counseling off your insurance record.
Yes, with coordination. Many SOP clients also see a primary therapist or psychiatrist for non-substance-related work. With your signed releases, we coordinate so the two pieces of care reinforce each other instead of pulling in different directions.
Call for a free 15-minute consult.
Tell us what's going on. We'll help you figure out whether SOP is the right next step, or whether something else fits better right now.