All About Addiction Counseling

1. All About Addiction Counseling Learn the facts you need to know!

2. Synopsis • How Does Addiction Counselling Help an Addict? • The Role Of The Addiction Counsellor • The Role of the Addiction Counsellor in Recovery • Counseling Addiction: Breaking the Unhealthy Behavior Pattern • When is the Right Time to Seek Addiction Counseling? • Why Won’t People In Dire Need of Addiction Counselor Not Get It? • 5 Different Types of Addiction Counseling • 5 Truths About Addiction & Counseling • 5“Secrets”Addiction Counselors Want You to Know • Smoking Addiction Counselling

3. How Does Addiction Counselling Help an Addict? • People (or the concerned people around them) who have realized that they are suffering from an addiction problem (should) go for counselling to overcome the issue. • Going to the counselling sessions would give the sufferer a clearer perspective on not only the cause of the problem but on life and how to deal with the problems it brings. Group counselling helps the person realize that they aren’t the only ones suffering from the problem but there are others too. Also, the support from the peers can accelerate the progress of getting well. • The counsellor will help the patient identify the root cause because of which the person resorted to drug abuse in the first place. This could be childhood trauma, depression, anxiety, the dissolving of a long-term relation, job termination, etc. They will then help the patient set long-term goals which will help them rebuild their lives. • Using cognitive behavioural therapy, person-centered therapy, and/or group session therapy methods, counsellors are successful at getting to the root of the problem. Rehab and other inpatient treatments are also available for people who are experiencing higher levels of difficulty.

4. The Role Of The Addiction Counsellor • The addiction counsellor • Several times you will see that the addiction counsellor is someone who used to be an addict themselves. The benefit of this is that the client is more successfully able to relate to the counsellor. The counsellor will share their experience with the client and can actually be a role model for them to look up to. The counsellor uses methods like Cognitive Behavioural Therapy, Motivation Interviewing Therapy, Group therapy and various other methods to get the sufferer to understand the root cause of the issue and to also provide them support in their recovery. They also help with relapse prevention. The counsellors are aware that the patient is surely going to relapse during recovery, so in order to keep that from happening repeatedly, the counsellor will get the recovering addicts to realize the potential triggers and teach them how to react to them, should they arise. • Does the counselling work? • The success of the program depends on two factors. First factor is the sufferer themselves and their willpower. Even though this word has been thrown around so much that it has almost lost its genuine meaning, it holds a lot of significance. The person recovering from the addiction needs to practice extreme self-constraint in order to succeed. They will have to keep in perspective their entire life which is at stake because of their actions. The second factor is the program itself. The counselling program should be built on evidence and accumulated information, for a better chance of success.

5. The Role of the Addiction Counsellor in Recovery • Form an Alliance • The bond between a patient and their counsellor is known as the therapeutic alliance. If the alliance is a strong one, the patient will be more likely to continue down the path to recovery. Alliances can be made stronger if the counsellor is able to show genuine interest in the patient’s well being. They will be strengthened when the patient sees how attentive the counsellor is towards them during sessions. • Encourage the Patient • Addiction counsellors understand how difficult recovering from addiction can be. They also realize that many patients might not be convinced that counselling could help them. The role they play also involved motivating a patient to continue treatment. • Help the Patients Plan for Relapse • An addiction counsellor will also have planned for such situations. They will work with the patient to ensure that relapses don’t happen. Even if they can’t prevent it, they will work towards bringing the patient back on track once it happens. • Guide the Family Members • Another important aspect of addiction counselling is guiding the friends and family of the patient. If they are to recover, the patients are going to need all the help they can get. It won’t do, if the patient is inadvertently exposed to temptations through their daily interactions with their loved ones.

6. Counseling Addiction: Breaking the Unhealthy Behavior Pattern • Addiction is different from habit because an addict is not able to control his impulses due to unpleasant circumstances. A habit is the result of a person’s choice – he/she can start or stop whenever she wants to and can be successful if he/she has the willpower. • Counseling could help the addict resist urges and learn to cope with life stressors without getting involved in anything destructive. • Addiction could also be used synonymously with dependency. The addict develops tolerance towards the activity or substance and with more consumption would require more of the object of attachment. The treatment plan should include etiology and prognosis of the addiction, risk factors that could cause relapse and work on productive coping mechanisms. Counselors could help by empathizing with addicts, motivate them and provide them with the tools to improve their quality of life.

7. When is the Right Time to Seek Addiction Counseling? • You are absent from work a lot • You feel yourself pulling away from people who don’t use • You have noticed signs of increased hostility in your behavior • Your negativity has increased and is becoming difficult to handle • You see symptoms of depression • Food doesn’t interest you anymore • When someone tries to help you, you take it badly • You keep denying you have a problem when you definitely have one • Your addiction has ended in your hurting someone • When you stop using, you feel the withdrawal symptoms come on • You have made bad choices under the influence • You have harmed yourself while using • You keep trying to quit but it isn’t happening

8. Why Won’t People In Dire Need of Addiction Counselor Not Get It? • When a person with an addiction denies that they have a problem, they won’t be likely to seek help for it. Their addiction might be so deeply rooted in them that they are willing to ignore the facts. • It is also difficult for someone to accept they need help when there is a fear of losing control. Going to counseling might seem like handing the reins to someone else. They would much prefer to say they have things under control than seek help. • It is a fact that recovery via detoxification isn’t an easy route. This can make a person with an addiction afraid of what they might have to go through. Therefore, deterred by fear and perceived dangers to themselves, they will put off getting help. The withdrawal process can be difficult to get through. It is why this is one of the reasons that makes them apprehensive about getting help. Some will also be worried if they would be able to handle a step-by-step program. • Lastly, the simplest reason is unfortunately also a common one. For some people with addiction, giving up the high sounds impossible. Since it makes them feel so good, they begin to wonder if they’d even be able to live without it. The addiction might be taking a toll on their physical and mental health yet they are unable to give it up. Seeking help would of course mean that they would have to stop using. Short-sighted vision is a certainty when it comes to addiction.

9. 5 Different Types of Addiction Counseling • Individual • This type of counseling will be solely for you. You will be the only person besides your counselor present there. How many sessions should be held in a week will be decided based on your needs. The counselor will develop your treatment plan during such a session. Your input will be valued in the conception of the plan. • Family • Whether they are your family members or your friends, they can participate in your recovery. Most of the times, people will bring their spouses, siblings, or parents. There is also an option about how the sessions will be conducted. If they can’t be conducted in person, then they can be done online or on the phone. • Group • In a group session, a counselor will guide a therapeutic group of people with the same kind of addiction. At such gatherings, you can expect to explore your issues along with the others. The counselor will ensure that this happens in a safe atmosphere. • Expressive • This type of counseling isn’t offered everywhere. Even though it is done in the form of groups, it is more about the people seeking counsel finding more about their individual selves. Through music and art, they will express themselves and them relate their creations to recovery. • Psycho-educational • This is another type of group counseling where the attendees are taught on different topics. The instruction is constructed to be interactive and learning progresses through group discussion.

10. 5 Truths About Addiction & Counseling • Your addiction is the result of an underlying issue • A good addiction counselor understands that most of the time, addiction is a combination of biological and psychological components. However, much of the time, there are other underlying issues that lead to a person engaging in addiction. When you seek help, you should be working on those issues while also focusing on the addiction. For better healing that is also longer lasting, you need to unearth that underlying issue. • Relapse is reality • Relapsing into your old habits isn’t anything to be ashamed of and neither should you be dreading it. Think of it as a crucial part of the healing process. If you are to recover, relapses – yes multiple – will happen. You won’t be able to stave them off with say, will power. What you should do instead is stay committed. • The logistics play an important part in your healing • Once you have resolutely made up your mind to get help for your addiction, it is imperative that you let the people closest to you in on the secret. Your objective should be to let them know that you will need their help. That’s important because of the logistics. If you have kids, then who picks up the kids from school? If you are leaving your job, then who will take care of the finances? Your insurance company, the type of facility you go to etc. All of it needs to be settled for a smoother transition.

11. 5 Truths About Addiction & Counseling • It is easy to open the door to let in other addictions • Be on the lookout that you don’t exchange one addiction for another. It might seem like healthy behavior to you when you start working out excessively. Even so, it would be still be a bad exchange. One important reason why this might happen is that you haven’t yet arrived at the issues underlying the addiction. You remain obsessive; you simply change the object of your obsession. Before letting another habit consume your time and energy, it is better that you discuss it with your addiction counselor. • An addict isn’t who you are • For some people, the guilt associated with their addiction is all too real. Yet they look at habit as something that is a part of them. Don’t let the addiction become your identity because you are so much more than it. It is a habit – a bad one that might even prove fatal but that is all the addiction is. Treat it as you would treat any other problem and don’t be ashamed of it. Once you realize this to be true, you would have taken the first step to getting your life under your control.

12. 5“Secrets”Addiction Counselors Want You to Know • Stop lying to yourself • It is likely that when people who wish you well ask you about your addiction, you lie to them. Even though that might affect your relationship with them negatively, that isn’t even the half of it. When you are feeding an addiction, you will also be lying to yourself! If you want to start down the path to recovery, then the first thing you need is to be honest about with yourself. Once you have that part down, you will be able to share your reality with others as well. Don’t waste your energy blocking the door to healing. Instead use that energy to throw it open and look what is inside. • You will remain the same • Often we are told that as soon as an individual kicks their habit, they transform into someone new. Don’t waste your time believing that. Addiction counseling can help you get over your addiction but when recovery is successful, you won’t be transformed into someone you aren’t. Instead, a healthier version of you will come out. But it will be the same person you used to be pre-addiction. However, you will be much happier than you have been in some time.

13. 5“Secrets”Addiction Counselors Want You to Know • Building a therapeutic alliance takes time and work • Do not share everything you have to say the moment you step into the addiction counselor’s office. Take your lead from them and slowly work on all the contributing issues one by one. Work with the counselor to build a strong and safe relationship. While that might take more time, it will get you better results. • You can only get better for you • If you want to get better, then you have to want it for yourself. Even though you might be doing to make life better for your family or friends, it is not going to work. When you choose that as a reason, you are actually looking for a quick fix. It won’t last long and neither would the motivation for recovery. • Abstinence isn’t the only thing that matters • If your eyes remain on abstinence, then you might be setting up yourself to fail! Don’t think about major improvements but try to take things one day at a time. Your goal should be to focus on taking smaller steps. In this case, short-term thinking will help you not hamper you. It is better to work with the counselor to dig deeper and find the underlying cause for your addiction. When you discover that, progress will be certain. Don’t look for quick fixes; look for long lasting recovery.

14. Smoking Addiction Counselling • Smokers usually succumb to the addiction to gain approval, to escape, and feel normal. There are several factors that influence the success of giving up smoking. The counsellor should assist by developing a plan of action to quit smoking. This could include specifying a date to quit smoking and keeping track of it. Smoking could be replaced with a more productive and/or healthy habit, such as mindfulness practices or drinking fresh juice. The sweet content in juices can help ease the cravings. The person should be made to avoid environments that trigger smoking. They could make flash cards of environmental cues that induce them to smoke, refer to them and avoid going near them. • The person should be motivated to stay busy with more productive habits and occupations for a better lifestyle and life satisfaction. They could draft all the consequences of smoking that have affected them and others. Family support plays a crucial role when the person is trying to quit. A person cannot quit on willpower alone. The person should not be demotivated either. Quitting smoking is hard and people who try to quit are usually unsuccessful because they get cravings or that cravings last for a lifetime and could make him miserable. Family members should be able to stop the smoker by perhaps cutting the pocket money that goes into cigarettes, removing ashtrays and not talking about smoking. The smoker should be reminded consistently about the health implications. They should be made to realize that a few days of abstinence and the resulting misery are worth more than a lifetime of sickness and complications.

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