Principles of Effective Treatment

Based on scientific research since the mid-1970s, the following key principles should form the basis of any effective treatment program:

• Addiction is a complex but treatable disease that affects brain function and behavior.
• No single treatment is right for everyone.
• People need to have quick access to treatment.
• Effective treatment addresses all of the patient’s needs, not just his or her drug use.
• Staying in treatment long enough is critical.
• Counseling and other behavioral therapies are the most commonly used forms of treatment.
• Medications are often an important part of treatment, especially when combined with behavioral therapies.
• Treatment plans must be reviewed often and modified to fit the patient’s changing needs.
• Treatment should address other possible mental disorders.
• Medically assisted detoxification is only the first stage of treatment.
• Treatment doesn’t need to be voluntary to be effective.
• Drug use during treatment must be monitored continuously.
• Treatment programs should test patients for HIV/AIDS, hepatitis B and C, tuberculosis, and other infectious diseases as well as teach them about steps they can take to reduce their risk of these illnesses.

Counseling Programs

Overcoming addiction involves more than just detoxification from harmful substances. For many people seeking to overcome their drug addictions or other destructive behaviors, counseling is an essential part of treatment.

Addiction counseling works by first helping the client recognize the existence of a problem and the associated irrational thinking. Next, the client is encouraged to achieve and maintain abstinence and then develop the necessary psychosocial skills and spiritual development to continue in recovery lifelong.

The primary goal of addiction counseling is to help the client achieve and maintain abstinence from addictive chemicals and behaviors. The secondary goal is to help the client recover from the damage the addiction has done to the client’s life.

Several different counseling therapies are available and the right treatment plan is the one that is tailored to the person’s individual needs. We offer.

Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy

Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy (CBT) teaches people to recognize moods, thoughts and situations that cause drug cravings and other addictive behavior. A therapist trained in cognitive-behavioral therapy techniques helps a person avoid these triggers and replace negative thoughts and feelings with healthier ones.

Since the skills learned using cognitive-behavioral therapy can last a lifetime, CBT is a powerful, evidence-based treatment for drug abuse. A 2011 study found that CBT, either alone or as an adjunct to medication, is an effective technique in the prevention of relapse.

Dialectical Behavior Therapy

Dialectical behavior therapy (DBT), originally developed by Marsha M. Linehan, PhD, teaches people the skills to cope with stress, control emotions and improve relationships with others. DBT has proven effective in adults and adolescents with a range of psychiatric conditions and behavioral problems.

Group Therapy

Alcohol and drug addiction leads to isolation. Reconnecting addicted individuals to a group or community can help address several important recovery-related issues. In fact, clinical studies show that group therapy sessions can be equally as effective as individual therapy in promoting long-term addiction recovery.

Group therapy modalities include support groups, psychoeducational groups, skills development groups, and cognitive behavioral groups, among others. According to the Center for Substance Abuse Treatment (CSAT), the advantages of group therapy include:

• Providing positive peer support and pressure to abstain from substances of abuse
• Reducing the sense of isolation that most people who have substance use disorders experience
• Enabling those who abuse substances to witness the recovery of others
• Helping members learn to cope with their substance abuse and other problems by allowing them to see how others deal with similar problems
• Providing useful information to those who are new to recovery
• Providing feedback regarding values and abilities of other group members
• Offering family-like experiences
• Providing encouragement, coaching, support and reinforcement as members tackle difficult or anxiety-provoking tasks
• Offering members the opportunity to learn or relearn the social skills they need to cope with everyday life instead of resorting to substance abuse.

Other Benifits

Other benefits of group therapy are that groups can effectively confront individual members about substance abuse and other harmful behaviors. Groups allow a single treatment professional to help a number of clients at the same time. Groups can add discipline and structure to the lives of people with substance abuse disorders, who often enter treatment when their lives are in chaos. Groups also instill hope, and often provide support and encouragement to one another outside the group setting.

Ultimately, the benefit of positively directed community support is nearly inseparable from effective drug rehab treatment, regardless of the method employed. One study looking at short- and long-term psychodynamic group psychotherapy found that conflict and avoidance decreased at the end of short-term groups and a delayed, but strengthened, process in long-term groups.

Individual Psychotherapy

Psychotherapy is a general term referring to treating addiction and mental health problems by talking with a psychiatrist, psychologist or other mental health provider. Psychotherapy helps people learn about their condition, moods, feelings, thoughts and behaviors. Psychotherapy also helps people learn how to take control of their lives and respond to challenging situations with healthy coping skills.

Psychodrama

An active and creative therapeutic approach, psychodrama makes use of guided drama and role playing to help people work through their problems. During a psychodrama session, participants act out or reenact specific scenes and experiences with a therapist’s guidance. Included in these scenes may be dreams, past situations or role-playing future events. Other participants act the roles of significant others or the audience. This serves to bring underlying issues and beliefs to the surface as well as offer support to the actors in the psychodrama.

Psychodrama is used to treat a variety of conditions, including addiction, eating disorders and trauma. It can help people improve relationships and communication skills, overcome grief and loss, restore confidence and well-being, enhance life skills and learning, express feelings in a supportive and safe environment, and experiment with new ways of thinking and behavior.

Psychoeducation

Individuals with any chronic disorder, such as heart disease, drug addiction or a mental health disorder should be given accurate information about their diagnosis, treatment and prognosis and about how they can help themselves to stay well. This is broadly called Psycho-education. In Psycho-educational groups, clients learn about addiction and related mental health concerns in a non-threatening format. Psychoeducation has been shown to reduce relapse rates in several psychiatric disorders.

Stress Management Techniques

While stress is a part of life, not everyone knows how to cope with it effectively. When in recovery from drug or alcohol abuse, stress that goes unattended can be overwhelming and is often among the factors that precipitate relapse.

Learning effective techniques for the management of stress is an integral part of the treatment process. We teach clients how to effectively manage their stress without using drugs, alcohol or compulsive behaviors, using exercise, nutrition, social support therapy, relaxation techniques, and more.

Task-Oriented Groups

Healing from addiction, trauma and various types of mental health disorders requires a personalized treatment program and the use of a number of evidence-based treatment modalities. It also necessitates time and practice in order to develop the skills and confidence to be able to successfully navigate functioning on a daily basis. In task-oriented groups, the focus is the interaction of group members on the accomplishment of a common goal. This type of treatment help clients accomplish increasingly difficult tasks, culminating in improved interpersonal interaction. Research has found that the use task-oriented groups can prove beneficial for individuals with acute mental illness.

Motivational Enhancement Therapy:

Motivational Enhancement Therapy (MET) seeks to evoke from clients their own motivation for change and to consolidate a personal decision and plan for change. The approach is largely client centered, although planned and directed.

MET is based on principles of cognitive and social psychology. The counselor seeks to develop a discrepancy in the client’s perceptions between current behavior and significant personal goals. Consistent with Bem’s self-perception theory, emphasis is placed on eliciting from clients self-motivational statements of desire for and commitment to change. The working assumption is that intrinsic motivation is a necessary and often sufficient factor in instigating change.

The CENAPS® Model of Relapse Prevention Therapy (CMRPT®)

The CENAPS® Model of Relapse Prevention Therapy (CMRPT®) is a comprehensive method for preventing chemically dependent clients from returning to alcohol and other drug use after initial treatment and for early intervention should chemical use occur.

The five primary goals of the CMRPT are to:

• Assess the global lifestyle patterns contributing to relapse by completing a comprehensive self-assessment of life, addiction, and relapse history.
• Construct a personalized list of relapse warning signs that lead the relapser from stable recovery back to chemical use.
• Develop warning sign management strategies for the critical warning signs.
• Develop a structured recovery program that will allow clients to identify and manage the critical warning signs as they occur.
• Develop a relapse early intervention plan that will provide the client and significant others with step-by-step instructions to interrupt alcohol and other drug use should it recur.

If you or someone you love is struggling with alcohol or drug addiction, Duarehabhouse offers the expert care you need. Our medical leadership and treatment team are highly educated and experienced in the field of addiction, allowing them to provide the most comprehensive, in-depth treatment available, and will treat you with compassion, kindness and respect.