Finding the Right Drug and Alcohol Counselor

Your drug and alcohol counselor wants you to realize your goal of lifelong sobriety. However, the professional understands that getting you there is a process. It’s not something that happens overnight or after a couple of good sessions. For this reason, the therapist becomes your collaborator who helps you experience the personal growth you desire.

In one-on-one sessions, you work with a substance abuse counselor to understand why you use. Each person’s different, so the expert adjusts treatment approaches for each individual. One of the most successful treatments is cognitive behavioral therapy. In the process of the sessions, you explore your thoughts and actions for negative patterns.

Frequently, these patterns result in self-defeating activities. Often they materialize during stressful times, which then trigger your desire for a drug to take the edge off. Once you make the connection, you can stop the thoughts or actions. You may also be able to head off stressors before they turn into triggers.

Another approach is dialectical behavior therapy. It benefits individuals who have a difficult time with emotion regulation. It also works well in situations where a certain level of distress is part of your life. You need help to deal with it, which happens in the therapy sessions.

To take it a step further, you may undergo acceptance and commitment therapy. In many ways, it’s a mix of the other two forms of psychotherapy. You learn to embrace difficulties that you acknowledge will continue to be part of your life. At the same time, you learn to deal with them and not succumb to a trigger response that involves drugs.

As you work with the professional at the Serenity Lodge, you learn a variety of responses to triggers. Coping mechanisms and strategies help you to move past situations that, in the past, resulted in drug or alcohol abuse. Sometimes, these trigger situations are outside of you. They may involve loved ones.

In these cases, your drug and alcohol counselor assists you with family counseling and therapy. By bringing in your loved ones, the therapist helps you to create healthy boundaries. You also learn how to communicate effectively even when you disagree with one another. If there’s codependency, the expert helps you to undo these patterns for the development of a healthy relationship.

You might think that this level of addiction therapy is all you need to heal. But you’d be wrong. In fact, other therapeutic approaches encourage whole-person recovery.

Examples include:

• Group therapy that promotes the development of self-esteem and ends self-imposed isolation
• Trauma Informed counseling that helps you to work through past losses that still affect you to this day
• Experiential Therapy that provides an excellent modality for program participants who express themselves better non-verbally
• Dual diagnosis treatment that helps you to manage a co-occurring mental health disorder alongside your addiction
• 12-Step program participation that promotes relapse prevention through positive peer pressure and accountability

These treatments are available to you as you progress in your recovery. The experts at the Serenity Lodge understand that not every person responds in the same way to treatment. By broadening the spectrum of available therapies, they ensure that there’s something for everyone.

An inpatient treatment model is not just convenient for you, but it also offers a number of additional benefits. For example, you benefit from taking advantage of the amenities the rehab facility has to offer. A large gym and pool allow you to regain your physical fitness. Meditation therapy assists with stress reduction and teaches you how to relax.

If you’re struggling with an addiction right now, don’t continue suffering. There’s an addiction therapist ready to work with you at the Serenity Lodge. All you need to do is reach out for help by calling (855) 932-4045.