Individual Substance Abuse Counseling
Treatment for drug and alcohol addiction, here at Lifetime Recovery, provides those individuals with substance use disorders the tools that they need to overcome their addictive behaviors.
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Unfortunately, ceasing alcohol or drug abuse is rarely enough to truly heal from addiction. Therefore, our approach to treating substance abuse includes various treatment modalities that include individual substance abuse counseling programs.
For most individuals, the root causes of addiction must be addressed through individual counseling to facilitate life-long addiction recovery. Alcohol and drug addiction also cause psychological changes that treatment programs must work to remediate. This is why we offer individual substance abuse counseling sessions as a part of our treatment process here at Lifetime Recovery.
Millions of people experience alcohol or drug addiction each year. Unfortunately, only a fraction of those individuals end up seeking addiction treatment. Here at Lifetime Recovery, we understand that substance abuse and alcohol or drug addiction is a disease, and those suffering from this disease require careful and compassionate treatment. With this in mind, our treatment plans positively impact a patient’s life.
What is Individual Substance Abuse Counseling?
Individual substance abuse counseling is conducted face-to-face between a clinical professional and his or her patient. These counseling sessions take place in secure settings where the individual addresses emotional feelings and thoughts related to addiction. Treatment centers offer Individual substance abuse counseling to help patients to address the symptoms of addiction and acknowledge how it affects their lives.
After gaining these insights, patients work through the mental and emotional aspects of their substance abuse issues. Furthermore, the level of individual attention during addiction treatment is beneficial to the patient as he or she can detect the root of his or her addiction issues more swiftly than in a group therapy setting. Overall, many people in treatment benefit from finding out how their substance use disorders began and what may trigger their unhealthy behaviors.
Additionally, working one-on-one with a clinical professional in individual counseling ensures a patient can cover more history within a therapy session than a group therapy session. In an isolated environment, like individual substance abuse counseling, a patient works with a therapist to find a solution that allows the patient to overcome his or her addiction.
Benefits Of Individual Substance Abuse Counseling
There can be many benefits related to individual substance abuse counseling. However, there are two main factors present when discussing the benefits of counseling: environmental and personal factors. Individual counseling helps to address environmental and personal factors, such as:
- A new perspective on life
- Work, relationship, and family-related stress
- Support from friendships and peers
- Coping strategies
- Daily routines
- Self-respect
- Self-reflection
Environmental factors in a patient’s life may result from visiting the same restaurant, bar, or neighborhood where their past addictive behaviors took place. Going back to these locations can trigger old thought patterns and behaviors that therapy has worked to combat. Furthermore, social and personal lives are affected. Close friends that continue to use drugs and alcohol may lead to a sense of peer pressure.
In life, it can be difficult to forgo something that was once found useful as a coping mechanism, but therapy challenges the patient to create healthier relationships all around. Patients that attempt individual substance abuse counseling with an open mind find that it will more than likely benefit them. Ultimately, Individual substance abuse counseling assists one in finding more constructive ways to deal with stress and anxiety outside of drug or alcohol abuse.
The Process Of Individual Substance Abuse Counseling
Our approach to individual substance abuse counseling is all-encompassing, focusing on more than just early stages of treatment. It includes one-on-one therapy sessions where patients can work intimately with a dedicated therapist.
The process of substance abuse treatment can vary from individual to individual depending on the severity of one’s addiction. Each patient will undergo an initial diagnosis by a medical professional that can determine various treatment options. A diagnosis will vary depending on the challenges a patient faces in life, such as:
- Grief
- Injury
- Relationship issues
- Low self-esteem
- Stress response to certain situations
- Blame
- Guilt
Additionally, there are various types of individual substance abuse counseling and therapy available. Each can help a patient prevent cravings, avoid relapses, and remain positive in recovery.
Addiction Treatment Options at Lifetime Recovery
Here at Lifetime Recovery, we offer a range of treatment options to our patients. Some of the most severe substance abuse cases may require inpatient recovery programs, which we do not offer. These inpatient programs are also referred to as residential treatment programs where individuals stay at a treatment center for 30 to 90 days. While there, the patient will be monitored by a medical professional throughout their recovery.
Another option for individuals who require addiction treatment is an outpatient program, such as the ones we provide at Lifetime Recovery. Here, the recovering individual can still perform their daily activities, such as going to work, while engaging in addiction recovery. Outpatient treatment typically works well for people with mild to moderate addiction issues or for patients who are ready to move to a less intense level of care. However, outpatient programs are not for everyone. Those with a high risk of relapse benefit more from an inpatient setting since support is available around the clock.
While requiring fewer hours spent at a treatment facility, our outpatient programs still include a comprehensive treatment plan that involves individual counseling (or individual therapy), chemical dependency counseling, and therapies such as cognitive-behavioral therapy. In our substance abuse treatment programs, patients learn healthy coping skills that allow them to maintain a sober life outside of treatment.
Individual Therapy
Individual substance abuse counseling, also known as individual therapy, addresses the mental and emotional needs of a patient in recovery. A recovering individual will often visit with the same therapist for an extended period, depending on how severe the substance abuse is. Drugs and alcohol are used as a source to self-medicate and manage difficult emotions or events. Therefore, there are generally lots of related feelings and thoughts to unpack during individual therapy sessions.
Individual substance abuse counseling aims to combat the difficult obstacles faced in addiction through various means of remediation. For example, a patient may work to heal a damaged relationship or create a new, healthy one that can help keep them motivated and successful in life again. This is why individual therapy is commonly included in substance abuse treatment programs as a worthwhile method of addiction treatment.
Psychoanalysis
Psychoanalysis and individual therapy are used interchangeably but are not the same. While a patient meets one on one to discuss their emotions with a therapist in psychoanalysis, this type of therapy goes deeper to examine the conscious and unconscious mind.
In psychoanalysis, the trained medical professional works with the patient to identify inner conflicts, phobias, and feelings. The idea is to explore the personality of the patient and understand why they react to events the way they do. This type of therapy involves therapeutic techniques which may even uncover hidden motivations behind a person’s drug use.
The patient is asked a series of guided questions. This encourages them to explore their thoughts and emotions in a secure environment. Through this, the patient and therapeutic doctor work together to identify triggers and find positive solutions for those triggers.
Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy (CBT)
In cognitive-behavioral therapy, also known as CBT, experienced clinical professionals work individually with a patient to gauge their thoughts and reactions. After becoming familiar with the actions of a patient, therapists can help a client avoid the destructive behaviors and thought patterns that lead to a relapse. This attention to the link between thoughts, feelings, and behavior is what makes cognitive behavioral therapy an excellent addition to the addiction recovery process.
Cognitive-behavioral therapy goes beyond individual counseling to allow a patient to recognize their negative moods and thoughts initially to replace them with positive, constructive notions. The healthier and more positive the thought process means the client can remain clean and resist temptations longer. Similar to individual therapy, patients work one on one with their therapist during cognitive behavioral therapy sessions.
We offer cognitive-behavioral therapy in our dual diagnosis program. Patients who suffer from a substance use disorder and co-occurring mental illness, such as depression or borderline personality disorder, are treated for both illnesses at the same time. By treating both disorders simultaneously, we can ensure that a patient’s mental health symptoms are addressed along with their addiction.
Find Help at Lifetime Recovery
At Lifetime Recovery, we understand that each patient meets a unique status of addiction recovery. This is why we offer a range of therapies for our recovery program patients. We also offer group therapy, family therapy, and support groups for patients in our recovery programs.
Group therapies can help those undergoing substance abuse treatment feel connected to others in their struggles. Family therapy sessions allow patients to reconnect with loved ones. On the other hand, these family members learn more about addiction and how it affects the patient. To treat the entire person, holistically and compassionately, we provide treatment that positively impacts every part of our patients’ lives.
With the level of individual substance abuse counseling offered at Lifetime Recovery, our patients can create a life free from addiction. To get a more exclusive approach, contact us today. A specialized team can work with you, the patient, and/or family to design a plan fit for the addicted individual.
Prefer to contact us online instead?
Use this form to send us a message. One of our recovery specialists will get back to you.
