Your comments on the usefulness of drug and alcohol counselling

[ava]

Dear Addictions forum people!

This is a question for folk in the Addictions forum who've had personal experience of counselling for their addictions to drug and alcohol.

I am wanting to take an online Diploma on Drug and Alcohol Addiction counselling. On a personal level I find it fascinating - and it's something I would like to know more about - both for my own addictive tendencies, and for possible use professionally. Whether I do use it or not in a professional capacity is another thing - but for the moment it's just something I would like to add to my portfolio, more for interest's sake than anything else.

My question to folk in the Addictions forum is whether you have had counselling for your addictions? And whether you found it helpful/useful? Plus if it was helpful/useful is there anything specific you can tell me about why that was the case?

Thanks!

Ava x

[Leah Stevens]

Hi Ava

I have worked in the Drug and Alcohol treatment sector for over ten years. I have counselling, welfare work and drug and alcohol studies qualifications (plus hypnotherapy, NLP, EFT). Ive also been in therapy in the past for several years.

It sounds like you have two interests; to look at your own addictive tendencies and perhaps work as a Counsellor.

I think what underlies any addiction, whether its shopping, hair pulling, sex or alcohol etc. is anxiety. Counselling to raise self awareness of the anxiety and the underlying belief systems is a good process. I used CBT techniques to reduce smoking cigarettes from 7 per day to 2 per month.

Good luck with your choices, cheers, Leah

[Masha B]

Originally Posted by Leah Stevens

I think what underlies any addiction, whether its shopping, hair pulling, sex or alcohol etc. is anxiety. Counselling to raise self awareness of the anxiety and the underlying belief systems is a good process. I used CBT techniques to reduce smoking cigarettes from 7 per day to 2 per month.

Like Leah, I've worked in the addictions field for quite a few years, including managing a drug rehabilitation unit in a women's prison. I would agree with Leah's assessment that anxiety is a major component of addictive behaviour, though I also believe that addiction tends to mask some unfulfilled need - which can be the need for safety (which directly links to anxiety), but for many people I have also seen, as a significant contributing factor to their addiction (usually on an unconsious level), the unmet need for human connection/companionship, freedom, comfort, sense of control, "sweetness" in life (the latter often linked with addiction to sugar/chocolate etc).

In terms of addiction counselling, it is quite a wide-ranging term which could mean different things; a significant proportion of drug & alcohol counselling in the UK is based on CBT and Motivational Interviewing, and of course there is the popular 12 step model (AA, NA etc). In my understanding and experience, it is likely that all types of counselling and therapy have value, but it is the practitioner him/herself which is the most important factor in the work with addicted clients - the ability to establish rapport and connection with the person, being non-judgemental, sensory acuity to notice non-verbal signals, tuning into what's really going on for the individual, and the ability to b ewith other person's pain and distress.

I use NLPt, CBT and many other approaches in my practice, but my favourite is probably EFT (Emotional Freedom Techniques) - it can be applied to literally every aspect of addiction - to reduce cravings and withdrawal symptoms, to help de-sensitise the individual to triggers in their environment, for day-to-day emotional management, for relief from the effects of past trauma, for modifying unhelpful beliefs; and invaluably, it can be used by the individual for self-help independently from any therapy or counselling. I was actually interviewed the other day by Inexcess TV (a Liverpool based TV company which specialises in addiction stories) on the benefits of EFT in drug & alcohol treatment and recovery. It is still not as widely available in the addictions treatment field as I would like it to be, but I am hopeful for the future, as this is truly an invaluable tool for therapy and as self-help.

Masha

[ava]

Dear Leah and Masha

Thank you so very much, both of you, for your comments. They have really given me insights which I don't think I'd have other got. Thank you. I find it very interesting that both of you use similar modalities to support your counselling. Most notably of those you list is EFT. I say that because in the last few days I've met and befriended a former junkie who is using EFT and meditation to stay clean (he's been off heroin and methadone for 2years+). The friendship/conversation is in the very early days - so I don't know how, or indeed how much, EFT is helping.

I am not completely sure that I wish to work in the drug rehab sector. I feel drawn to knowing more about the psychology of addiction - to better understand my own addictions, and also to gauge whether it might be a field that I'd like to work in, or work alongside.

The comments from both of you have reinforced that enrolling for the drug and alcohol addictions course is right for me.

Thanks so much!

Ava x