The key to conversing with a loved one in recovery comes down to being considerate and empathetic. Try to put yourself in their shoes and consider how you would react if asked certain questions. If your reaction wouldn’t be positive, try to think of a way to rephrase the question.
Full Answer
How do you engage your patients?
In a world where treatment plans are done most of the time because, “we need to get paid; we don’t want to get cited,” one powerful way to engage your patients is to meaningfully include them in the development of something concrete and palpable that can be measured and achieved through a stepwise process.
How do I get my client to engage with therapy?
This should be done either when first enquiring about therapy or during the first session. Having the therapist listen intently and take the client’s preferences into account with the treatment decision-making process provides the client with increased incentive to engage. 4. Structure the session
What makes a therapist feel engaged in therapy?
An eclectic or integrated form of therapy, which provides unique elements to therapy and can make clients feel more excited about the therapeutic process, can also make the therapist feel more engaged as well. 6. Practice questions
Do you include your patients in the care process?
Even when it is about hospitalization or involving others in the patient’s care, or having to call child welfare, because the patients’ children may be in danger, if you include your patients in the process, you will see the difference it makes.
How do you engage in recovery?
To stay active in recovery, a person should be making continual efforts towards the goals set forth during treatment and early recovery. They should also be honest in the assessment of where they stand in the progression towards achieving and sustaining long term recovery.
What do you say to someone in recovery?
8 Things to Say to Someone in RecoveryI Love You. ... You're Not Alone. ... Everyone Needs Help Sometimes. ... How Are You Feeling? ... How Can I Help? ... Let's Hang Out. ... I'm Proud of You. ... I Know You Are Struggling, But There's Always Hope.
What are the three P's in recovery?
3 “P's” for Recovery: Passion, Power and Purpose.
What are the five rules of recovery?
Teaching clients these simple rules helps them understand that recovery is not complicated or beyond their control. It is based on a few simple rules that are easy to remember: 1) change your life; 2) be completely honest; 3) ask for help; 4) practice self-care; and 5) don't bend the rules.
What are the 6 ways to help someone who is addicted to drugs?
7 Tips for Helping Someone with an AddictionTip #1: Educate Yourself. Get information about addictions. ... Tip #2: Get Support. ... Tip #3: Get Counseling. ... Tip #4: Seek Specialty Help. ... Tip #5: Don't Enable. ... Tip #6: Have Realistic Expectations. ... Tip #7: Take Care of Yourself.
How do you celebrate a Soberversary?
For many people, keeping track of how long they've been sober is both cause for celebration and a solemn reminder. Soberversaries are anniversaries of someone's sobriety, and they come in all shapes and (quiet) sizes....Try Something New.Hang With Friends And Family.Travel.Learn Meditation.Reflect.
What are some recovery goals?
What Types of Goals Should You Set in Addiction Recovery?#1: Commit to Quiet Time Each Day. ... #2: Maintain Your Health Each Day. ... #3: Attend Recovery Meetings Regularly. ... #4: Commit to Fostering Relationships. ... #5: Commit to Taking a Step Toward Achieving Something of Value to You.
What are the five stages of mental health recovery?
Although there are five proper stages (Pre-Contemplation, Contemplation, Preparation, Action, and Maintenance), they can also be separated into “early,” “middle,” and “late” stages.
What does pause mean in recovery?
Daily Pauses Pausing is about reflection, but also recharging batteries for what's to come. Finding inner strength for the journey of recovery comes from taking moments of stillness and turning them into outward action.
What are recovery skills?
Two important coping skills for recovery are the ability to relax and manage stress, and the ability to change negative thinking. Stress management and meditation are now being used regularly in medicine. The evidence is overwhelming that they are effective in treating anxiety, depression, and addiction.
What are some relapse management strategies?
The top 10 relapse prevention skills include:Self-Care. Common post-acute withdrawal symptoms when recovering from addiction include insomnia and fatigue. ... HALT. ... Mindfulness Meditation. ... Know Your Triggers. ... Join a Support Group. ... Grounding Techniques. ... Deep Breathing. ... Make An Emergency Contact List.More items...•
What is the so called first rule of recovery?
The first rule of recovery is that you must change your life. But what do you need to change? If people use drugs and alcohol to relieve tension, then learning to relax is one of the most important skills if you want to change your life.
How to support a loved one in recovery?
The recovery process may seem daunting; however, there are many ways you can support your loved one while maintaining your own health and wellbeing, including: Educating yourself about addiction and recovery. Setting healthy boundaries and avoiding enabling your loved one. Continuously encouraging your loved to enter and remain in treatment.
How to maintain a supportive role in recovery?
In order to maintain a supportive, non-enabling role in your loved one’s recovery, you’ll need to set boundaries. Be clear with your loved one about what you will and will not accept, and make sure your own mental and physical health are respected.
What to do if you have prescription drugs?
If you have any prescription drugs, make sure they are safely disposed or locked away. Offer to help your loved one clear their home of any tempting substances, as well. In addition to mitigating at-home relapse risks, you can also help your loved one avoid social situations that may be triggering.
Why is honesty important?
When honesty is praised, your loved one can confidently speak up to share their struggles with you and seek help. It’s important to not only be honest with your loved one but with yourself. Denial won’t help, and the longer you suppress your concerns, the more time the situation has to fester and get worse.
Why is it important to remove substances from your environment?
Removing substances from your loved one’s immediate environment will help them focus energy on positive, healing thoughts instead of on willpower and self-policing.
What does "enabler" mean in a relationship?
It maintains honesty and does not excuse unacceptable behavior. It maintains love and balance devoid of the resentments formed when you attempt to shoulder your loved one’s responsibilities. If you’re an enabler, you are perpetuating your loved one’s addiction.
Can you watch someone continue to use drugs?
It can be dumbfounding to watch your loved one continue to use drugs and/or alcohol despite the harmful consequences that seem so obvious to you. By understanding the science behind addiction, you will be able to see more clearly why addiction is so challenging to overcome and how you can appropriately support your loved one as they navigate the path from active addiction to recovery.
Try not to question their recovery
As previously stated, it may be hard for someone who is not in recovery to fully understand the need for it. However, if you start asking questions such as, “Are you sure you’re an addict?” and “Are you sure you need to be completely sober?” it may cause the addict to start questioning their recovery themselves, which could lead to a slip.
When asking questions, do your best to avoid making someone in recovery feel like their life is boring
Try not to ask questions or make comments like, “So what do you do with all your free time now? You must be bored.” For many addicts, this is their biggest fear when getting sober. They often wonder what they will do with their down time, and feel as if nothing could live up to the way they felt while using.
Can addiction be treated successfully?
Yes, addiction is a treatable disorder. Research on the science of addiction and the treatment of substance use disorders has led to the development of research-based methods that help people to stop using drugs and resume productive lives, also known as being in recovery.
Can addiction be cured?
Like other chronic diseases such as heart disease or asthma, treatment for drug addiction usually isn't a cure. But addiction can be managed successfully. Treatment enables people to counteract addiction's disruptive effects on their brain and behavior and regain control of their lives.
Does relapse to drug use mean treatment has failed?
No. The chronic nature of addiction means that for some people relapse, or a return to drug use after an attempt to stop, can be part of the process, but newer treatments are designed to help with relapse prevention. Relapse rates for drug use are similar to rates for other chronic medical illnesses.
What are the principles of effective treatment?
Research shows that when treating addictions to opioids (prescription pain relievers or drugs like heroin or fentanyl), medication should be the first line of treatment, usually combined with some form of behavioral therapy or counseling. Medications are also available to help treat addiction to alcohol and nicotine.
What medications and devices help treat drug addiction?
Different types of medications may be useful at different stages of treatment to help a patient stop abusing drugs, stay in treatment, and avoid relapse.
How do behavioral therapies treat drug addiction?
Behavioral therapies help people in drug addiction treatment modify their attitudes and behaviors related to drug use. As a result, patients are able to handle stressful situations and various triggers that might cause another relapse. Behavioral therapies can also enhance the effectiveness of medications and help people remain in treatment longer.
How do the best treatment programs help patients recover from addiction?
Stopping drug use is just one part of a long and complex recovery process. When people enter treatment, addiction has often caused serious consequences in their lives, possibly disrupting their health and how they function in their family lives, at work, and in the community.
Why is it important for therapists to keep focus on clients?
When therapists keep the focus on clients, this can help to build trust, an important aspect of the therapist–client relationship. Without it, clients may not feel comfortable opening up for therapists to listen.
How to focus on client?
1. Make sure the focus is on the client. While this might sound obvious, it is perhaps the most important step, but one that can be easily overlooked. The spotlight needs to be kept on the client, with the beginning, middle, and end of each session focusing on the client’s thoughts, feelings, and actions.
Why is teletherapy important?
While teletherapy is convenient since clients can meet therapists while at home, removing distracting obstacles is crucial. Ask a client to move to a different part of their home, such as from the kitchen to a private room, and ask for devices to be turned off. This will ensure the client’s engagement can be achieved.
Why are clients resistant to change?
Clients may be resistant to change in part because therapists may not have the technique to manage what is going on in the moment or do not fully understand the client’s world to recognize why they are responding the way they are (Nienhuis et al., 2018). The keywords that stand out here are in the moment.
What is an eclectic form of therapy?
An eclectic or integrated form of therapy, which provides unique elements to therapy and can make clients feel more excited about the therapeutic process, can also make the therapist feel more engaged as well. 6. Practice questions.
Do therapists respect what they say?
Respect may sound obvious, but resistant clients may feel therapists do not respect what they said in a session. If clients give closed answers, it is important for therapists to respect what the client is saying, even if it feels like clients are resisting change further.
What do you need to know about recovery?
Especially in the early stages of recovery, a newly sober person may begin experiencing thoughts and emotions they previously tried to avoid through substance use. Asking non-accusatory questions or just simply listening can help them work through their own issues and break down the barriers in your friendship.
What to do after substance abuse treatment?
Although rehab is a powerful step for someone struggling with substance use, it’s what they do after treatment that will be most crucial to their long-term sobriety. Friendship and support is essential to this process, but many times people don’t know how they can help someone in addiction recovery, especially if they don’t have a substance abuse ...
Why is it important to know that you will support your friend?
People who make mistakes in the recovery process are only human, so it’s important for them to know that, as a true friend, you will support them as long as they remain committed to getting better.
When do relapses occur?
Unfortunately, relapses do happen – they typically occur within the first year of sobriety. Before your friend reaches the low points of their addiction again, learn the warning signs of a relapse and what actions you can take if you see this occurring.
Should I take my sober friend to a bar?
While you should absolutely avoid taking a newly sober friend to a bar or other social activity that involves substances, the way you act around them should remain the same as before. Simply put: be yourself and your old friendship will likely be reclaimed.
Can you meet other recovering addicts?
In addition to encouraging your friend to join a support group where recovering addicts can meet other recovering addicts, there are also a number of groups that specifically cater to the friends and loved ones of people in recovery.
Active Participation
- You are much more likely to complete your addiction treatment successfully and to continue on to a sober recovery when you actively participate in the treatment and recovery process. As an engaged participant, you will gain new perspectives about your addiction, including identifying a…
Addressing Other Needs
- Addiction treatment addresses other areaswith you as you work through the underlying causes that may have led to your addiction. Treatment and rehab will also address problems that may be associated with your drug or alcohol abuse, including social, vocational, legal, medical, or psychological problems. Active engagement on your part is critical to be able to understand and …
It Takes Time
- Your disengagement could be a result of frustration about the amount of time your addiction treatment is taking out of your life. Remember, though, that you didn’t become addicted to drugs or alcohol overnight. Likewise, your addiction treatment will not happen instantly. You’ll need to participate in treatment sessions, providing input and interacting with others in group sessions, …
Contact BRC Recovery For Help with Your Addiction
- If you have become disengaged from your addiction treatment, the professional team at BRC Recovery can help. We specialize in helping chronic relapsers, who may not have been completely engaged in their recovery. We work with you to address the underlying causes of your addiction and will help you with the addiction treatment you need to recreate and reclaim your life. Contac…