You might have seen many people lying around the streets due to being high on substances, and sometimes you might have heard through the news or through someone close that a person has lost their life due to a drug overdose. These tragic deaths occur a lot more than you think, and it is all because of drug addiction. Let us discuss the role of an addiction therapist in getting rid of drug substance abuse.
What is Addiction?
Addiction is the excessive use of harmful and dangerous substances or involving oneself in pleasure-inducing activities that are harmful physically and financially to relieve one from stress, anxiety, boredom, and depression. Addiction generally consists of the consumption of drugs or self-harming activities such as indulging in pornography or gambling.
Some Common forms of Addiction
Addiction is divided into two main categories. These categories are:
- Substance Addiction
- Non-Substance Addiction
Generally, substance addiction is more dangerous as it can lead to life-threatening situations because of the consumption of substances that are detrimental to human health.
Substance Addictions
Substance addiction involves Addiction to several substances that can cause your health to deteriorate and your ability to function as an average person to fade away. The following things come under the category of substance addiction:
- Alcohol
- Tobacco
- Nicotine
- Heroin
- Marijuana
- Cocaine
Inhalants such as paint thinners and aerosol sprays
Usage of these substances causes immense feelings of satisfaction and pleasure, which makes your body and mind crave more most of the time, causing substance use disorder (SUD). Addiction is the last stage of SUD. Alcohol is the most common Addiction.
Non-Substance Addictions
Non-substance addictions involve addictions that do not come from the consumption of substances. Instead, these are activities that spiral out of control, making you addicted to them. The following are the non-substance addictions:
- Gaming (Internet Gaming Disorder)
- Shopping
- Viewing Pornography
- Shopping
- Eating
- Dieting
- Exercising
- Gambling
These activities, just like substance addictions, provide great satisfaction and reward to the brain, causing you to indulge in these activities even more. Most of the time, the results are devastating to the health and wealth of the person with an addiction. So, these addictions should not be taken lightly and be given as much attention and weightage as substance addiction.
Why do People Use Drugs and Substances?
Different people indulge in addictions for various reasons. Whatever the cause may be for the starting of usage of a substance, whether the substance was medically prescribed, peer pressure, or to get rid of anxiety or boredom, the cause of Addiction is related to dopamine.
How does the brain’s Reward System Work?
Your brain releases dopamine whenever you perform an activity you like, such as eating your favorite food, playing games, or spending time with your loved one. This hormone provides pleasure and satisfaction.
This makes you crave to perform that activity even more to feel that pleasure. The addictive substances cause a tremendous amount of dopamine to be released, which causes to disorient your thoughts and changes the way you behave and act.
Other Main Factors That Cause Addiction
The following factors are also responsible for Addiction in many cases:
Environment: The availability of substances in the area where you live can be a significant contributor to Addiction. If substances are available quickly, you are more prone to be addicted to them than if the substances are difficult to get.
Genetics: Studies are going on genes that are more susceptible to Addiction because it is found out that if a close relative such as your father or uncle is addicted to substances, you might also be prone to develop an addiction to substances.
Mental Health: If you have poor mental health because of any reason, you are more susceptible to Addiction than an average person.
What are the Aftermaths of Addictions?
The results of being addicted to anything are not pretty at all. The following are the results of being addicted. You cannot stop consuming the substance or performing the activity you are addicted to. You might try stopping but to no avail.
Resultantly, you will develop excessive tolerance to the substance, which entails that the body will get used to the substance and will require a higher amount of substance to get the high you have been looking for. You lose control over yourself and take the substance on impulse. This will cause excessive use of substances.
You will feel your mental health and physical health deteriorate as well, taking a hit on your wealth, too, as you are not able to function normally because of substances, but you still are not able to stop. If you distance yourself from your Addiction, you will have physical and mental withdrawals that can even be fatal sometimes.
What is the Procedure of Dealing with Addictions?
One thing is established, and that is Addictions are harmful to you from every angle. Then how do you get rid of it? Well, to get rid of Addiction, the first step is to realize that you are addicted to the help of the causes and effects of addictions mentioned above.
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Seek Professional Help
After realizing you are addicted, you will want to seek professional help. You can visit your doctor and talk to them about your problem, and they can refer you to a psychiatrist who will assess your condition and help you get rid of your Addiction with the help of medication.
How an Addiction Psychotherapist Aids in Getting Rid of Addictions?
In addition to taking medications for your Addiction, seeking help from an addiction psychotherapist will be the best move. The psychotherapist will perform therapy sessions with you and stop you from regressing to your Addiction. Counseling for Addiction is highly recommended and necessary to completely get rid of Addiction.
Different Types of Counselling for Addiction
The following therapies are performed for this purpose.
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Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT)
The most common therapy performed by the therapist is Cognitive behavioral therapy. CBT helps people to know how to control their thoughts, actions, and behavior, which is the most crucial step to getting rid of Addiction, as the person with an addiction will have more control over themselves.
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Couples Therapy
In most cases, couples therapy is also necessary as the Addiction affects not only the life of the person with an addiction but also their partner. Couples therapy will help the relationship between the partners to get better and also might teach their partner how to help them get rid of Addiction.
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Supportive Therapy
The primary role of an addiction therapist while providing counseling for Addiction is to be there for the person with an addiction and listen to them to make them feel like you understand their problems and give the role of a guide, listener, and a friend too.
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Exploratory Therapy
Addiction therapist performs exploratory therapy while performing counseling for Addiction to explore the past experiences that might have led to their Addiction to help them get rid of their Addiction. This form of therapy might be challenging because you might need to remember past traumatic experiences.
The Importance of Addiction Psychotherapist in Addiction Treatment
In most addiction cases, the person with an addiction seems like a lost cause. Still, proper treatment and counseling for Addiction by an addiction therapist can result in a miracle and save the life of the person with an addiction, bringing him back to normal.
What are the Steps Involved in a Psychotherapy Session for Addiction Treatment?
The psychotherapist will want to know more about you in the first few sessions. The first few sessions will be regarding knowing you personally. Addiction therapists, while performing counseling for Addiction then, might use any of the therapies mentioned above to dig out the reasons for your Addiction, help you overcome it, and teach you self-control so that you can function like an average human being again and never regress again.
Which one is Better, Group Therapy or Individual Therapy?
Let’s find out which one is better among group and individual therapies.
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Group Therapy
Most of the time, group therapy is better as it causes the patients to compete with each other in overcoming their Addiction. The patients challenge themselves and get motivation from each other.
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Individual Therapy
Some patients may find it shameful that their problem is being discussed in a group and might prefer individual therapy, in which the addiction therapist might convince them to take group sessions for better results.
Should You opt for Outpatient Treatment or Residential Treatment?
For a short-term period, residential treatment is better as it will help you to keep away from the environment that got you into Addiction, and the doctors will be able to observe your progress. Outpatient treatment is also good, but you must be regular and punctual when going for treatment for results.
Conclusion
This is how an addiction therapist near me can help you to get rid of your addictions. If you are looking for an addiction therapist near me, you can contact us to get the best results.