Understanding Recovery Concepts: Principles and Pathways to Healing

Introduction

Recovery concepts are fairly new in the field of psychology. They were created about 20 years ago, with the intention of taking the holistic path toward healing.

Unlike what Sigmund Freud said many years ago, that the goal of psychotherapy must be to replace neuroticism with “ordinary unhappiness,” recovery concepts take a more optimistic view of treatment. In fact, they focus on restoring the levels of functioning as they were before an illness/disorder and reducing/eliminating the symptoms of the same.

At the NuView Treatment Center, recovery concepts drive our commitment toward treating our clients, and encouraging them on their path to complete healing and functioning after experiences of substance use disorders or other mental health conditions.

What Are Recovery Concepts?

Recovery concepts are intended to maximize the quality of life by seeking to reduce the adverse impact of a psychological/psychiatric condition. This can be a substance use disorder or any other mental health condition, like anxiety or depression, among others. One more thing that mental health recovery concepts emphasize is the client’s personal accountability of their life and their recovery toward a fulfilling life within the context of the condition.

Recovery concepts believe that recovery is internal and ongoing. It requires adaptation and coping skills. It is affected by how the client is treated within mental health settings as well as the society. In other words, it requires support, especially social support.

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Core Principles of Recovery

The core principles of recovery are:

• Person-Centered – Every person is unique, and their path to recovery is unique. Therefore, the treatment must be personalized to fit the unique circumstances and needs of the person.
• Appreciate Individual Differences – Recovery must acknowledge, respect, and appreciate individual differences, like age, sex, culture, religion, and other aspects of personal life.
• Non-Linear – Recovery is ongoing; it is not a straight path, and can have its ups and downs. The focus must be on the treatment and not the cure.
• Strengths-Based – Recovery relies on the person’s strengths and seeks to build on them.
• Self-Direction – Recovery involves taking control of one’s life, and personal ownership of the path to a fulfilling life even within the context of a condition or disorder.
• Peer Support – While recovery involves personal responsibility, it also believes that no person is an island. Hence, peer support in the form of informal peer groups, social support, as well as a sense of community is highly important for the person’s journey to recovery.
• Hope – Hope is central to recovery, as it instills the belief that recovery is tangible and can be achieved.
• Holistic – Recovery does not simply consider an illness, disorder, or symptom, but the whole of the person. This includes their mind, body, interpersonal relationships, social life, societal life, and so on.

The Recovery Process: Key Stages

The recovery process basically has four stages of recovery.

The first one is identifying the internal factors of recovery. These can be cognitive, emotional, and even spiritual factors.

The second one is identifying the external factors of recovery. These are the level of engagement, self-care, the strength of interpersonal relationships in life, and wide-ranging social support.

The third stage is when the internal and external factors trigger the process of recovery, which results from awareness, insight, a plan toward change, and a commitment to change.

The final stage is the road to healing, empowerment, and overall well-being.

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Substance Use Disorder Recovery Concepts

The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) follows a 10-step guide toward recovery. The recovery concepts for substance use disorders are as follows:

• The basis for recovery is hope.
• Recovery is person-centered, and at the same time, it is person-driven as well.
• There is no one trick, advice, or road to recovery. In fact, recovery has several pathways.
• Recovery is holistic; it applies to the client’s whole life and not just the substance use disorder.
• Recovery addresses trauma.
• Recovery requires support from interpersonal relationships and social networks.
• Recovery involves the client, and family, and takes into consideration other social factors like community responsibility.
• Recovery requires support from peers and allies.
• Recovery is based on respect.
• There is no one universal approach to recovery; it is culturally-based and considers individual differences.

Learn more about the different types of treatment for substance use disorders.

Mental Health Disorder Recovery Concepts

Mental health disorders can affect a person’s entire life, and have wide-ranging impacts on the family, social circle, and community. Mental health recovery concepts are the road to change, which takes into consideration all of these factors. Mental health recovery concepts are based on the following:

• Mental health recovery is self-directed, the client decides when to begin and how to go ahead with it.
• Mental health settings must encourage recovery, and at the same time, must take care to not make the client dependent on them.
• Individual differences must be appreciated, as they speed up the process of recovery. This involves appreciating individual, cultural, and other differences.
• Recovery must be holistic. It must not be targeted toward reducing a symptom or disorder, as they do not exist in isolation. Recovery must encompass the whole life of the client.
• Recovery needs to be a multi-disciplinary approach in that it must integrate biological, psychological, social, and value-based approaches.
• While integrating different approaches, mental health professionals must also rely on a strengths-based model for recovery.
• Any recovery plan must focus on the treatments, yes, but it must also focus on wellness.
• Recovery is based on hope, therefore, mental health professionals must focus on building hope. They must also create a pathway for the client to become more trusting of their interpersonal relationships.
• Recovery must involve the client, family, as well as the community.

Holistic Recovery Concepts

Holistic recovery combines traditional and non-traditional approaches to recovery. It seeks to focus on the relationship between the mind, body, and spirit. In doing so, holistic recovery concepts address the whole of a person instead of just a symptom or disorder.

Holistic recovery concepts are known to be just as effective as traditional approaches of psychotherapy in treating substance use disorders and other mental health conditions.

• Holistic recovery concepts are person-centered, and they offer a wide range of therapies to find the best option for the client on their road to recovery.
• Holistic recovery concepts incorporate evidence-based, traditional approaches to recovery. This greatly enhances the process of recovery as well as the overall well-being of the client.
• Holistic recovery concepts take a very personalized approach to recovery, as they believe that there is no one set path toward recovery. Recovery is best achieved when the recovery plan is tailored to the needs of the client.
• Holistic recovery concepts believe in creating a safe and supportive environment for the client, where they can feel comfortable in opening up, introspecting on their needs and circumstances, and reflecting on what is required on their road to recovery.
• Holistic recovery concepts integrate self-care practices like meditation, yoga, and more. These can be practiced by the client even after their treatment or rehab is completed for overall health and well-being.

The Role of Support in Recovery

All the mental health recovery concepts focus on the role of support in recovery. Whether it is for anxiety, depression, substance use disorders, or even for something as severe as schizophrenia, the level of social support is something that is necessary for recovery.

It is not uncommon for people suffering from mental health conditions to feel isolated or lonely. In these cases, when there is a sense of belonging or community, it goes a long way in terms of recovery. It provides encouragement, support, and definitely a hope for recovery.

Support also has a more real-time role to play. For instance, in terms of treatment, a robust social support system can help with transport and also in running other errands. This helps in taking away some stress or burden from the person.

With recovery, there is also the question of discontinuing treatment or relapse. With a strong social system in place, there is always motivation and encouragement for the client on their ongoing road to recovery whenever needed.

Frequently Asked Questions

1.) How long does the recovery process typically last?

It is difficult to set a time for recovery. However, depending on the severity of the condition and symptoms, it can take anywhere from a few weeks to several months.

2. What is the role of peer support in recovery?

Peer support is highly essential in recovery. Informal peer support groups like Alcoholics Anonymous or Narcotics Anonymous provide spaces for people to share their experiences, find support, and take personal accountability for their recovery.

3. How can I avoid relapse during the recovery process?

There is a potential for relapse during recovery. Some ways to avoid relapse are by identifying and avoiding triggers, always practicing self-care, building a strong social support system, having a relapse prevention plan, and understanding when to seek professional help.