Individual therapy and counseling for substance abuse are essential tools for overcoming addiction. Individual therapy sessions help reframe negative belief patterns and to change destructive behaviors. By establishing new healthy and constructive habits, private psychotherapy sessions help develop new ways of managing addiction.
Individual Therapy and Addiction Treatment
Addiction treatment programs offer various forms of psychological treatments, from group therapy to family therapy. However, for many people in treatment, individual therapy sessions provide the most impactful method of getting to the root of one’s issues with substance abuse.
Generally speaking, individual therapy is a one-on-one counselings session where you and a therapist or substance abuse counselor work to identify and correct the core issues that contribute to addiction.
If you or a loved one is considering treatment for a substance abuse issue, you may be wondering what therapy sessions for addiction involve and how they can help produce results.
How Does Individual Therapy for Addiction Work?
Personal Assessments
The first step to starting individual therapy sessions is to conduct in-depth assessments to uncover underlying sources of mental and emotional distress. Addiction is a complex disorder that involves many personal variables. The assessment process requires a comprehensive screening that will explore individual factors such as family history, past trauma, lifestyle, and mental health history.
It’s important to remember that treating addiction is a very personal process. There is no one-size-fits-all method for recovering from a substance abuse disorder. The goal
Getting to the Root of Addiction
Individual therapy works similarly to other forms of treatment where an individual struggling with aspects of their psychology will converse with a mental health professional to find the root of their problem. Unlike different types of talk therapy, individual counseling is a one-on-one conversation – though, it may sometimes include a loved one if desired or upon the suggestion of the counselor.
Correcting Negative Thought Patterns and Beliefs
Throughout individual therapy, your main goal is to discover negative thought and behavioral patterns. In the case of a substance abuse disorder, you’ll be observing various ways your brain reacts to stressful situations. These situations vary greatly and highly depend on your life experiences and can include anything from childhood trauma to your current work environment.
One of the benefits of individual therapy is having the opportunity to discuss matters that pertain solely to you.
How Long Does Individual Therapy Last?
The length of individual therapy varies from person to person. Some people may experience results in a few sessions, while others may require many months and years to recover. The timeframe of individual therapy is highly determined by several personal variables such as the severity of the addiction, personal history, and how well you respond to treatment.
Most people experience results with 5-20 sessions, with the success rates being higher for those who commit to more than five sessions.
Setting Goals in Individual Therapy
Once your life stressors are identified, your private therapist will then provide you with mental exercises that can help ease these situations. The purpose of one to one therapy for drug addiction with your therapist is to establish new coping mechanisms that allow you to avoid drugs and alcohol.
You and your therapist will work to establish goals that can serve to measure progress. Each individual will have a personal set of goals they’d like to achieve through treatment.
In addition to personal goals, there are specific goals that addiction therapy helps achieve:
- Improve self-image and self-esteem
- Reframe negative thoughts and beliefs
- Develop coping mechanism
- Establish relapse prevention tools
- Eliminate self-doubt
- Improve relationships
- Reduce levels stress, anxiety, and depressions
- Manage negative emotions, anger, fear, resentment
Individual therapy sessions help to improve self-image and give you the confidence to handle the rigors of daily life. Addiction therapy helps develop coping mechanisms that allow you to manage stress and handle difficult situations without the need for drugs and alcohol.
Individual Therapy Techniques to Treat Addiction
While many techniques are used to treat addiction, two stand out as being the most prevalent.
Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) seeks to change your attitude and conduct by focusing on specific thoughts, images, believes, and attitudes you present. These are all apart of your cognitive process and have a substantial impact on how you behave and handle stressful situations.
Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT) is similar to CBT, but the focus is more on regulating emotions, accepting painful life events, and becoming mindful/spiritual in the process.
Both forms of therapy have been found to be extremely helpful in helping a person identify negative thought patterns and healthily addressing them. These techniques are also an excellent way for your private therapist to determine where your problem with substance abuse lies.
How Individual Therapy Can Help in Substance Abuse Recovery?
The purpose of Individual therapy and counseling’s for substance abuse is to begin the process of healing what lies at the root of a personal issue with addiction. Therapy sessions help develop coping skills that help manage mental and emotional distress while preventing relapse.
Through individual therapy, you’ll have a better understanding of who you are as an individual and the steps you’ll need to take to recover from addiction
In addition to providing an effective tool for addiction recovery, individual therapy helps to develop healthy behavioral patterns and provides new life skills that can benefit just about anyone. Best of all, these effects carry over into everyday life after treatment is completed.
