One-To-One Therapy For Addiction Treatment

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One-To-One Therapy For Addiction Treatment

One-to-one therapy offers people a treatment to heal the mind.

When so many physical ailments and addictions stem from psychological causes, it could be argued that therapy is essential.

1.4 million people were referred to NHS mental health therapy in 2017.

 Of course, the number of people in therapy will actually be much higher because thousands will be in private therapy treatment as well.

To recover from an addiction, therapy is one of the key elements to success.

What Is One-To-One Therapy?

One-to-one therapy is a type of treatment for the mind.

It’s necessary where people have mental health issues.

Addiction is a prime example of an illness of the mind and brain, so therapy offers a type of “medication” for this.

Therapy sessions usually take place in a small room between the therapist and the client.

The space is safe.

The therapist is supportive whilst also being knowledgeable and helpful.

Individual therapy empowers you to understand thoughts, process emotions and make sense of the past so that you can alter the present.

Therapy helps you unravel how you’ve come to be the person you are in the present and how you can change.

This, of course, is especially useful for people who have addictions.

What Does One-To-One Therapy Treat?

Anyone can access a psychotherapist privately if they have the money and desire to do so.

Therapy is, however, beneficial to anyone who has been affected by particular issues.

Often a person has reached a point of crisis, or “the dark night of the soul”, and need a bit of external help.

Many begin therapy with a sense of despair, others because they’ve reached a point of feeling “stuck”, still others because friends or family have persuaded them to have it.

Therapy is particularly useful in treating the following:

• Addiction (to psychoactive substances and behavioural addictions such as gambling, or to shopping, or sex etc.)
• PTSD and trauma
• Anxiety
• Depression
• Anger problems
• Eating disorders

Why Is Therapy So Important?

Within the rehabilitation and recovery fields, therapy is especially important.

It offers a space that is geared towards the individual.

It goes at your pace.

A person with an addiction is typically used to burying emotions and thoughts in substance use.

Actually, in order to be able to heal, removing the substance can feel scary but it needs to happen and therapy is a space that can hold you.

You can share all those thoughts that frighten you, worry you and upset you.

A good therapist makes you feel totally safe to share without judgement, and will they guide you to a place of emotional safety in handling those distressing thoughts, emotions, and memories.

As well as this, the therapeutic setting offers an environment of learning.

You further develop social skills, learn about the self and discover why you ended up addicted to a substance.

Through this learning, you start to develop self-compassion and this is instrumental in empowering you to forgive yourself for having developed the addiction and to heal.

Where Can I Get One-To-One Therapy?

In the addiction field, it’s common to access one-to-one therapy through private treatment, whether this is at an inpatient or outpatient facility.

Local NHS drug and alcohol services don’t tend to offer specialist therapy because it is expensive to fund.

Treatments might include some counselling, but conversation-based input is usually from drug and alcohol workers who aren’t trained as psychotherapists.

Specialist psychotherapy is also very different to counselling.

Counselling is far less intense – The practitioner will support you to explore thoughts and feelings and might help you to understand boundaries.

A psychotherapist, on the other hand, is trained to analyse how your history is affecting the way your mind works in the present and how that informs your behaviour.

They also equip you with tools to empower you to develop healthier behaviours.

What Types Of Therapy Are There In Rehab Programmes?

There are many types of therapy on offer.

At rehab, you’ll be assessed and a psychiatrist or psychotherapist will decide what therapies are most suited to you.

• Cognitive Behavioural Therapy is an evidence-based therapy shown to be effective at treating people with addictions. It helps you to identify automatic thoughts you have that come from unhealthy beliefs. These are what cause compulsive addictive behaviours. The aim is to reduce false beliefs and offer you tools to manage the addiction in a healthy and conscious manner.
• Dialectical Behavioural Therapy (DBT) is especially helpful for people who struggle with emotional dysregulation. Many people who have experienced traumatic events can become triggered in the present and react in an unhealthy way. DBT enables the person to understand where they’re reacting from, why they are acting that way, and how to emotionally respond in healthier ways.
• Motivational enhancement therapy or motivational interviewing is an approach that focuses on your motivation to heal and abstain. A therapist will lead you through discussions which unravel your ambivalent feelings around quitting and abstaining. This approach is very effective at supporting people to build self-confidence in their ability to recover.
• EMDR is a therapeutic approach used where people have experienced traumatic events. It uses eye movements and body tapping to lead a person through distressing memories and to reach a point where these memories are “dulled” and therefore don’t cause as much emotional pain.

Therapy sessions might focus on anger management, stress management, relapse prevention, body image or self-esteem.

It really depends on what is necessary for the client to heal.

Other Therapies At Rehab

• Group Therapy
• Family Therapy
• Holistic Therapies including art therapy, music therapy, reiki and mindfulness.

What Approaches Are Used?

When people train to become therapists, they become specialists in a particular approach.

These approaches include:

• Humanistic – This focuses on understanding the self and freewill. The goal is to become conscious and aware and to think about your potential.
• Person-Centred – This is a form of humanistic psychotherapy where the aim is to come to a place of deep self-understanding and self-compassion. This allows you to fully function at your optimum level.
• Psychodynamic – This is concerned with how the subconscious mind influences the conscious. It supports a person to understand themselves at a deep level.
• Cognitive Analytic – This focuses on how your past as well as the linked beliefs that affect your present behaviours.
• Integrative – This approach aims to combine the various approaches mentioned above.

As well as the various schools of psychotherapy, therapists also develop specialist areas such as addiction, eating disorders, etc.

Specialist Therapists That Are Qualified And Experienced

At rehab clinics, therapists are accredited by the British Association for Counselling and Psychotherapy.

This is the highest qualification a therapist can have in the UK.

They also might have additional qualifications, such as a Masters degree in order to specialise in a particular topic.

Many therapists within the addiction field have experienced addictions themselves or been affected by someone they love having had an addiction.

Therapists work under strict confidentiality regulations, meaning that everything you share is kept between the two of you, unless you’re at risk of harm to yourself or reveal others at a risk of harm.

How Are Your Therapy Needs Assessed At Rehab?

When you enter rehab, you’ll undergo a psychiatric assessment.

This will identify your therapeutic needs.

Some people, for instance, prefer therapies that are more practical (i.e. CBT) rather than conversation-based.

Your preferences will be taken into account, but also it’s important to remember that sometimes deep therapy, including emotive conversation is necessary for healing to occur.

At rehab, you’ll have about 2 hours of individual therapy a week, usually spread over two sessions.

Therapy can be quite emotionally intense.

You need space between sessions to process what you’ve uncovered and also to complete any “homework” the therapist might set or practise any skills that are introduced.

Goals Of One-To-One Therapy

Goals of therapy include:

• Understanding the self.
• Processing trauma.
• To learn how to manage emotional, social and environmental triggers as well as stressful events.
• Increasing motivation to practise abstinence long-term.
• To change perception and behaviours.
• To understand addiction from a new point of view.
• To understand how addiction is impacting your life.
• To learn new skills to help you develop healthy behaviours.

Final Thoughts

One-to-one therapy can empower a person to change their life.

If you have an addiction, you learn what caused it and how you’ve ended up where you are now.

Through developing deep self-understanding, self-compassion and new coping strategies, you can begin to heal and recover.

To find out more about rehab treatment options and one-to-one therapy near you, contact Rehab Recovery today.