SUBSTANCE USE DISORDER TREATMENT services

Commonly referred to as addiction or chemical dependency, substance use disorders are characterized by a variety of unpleasant symptoms that include prioritizing substance abuse over important issues such as relationships, career, and academic progress, continuing to abuse substances even after experiencing negative repercussions, and experiencing painful withdrawal symptoms when attempting to stop or limit one’s substance abuse.

At New Horizon Counseling Services, we are familiar with the many ways that substance abuse can devastate individuals and families. Perhaps more importantly, we are also dedicated to developing innovative and effective programming that can help adolescents and adults overcome their dependence upon alcohol and/or other drugs and learn to live healthier and more satisfying lives, free from the limitations of addiction. In programs throughout New Horizon Counseling Services, experienced and dedicated professionals provide the life-changing therapeutic interventions and other clinical services that help individuals emerge from the darkness of substance abuse and addiction to take their first steps along the path toward a brighter, drug-free future.

INTENSIVE OUTPATIENT (IOP) and OUTPATIENT (OP) SERVICES

In the Intensive Outpatient and Outpatient programs, you receive services primarily through group therapy but are also assigned an individual therapist you will meet with on a regular basis while in treatment. Many different areas and topics are covered in the programs, such as:

  • Post-Acute Withdrawal Syndrome (PAWS)

  • Relapse Prevention Skills

  • How to Manage Urges and Cravings

  • Understanding the Brain Chemistry of Addiction

  • Progression of the Disease of Addiction

  • Introduction To the Twelve Steps

  • Spirituality

  • Stages of Change

  • Focus On Co-Occurring Disorders and the Effects On Addiction and Recovery

  • Family Education Program

Depending on your needs, you may be referred to additional comprehensive mental health treatment, or training in how to increase healthy life skills, or employment counseling.

Individual Therapy

Individual therapy consists of a therapeutic situation where one individual (referred to as the client or patient) participates in a therapeutic process with at least one clinician in a private setting. The clinician partners with the client to develop individualized treatment plans designed to address the client’s unique needs as they journey into the process of recovery. The clinician is someone who has received formal education and training in the treatment of substance use disorders, and is licensed by the state to practice. Thus, therapy differs from getting advice from friends, family, acquaintances, etc., as it is a professional service provided by a trained professional.

Some advantages of individual therapy:

  • The client receives one-on-one attention from the therapist, and this allows the therapist to be very thorough in understanding the specific problems of the client and in developing an individualized approach to helping the client.

  • The pace of the therapy can be tailored to the specific client. It can be sped up in cases where clients can handle more focused and intense interventions, or it can be slowed down in cases where clients need time to adjust and move slowly.

Some disadvantages of individual therapy:

  • Some clients may have a strong need to identify with other individuals who share similar challenges. This need can be best met in within a group situation rather than in a private setting with a clinician whose purpose is to serve in a professional capacity.

  • Clients in individual therapy need to be motivated and they are obviously in the spotlight in an individual session. Clients who are not committed to changing, doing the work, and applying principles learned in therapy may struggle when they are the center of attention.

Group Therapy

Group therapy can be loosely defined as having several clients participating in group session that is facilitated by a clinician. The groups are comprised of other individuals who also suffer from substance use disorders. Group sizes can vary depending on several variables. There are a number of advantages to being involved in group therapy. However, it is important to note that many of these advantages represent actual strengths of the group process as opposed to trying to make and evaluate a comparison that group therapy is better than individual therapy.

Some advantages of group therapy:

  • Individuals in group therapy can model the successful behaviors of other individuals who have gone through similar experiences, while also providing opportunities to both receive support from others and to give support to others.

  • Group therapy assures individuals that they are not alone and that other individuals share similar problems and struggles. The psychiatrist Dr. Irvin Yalom, one of the acknowledged experts of group therapy, terms this the principle of universality.

Some disadvantages of group therapy:

  • The client is not the focus of attention. In many groups, the old adage “the squeaky wheel gets the grease” seems to apply. Thus, the level of intervention is not as focused and intense for any single person as individual therapy.

  • Some individuals in groups do not actually make changes but simply go with the flow to satisfy a set of requirements. Groups may allow unmotivated individuals to hide their issues and avoid accountability.