The Ins and Outs of Addiction Counselling

Millions of people around the world use counselling to improve their lives. In the US alone, 2022 saw 55 million adults begin mental health treatment or counselling. UK statistics are similarly high, with an estimated “30% of all adults” seeking help from a counsellor in the past 12 months.

Counselling a person with a drug addiction is, in many ways, the same as counselling anyone else. The application of healthy counselling principles can help people overcome phobias, interpersonal problems or substance addiction.

Today’s blog aims to illustrate the intricate and myriad benefits of professional counselling, providing a better understanding of whether addiction counselling is right for you.

What classifies as counselling?

Counselling is a type of mental health service with a broad definition, though it may be best defined as the professional application of mental health, psychological or human development principles. Counsellors are trained to support a person with cognitive, affective, behavioural and systemic strategies, all of which aim to improve a person’s life.

Effective techniques and activities within counselling vary from case to case. Therapy that works for one person could be simply ineffective for somebody else. Practising professional counsellors sometimes struggle to provide a crisp, boundary-setting definition of what constitutes counselling, as the word “counselling” itself has a myriad of uses, activities and applications to a person.

The NHS defines counselling as “talking therapy,” in which a qualified therapist listens to you and helps you find ways to deal with emotional issues. It involves meeting with a trained professional counsellor to work on anything that causes stress and anxiety.

What is counselling most commonly used for?

For generations, counselling has been used in a professional setting for personal, psychological and holistic growth. Counselling has been implemented into people’s lives to alleviate and remove personal stressors, including:

• Overcoming fears and phobias: Counselling professionals such as the BACP state that “counselling helps to normalise what you’re feeling.” Many counsellors specialise in helping you work your way out of a phobia.
• Establishing and strengthening familial ties: Family counselling can help to smoothen, strengthen or even rebuild the often complex and fragile dynamic of families. Marriage counselling can provide a foundation for interpersonal relationship improvement.
• Improving professional growth: Many people use counselling to work on things that are troubling them in their professional life. For example, someone might work on their ability to “say no” in the workplace, or remove a fear of public speaking which is holding them back.

How does counselling benefit addiction recovery?

Leading on from the varying applications and benefits of counselling for life improvement, research shows that professional counselling helps people recover from problematic substance use.

Professional counselling is provided for many people working their way out of addiction, and its use is often time-dependent and relative to the stage of addiction a person is in.

Counselling in the early stages of recovery

As a person enters addiction recovery, professional counsellors may provide relatively straightforward, educational support to help a person better understand their own addiction.

During the early steps of recovery, counselling can provide relief and a form of decluttering for your complex thoughts and relationship with a substance. People going through addiction often withdraw from their social circles and have been without input from friends and family for a substantial amount of time.

Many people have carried their concerns and hidden feelings about their addiction for years, often convincing themselves that “I know best” or “nobody understands my addiction, only me!” These feelings can create a heavy mental burden, and counselling can help clarify and contextualise addiction problems.

In the early stage of recovery, many people find it beneficial to see trained counsellors as guides, mentors or teachers who can help you shake free of your addiction. Understanding and accepting that counselling provides a form of education that is necessary for personal growth can be daunting when you’re in the clutches of your addiction.

Research shows that counselling and peer support services are effective in helping people overcome and escape problematic substance use. With the support of peers and counsellors, you are not alone as you try to overcome an addiction.

Counselling in the mid-stage of recovery

As a person moves further into counselling for their addiction, previously unseen doors of possibility and potential can appear in their mind. Counselling promotes sobriety and mental fortitude. For some people, they may even enter a new state of spiritual or holistic growth.

Just as counselling for childhood trauma can feel disturbing and disorienting for a person in the beginning, acceptance of the situation often creates an avenue for positive growth and allows for forward movement and upward trajectory.

This acceptance then enables counsellors to apply practical therapy strategies. Cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT) is a widely accepted framework for teaching people how to recognise moods, thoughts and situations that fire up drug cravings.

Dialectical behaviour therapy (DBT) is another type of strategy counsellors can use to fortify and sustain mid-stage sobriety. DBT is a type of talking therapy that helps alleviate stress and anxiety that appear as withdrawal symptoms.

Counselling for addiction is used in rehab and can provide an irreplaceable resource as a person strives to become permanently substance-free.

Counselling once full recovery is reached, and moving forward

Most rehab programmes have a duration of 30-, 6-, or 90-days, depending on the severity of the addiction. Once the target duration of sobriety is met, a clearer understanding of counselling principles can be understood and absorbed into a person’s life.

The education and skills a person receives through counselling can become the backbone of a richer, healthier and drug-free life.

Counselling is not just a review of past actions that led a person into the dark cage of substance addiction. It also provides the skills needed for planning today, going above and beyond lists of future actions for sustained sobriety.

Holistic and spiritual healing can be found in counselling that brings both past choices and future actions together, into a form of accepting the here and now. Once full recovery is made and sobriety has been met, counselling can equip you with the mental tools needed to sustain your sobriety for the rest of your life.

For many practising addiction counsellors, this meeting place of past actions and future choices is the target destination they long to help their patients arrive at.

In the hopes of finding a sufficient analogy that expresses the profundity of successful counselling, the idiom “A stitch in time saves nine” comes to mind. This phrase metaphorically suggests how it’s better to spend time and effort to deal with a problem right now than to wait until later.

How do I know if counselling would help my addiction?

If you’re suffering, we hope we have conveyed the positive benefits addiction counselling may bring to you. Counselling and therapy are complex fields of study, and you may be wondering if counselling for addiction is the best option for you.

Some self-reflections may arise as you consider counselling for addiction, including:

• “I’m not sure if I can cut down drinking or drug use. Can a professional help me achieve this?”
• “Why do I feel so annoyed and upset when people question how often I drink or take drugs?”
• “Why do I sometimes feel an urge to  drink or do drugs in the morning?”
• “I know it’s not good for me, so why do I keep returning to a source of pain?”
• “Why do I sometimes seek to blame someone (including myself) when I drink or take drugs?”

Your personal reflections may slightly differ, but if you recognise the underlying feelings in the questions, it might suggest a need for addiction counselling.

Leading on from these reflections, there may be some physical and psychological symptoms inherent to addiction that highlight the need for professional support. These symptoms of addiction may be clearest when you try to stop taking the substance and can include:

• Low energy
• Rapid changes in weight
• Unhealthy eating habits
• Grinding teeth
• Reduced socialising
• Cessation from hobbies you enjoy
• Reduced personal hygiene
• Troubled sleep
• Lying about or hiding substance use
• Relationship conflicts

These symptoms are not definitive or complete, and some or all may be felt. Counselling may provide a road to safety and security, supporting you as you work your way out of addiction.

Who can I turn to for help with my addiction?

Identifying the need for counselling should be done by trained professionals. Self-reflection does not always provide objective assessment, and the clutches of addiction can impair decision-making.

If you or a loved one need help overcoming an addiction, we’re reaching out to you. Here at UKAT, we specialise in detox programmes that are designed for lifelong sobriety. Our medically trained staff provide physical and mental support at each stage of detox. Addiction can make someone feel convinced that they are alone, but we’re here for you.

Contact us today to take the first step towards a life free from addiction. Your journey starts here.