Treatment and Counselling

Help 2 Heal UK (the directory of accredited counsellors) states:

"Drug misuse counselling is aimed at helping people to eradicate drug use from their lives. Therapists and specialists using approaches such as Cognitive behavioural therapy view drug habits as symptomatic of negative behaviour/thought patterns and faulty coping strategies. CBT practitioners attempt to replace what they see as 'learned', maladaptive behaviour by using solution focused techniques to produce more positive and healthy behavioural patterns.

So what is the definition of drug misuse - Drug misuse represents the excessive use of legal and illegal drugs. Examples include alcohol, prescription/over-the-counter drugs, legal-highs, cocaine or heroin etc. Constant use of any drug increases tolerance that requires larger doses to achieve the same effects. This in turn can lead to psychological dependence that may have a significant effect on the person's life-style; often the drug becomes central to their existence.

Indicators of drug abuse include lack of motivation, mood-swings, stealing from family members or friends, and/or secretive behaviour. If individuals find themselves regularly increasing their dose to maintain a high, or suffer withdrawal symptoms when they stop using a drug it is highly likely that they have a drug misuse problem.

With any kind of drug use, recognition of the problem is the first major step towards recovery from addiction. The person will require patience and support from their loved ones to help them come to terms with, and treat their drug misuse issue. There are a good number of help-lines and organisations that provide drug abuse help and advice that may prove useful."

The Pathway of Addiction (the addiction or dependency cycle)

1. Begins with a triggering event:

There are so many contributing factors to addiction.

Normally you can break down the triggering event into two categories. First, one might take drugs for recreation, to get "high." This approach to drugs may be thrill seeking, or have an element of peer pressure attached to it. The second category is "to numb the pain" or "to manage personal distress". The person uses to get rid of a feeling, not to create one. They may just want to feel better, because something is missing from their life, or they may want to escape a reality because it is too much to face.

In either case, whether to have a good time or to numb the pain, the cycle is started. They're not thinking about the pathway of addiction because they're not convinced they have a problem.

2. Something is wrong:

Many people can use drugs and not get hooked. They may realize that their using is getting in the way, or they just do not enjoy or need to use the drug anymore. They quit and it's over. However, that is not true for so many people, who arrive at the point where they determine there is a problem, but they are still using. Perhaps they're experiencing problems at work, or in personal relationships. Because they are using, they may have run into legal problems, such as a drink driving, and they realize that change is necessary. They begin to consider the pathway of addiction. The pain medication they have been taking for back pain is no longer sufficient, so they take more medication, more often to control their physical discomfort. They know they have to do something.

3. Try harder:

When the management of their drug use begins to slip away, people will often say things like "I am going to cut down". They know something is amiss, but they do not want to go through the process of treatment, unless it's absolutely necessary. Maybe they've cut down in the past, or quit altogether, but started using again. Simply put - they are going to try harder. People don't want to be told what to do, or how to do something. They want to do it their way. It is not just people struggling with drug or alcohol addiction, it's anybody. Some people can try harder and succeed. Managing the pathway of addiction is serious work and if somebody can "cut down" or stop, using their own willpower, then that is great. But most people cannot. The finger pointers may say it is because of a lack of will power, or a weakness of character. They say those who use drugs are bad people. However, if you were to examine the other side of the issue and look at the addiction in terms of rendering some individuals powerless because of a chronic brain disease, then willpower alone seems unrealistic. Moreover, we are human beings and human beings sometimes fail. Think about dieting and weight loss. Think of it in terms of trying quit smoking. Smokers can tell you their stories and we've all heard them. They're good at quitting. But it isn't that easy and neither is stepping off the pathway of addiction. If it were, there would be no overweight people and no smokers. Therefore, if drug addiction were that easy to overcome, why would there be addicts?

For example: A person has made the decision to quit. They formulate a plan to follow and they try very hard to execute the plan. They are succeeding and may not use for several years. Through willpower and a solid plan, they maintain abstinence, but something happens and they then find themselves at the next stage on the pathway of addiction.

4. Failure:

Nobody likes to admit failure. It is word we don't like to use or think about. We like to think of ourselves as self-made people. We often work hard and try and create "better lives for ourselves".

What if failure was built into the human condition as a necessary indicator of a need for something outside of one's own self? Alcoholics Anonymous founded its 12-Step program on that very idea - that we all need help. We're not meant to be alone, and even though there are those who can break free of addiction on their own, the truth is most of us can't.

The failure can be caused for a variety of reasons. The pathway has come full circle, because something happened. Perhaps in a moment of weakness a person takes a puff of a spliff or a line of cocaine, or they experienced a traumatic event that was just too much to handle, or any one a thousand reasons prompted them to use again. They are back where they started and they do need help.

We believe that addiction is a chronic disease. The key word is "chronic," and like diabetes or heart disease, addiction needs to be managed. People need management tools to help them keep their lives in balance and to prevent the grip of addiction from squeezing its fingers around their throat.

The pathway circle needs to be broken. Whatever the triggering mechanism that causes someone to use, it needs to be addressed. People can and do follow another path. The pathway of recovery. If you can break the cycle on your own, great, but if you can't then there are many resources available to help you. The UK has 1000's of trained and experienced people to help, many of which may have been in the same position - and some are still on the pathway of recovery.

ScreenSafe UK have our own experienced specialists who can provide support and counselling, and will also help, plan and manage the whole treatment and recovery process. This includes unique "after-care" techniques and processes that can often add to the long-term success. We also maintain strategic links with a number of residential treatment and recovery centres around the UK and worldwide (where preferred).

For more information then please contact our friendly and professional customer service team on 08450 505590 or via email (enquiries@screensafeuk.co.uk). All enquiries are dealt with in the utmost of confidence.