Psychotherapy as Part of Drug Addiction Treatment

Most people have an idea of how powerful and disruptive a drug addiction can be, but may not know what role psychotherapy plays in the treatment process. It is understood that addiction treatment and rehab are necessary for a person's long-term recovery from addiction. Still, many factors go into how a person rehabs from drug addiction and whether or not the rehabilitation process is successful. The truth is that addiction is a lifelong disease that continues long after treatment ends. Therapy is one of the key components of long-term sobriety. It can also help people understand certain parts of themselves that perhaps led to an addiction, to begin with. A psychiatrist works closely with each patient to create a treatment plan that works for their needs.

The role of psychotherapy in the treatment of drug addiction

Therapy plays two specific roles in addiction treatment. One of the main components of most treatment plans involves individual and group therapy.

The second role therapy plays in drug addiction treatment is dual diagnosis care. Dual diagnosis treatment is used for patients who have what are known as co-occurring disorders. A co-occurring disorder involves a person having both a drug addiction and a mental health disorder simultaneously. Psychotherapy is often crucial in these cases, as it is nearly impossible to solve one problem without simultaneously solving the other.

Because addiction and mental health disorders are linked together, sometimes, a person has a mental health issue and uses drugs as a coping mechanism that leads to addiction. In other cases, the addiction to drugs and the strain that causes leads to mental health issues, so the two problems feed off of each other. Without treating both at the same time, recovery is virtually impossible.

The two roles of psychotherapy

With a standalone drug addiction that does not involve a mental health problem, therapy's role is to identify the triggers and underlying causes of a person's addiction. This is most often done through both individual and group therapy. Treatment may focus on lifestyle factors and day-to-day stress that lead to a person using drugs, or it may analyze interpersonal relationships and how those impact the person and their urge to use drugs.

In either case, the ultimate goal is to develop the tools necessary to deal with these stresses and triggers.

In a dual diagnosis case, the role of therapy shifts to identifying and treating the mental disorder while also figuring out what role that disorder plays in the addiction process. This may involve therapy and medication to treat the disorder, but the focus is shifted toward how to best control the disorder and maintain sobriety simultaneously.