Group Therapy May Be an Important Component of Your Suboxone Rehabilitation Program

Addiction isolates people. It pulls them away from close relationships like those they share with parents, children and partners, and it pulls them away from more casual relationships like those shared with co-workers and neighbors. Because of this, one of the important goals of a rehab program is to reduce that sense of isolation and enable recovering addicts to begin repairing old relationships and building new ones. One important way to do so is group therapy. Humans naturally fall into groups and this organic preference is taken full advantage of in group therapy. Not only does group therapy reduce isolation, it enables members to witness the recovery of others, and as a result, it pulls people into the culture of recovery. The National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) reports, “Research has shown that when group therapy either is offered in conjunction with individualized drug counseling or is formatted to reflect the principles of cognitive-behavioral therapy or contingency management, positive outcomes are achieved.” If you are looking for a suboxone treatment program that uses group therapy, contact SuboxoneDrugRehabs.com at 888-646-0865 (Who Answers?)  and let us help you.

What Is a Therapeutic Group?

Group therapy provides participants with support, encouragement, and hope.

Of course, any group, even a bowling team, can offer therapeutic benefits. The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMSHA) notes: “Anytime someone becomes emotionally attached to other group members, a group leader, or the group as a whole, the relationship has the potential to influence and change that person.” In addiction treatment, therapeutic groups are based on their goals and intentions and their intended audience. These groups have trained leaders and intend to produce some type of healing or recovery from addiction. SAMSHA identifies five models of group therapy currently used in substance abuse treatment:

• Psychoeducational groups, which teach about substance abuse.
• Skills development groups, which hone the skills necessary to break free of addictions.
• Cognitive–behavioral groups, which rearrange patterns of thinking and action that lead to addiction.
• Support groups, which comprise a forum where members can debunk each other’s excuses and support constructive change.
• Interpersonal process group psychotherapy (referred to hereafter as “interpersonal process groups” or “therapy groups”), which enable clients to recreate their pasts in the here‐and‐now of group and rethink the relational and other life problems that they have previously fled by means of addictive substances.

Benefits

The benefits of group therapy are many. According to the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMSHA), the flowing benefits are offered by group therapy:

• Groups provide positive peer support and pressure to abstain from substances of abuse.
• Groups reduce the sense of isolation that most people who have substance abuse disorders experience.
• Groups enable people who abuse substances to witness the recovery of others.
• Groups help members learn to cope with their substance abuse and other problems by allowing them to see how others deal with similar problems.
• Groups can provide useful information to clients who are new to recovery.
• Groups provide feedback concerning the values and abilities of other group members.
• Groups offer family‐like experiences.
• Groups encourage, coach, support, and reinforce as members undertake difficult or anxiety‐provoking tasks.
• Groups offer members the opportunity to learn or relearn the social skills they need to cope with everyday life instead of resorting to substance abuse.
• Groups can effectively confront individual members about substance abuse and other harmful behaviors.
• Groups allow a single treatment professional to help a number of clients at the same time.
• Groups can add needed structure and discipline to the lives of people with substance use disorders, who often enter treatment with their lives in chaos.
• Groups instill hope, a sense that “If he can make it, so can I.”
• Groups often support and provide encouragement to one another outside the group setting.

Who’s a Good Candidate for Suboxone Rehab?

Reminders

When seeking out group therapy, it is important to do so with a qualified therapist. Individual therapy is not group therapy and the two require different skill sets and training. Make sure your group leader is trained specifically to work with groups. Also, make sure you have a fully qualified leader. Therapy groups don’t take care of themselves; they need to be properly conducted. For help finding a suboxone program with group therapy included in the treatment, contact SuboxoneDrugRehabs.com at 888-646-0865 (Who Answers?)  and speak with someone today.