In this class I learned about ASAM dimensions and how they are used in addressing substance abuse as well as the different types of substance abuse screenings and approaches used when counseling substance abuse clients.
I have become more familiar with the terminology used in substance abuse treatment.
Before this class I didnt realize that the primary care provider is the best person to do an early intervention, it makes sense I just never thought of that. I always assumed the family would be the begining.
I will contiue to build on the skills I have learned in this class while at work and in my journey as a student.
The handouts are great and I will use them while working with individuals with substance abuse as their primary disability in vocational rehabilitation.
This was a wonderful class, I wish it was longer and we could learn more skills to early interventions and perhaps prevention.
I look forward to having others in future classes.
Wednesday, October 7, 2009
"TIP 35"
Tip 35 (Enhancing Motivation for Change in Substance Use Disorder Treatment), shows how clinicians can influence the change process in their clients by developing a therapeutic relationship, one that respects and builds on the client's autonomy and, at the same time, makes the treatment counselor a participant in the change process. This TIP also describes different motivational inteventions that can be used at all stages of change, from precontemplation and preparation to action and maintenance.
Another very useful TIP, which even requires us "counselors" to be a part of our clients changes.
Another very useful TIP, which even requires us "counselors" to be a part of our clients changes.
now or never
After reading the information introduce to me by this class I have to say I was overwhelmed, but in an informed manner. In the beginning I thought that the only way to stop someone from using or abusing drugs and/or alcohol was to simply stick them in a treatment facility, but now I know that there are certain steps that need to occur even before addressing someone who has a drug and/or alcohol problem. In many cases intervention is necessary, but how to go about introducing that intervention is critical, and not all intervention is welcomed with open arms. We don't want to force intervention unless the situation is life threatening, because if a substance abuser is not ready then the treatment is not going to have the effect intended. As mentioned in the article, behaviorally oriented treatment is one option where the patient takes primary responsibility for their change in behaviors. I would image that this gives the substance abuser a since of empowerment, and many clinicians think that this a more favorable prognosis for recovery.
Many treatment programs provide information to families, communities, and substance abusers. I would guess their primary goal would be to help families, communities, and substance abusers understand their situations. In many cases family members who have relatives or friends who become substance abusers do not know or understand that they are not alone when dealing with a family member or friend who has become a substance abuser. I know that in my community drugs and alcohol are as a part of everyday life, as waking up in the morning. In every corner of the city there is a liquor store and drugs are easily available. As mentioned in the article,"... about 5 million users of illicit drugs and 18 million people with alcohol use problems need treatment, but only one fourth of them receive it." these are staggering numbers; inwhich, many of the programs to help combat these problems are under budget.
I don't understand why something that seems to work does not have the support or funding it needs to help save our youth. Are we willing to let something drastic occur before we make the right decisions? Are we really going to allow cost to be the deciding factor for us to take control of our future? Another portion of the article that really catches my attention is that 1 in 20 high school seniors use marijuana daily, maybe this is what happened to the kid in Chicago who was beaten to death by a group of his peers. We have to ask ourselves, when does it matter? Do we wait until it hits home? And trust me it will happen if we don' t do something now. How is it that we can contribute millions of dollars to campaigns and wars, but when it comes to our youth, citizens, and country we feel that we are wasting money. I think that we are enabling our nation to become substance abusers, by allowing ourselves to think that there is a drug for every little ache and pain. I think that many companies are just out to get money at the expense of any and everyone, and we can't trust the government or city officials to speak up for us, because they too are in the pockets of these big industries whose sole purpose is to direct advertisements toward our youth.
Many treatment programs provide information to families, communities, and substance abusers. I would guess their primary goal would be to help families, communities, and substance abusers understand their situations. In many cases family members who have relatives or friends who become substance abusers do not know or understand that they are not alone when dealing with a family member or friend who has become a substance abuser. I know that in my community drugs and alcohol are as a part of everyday life, as waking up in the morning. In every corner of the city there is a liquor store and drugs are easily available. As mentioned in the article,"... about 5 million users of illicit drugs and 18 million people with alcohol use problems need treatment, but only one fourth of them receive it." these are staggering numbers; inwhich, many of the programs to help combat these problems are under budget.
I don't understand why something that seems to work does not have the support or funding it needs to help save our youth. Are we willing to let something drastic occur before we make the right decisions? Are we really going to allow cost to be the deciding factor for us to take control of our future? Another portion of the article that really catches my attention is that 1 in 20 high school seniors use marijuana daily, maybe this is what happened to the kid in Chicago who was beaten to death by a group of his peers. We have to ask ourselves, when does it matter? Do we wait until it hits home? And trust me it will happen if we don' t do something now. How is it that we can contribute millions of dollars to campaigns and wars, but when it comes to our youth, citizens, and country we feel that we are wasting money. I think that we are enabling our nation to become substance abusers, by allowing ourselves to think that there is a drug for every little ache and pain. I think that many companies are just out to get money at the expense of any and everyone, and we can't trust the government or city officials to speak up for us, because they too are in the pockets of these big industries whose sole purpose is to direct advertisements toward our youth.
Tuesday, October 6, 2009
Motivation + Improvements = Positive Chages
Treatment Improvement Protocol (TIP 35) is a practical guidance for substance abuse treatment. It based on experience and knowledge of clinical research. Major goal of TIP is to make applicable relevant updated information and recommendations toward practical implementation. Availability and access of Internet allow to provide latest updates for practices and make that information easy available.The TIP 35 focuses on Enhancing Motivation for change in Substance Abuse Treatment and presents main concept of motivation in new perspective as dynamic and changeable. The TIP 35 is helpful guidance for clinicians to emphasize and influence change process by supporting and respecting client's autonomy and still as a professionals being a part of change process. The TIP provides different motivational interventions, which applicable through all stages of change. Promoting motivation for change interventions, the TIP supports its wide use in clinical practices and treatment programs in United States.
As daily life continuously relies on changes in human services, technological, economical, social, political and other areas, it is important follow and implement improvements and new approaches especially in fields of substance abuse and mental health, where TIP 35 is playing significant role. Overall progress in therapeutical relationships comes with improvements and is inevitable when changes take place.
As daily life continuously relies on changes in human services, technological, economical, social, political and other areas, it is important follow and implement improvements and new approaches especially in fields of substance abuse and mental health, where TIP 35 is playing significant role. Overall progress in therapeutical relationships comes with improvements and is inevitable when changes take place.
Monday, October 5, 2009
motivation
Tip 35 - Motivation
It took a lot of reading to get any inspiration to write a blog on tip 35 even though the topic peaked my interest. Finally I came to a part that inspired me and was a match for my own philosophy. It stated that today’s treatment included a broad range of action. In other words it is holistic. A new age term but so appropriate. We are now considering a person’s health, employment, reduction in criminal activity, and more than anything we are considering if it is improving a person’s life. Is there more joy, hope, intimacy, and self-worth through productive action. I like to ask myself if I am doing anything that I would like to write home about.
Here the attention is not so much on the drug but on life. I was recently talking to a friend who has liver failure and is living in a convalescent home. I said it sucks getting old doesn’t it. And she said, “I’m not concerned about getting old. I’m concerned about living. When I feel depression coming on I know that it will disappear if I get into action. Even doing the dishes works. Indeed there are AA meetings that I have gone to that made me want to head to the bar. Even in AA meetings they say to talk about how it was, what we did to change, and how it is now. And then they suggest that most of the conversation is on how it is now. That would be the living part.
I was also interested in the statement, “motivation was viewed as a static trait or disposition…Furthermore, motivation was often viewed as the client’s responsibility, not the clinician’s. This caught me off guard because I had no idea why it would be the clinician’s responsibility. And here they went into the counselor’s style as being the most often ignored but the most important. This gave me hope that I may succeed in this field as the style entails the ability to develop a trust with a helping alliance. They also named nonpossessive warmth, friendliness, genuineness, respect, affirmation, and empathy. This certainly sounds like the kind of person I would aspire to be.
It took a lot of reading to get any inspiration to write a blog on tip 35 even though the topic peaked my interest. Finally I came to a part that inspired me and was a match for my own philosophy. It stated that today’s treatment included a broad range of action. In other words it is holistic. A new age term but so appropriate. We are now considering a person’s health, employment, reduction in criminal activity, and more than anything we are considering if it is improving a person’s life. Is there more joy, hope, intimacy, and self-worth through productive action. I like to ask myself if I am doing anything that I would like to write home about.
Here the attention is not so much on the drug but on life. I was recently talking to a friend who has liver failure and is living in a convalescent home. I said it sucks getting old doesn’t it. And she said, “I’m not concerned about getting old. I’m concerned about living. When I feel depression coming on I know that it will disappear if I get into action. Even doing the dishes works. Indeed there are AA meetings that I have gone to that made me want to head to the bar. Even in AA meetings they say to talk about how it was, what we did to change, and how it is now. And then they suggest that most of the conversation is on how it is now. That would be the living part.
I was also interested in the statement, “motivation was viewed as a static trait or disposition…Furthermore, motivation was often viewed as the client’s responsibility, not the clinician’s. This caught me off guard because I had no idea why it would be the clinician’s responsibility. And here they went into the counselor’s style as being the most often ignored but the most important. This gave me hope that I may succeed in this field as the style entails the ability to develop a trust with a helping alliance. They also named nonpossessive warmth, friendliness, genuineness, respect, affirmation, and empathy. This certainly sounds like the kind of person I would aspire to be.
I Love TIP 35
All of the TIPS I have reviewed have contained good information, but TIP 35: Enhancing Motivation for Change in Substance Abuse Treatment is my favorite so far. I have not read much of it, but I noticed that it is a very thorough, step-by-step guide to engaging clients and encouraging change at all the different stages. I read the part about dealing with precontemplators and I was impressed with how it not only explains what needs to be done but gives lots of examples of actual things you could say to someone who doesn’t think they have a problem. It even explains how the client often thinks that other people do not see the situation correctly, and how the counselor can seek to find the client’s viewpoint in a non-judgemental way.
In my presentation that I was going to give in class today, I was going to talk about an involuntary client, and I was going to quote from TIP 35 about how client motivation is influenced by the counselor’s style. The way the counselor relates to the client has a powerful effect on how they react to treatment and whether they achieve the intended results. I noted that “establishing a helping alliance and good interpersonal skills” were found to be “more important than professional training or experience.” It is interesting because I know someone who just did an alcohol assessment (involuntarily) and I casually interviewed him about it on the phone (because I’m taking the class) and while it can certainly be said that he is in denial about his problem, he was not persuaded in the least to become more contemplative by the way his assessor spoke to him. Apparently she did not make any effort to establish a rapport and came across in a very demanding and demeaning manner. TIP 35 says:
“A direct comparison of counselor styles suggested that a confrontational and directive approach may precipitate more immediate client resistance and, ultimately, poorer outcomes than a client-centered, supportive, and empathic style that uses reflective listening and gentle persuasion (Miller et al., 1993).”
I also read about this Johnston Intervention. It is a scenario in which friends and family rehearse what they are going to say to the client about how the substance abuse is affecting them and then, with some element of surprise all of these people confront the client in the counselor’s presence. Apparently is has been revised into a fairly successful way to get uninterested clients to come around to the idea that they need some help.
Some of the writing was repetitive and like I said, I haven't even read much of this yet, but I am happy to be introduced to this material. Thank you
In my presentation that I was going to give in class today, I was going to talk about an involuntary client, and I was going to quote from TIP 35 about how client motivation is influenced by the counselor’s style. The way the counselor relates to the client has a powerful effect on how they react to treatment and whether they achieve the intended results. I noted that “establishing a helping alliance and good interpersonal skills” were found to be “more important than professional training or experience.” It is interesting because I know someone who just did an alcohol assessment (involuntarily) and I casually interviewed him about it on the phone (because I’m taking the class) and while it can certainly be said that he is in denial about his problem, he was not persuaded in the least to become more contemplative by the way his assessor spoke to him. Apparently she did not make any effort to establish a rapport and came across in a very demanding and demeaning manner. TIP 35 says:
“A direct comparison of counselor styles suggested that a confrontational and directive approach may precipitate more immediate client resistance and, ultimately, poorer outcomes than a client-centered, supportive, and empathic style that uses reflective listening and gentle persuasion (Miller et al., 1993).”
I also read about this Johnston Intervention. It is a scenario in which friends and family rehearse what they are going to say to the client about how the substance abuse is affecting them and then, with some element of surprise all of these people confront the client in the counselor’s presence. Apparently is has been revised into a fairly successful way to get uninterested clients to come around to the idea that they need some help.
Some of the writing was repetitive and like I said, I haven't even read much of this yet, but I am happy to be introduced to this material. Thank you
10/05/09
TIP 35 is about the concept of motivation which is very interesting to me.
The motivation is directed toward the best interest of the client.
The idea that the clients best interest is at heart hopefully with spark motivation in the client who will be compliant with the reccommendations of the treatment plan.
Tip 35 explains how the counselor and staff can have a part of the plan and influence the client to change by building a rapport with the client. This will help the client trust the counselor and let them be a partner in their recovery process.
This TIP also describes different motivational techniques that can be used in all stages of change.
This TIP would be great for motivating involuntary clients who may not want to change and it states that motivation for change is the key to addressing substance abuse.
I believe this is an excellent TIP. The client needs to be "motivated" and want to change thier behavior in order for any treatment to work.
The different views on treatment are great because if something doesnt work, look at it from a different prespective and maybe the new techniques will work.
The motivation is directed toward the best interest of the client.
The idea that the clients best interest is at heart hopefully with spark motivation in the client who will be compliant with the reccommendations of the treatment plan.
Tip 35 explains how the counselor and staff can have a part of the plan and influence the client to change by building a rapport with the client. This will help the client trust the counselor and let them be a partner in their recovery process.
This TIP also describes different motivational techniques that can be used in all stages of change.
This TIP would be great for motivating involuntary clients who may not want to change and it states that motivation for change is the key to addressing substance abuse.
I believe this is an excellent TIP. The client needs to be "motivated" and want to change thier behavior in order for any treatment to work.
The different views on treatment are great because if something doesnt work, look at it from a different prespective and maybe the new techniques will work.
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