To say the least, overcoming a drug or alcohol addiction is a very difficult process. Treating a substance use disorder is just as complex as there is a need for both physical and mental healing. When one of these aspects is left out of care, an individual is less likely to sustain their sobriety long-term. This is why when treatments like medically assisted detox and residential care are paired with psychotherapy programs, an individual can explore the contributing factors to their addictions and heal them at the root. In addition to inpatient programs, our Banyan rehab locations also offer teletherapy counseling for addiction to support clients no matter where they are.
Teletherapy Definition
Also referred to as telehealth therapy, teletherapy refers to the use of technologies like the internet and video chatting platforms, in addition to phones, tablets, and laptops, to communicate virtually with health providers. Psychotherapy is a form of talk therapy frequently used to treat drug and alcohol addiction by teletherapists. Therapists utilize this during individual counseling through techniques like behavioral therapy to understand the cause of the individual’s addiction, help the addict understand it, and help the individual implement the skills necessary to combat them.
The goal of psychotherapy for addiction is to analyze and modify destructive thought patterns that have contributed to the individual’s drug or alcohol problems. Psychotherapy programs may also be effective in treating co-occurring mental health disorders. These conditions often feed drug and alcohol use or develop as a result of substance use. Qualified therapists may then utilize psychotherapy programs to address both issues at once during dual diagnosis treatment.
Not only do our Banyan Treatment Center locations offer in-house addiction therapy services, but we also offer telehealth therapy for addiction to further support clients who may have busier schedules, are unable to commute often, and to support clients during times when social separation is required, such as during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Some major benefits of telehealth therapy include:
- Privacy: Clients can meet with therapists online in the comfort of their homes.
- No commuting: Commuting alone takes up much time for many patients, and because long drives, bus rides, train rides, and even bike rides from home to rehab and back have been removed, this allows many patients to easily sustain their therapy schedules.
- Flexibility: Similarly, telehealth offers flexibility for patients who have busy work schedules and families to take care of. Having worked with many high-achieving populations who are on the brink of mental breakdowns, our facility understands that individuals who need these services most often have the least time for them. For those who have addictions or mental health disorders that are well-managed (in recovery), the ability to reschedule and integrate emergency sessions can be invaluable.
- Safety by eliminating commuting: Poor weather conditions, among other problems, can make attending therapy in person dangerous. For instance, in Oregon, where an inch of snow will shut down the city, snow days can be problematic for a client’s scheduling. Such concerns are eliminated in teletherapy.
- Preventing the spread of infectious illnesses: Aside from COVID-19, the common cold or the flu can also be tough to cope with. However, many clients still go to their in-person appointments even when they’re sick because they don’t want to miss their sessions. However, doing this places the therapists and their other clients at risk of getting sick, as well. Teletherapy counseling also eliminates this risk.
Our Teletherapy Programs
Our addiction treatment facilities believe in the benefits of teletherapy for addiction. This is why we offer a multitude of telehealth therapy programs that serve to aid clients in their recovery from drugs, alcohol, and/or mental illness.
- Anger Management: Our telehealth anger management program is designed to help patients develop emotional control. Emotional intelligence is crucial for sustaining sobriety long-term, and this program focuses on patients who have trouble controlling their anger and thinking rationally in stressful situations.
- Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT): Our cognitive behavioral therapy telehealth program utilizes one of the most popular forms of psychotherapy for treating addiction and mental illness. CBT focuses on helping clients change their thinking patterns to help them change their behaviors, use problem-solving skills to cope with difficult situations, and develop a great sense of confidence in their abilities.
- Dialectical Behavioral Therapy (DBT): Dialectical behavioral therapy is another form of talk therapy for people who experience emotions very intensely. While it’s mainly used to treat individuals with borderline personality disorder, therapists can also use it to help people recovering from addiction or other mental illnesses. DBT is similar to CBT, but it’s designed to help people who feel emotions intensely develop emotional intelligence to make positive changes in their behavior and avoid negative behaviors, such as drug and alcohol use.
- Eye Movement Desensitization And Reprocessing (EMDR): This is a form of psychotherapy that was originally designed to alleviate the distress associated with traumatic memories. EMDR therapy facilitates the accessing and processing of traumatic memories and other negative life experiences to create solutions for properly coping with them.
- Family Therapy: Having the support of loved ones in recovery can keep clients accountable and encourage them to remain abstinent in difficult times. To help clients make amends with loved ones who they may have hurt during active addiction and to develop a support system they can lean on at home, we provide telehealth family therapy. Our family services include individual therapy for spouses, parents, and siblings to help them heal from the impact of addiction, as well as group therapy sessions with the addict to help them rebuild their relationships.
- Life Skills Training: This is a form of training that was initially designed to prevent substance abuse among adolescents; however, it is now used for adults, as well. Three major components of this program are personal self-management skills, social skills, and information and resistance skills specifically related to substance abuse.
- Motivational Interviewing (MI): Motivational interviewing is an evidence-based approach to changing behavior. It’s a collaborative and goal-oriented style of communication designed to strengthen personal motivation for and commitment to a specific goal by eliciting and exploring a person’s reasons for change. MI guides patients to understand why they should change rather than simply showing them why they need to change.
- Reality Therapy: Reality therapy helps people reach a medium ground between being in control of what they’re able to control and accepting that some things will remain out of their control, especially other people. This is an effective form of therapy for helping clients focus on how they can improve their behaviors without encroaching on the lives of others.
- Relapse Prevention: Relapse is the return to substance abuse after a period of abstinence. Relapse can set a person back in their recovery significantly or even take them off the path completely. This is why having a relapse prevention plan set in place is important. This program helps clients not only set up relapse prevention plans but also determine the things that tempt or trigger them to use drugs and alcohol and how to best cope with these triggers.
- Trauma-Focused Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (TF-CBT): Trauma-focused CBT is an evidence-based treatment that utilizes CBT practices to help individuals who have been impacted by trauma. TF-CBT uses trauma-sensitive interventions with cognitive behavioral, family, and humanistic principles and techniques to help clients learn how to cope with symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder, fear, anxiety, or depression.
Finding Addiction Therapy Near Me
Our telehealth substance abuse treatment is a reflection of our inpatient services. In addition to various teletherapy counseling modalities, we offer residential options for care, including substance-specific rehab and detox programs. Our specialists will help you determine what level of care and intensity of care suits you best and will be most beneficial to your overall recovery.
For more information about our addiction treatment services and how we can support you or a loved one, contact Banyan Treatment Centers now.
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