Drug Rehab Center

“In order to change, one must first assume responsibility.” ~ Irvin Yalom

“How can we learn to know ourselves? Never by reflection but by action.” ~ Viktor Frankl

In the first instalment of this 4-part series, Geoff emphasizes the important of committing to change. In his years working with clients in residential addiction treatment, Geoff has observed that clients often have personal stories that excuse them from taking action towards achieving their dreams and desires. For example, many clients want to be sure that going back to school is going to pan out. They may rationalize their inaction by suggesting the possibility that they may not end up with a job after completing their degree or that they may lose interest in their studies after a few years. Geoff has found that many clients have been thinking about going back to school for 5 years or more without having committed to a single course, never mind a degree.

In part 2 of of this 4-part series on taking action in recovery, Geoff Thompson talks about the struggle of taking action in recovery. It’s human nature that we prefer talking about or planning for change than actually doing it (think of Nike’s commercial, ‘Just Do It.’). We often imagine this type of avoidance as a form of laziness, like watching TV when we know we should be, for example, shovelling snow. However, we can just as easily avoid doing what needs to be done by doing something else admirable or what society thinks is time well spent. Geoff calls this ‘action as avoidance’ in that we keep ourselves busy to justify not doing that which is uncomfortable. For example, many men needlessly work late night after night while their home life is in tatters. While hard work is an admirable quality, it is often used as a way to avoid the discomfort of, for example, reconnecting with family. So, procrastination isn’t necessarily sitting around watching TV – we can procrastinate while still taking action. For example, does the lawn really need to be mowed tonight or, truthfully, are you just using it as an excuse not to go a meeting? Those in recovery need to ask themselves if what they are doing is contributing to their recovery or living a fulfilling life or just a way of avoiding making substantial, meaningful change in their life.

In this 3rd instalment, Geoff clarifies what he means by taking action in recovery. Psychologists tell us that you can learn lots of things in treatment but if you don’t put it into action it doesn’t help all that much. However, action that is meant to keep clients from getting bored or to distract themselves so they don’t have time to think about drugs or alcohol is only a short-term solution. In other words, it is much more useful to live life and take action with a purpose. What is our purpose? Geoff suggests that one of our purposes is to be true to ourselves, to live authentically. We all need to spend our time doing something that is fulfilling rather than merely passing the time.

“I TOOK A LONG, DEEP BREATH AND WONDERED AS USUAL, WHERE TO START. YOU START WHERE YOU ARE, IS THE SECRET OF LIFE. YOU DO THE NEXT RIGHT THING YOU CAN SEE. THEN THE NEXT.” ~ Anne Lamott

In this fourth and final instalment of this video series, Geoff sums up his talk on moving beyond thinking about recovery and taking action. To use a popular recovery metaphor, it’s about putting the tools in your toolbox to use. In his book, Not God, Ernie Kurtz records the history of the Alcoholics Anonymous movement. This account is not about the theory of addiction but, rather, is a historical account of tangible actions people in the early days of the recovery movement took to stay sober and support one another. What these early pioneers of the AA movement did was what saved them and helped build AA.

However, it is important to remember that action must have a purpose and a direction. Action cannot be a mere distraction, as a trick to keep us from thinking about drugs or alcohol or to make us feel important and useful. If people find themselves incapable of taking action, it is important to remember the advice of Anne Lamott who encourages those who are stuck to, if they don’t know what to do, do the next right thing. Finally, as Irvin Yalom tells us, it is important to make a commitment to action. Once one really commits, everything changes.

Johann Wolfgang von Goethe once said:

Concerning all acts of initiative and creation, there is one elementary truth the ignorance of which kills countless ideas and splendid plans: that the moment one definitely commits oneself, then providence moves too. All sorts of things occur to help one that would never otherwise have occurred. A whole stream of events issues from the decision, raising in one’s favor all manner of unforeseen incidents, meetings and material assistance which no man could have dreamed would have come his way. Whatever you can do or dream you can, begin it. Boldness has genius, power and magic in it. Begin it now.

Naysayers may say that talk like this is a set-up which can end up in failure. Geoff reminds us that in baseball a .333 average can make a ballplayer a very wealthy man, even though they fail 2 out 3 attempts. We learn by our failures.

This is the first instalment of a new topic on what we can learn from the research on works in addiction treatment. How do we gauge the effectiveness of therapy? This question has been the focus of researchers for a long, long time. In the old days, for example, the expert therapist would tell us that treatment was effective because of an observed change in personality (think Sigmund Freud). The client wasn’t considered competent enough to report on clinical matters. Nowadays, in contrast, we get feedback from clients as opposed to the person treating the client. For example, researchers will ask the client to report on how they cope with challenges to their sobriety both before and after treatment. Another example is whether a person who is shy (introverted) may become more outgoing (extroverted) after treatment. Anger (or the tendency to resort to anger) and impulsivity are also measured as clues to a change in personality.

This is the second instalment on this topic of what works in treatment. Dr. William Silkworth, stressing the importance of change, was quoted in the Big Book as saying “recovery demands an entire psychic change.” In the research of Dr. William R. Miller, he observed that those who experienced a radical or “quantum” change after treatment was due to a shift in values, or a reprioritizing of what is important such as from wealth-building to nurturing important relationships.

The research tells us that The easiest way to determine whether addiction treatment has been effective is to observe behaviour. The biggest change, of course, would be if the person stops using or drinking. This is the most obvious but researchers also want to know if the person hasn’t been abstinent then how much drinking (amount consumed) or how many days has a person been clean and sober compared to before treatment. Researchers also want to compare how people are spending their time before and after treatment such as going to meetings, going to the bar, reducing absenteeism from work, reducing problems associated with the law, etc. Researchers are also interested in the relational component. For example, is the person spending more time with loved ones or if they feel a greater affinity to their family and friends. If there is a change then researchers then become very interested in what therapies in treatment may have led to the change in behaviour.

In part 3 of ‘What works in addiction treatment’, Geoff discusses one of the keys of successful recovery – getting a sense of connection with others. It is probably the most consistent finding of research and the most consistent factor from feedback from our clients. In practical terms, this would mean connecting to their counsellor or to their peer group. This need for meaningful connection may also explain the success of support groups such as AA, NA and Lifering.

From a psychological point of view, we know from research that we are ‘relational beings’ that are ‘hardwired’ to connect with others. Researcher Roy Baumeister theorizes that human children take much longer than other animals to reach maturity because they have to learn how to be ‘social’ animals. Many clients in our program express feelings of loneliness, of isolating. This is a key characteristic of addiction. Forming an authentic, deeply emotional connection is, apparently, key to breaking the addiction cycle.

Welcome to the 4th segment on what researchers have observed when addiction treatment works. A common thing researchers find is that there is often a shift in thinking, that people begin to think in a new way. This new way of thinking involves the ability to see another perspective, even someone else’s perspective. For example, those successful in recovery may no longer take it personally when they get cut off in traffic, realizing that it is a complete stranger in the other car. In those instances when it may be personal, for example when a friend offers them a beer after completing treatment, instead of getting offended or hurt they may consider the possibility that the person thinks that treatment cures addiction, that those cured can drink again. Maybe the world is not out to get you.

Psychologist Dr. Albert Ellis used to say that if a person can change the way they think about things it will help them feel better about themselves. When a person feels better about themselves the way the react in life (their behaviour) will also change for the better. The technical term for a shift in thinking is ‘cognitive restructuring’.

In this final instalment in ‘What works in addiction treatment’, we see another example of people successful in recovery seeing the world in a new way. Getting a new perspective can, however, be more challenging depending on the issue. For example, altering a person’s belief that he/she will die if they get on an airplane is, relatively speaking, fairly straightforward. For more complex conditions like addiction, depth psychology is often required. At Sunshine Coast, we use depth psychology because we encourage the clients to look at themselves in a deep, profound way. Looking into the grey areas of life is part of the therapeutic process. Therapists at Sunshine Coast help clients recognize that suffering is part of life.

Clients at Sunshine Coast are encouraged to try to make sense of their world, to understand themselves at a deeper level. People who feel they are making headway in their therapy find their actions reflect their intentions, that they are being true to themselves.

Over the past four videos in this series on Addiction According to Meaning Therapists, Geoff Thompson has been reviewing the work of meaning-oriented therapists Jonathan Diamond, Jefferson Singer, Kirk Schneider and James Crumbaugh. Their work is by no means identical, but all of these therapists share four core principles:

1. We must treat the whole human being. Human beings are complex and unique. We are not going to separate out their addiction and forget the person with the addiction. Therefore, we don’t treat the addict, we treat the person.
2. You must connect with others. In this era of neuroscience, we are finding that humans are ‘hardwired’ to be in relationship with other people. Evolution has created us this way.
3. You must live life. We need to do something in our recovery. We need to put it into practice. We need to experience life fully. Taking risks is part of recovery. All of these therapists we highlighted in this five-part series pointed out that dangers of isolating and being a couch potato.
4. Start looking at positive things in life. Stop dwelling on negativity. This point reminds us of the importance of attitude. Build your resilience, or what Dr. Frankl calls the defiant human spirit.