At Reliance Center™ we are deeply committed to the benefits of evidence-based medicine and counseling in the treatment of addiction. Research has shown that when counseling is added to the use of medication in addiction treatment, the results, in terms of patient success, improve significantly. Because of this we provide a wide variety of counseling services from which our patients may choose. Our goal is to have each patient find the combination that works best for them, and from which they can most benefit.

Each treatment phase at Reliance Center™ has a number of prescribed counseling commitments. A patient can choose individual counseling sessions only, group counseling sessions only, family counseling with spouses and children, or any combination of these services. Additional group, individual, or family sessions can always be purchased at any time. Even the groups themselves have been constructed to allow individuals to participate in ways that suit their preference. Some groups involve more individual participation, while others are more educational in nature. The idea is simple: Give our patients the most effective counseling options available and provide it in a way that is both beneficial and appealing.

Individual therapy begins with a discussion of what is troubling you. If we cannot pinpoint exactly what the problem is, we encourage you to discuss whatever is on your mind. We are here to listen in an accepting, nonjudgmental and attentive way. We encourage you to express any and all feelings and thoughts you are comfortable divulging. There is nothing you can say that is "wrong" - we are here to listen, learn and accept you and your predicament, and to gain an understanding of what brought you here.

Because we are all very complex beings, gaining an understanding of your feelings, thoughts and motivations is a process that may take more or less time, depending on you and your situation. Therapy is a collaborative experience in which we work together to uncover the cause of your distress. Equally important, successful therapy helps you recognize and utilize your strengths.

For couples with the goal of preserving and enhancing their relationship, we believe a good starting point is to help each member work on productive communication. Open communication is essential to maintaining a healthy relationship. Couples therapy provides a safe, non-judgmental environment in which individual members are helped to communicate openly with one another. Couples therapy helps you express what you may have difficulty expressing on your own. Equally important, it helps you learn to listen to what your partner is saying. This new, open communication is the first step to helping couples identify and deal with their underlying problems, such as disagreements over how to handle money, control, intimacy, and other issues.

An important aspect of couples therapy is that your therapist is impartial, and does not take sides. Couples therapy can help you open up and have a more honest, intimate relationship. In other cases, it may be appropriate to help the couple disentangle and help each individual develop the strength to separate. For couples, when the goal is to preserve and enhance the relationship, we believe a good starting point is to help each member work on productive communication.

Talking to friends can help you feel better, and may be sufficient if you are recovering from a situational loss, such as a recent death. But feeling better momentarily does not help you change underlying perceptions and patterns that continue to hurt you. When you talk with a therapist, a quiet and supportive environment allows you to take the time to stop, reflect and learn.

Therapy brings the benefits of professional guidance and deliberate effort to help understand you and your distress. A skillful therapist knows how and where to probe in a respectful and supportive manner -- your therapist is your partner, a skilled ally who listens closely to help uncover underlying causes. This process promotes the insight and self-acceptance that allows you to change.

The combination of your therapist's acceptance, the collaborative effort, and incremental gains also work together to help build your self-esteem. For more information see "How Therapy Works".

Counseling or therapy is not advice. Advice tells you what to do, but doesn't encourage you to develop your own strengths and resources to find answers for yourself. Advice keeps you dependent on the person or book that supplied the advice. That is why books also usually can't provide the type of help that therapy can. Therapy encourages you to search within yourself to discover your own answers and to develop the courage to act on them.

The adage about the fisherman is a perfect metaphor -- it is far better to teach a man or woman how to fish than to give him or her a free meal. A free meal feeds you for one day -- teaching you how to fish allows you to feed yourself for life.

 

(Information provided by Psychotherapy Affiliates, a private psychotherapy practice.)