Counselors are critical to the process of drug addiction recovery. They help people work through any issues they have so that their lives can be more fulfilling and meaningful. Suppose you are interested in knowing what a substance abuse counsellor does. Then, this article is just for you!
The role of a counselor in drug addiction recovery are:
- Provide assistance:
Counseling a drug addict is about showing compassion and providing assistance. So, your first role as a counselor while counseling a drug addict is to understand the problem very well. Then, a counselor not only provides solutions, but he also gives them the courage to change their lives. A counselor helps addicts become more positive in life and takes them to the path of positivity. A counselor gives them a new life, the one they are about to lead after recovering from addiction. To avail of counseling online, check out recovery podcasts like fentanyl recovery podcasts and others.
- Be like a friend:
While counseling, one must remain absolutely neutral and treat the drug addict as your friend who is in need of your help. The word ‘friend’ has a very deep meaning. Here you need to understand that your role as a counselor is to really help such a person, not ridicule him for needing help in the first place. Therefore, during counseling sessions, treat them like a normal friend whom you are helping out of some problem.
- Be non-judgmental:
Everybody has problems and needs someone to listen to them. Counseling is about listening carefully, understanding, and giving constructive suggestions. When someone comes to you with a problem like drug addiction, the first thing that comes to your mind is judging him. But as a counselor, you have not come here for judging or teaching such persons where they went wrong, but instead, help them get out of such situations and lead normal lives.
- Helps addict find a new way to live:
When you are counseling someone, your role is to help them in finding their own path towards happiness and success. You should never tell an addict what they need, but instead, listen to him carefully and give suggestions accordingly. This is most important in drug addiction counseling techniques. Do not dictate to him what to do, instead make him understand how he can live his life better. Counseling is no telling what the person must do, but rather it is making the person understand about situations so that they find out their own paths towards success and happiness. In other words, your role as a counselor is to help them create their own success stories.
- Give them hope:
A drug addict is already very much in problem, so the first thing that a counselor can do while counseling a drug addict is to leave all his judgments behind and provide him with some amount of hope. The counseling sessions must be more about helping the person find his own way out of the problem and not about who is wrong. A counselor provides hope to the addict that he can find a way out of his problems, but it is in their hands to choose which road they want to take, whether towards success or failure. Counselors help addicts in Living A Sober Lifestyle after Rehab And Reaping The Benefits Of Sobriety.
- “Never give up on them”:
Once you have taken up the responsibility of counseling an addict, never give up on them. It does not matter even if they don’t trust you or are not following your suggestions. Do not leave them in such situations; because if you give up on them during a counseling session, then there is no hope left for these people, and their lives will be ruined forever. You need to understand that a drug addict needs support all through the process, not judgmental criticism or pity for their problem. Counseling is a long process and never ends soon. So, you as a counselor have to be consistent and give them hope whenever they need it the most.
- Have patience:
While counseling an addict, there may be many stages when the person may relapse and go back to their old habits. So, a counselor should have enough patience to handle such situations as well. You need to understand that you are here not only to provide solutions but also to seek support from someone else in similar situations or just to share stories with another human being who has gone through something similar. When an addict relapses, instead of shouting at him and blaming him for his shortcomings, you must have patience enough to listen to him and let him share all his feelings with you.
The role of a counselor in drug addiction recovery can be invaluable because they provide an objective perspective for the person struggling with substance abuse.