What is group addiction treatment?

Addictions are among the most widespread psychological pathologies among the population, to the point that the abuse of certain substances with addictive potential is highly normalized (despite their dire consequences for physical health and mental).

But, luckily, research in Clinical Psychology and Health Sciences has allowed develop valuable and highly versatile therapeutic resources to help sufferers of these alterations. In addition, much of the effectiveness and flexibility of these forms of intervention in patients is due to the fact that today the treatment of addictions it is not seen as something that must always go through working with addicted people as individual entities, but involves others as well persons.

In this article we are going to see what one of these approaches to therapy consists of in which there is the participation of several people: group treatment of addictions.

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Overcoming an addiction is not an individual process

Addictions have as part of their causes modifications in the nervous system; changes in the brain that have been induced by the use of a certain drug or by the repeated performance of addictive behavior (for example, gambling money on "slot" machines.

These transformations of some structures of the nervous system make the person much more predisposed to continue feeding that addiction (or even develop other new addictions in parallel), and at the same time participate in the appearance of withdrawal syndrome: when the person takes longer than usual without satiating the addiction, begins to feel very bad quickly, and may even suffer from severe psychiatric symptoms variable.

Nevertheless, Beyond the biomedical facet of addictions, there is also a psychosocial facet. The addicted person is not only limited to suffering organic alterations generated by the pathology (tremors after spending a long time without consuming, greater sensitivity to stimuli, etc.), also builds a way of living, thinking and feeling that contributes to the addiction. For example, it is very common for people with a deep-rooted addiction in their lives to direct their social life towards the interaction with other people who are also addicts, leaving friendships, family relationships, etc. in the background

This social and contextual element, the activities, people and environments to which the person is exposed, participate in the maintenance of the addiction... but that means that Through this route it is also possible to help the person who wants to overcome his illness.

That is why over the last decades therapeutic intervention processes have emerged in patients that go beyond the individual. For example, through what is known as a therapeutic community, the patient is encouraged to be involved in a dynamic of activities carried out collectively and in mutual support in an open and inclusive space for people with similar problems.

But in this article we are going to focus on a specific context of group-based therapeutic intervention: group psychotherapy to help people with addictions.

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The 5 keys to addiction treatment

These are the characteristics of the group treatment of addictions that make this modality of intervention an effective remedy to leave drug dependence or behavior behind. addictive.

1. Participants motivate each other

Do not forget the human component of group therapy sessions; In them, it is easier to find people who are understanding with those who suffer from addiction, and empathy is generated. From that empathy arises the desire for the group therapy partner to go getting out of their addiction, and this is reflected in the way in which the participants relate to each other Yes.

• Related article: "Group therapy: history, types and phases"

2. The patients have theoretical and practical information

In group therapy applied to addictions, a lot of valuable information flows about how to deal with this pathology. This information is provided both by the therapists and by the rest of the assistants, which bring his experiential point of view.

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3. A therapeutic experience is generated full of memorable moments, which are "anchored" in the memory of the person.

A good part of the effectiveness of the different forms of therapy has to do with their capacity to attract towards themselves. the attention of the person at key moments, so that they behave in a manner consistent with what they learned in their day to day.

When done in a group, group therapy dto place many moments that remain fixed in the memory of the participants, since it is an experience rich in nuances and in which you interact with several people, each with their history and identity. Thanks to this, many situations that patients will experience in their day to day will evoke memories about what happened in previous sessions.

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4. The expectation of talking about oneself in front of several people motivates not to relapse

Having made a commitment to overcome addiction in front of several people, the degree of motivation with the therapeutic process and of overcoming this pathology grows.

Patients are less exposed to the temptation to give in to drugs or addictive behavior because it is only "a personal decision ”, and they also begin to think about the interests of that community of which they are part and the image they project in her.

5. Each person has multiple examples to draw inspiration from

Finally, do not forget that group therapy is also a place to find references; people who by their history or their attitude make other patients feel identified with them and see first-hand that getting out of addiction is possible.

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Are you interested in having therapeutic support to overcome an addiction?

If you are looking for therapy services to overcome addictions, contact our team of psychology professionals.

On Psychologists Majadahonda We serve people of all ages and we attend personally and also online.