The importance of social skills to overcome addictions

The idea that leaving an addictive disorder behind is a kind of personal struggle carried out alone is often emphasized, a mission each person must face on their own, since being a mere matter of "willpower", the main battles are fought within one's mind same.

However, this belief could not be more wrong. First, because the existence of addictions denies the importance of a concept like willpower, because if something characterizes this class of pathologies, it is their ability to make people lose control of their acts. And secondly, because addictions are not overcome simply through introspection, but The social dimension of the problem (that is, our way of relating to others) also takes on a great deal of importance.

So, in this article we will see what role social skills training plays in overcoming addictions.

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Why are personal relationships so important to overcome an addictive disorder?

In every addiction, whether based on dependence on a drug or on addictive behavior, there is a learned behavioral element. That is, an element that goes beyond pure chemical addiction (the mechanisms of addiction that take place in the brain when the nervous system is exposed several times to some substances that interact with neurons), and that has to do with the habits internalized by the person, their way of looking for friends and maintaining friendships, strategies to deal with abstinence, etc.

In this sense, some of the aspects that can lead a person to progress or not to progress in their attempts to overcome an addiction have to do with the way you interact with those around you on a day-to-day basis. And it is that neither the consumption of drugs, nor the references when it comes to knowing what to do in the face of anxiety or "the monkey", nor exposure to places that predispose to relapse are experiences that occur in isolation and individual. In all of them there is room for maneuver to improve or to expose oneself to unnecessary risks of falling back into addiction.

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What is social skills training in addiction treatment?

With what we have seen so far, it is beginning to be understood what role social skills can play in the challenge of overcoming an addiction. The better our ability to function in contexts in which we must interact with others, the more resources we will have to avoid obstacles in any way. therapy process, especially in that of addictions, since external influence plays an important role in the maintenance or reinforcement of this kind of disorders.

Fortunately, social skills can be trained and improved through experience, which is much easier and more effective if we have professional support in psychotherapy.

Let's look in a little more detail at how social skills training helps you overcome an addiction.

1. Allows you to develop assertiveness in the face of unwanted offers

Knowing how to say no at key moments is essential to get rid of an addiction. Developing assertiveness helps a lot in this regard, because it consists of making yourself respected but without seeking confrontation.

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2. Helps to manage conflicts and their implications for consumption

Addiction predisposes people to enter a state of irritability in which it is very easy to get angry at any setback. Secondly, The use of drugs to alleviate anger is a way in which those who have developed an addiction "tend to fall".

Social skills help channel anger in ways that do not involve conflict dynamics when interacting with others, which also minimizes the risk of relapse.

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3. It allows to consolidate new friendships away from the elements of addiction

Have the ability to establish new friendships away from the social circles that the person frequented addicted (in which the use of drugs or the performance of potentially addictive activities was normalized) helps to escape from that vicious cycle of relapsing partly due to social pressure and constant exposure to temptation.

4. Helps develop new ways of managing discomfort

Social skills can lead to new ways of coping with discomfort, both generated by abstinence as that generated by the rest of emotionally painful aspects of the life. Share our ideas, concerns and feelings with others constitutes a resource that allows to alleviate discomfort through what is known as emotional labeling: putting into words what we feel.

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Do you want professional support when it comes to overcoming an addiction?

If you are looking for therapeutic support to overcome an addiction problem, get in touch with us. On Llaurant la Llum you will find a team of professionals specialized in the treatment of addictive disorders, both from psychotherapy and medicine.

We accompany our patients through all phases of the process of leaving behind dependence on a psychoactive substance or addictive behavior, and we have fully equipped facilities for intervention through income and residential treatment of short, medium or long stay. You can find us in Picassent (Valencia).