How does psychotherapy help to quit drugs?

Drug use is a real public health problem in today's society, and in the Western world it is increasingly different types of addictive substances proliferate more frequently with devastating effects on the body and on the mind.

Therefore, for several decades, psychology professionals have studied in detail the different processes after drug addiction to develop Effective therapeutic strategies for drug use, with which not only symptoms and discomfort are mitigated, but also help people to internalize other patterns of behavior and routines away from psychoactive substances.

This type of help in psychotherapy covers a series of processes that range from psychological, social and family support to the one related to physical symptoms, elements that are closely related in the field of addictions.

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What therapeutic support processes are used to overcome drug addiction?

Below we will briefly see the main processes of psychotherapeutic support that exist in the field of psychological therapy to help overcome any drug addiction. All of them are based on promoting changes in the way of behaving and managing thoughts and emotions, and do not depend on the use of psychoactive drugs.

1. Training in stress management during withdrawal syndrome

The abstinence syndrome is the set of physical and psychological symptoms that the person who is immersed in a process of addiction experience when you stop using the substance to which you are addicted (be it cocaine, alcohol, heroin, etc.).

From psychotherapy, mental health professionals can help anyone to successfully manage their withdrawal syndrome and also to overcome it definitively. without letting the discomfort and stress of this experience trigger a relapse in drug use.

The usual way to proceed in these cases is to help manage stress and anxiety through relaxation techniques, simple Mindfulness exercises, and the establishment of short-term incentive systems. term.

2. improve self-esteem

The improvement of self-esteem in those people who suffer from a case of addiction to any drug is essential so they don't throw in the towel assuming they won't be able to beat their addiction or that there is no point in continuing with the therapeutic process of detoxification.

Professionals in psychology and mental health are well aware that teaching patients to recognize their achievements as such and to realize their potential to change for the better is support aimed at improving the self-esteem of the person; this is essential to successfully overcoming drug addiction.

• You may be interested: "Do you really know what self-esteem is?"

3. Trap Thought Detection Training

During the detoxification process the person may have trap thoughts that frequently appear in your mind involuntarily and invite you to relapse into previous addictive consumption.

These thoughts generate real discomfort in the person and push him to return to consume the substance from which he is detoxifying; that is why therapists teach the person to detect them and avoid at all costs that they direct their will towards relapse.

4. Establish a clear routine

Another of the elements that psychotherapy affects when treating cases of drug addiction is in the establishment of schedules and daily routines with which the person has clear occupations at all times.

These weekly schedules must be fulfilled in a fairly disciplined manner so that the person does not have at any time periods of boredom and indecision about what to do, since these usually present a high risk of relapse in consumption of drug

5. Self-motivation training

The motivation is essential when overcoming any type of addictive disorder, that is why therapists and health professionals put in practice all kinds of techniques to train motivation in the person with the aim of feeling better and with more vitality.

In this section it is also essential to talk about self-motivation, that is, the person's ability to recognize their own progress and use it as an incentive to continue improving in treatment and to find inner strengths that help you move forward with the therapeutic process, using the progress made as fuel to continue improving in therapy.

6. Establishing healthy habits

The process of weaning from any drug consists of a re-learning of various life habits, techniques and tools tools that allow the person to overcome their addiction and return to living their life normally and in a functional way as a member of the society.

Some of the life habits that the person must learn are, in addition to the normal schedules of life, the weekly physical exercise that keeps you fit and focused on the present, a healthy diet and nourishing and tracking proper sleep schedules.

• Related article: "10 psychologically healthy daily habits, and how to apply them to your life"

7. Support in establishing healthy personal relationships

The field of interpersonal relationships is also essential for anyone to live their life fully and happily.

During psychotherapy adapted to cases of drug addiction, health professionals teach various tools to re-weave personal relationships with total normality with the aim of making new friends and not having to depend on previous friends with whom you used to use drugs.

In addition to that, there is also an emphasis on recovering, as far as possible, family relationships that may have been damaged by drug use and in the establishment of sentimental relationships healthy.

8. Self-awareness training

One of the last steps in the drug detoxification psychotherapeutic process is to provide support in a process of self-knowledge so that the person being rehabilitated find new hobbies that fit her and that she can focus her attention on.

The objective of this process is for the person to feel good about himself again, to find productive hobbies of all kinds with which he can "connect" emotionally and get excited, so that he does not depend on the system of short-term incentives that the consumption of substances.