When an individual is diagnosed with a drug problem, whether alcohol or other drugs, they also are suffering from a sort of brain wiring gone wrong. The way that they think is off and leads them to use that drug or take that drink. So when the pattern of thinking leads to alcohol and drugs, there needs to be a new way of thinking found, a cognitive restructuring.
How Does Cognitive Behavior Therapy And Cognitive Restructuring Relate?
Cognitive-behavioral therapy helps a person remove self-sabotaging thoughts which fuel drug or alcohol abuse and replace the person with better, healthier thoughts or cognitive restructuring. Once you start acknowledging these thought patterns and how a person’s thoughts influence their feelings and behaviors, the better-equipped one is to think and act positively that supports sobriety. Thoughts and feelings can have a massive impact on one’s life and health, especially when one is going through recovery. When the person’s thoughts, feelings, and habits come from a good positive place, they increase a person’s well-being and sober living skills. And just like the opposite, if their thoughts, feelings, and habits come from a negative place, they could experience harm to their life, health, and recovery.
Cognitive Behavioral Therapy Helps People With Cognitive Restructuring To Overcome Addiction
Cognitive-behavioral therapy is used in many addiction treatment facilities today. CBT teaches those in treatment for drug abuse to find connections between their thoughts, feelings, and actions and increase awareness of how these things impact recovery. Alongside addiction, CBT also treats co-occurring disorders such as:
- Anxiety
- Attention Deficit Disorder (ADD)
- Bipolar Disorder
- Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder (OCD)
- Eating Disorders
- Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD)
How is Cognitive Behavioral Therapy Used?
According to the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIH):
Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy (CBT) was developed to prevent relapse when treating problem drinking, and later it was adapted for cocaine-addicted individuals. Cognitive-behavioral strategies are based on the theory that learning processes play a critical role in the development of maladaptive behavioral patterns like substance abuse. Individuals in CBT learn to identify and correct problematic behaviors by applying a range of different skills that can be used to stop drug abuse and to address a range of other problems that often co-occur with it.
A central element of CBT is anticipating likely problems and enhancing patients’ self-control by helping them develop effective coping strategies. Specific techniques include exploring the positive and negative consequences of continued drug use, self-monitoring to recognize cravings early and identify situations that might put one at risk for use, and developing strategies for coping with cravings and avoiding those high-risk situations.
Self Medication Is Not The Answer, Get Help Today at Evoke Wellness at Cohasset!
Sadly, resorting to substances as a way to escape can be a deadly and bad decision. However, those that struggle with addiction can get help at Evoke Wellness at Cohasset today! The team of addiction specialists at Evoke Wellness at Cohasset knows that no two individuals struggling with addiction are the same. This is why we are careful to design a drug and alcohol treatment center for each of our clients tailored to their individual needs. From our detox programs to our residential recovery programs to our outpatient care, Evoke has a solution that is right for you.
