Addiction Services

 

Westwinds Behavioral Health provides outpatient evaluation, treatment, and referral services to individuals, families, and groups. We offer an adolescent and adult, Compulsivity, Abuse and Dependence treatment modalities. This treatment is performed in collaboration with family and significant-others who are trying to get help for a person with dependence and abuse problems who will not seek help on their own.

 

Philosophy

 

Consistent with other programs at Westwinds Behavioral Health, we use a cognitive-behavioral-narrative-constructionist-spiritual approach to address the symptoms of compulsive behaviors, PTSD, and childhood and adult sexual and/or non-sexual abuse. Therapeutic approaches include Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy (CBT), Narrative therapies, psycho-educational presentations, family systems theory, and Gestalt therapy. Psychodrama can be used as therapeutic tools to help clients discover personal emotional truths concerning fear, trust, honesty, and dependency. Flexible lengths of therapy are based on the individual's clinical need, with assessment services, relapse prevention, and continuing care planning integrated into the treatment process.

 

Treatment is focused on assisting clients in separating their identities from their symptoms. Assignments and readings are individualized. Clients are encouraged to be supportive of one another in constructive ways. The attitude of the therapist is to be compassionate, and attention is given to assisting clients in developing compassion and empathy for themselves and others.

 

The strong emphasis in therapy focuses on acceptance and belonging, in an attempt to break the isolation that is common to clients struggling with these issues. The treatment is constructed to promote each client's self-esteem and sense of self-worth; to assist clients in learning to participate in creating their physical, emotional, sexual, psychological, and spiritual safety and growth; and to assist clients in the development of functional thinking processes and coping mechanisms.

 

Sexual/Compulsivity/Pornography Addiction

 

The Program for Sexual Addiction Recovery provides integrated treatment for individuals suffering from sexual addiction/compulsivity, including pornography and internet addiction, post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), or the effects of abuse and trauma. These individuals may also have coexisting psychiatric diagnoses. Compulsive behaviors, post-traumatic symptoms, or unresolved sexual trauma are often the cause of relapse in individuals who have completed traditional treatment programs. We have many years of experience and in-depth training in the assessment, treatment planning, and facilitation of interventions specific to the needs of this clinical population.

 

Alcohol Addiction 

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Treatment for alcoholism can begin only when the alcoholic accepts that the problem exists and agrees to stop drinking. He or she must understand that alcoholism is curable and must be motivated to change. Treatment has three stages:

Detoxification (detox): This may be needed immediately after discontinuing alcohol use and can be a medical emergency, as detox can result in withdrawal seizures, hallucinations, delirium tremens (DT), and in some cases may result in death.
Rehabilitation: This involves counseling and medications to give the recovering alcoholic the skills needed for maintaining sobriety. This step in treatment can be done inpatient or outpatient. Both are equally effective.
Maintenance of sobriety: This step's success requires an alcoholic to be self-driven. The key to maintenance is support, which often includes regular Alcoholics Anonymous (AA) meetings and getting a sponsor.
Because detoxification does not stop the craving for alcohol, recovery is often difficult to maintain. For a person in an early stage of alcoholism, discontinuing alcohol use may result in some withdrawal symptoms, including anxiety and poor sleep. Withdrawal from long-term dependence may bring the uncontrollable shaking, spasms, panic, and hallucinations of DTs. If not treated professionally, people with DTs have a mortality rate of more than 10%, so detoxification from late-stage alcoholism should be attempted under the care of an experienced doctor and may require a brief inpatient stay at a hospital or treatment center.

Treatment may involve one or more medications. Benzodiazepines are anti-anxiety drugs used to treat withdrawal symptoms such as anxiety and poor sleep and to prevent seizures and delirium. These are the most frequently used medications during the detox phase, at which time they are usually tapered and then discontinued. They must be used with care, since they may be addictive.

 

There are several medicines used to help people in recovery from alcoholism maintain abstinence and sobriety. One drug, disulfiram may be used once the detox phase is complete and the person is abstinent. It interferes with alcohol metabolism so that drinking a small amount will cause nausea, vomiting, blurred vision, confusion, and breathing difficulty. This medication is most appropriate for alcoholics who are highly motivated to stop drinking or whose medication use is supervised, because the drug does not affect the motivation to drink.

Another medicine, naltrexone, reduces the craving for alcohol. Naltrexone can be given even if the individual is still drinking; however, as with all medications used to treat alcoholism, it is recommended as part of a comprehensive program that teaches patients new coping skills. It is now available as a long-acting injection that can be given on a monthly basis.

Acamprosate is another medicine that has been FDA-approved to reduce alcohol craving.

Finally, research suggests that the anti-seizure medicines topiramate and gabapentin may be of value in reducing craving or anxiety during recovery from drinking, although neither of these drugs is FDA-approved for the treatment of alcoholism.

Antidepressants may be used to control any underlying or resulting anxiety or depression, but because those symptoms may disappear with abstinence, the medications are usually not started until after detox is complete and there has been some period of abstinence.

Because an alcoholic remains susceptible to relapse and potentially becoming dependent again, the goal of recovery is total abstinence. Recovery typically takes a broad-based approach, which may include education programs, group therapy, family involvement, and participation in self-help groups. Alcoholics Anonymous (AA) is the most well known of the self-help groups, but other approaches have also proved successful.

Nutrition and Diet for Alcoholism
Poor nutrition goes with heavy drinking and alcoholism: Because an ounce of alcohol has more than 200 calories but no nutritional value, ingesting large amounts of alcohol tells the body that it doesn't need more food. Alcoholics are often deficient in vitamins A, B complex, and C; folic acid; carnitine; magnesium, selenium, and zinc, as well as essential fatty acids and antioxidants. Restoring such nutrients -- by providing thiamine (vitamin B-1) and a multivitamin -- can aid recovery and are an important part of all detox programs.

 

credit given to WEBMD  http://www.webmd.com/mental-health/addiction/understanding-alcohol-abuse-treatment?

 

Drug Addiction 

 

Please follow link below. BBH adheres to the treatment model as outlined by the National Institute On Drug Abuse.  http://www.drugabuse.gov/publications/drugfacts/treatment-approaches-drug-addiction

 

Sexual Compulsivity and Abuse

 

Therapy has two tracks: . Clients are identified to one of these based on clinical need; both offer psycho-educational and therapeutic groups specific to the track. Each approach provides a safe, therapeutic environment which allows the individual to experience reduction of pain and shame while exploring memories and perceptions associated with sexual issues.

 

In addressing Sexual Compulsivity treatment is designed to provide therapy for individuals with issues of sexual addiction/compulsivity, co-sexual addiction, pornographic, internet and sex and love addiction.

 

In addressing Abuse treatment is designed to provide clients an environment in which to process symptoms of PTSD, process their experiences of adult sexual and/or non-sexual history.The client will collaborate with the therapist and invite family members and/or significant others to therapy to work with them in addressing relationship issues.

 

The Family Program allows clients and family members to identify problems that have had significant impact on the family system; to change attitudes and, ultimately, behaviors between family members and clients; and to clarify the family's role of healthy support.

 

Couple's therapy provides the opportunity for couples to begin the healing process and to receive educational and therapeutic support for recovery.

 

Compulsive GamblingTreatment

 

Compulsive GamblingTreatment components for Compulsive Gambling provide focus for clients addressing compulsive gambling behaviors. A compulsive gambler is defined as an individual who suffers from a disorder in which he/she has a psychologically uncontrollable preoccupation or urge to gamble. As in other compulsive behavioral disorders, tolerance develops and greater and more frequent gambling risks are required to maintain mood elevation. As the compulsion progresses, the urge to gamble intensify, making it more difficult to resist. Left untreated, compulsive gambling will eventually interfere with almost every aspect of one's life. The range of compulsive gambling behaviors addressed in treatment includes sports betting, casino gambling, racetrack betting, manipulation of stocks and bonds and futures commodities, and speculative investments.

 

Our treatment model focuses on feelings work, shame reduction, understanding the basic addictive disorder, and couple & family therapy. Treatment emphasizes non-judgmental and non-blaming therapy designed to assist the individual in breaking through denial while experiencing unconditional acceptance and guidance.Objectives for compulsive gambling treatment provide:

 

* Diagnostic assessments to identified client population.

* Education and information about the disorder and progression of compulsive gambling behaviors to the      client's identified family members.

* A safe, therapeutic environment which allows the client to experience the awareness and release of painful feelings and shame/guilt reduction.

* A therapeutic process to address underlying family-of-origin issues.Educational and therapeutic intervention for any co-existing behavioral disorders and/or addictions, such as compulsive sexual behaviors, drug and alcohol addiction, or eating disorders.

* Therapeutic and behavioral tools to begin recovery and attend to relapse prevention for clients and their family members.Continuing care assessment and planning.

 

Specific Treatment Interventions

 

The Gambling Process Group is a three-part process that provides for an in-depth discussion and expression of feelings related to the experience of being a compulsive gambler.

The educational aspect of therapy provides information about the phases of compulsive gambling and recovery, relapse prevention issues, and problems specific to compulsive gamblers.

Topics covered in treatment include a focus on money management and the issues involved in repaying debt.

Family dynamics about managing money are addressed, and the client is given tools for developing a recovery and relapse prevention plan within the family system that has experienced the impact of compulsive gambling behaviors.

interpersonal skills, problem-solving skills, and conflict resolution tools are provided with a focus on continuing recovery after leaving treatment.

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The compulsive gambler will be assigned to other specialty tracks, as appropriate.