Emerging Trends In Addiction Treatment (And Why They Don't Want Me On TV)

I got a call the other day from the producer of a TV news show that's going to air a segment on emerging trends in addiction treatment. He said he was given my name as a “leader” in the field.

OK, nice complement; I was humbled, flattered, etc.

But I ended up telling him I wasn’t sure that I was really the person he wanted to talk to, as my first thought on “emerging trends” in addiction treatment was not a positive one.

And we proceeded to have a long discussion about the state of addiction treatment. In particular, he brought up some research that presented a pretty dismal view of the addiction treatment industry when it comes to success rates.

And I told him that as much as I hate to admit it, I couldn't disagree.

FALLING THROUGH THE CRACKS

From the perspective of "emerging trends" in treatment, I'm not sure that what doesn't happen in our attempt to keep improving treatment outcomes by adding more and more fancy modalities that focus on a lot more than substance use, is that some of the most basic elements of successful addiction treatment fall through the cracks. 

Things like:

Does the client really believe they have a problem?

Is everybody on the same page as to what it means to have a problem??

Does the client agree to the plan for overcoming the problem???

Ironically, I had just finished a new video the day before our conversation that illustrates exactly what I found myself saying about why we see such poor treatment outcomes these days. In my view, it's the simple fact that clients get out of treatment without having a solid foundation for recovery. And this video explains exactly what I mean:

Stages Of Change: A Family's Guide To Successful Recovery For Your Loved One 

THE FAMILY IN TREATMENT

Most of my work these days is focused on helping families navigate the road to successful recovery for a loved one, which is why this video is directed towards families. 

As such, this brings up a second important point with regard to treatment outcomes, and that's what I refer to as "the untapped potential the family represents when it comes to treatment success."

The video starts out by showing how to make sure the client is creating a solid foundation for recovery by using a tool called the Stages Of Change Model. 

But then it takes this a step further by showing how families can use this same tool to establish their own recovery, which in turn ends up being the most effective thing they can do to help their loved one achieve the desired goal of successful recovery. 

BACK TO BASICS

I must say that this whole rather synchronous experience—the decision to put out this particular video, then the rather poignant conversation with the TV producer about the state of addiction treatment—has sparked a new level of awareness for me of how important it is to speak up about problems in the treatment field that can easily be resolved by getting back to basics through:

1) effective treatment education, and

2) effective family support

I hope you will find this helpful. 

WATCH VIDEO NOW: Stages Of Change: A Family's Guide To Successful Recovery For Your Loved One