Individuals recovering from substance use disorder (SUD) or mental health issues need support to maintain positive lifestyle changes. For most people, their family provides essential motivation and encouragement during recovery. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), “Mental and physical health are equally important components of overall health.” Personal boundaries can protect a client’s physical and mental well-being by ensuring family members understand their loved one’s needs and preferences. Samarpan educates families on dealing with a family member with addiction and about the importance of open communication and healthy boundaries during early recovery. 

Educating Family Members On Mental Health

Clients at Samarpan have regular contact with their families. The care team ensures that families have access to information and resources that will help them support their loved one. Misinformation and stigmas often cause families to have unrealistic expectations of treatment. Our facility combats misinformation by telling families about their loved one’s mental health and how they can best provide emotional and practical support.

The care team educates families by sharing the following:

• How their actions, choices, language, and beliefs can contribute to their loved one’s positive or negative mental health

• The symptoms and side effects related to their loved one’s disorder and how those might affect thoughts or behaviors

• How therapy and other treatments can positively impact the client and family

• Possible challenges they may encounter during continuing care and suggestions for managing those issues

• Details on the typical stages of healing and how to support their loved one’s recovery

Alumni and their families can reach out for more information during ongoing recovery. Samarpan is here to provide assistance and support. We ensure clients continue to heal and recover after they complete a program.

Developing Healthy Family Dynamics

Martin Peters, the Director of Residential Services at Samarpan, has stated, “In India, family plays a significant part in our client’s lives, unlike in Western society, families here are much more closely knitted, or generations continue to live within the same family house; this, in turn, can cause significant stress for family members, as well as the individual struggling with addiction. Educating the family around addiction, and providing them with tools that will enable them to support the individual in a healthy manner, are a significant part of the treatment process, both within the residential setting, as well as through continued care.”

According to the Indian Journal of Psychiatry, “[I]t is vital to preserving family’s proven role in the mental health of the patient.” Samarpan treatment programs are highly structured and provide an environment where clients can practice healthy family dynamics with peers. In addition, we help families develop a healthier dynamic by educating them and guiding the client through learning practical social and communication skills during treatment.

3 Ways Family Involvement Affects Treatment And Recovery

Family involvement in treatment can directly affect a client’s recovery. Below are three common ways family reactions can either interfere with or support their loved one’s recovery.

#1. Identifying And Addressing Enabling Behaviors

Families sometimes unintentionally enable unhealthy behaviors by protecting their loved ones from the consequences of their actions or shielding the family’s reputation by ignoring certain behaviors. Individual and family therapy sessions can help clients identify maladaptively and enabling behaviors. With the help of our care team, families can learn to undo any damage caused by enabling behaviors and avoid them in the future, lowering the risk of relapse.

#2. Accountability And Compassionate Encouragement

Family can provide accountability that keeps the client on track after they leave structured treatment. In addition, the encouragement and compassionate care of family members often have a positive effect on clients struggling to overcome mental health issues related to depression or anxiety.

#3. Decreased Feelings Of Loneliness And Isolation

Many people struggling with mental health issues or substance misuse self-isolate or feel lonely if the people in their lives cannot relate to their experiences. Family involvement in treatment gives them a better understanding of their loved one’s struggles, which can decrease a client’s feelings of loneliness.

How Samarpan Encourages Clients To Set Boundaries

Samarpan encourages clients and family members to communicate clearly and set firm boundaries to protect their mental and physical health. We do this in several ways, including:

• Peer engagement

• Family facilitation

• Skill development

• Mental health education

Assertive Communication Between Peers

Peers play a critical role in the healing and education process during treatment. For many people, it will be the first time they interact with others who understand their experiences on a deeper level.

Additionally, Samarpan uses peer activities and group therapy to help clients learn and practice setting boundaries and resolving conflicts in a healthy way. The structured nature of treatment makes it easier to encourage healthy social interactions. Clients can use them as blueprints for setting clear boundaries at home.

Family And Individual Therapy

Families with loved ones in treatment often benefit from attending individual and family therapy to address the underlying issues that may have contributed to the mental health issues. Samarpan facilitates weekly sessions in person or online to support family engagement.

We believe everyone can benefit from having various degrees of family involvement in their recovery. The Samarpan Deputy Director of Residential Services, Obi Unaka, states, “Our treatment setting is a social microcosm which mirrors the family setting. Clients learn and practice assertive communication by giving and receiving feedback to and from one another. It is imperative that the family members are educated on the nature of addiction and its varied presentation.” Samarpan guides families through the necessary changes to ensure clients continue healing and growing.

Family members have a unique opportunity to learn about mental health from medical professionals during treatment. In addition, they will have a chance to learn how best to show their support and love. Samarpan uses evidence-based methods to educate family members and clients about the importance of family dynamics and how to repair relationships that may have been damaged by substance misuse or unhealthy behaviors. Family can provide comfort, motivation, and accountability for people in recovery. The positive engagement they bring to therapy can improve outcomes. During treatment, clients practice establishing healthy relationships with their peers. The skills they learn will help heal family relationships. To learn more about our programs and dealing with a family member with addiction, call +91 81809 19090.

Social connections and personal relationships can significantly affect a person’s ability to cope with daily stressors during recovery. Individuals in treatment for substance use disorder (SUD) and mental health issues learn how to communicate their needs and set clear personal boundaries.

Peer interactions within the facility allow clients to express their needs and desires in a safe and controlled environment. Setting clear boundaries in recovery and asserting personal values can protect clients and improve their outcomes. Samarpan educates people in recovery on how to establish and maintain clear boundaries.

What Are Personal Boundaries?

Personal boundaries are highly subjective and look different for everyone. Below are brief descriptions of a few different types of limitations clients can set.

• Physical limits: Every individual has a right to set boundaries around their personal space and how much physical contact they have with others

• Emotional limits: People should feel comfortable communicating desires, wants, and preferences with those around them

• Professional limits: Expressing opinions, beliefs, and limits within the workplace while prioritizing mental and physical health

• Relationship limits: Disclosing personal goals, needs, limits, and desires within the bounds of an intimate relationship

According to Samarpan’s Director of Residential Services, Martin Peters, “Most people, not just people with addiction struggle with boundaries. Helping our clients learn about healthy boundaries, enables them to maintain their own safety and hold to their true core values. It’s often said that the only people who get upset about someone setting boundaries are the ones that benefit from someone not having any. For the person with addiction, and their families, all will benefit from learning about boundaries, as well as practicing them whilst they are in treatment.”

Benefits Of Healthy Social Boundaries

Family or work pressure, chronic stress, and internalized negativity can all contribute to mental health issues. Limiting the impact of these stressors makes it easier for people to focus on healing and building the foundation for a better future. Healthy social boundaries can improve mental health by doing the following:

• Clarifying responsibilities within relationships

• Setting an expectation of mutual respect

• Establishing values

• Providing a clear guideline for others to show their support

According to the Cleveland Clinic, “[H]ealthy boundaries shine a light on your personal needs while acknowledging the needs of those around you.” Setting boundaries in recovery creates an environment where everyone feels safe expressing their feelings and respecting those around them.

Obi Unaka, the Deputy Director of Residential Services at Samarpan, has stated, “A major part of our treatment program includes the practice of setting boundaries in recovery and assertively communicating. Clients are encouraged to practice this amongst one another as this will help in the development of their ongoing recovery both within the family and in other interpersonal relationships.”

3 Ways To Set Healthy Boundaries

Setting healthy boundaries can feel uncomfortable and even frightening at first for people who have never prioritized their own needs. According to Healthline, “Even though personal boundaries can be challenging to navigate, setting and communicating them is essential for our health, well-being, and even our safety.” Samarpan helps clients gain confidence and improve their social skills by encouraging peers to communicate their needs and respect the needs of others.

#1 Actively Listen And Effectively Communicate

Effective communication is the foundation of healthy relationships. To create boundaries, a person must actively listen to the needs of others and express their own needs. The therapists at Samarpan guide clients through learning to engage in positive communication with the clinical team, peers, and family members.

#2 Learn Your Limits

To set physical and emotional boundaries, a person must first understand their limits. People can learn how to identify and respect their physical and mental limits by recognizing how certain behaviors affect them. Once they identify problem areas, clients can work with their care team and family to set clear limits.

#3 Don’t Be Afraid To Say ‘No’ Or State Your Needs

Knowing when and how to say “no” is one of the most important things to learn when setting limits. Personal autonomy is essential to genuine recovery. Saying “no” to things that cause emotional or physical distress improves independence. In addition to being comfortable saying “no,” people in treatment must understand how to identify and communicate their needs. Some people may use saying “no” as an excuse to avoid problems. We can help clients learn to use personal choice in a healthy way.

How Do Boundaries Impact Relationships?

Healthy relationships involve compromise, open communication, and mutual respect. Every person has certain limits and things that make them feel uncomfortable or safe. Boundaries allow people to share those limits with other people. Setting boundaries in recovery is a two-way street; both individuals should feel validated, supported, and heard.

Boundaries And Personal Safety

Setting boundaries in recovery can protect your safety by informing others of your physical limits. Many people in recovery for substance misuse or mental health disorders have experienced physical trauma caused by abuse or assault. Trauma therapy can help them identify triggers and set healthy boundaries to decrease stress and improve personal safety.

A few examples of physical limits a client may set include:

• No physical touching or touch limited to specific actions like shaking hands

• Requiring several feet of personal space 

• No touching personal belongings unless specifically given permission

Feeling physically safe and secure during treatment and recovery can decrease symptoms of anxiety and depression. In addition, many clients find it easier to identify and articulate physical limits. Emotional boundaries may not seem as easy to determine or request. Samarpan uses aspects of trauma-informed care to encourage clients to express limitations. We can help clients build healthy boundaries and prepare for long-term recovery. Clients have an opportunity to develop essential life skills that will make it easier for them to establish and maintain personal and professional limits.

Recovery is a long process that requires people to make significant changes to their thoughts, beliefs, and behaviors. Individuals in recovery need to set clear boundaries to communicate their needs and desires to others in their life. Boundaries can fluctuate and change as a person begins to heal. The physical and emotional limits clients set during their recovery will influence their long-term recovery and how well they reintegrate into society. Family members can support their loved ones in recovery by respecting boundaries and setting their own. Samarpan facilitates the creation of boundaries using positive peer interactions and family support services. To learn more about our programs, call us at +91 81809 19090.

According to the Indian Journal of Psychiatry, “Unlike the West, in India, family is the key resource in the care of patients with mental illness.” In addition, “Psychologically, family members feel an intense emotional interdependence with each other and there is strong interpersonal empathy, closeness, loyalty, and interdependency.” Samarpan educates families about how mental health issues may manifest and effective ways to support loved ones in treatment.

The Importance of Family Engagement in Treatment

Treatment is a complicated process that requires significant changes to how clients think and behave. Family engagement increases the effectiveness of psychotherapy and other mental health treatments by providing the following:

• Emotional and social support
• Motivation for positive changes
• Stability and accountability

According to the previously mentioned research published by the Indian Journal of Psychiatry, “In India, there has been a long tradition of involving families in the treatment of mentally ill relatives.” The benefits of family involvement include less severe symptoms, faster recovery time in some cases, and a decreased risk of relapse. Families that engage in treatment are better equipped to support their loved one and better understand potential challenges they may face.

Creating Healthier Dynamics

In some cases, unhealthy dynamics within families can cause chronic stress that contributes to the development of substance use or mental health disorders. Introducing healthier family dynamics is essential to the treatment and recovery process. Samarpan educates families about how their beliefs or behaviors can adversely affect their loved one. The care team may suggest that certain family members participate in individual or family therapy to help them identify and adjust maladaptive behaviors.

Treatment can help families grow closer by doing the following:

• Providing insight into how specific relationship dynamics can cause emotional distress
• Offering effective and practical solutions
• Educating on mental health or substance misuse
• Setting realistic goals for treatment and recovery
• Ensuring everyone has access to mental health resources
• Providing solutions for potential issues that might affect recovery during continuing care
• Ensuring family and clients have a safe space to voice concerns and needs

Most clients benefit from having weekly facilitated sessions with family members. According to the U.S. Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA), “While there is no one-size-fits-all solution for helping a family member who is drinking too much, using drugs, or dealing with a mental illness, research shows that family support can play a major role in helping a loved one with mental and substance use disorders.” In addition, SUD and mental health issues affect everyone, and involving families in treatment can help them all heal together.

Family Services at Samarpan

Samarpan offers multiple services and treatment options that allow families to play a vital role in the recovery process. Every client is unique, and some may not have a strong family support system. Our clinical team collaborates with each client to determine if they would benefit from our family support services.

According to Martin Peters, the Director of Residential Services at Samarpan, “Addiction is a game that all the family gets to play, it’s imperative that as a treatment program, we also offer the family the opportunity to be part of the healing process, not just for the client who is in treatment, but also for the family who will have endured a lot through their loved ones addiction. All clients have facilitated family sessions throughout their treatment episode, and we also run specific family groups in person and online on a weekly basis.”

In addition to providing services for families during treatment, we continue supporting people who complete our programs. The alumni services and continuing care planning we offer ensure clients and their families continue to receive support during long-term recovery.

Weekly Education Sessions

Samarpan facilitates weekly online and in-person family sessions to help loved ones and their family members learn and grow. The Deputy Director of Residential Services at Samarpan, Obi Unaka, stated, “Educating the family enables them to be better equipped at responding to the challenges posed by the clients substance use and associated behaviours – the family education sessions are important in helping them become aware of the nature of addiction and its various presentations.”

Family Therapy

Clients and their families are encouraged to participate in family therapy sessions during treatment. In some cases, families benefit from attending family therapy after the client completes their program.

A therapist can resolve conflicts and help family members identify areas within their relationships that can change to increase the client’s quality of life. The primary benefits of family therapy include the following:

• Improved communication
• A neutral, safe space for voicing concerns
• An outside perspective that can provide critical insights
• Improved and strengthened relationships

Not all families require therapy. Clients can work with their clinical team to determine if family therapy would help them build healthier relationships.

Additional Support During Continuing Care

Continuing care is a period of transition between structured care and ongoing recovery that usually involves the following:

• Attending community-based peer-led support groups
• Continuing individual psychotherapy
• Prescription medication when appropriate to manage any lingering symptoms or side effects
• Alternative holistic therapies that encourage mindfulness and relaxation

Continuing care looks different for everyone. Some people may only require a few weeks of outpatient therapy, while others might need more comprehensive support for longer. Family involvement plays a vital role in continuing care. For most clients, their families remain a critical part of their support system, and they will need to feel comfortable relying on family during difficult moments in recovery.

Families that have been educated about what to expect from treatment and recovery can provide better support for loved ones struggling with SUD and mental health issues. Family education often happens during treatment. Samarpan facilitates weekly in-person and online family sessions to ensure they remain a central part of the recovery process. We also provide other family services and continue supporting alumni and their families after they complete the program. In some cases, families benefit from attending family therapy during treatment and continuing care to address any trauma or underlying issues that may have affected their relationships. To learn more about our services, call us today at +91 81809 19090.

Ishita Akula M.Phil (Clinical Psychology)

During addiction the family can become fragmented. The power of addiction is often too strong to bring it back together. Family therapy for addiction can help you reconnect with your addicted loved one where other interventions failed. In this blog from Samarpan Recovery, we look at what family therapy is, and exactly how it can bridge the rift caused by addiction.

Introducing Family Therapy

Family is often our first source of contact with the outside. We all belong to a family. Be it adopted, biological foster, or a group of individuals living together. Family shapes the individual infinitely. It forms the child’s personality, communication patterns, and the lens through which the world is viewed from.

Therapy is a dreaded word by most of the population. Therapy is often mistaken as talking to someone about how you feel. However, psychologists and counselors know the depth of it. Our job as MHPs is to be an advocate for counseling and therapy as well as clear any myths and misconceptions about it.

The family becomes the focal social unit through which the child learns about society, well-being, values, how to form relationships, and how to live their life.

Healthy families give birth to healthy adults. Unfortunately, not all families are functional and healthy in their way of living. Such families often raise dysfunctional adults. While one cannot choose the kind of family they are born into, one can certainly end the cycle of dysfunctional families. Moreover, even healthy families go through dysfunctional and harmful patterns which might need some resolution.

In Such Cases, Family Therapy Is The Way To Go!

What Is Family Therapy?

Family therapy or family counseling is a form of treatment that is designed to address specific issues affecting the health and functioning of a family. It can be used to help a family through a difficult period, a major transition, or mental or behavioral health problems in family members (“Family Therapy”, 2014). Family therapy is beneficial to help resolve family issues and maladaptive transgenerational patterns. Facing issues that have created resentments, misunderstandings, and estrangement can help restore balance and the well-being of the family in therapy.

The goal of family therapy is to bring clarity to all relationships and to foster repair and closeness if family members choose. Family therapists believe that problems exist between people, not within people.

Such therapies could improve the relationship and bonding between siblings, parents, spouses, children, etc. Such therapies promote healing and solving family issues by involving in open discussions and other activities.

Goals Of Family Therapy

• Enhanced communication and problem solving

• understanding of family patterns and dynamics

• Foster empathy for each other

• Conflict and anger management

• Bringing the family together after a crisis;

• Creating honesty, trust & support between family members;

• Teaching better ways to manage stress and crisis

• Instill forgiveness in family members

Importance Of Family Therapy For Addiction Recovery

Studies reveal that the 12-month prevalence of Alcohol Use Disorder in India in the year 2010 was 2.6% and that of alcohol dependence was 2.1%. In 2012, 33.1% of all road traffic accident deaths were attributable to drunk driving. Around 62.9% of all deaths due to liver cirrhosis were attributable to alcohol use. It shows that addiction is widespread in the Indian population.

Globally, 50% of the deaths are caused by liver cirrhosis, 30% of the deaths are because of oral and pharyngeal cancers, 22% of the deaths are caused by inter-personal violence, 22% of the deaths because of self-harm, 15% of the deaths caused by traffic injuries, 12% of the deaths because of tuberculosis (TB) and 12% of the deaths caused by liver cancer were attributed to alcohol consumption.

Addiction can significantly affect families by impairing the functioning, health, and overall well-being of every family member—for those suffering from substance abuse and those who are not, too. Just as problems within the family can influence addiction, a supportive family environment can play an important role in the recovery process.

It becomes important that other members of the family take up roles and responsibilities to support the person who is undergoing recovery. The family shall understand the nature of addiction and how it impacts the behavior of the person who is addicted to a drug. This helps in supporting their recovery endeavors.

When the family isolates the addicted person, it only complicates the recovery. During family therapy for addiction, the therapist or the counselor offers advisory notes on how important it is to help the addicted person feel loved and heard during the recovery phase. This prevents them from getting back to drugs.

It is common to be angry, frustrated, and distressed about having a person who is addicted to drugs and has a dishonest attitude of theirs. But opening up hearts and sharing mutual feelings shall help the person regain confidence and trust from family members and thus prevent a relapse after recovery.

Families endure disruption to their routines and undergo stress and anxiety when a member is addicted to drugs or other substances. The family gets fragile and dysfunctional leading to distortions. In family therapy for addiction, the entire family comes together in working out ways for a family member to help recover from addiction or substance abuse.

Beyond solving relationship issues and addiction problems, family therapy could solve other issues relating to stress, depression, family conflicts, financial complications, eating disorders, and other mental health problems and disorders.

Effect Of Substance Use On Family

Substance abuse has several effects on the family members which are very unhealthy.

• Negative emotions – As a result of the substance abuse, the family regularly deals with emotions like anger, resentment, anxiety, concern, guilt, and embarrassment. Continuous experience of such negative emotions might lead to mental health disorders in the members.

• Safety – In some cases, the safety of family members may be put at risk by a person’s substance abuse. Children or spouses may also feel the need to obtain legal protection due to fear of their loved one’s actions.

• Responsibilities – Certain family members inherit too many responsibilities or responsibilities that are not age-appropriate. This can cause children or spouses to become overwhelmed, anxious and resentful.

• Communication –When a family member is abusing drugs, communication within the family unit is often negative and positive interaction is very limited. In addition, the needs, concerns, and wants of the family members other than the substance abuser may be overlooked.

• Damaged Relationships –Substance abuse produces damaged relationships that can continue on through generations.

Coping With Addiction In The Family: Unhealthy Behaviors

Families often cope with addiction in unhealthy ways, such as by living in denial about the addiction or by following behind their loved one, picking up the pieces. Their lives may be taken over by the addiction wherein they spend time either getting help for it or covering up their mistakes.

The types of behaviors often noticed are Codependency and Enabling behaviors. These behaviors not only contribute to the addiction but also make recovery quite difficult or in the worst cases, impossible.

Codependency

Codependency is seen in imbalanced relationships where one person enables another person’s self-destructive behavior such as addiction, poor mental health, immaturity, irresponsibility, or under-achievement. It often results when someone has to adapt to dysfunction in the family system. Codependent behaviors are learned thoughts, attitudes, and behaviors that lead to neglecting your own needs and desires in favor of being obsessively concerned with a loved one’s problems.

Codependent Behaviors Include:

• Worrying constantly about your loved one’s drug abuse and the consequences of the addiction

• Feeling responsible for solving their problems

• Lying to others about a loved one’s substance abuse

• Having very low self-esteem as a result of neglecting your own physical, spiritual and emotional needs as you focus solely on your loved one

• Engaging in your own unhealthy behaviors that help you cope with reality, such as over-eating, excessive shopping, or obsessive Internet use

• Basing your mood on that of your loved one

Enabling

Enabling behaviors keeps someone from dealing with the negative consequences of their actions. Not dealing with these consequences gives the impression that their behavior is somehow acceptable.

Enabling Behaviors Include:

• Using drugs or alcohol with a loved one to help keep trouble at bay

• Keeping your feelings inside in order to keep the peace with your loved one

• Accepting your loved one’s justifications for substance abuse

• Lying to others for them

• Protecting loved one’s image by minimizing the consequences of the addiction, such as by making excuses for them or taking care of their responsibilities

How Children May Cope With Addiction In The Family

Children may develop their own set of unhealthy coping skills in response to addiction in the household and the chaos and uncertainty it inevitably brings. Many children blame themselves for a parent’s substance abuse and may strive for perfection to avoid upsetting the delicate balance in the household. Conversely, they may withdraw for the same reason.

Children who witness or fall victim to physical, emotional, or sexual abuse may develop post-traumatic stress disorder and suffer from related nightmares, insomnia, and flashbacks. They may withdraw socially due to a lack of social skills or the fear that someone may find out the truth, and they may suffer from anxiety born from an unstable living environment or from a deep-seated fear of losing their parent to the addiction.

Benefits Of Family Therapy For Addiction

Due to the above effects and costs, it is important to involve the family in the recovery process. Some benefits gained by taking part in family therapy for addiction are:

• A better understanding of the nature of addiction and recovery: Done with the help of psychoeducation. The family is taught the biological, social, and psychological factors involved in addiction. This helps in demystifying the myths, misconceptions, and prejudice that the family might carry.

• Becoming aware of family dynamics: Addiction and Substance Use are affected and maintained by multiple factors. Family dynamics can be a major predisposing and enabling factor. Being aware of these dynamics as well as ways to resolve them will help the overall addiction process

• Improving communication: For successful recovery, the familial environment should be conducive. Improved communication is essential especially when the family lacked appropriate emotional involvement.

• Sharing feelings: During active addiction, family relationships go for a toss. Family members may be angry but unable to express it, they may fear relapse. It takes time to learn how to recognize, balance, and express these feelings.

• Setting boundaries: This is an important step for everyone in the family involved. The recovering addict as well as the caregivers need to establish appropriate boundaries to ensure that there isn’t any threat to their recovery and mental health.

Learning self-care: In addiction treatment, the focus is on the person with the addiction. During family therapy, a parent or spouse may learn that they need help, too. They may be directed to try Al-anon or other mutual help groups in addition to finding an individual therapist

At Samarpan, Family therapy for addiction can take different forms in the treatment process. It typically involves the whole family meeting together with the focal therapist, but sometimes only part of the family meets, or in atypical cases, each person might meet individually with a therapist. Each session lasts about an hour and may look different, depending on the family’s unique needs. For instance, an entire session might be devoted to talking about each person’s feelings and concerns, while another meeting may involve education on effective communication and improved listening to reduce misunderstandings.

Mindfulness And Recovery From Addiction

Mridula Mishra BA! MA (Fine Arts) ABT

When you’re in recovery, you need all the resources you can gain access to so you can stay away from substances while remaining on a rewarding and fulfilling path. One of the most potent tools you can have at your disposal during recovery is mindfulness. In this blog from Samarpan Recovery, we explore how mindfulness and recovery from addiction are a winning formula.

How Can Mindfulness Benefit Addiction Recovery?

A healthy brain rewards healthy behaviours like exercising, eating, or bonding with loved ones. It does this by switching on brain circuits that make you feel wonderful, which then motivates you to repeat those behaviours. In contrast, when you’re in danger, a healthy brain pushes your body to react quickly with fear or alarm, so you’ll get out of harm’s way. If you’re tempted by something questionable like eating ice cream before dinner or buying things you can’t afford the front regions of your brain can help you decide if the consequences are worth the actions.

But when you’re becoming addicted to a substance, that normal hardwiring of helpful brain processes can begin to work against you. Drugs or alcohol can hijack the pleasure/reward circuits in your brain and hook you into wanting more and more. Addiction can also send your emotional danger-sensing circuits into overdrive, making you feel anxious and stressed when you’re not using drugs or alcohol. At this stage, people often use drugs or alcohol to keep from feeling bad rather than for their pleasurable effects.

We all have desires, but what takes desire that extra step into addiction? Addiction can be described as a disease of the brain that is defined by cycles of compulsive substance use. An addict’s behavior is characterized by limited control over their actions, intense cravings, and continued destructive conduct despite harmful consequences.

Regular mindful practices like meditation or yoga can help cultivate a sense of clarity. This clarity facilitates informed decision-making and serves as the basis for noticeable changes in everyday life. Training in mindfulness increases attention and clarity and makes it possible to actively monitor thoughts, emotions, and sensations without allowing them to develop into uncontrollable cravings.

Because mindfulness fosters non-judgmental awareness of habits that are usually given free rein–like cracking open a beer after a day’s work, heading for that poker game, or seeing a doctor for an unnecessary prescription–it teaches us that we have choices. What’s more, for people in recovery, mindfulness directly exercises the underlying neurological functioning associated with resisting addiction and can help prevent relapse. In addition, mindfulness has been shown to refine executive functioning by providing a higher degree of cognitive control. What this all adds up to is that mindfulness-based practices improve memory, attention, response inhibition, and decision-making.

Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy or MBCT in particular has been shown to help prevent relapse. When a person who has struggled with addiction finds the right therapeutic path, the recovery that once seemed like a pipe dream finally becomes attainable.

Is There Any Evidence That Mindfulness Works When Battling Addiction?

The short answer is yes. For example, a study funded by the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) in 2018 found that following a mindful awareness training program led to increased positive outcomes for women in addiction treatment. During the study, women learned to identify and perceive internal signals related to their emotions. This helped them regulate their reactions to the emotions and also be kinder to themselves in a healthy way when emotions were triggered.

Mindfulness involves cultivating moment-to-moment, nonjudgmental awareness of thoughts, feelings, and surroundings. Mindfulness-Based Relapse Prevention (MBRP), is a program that combines practices like sitting meditation with standard relapse prevention skills, such as identifying events that trigger a relapse. Rather than fighting or avoiding the difficult states of mind that arise when withdrawing from a substance, this combination tries to help participants to name and tolerate craving and negative emotions. MBRP helps people to relate differently to their thoughts, and use tools to disengage from automatic, addictive behaviors. The success of MBRP is not just anecdotal. Bowen and her colleagues recently published a study in JAMA Psychiatry investigating how effective the Mindfulness-Based Relapse Prevention program is in comparison to a standard relapse-prevention program as well as a conventional 12-step program. Six months following the intervention, the mindfulness-based program, and the standard relapse-prevention program were both more successful at reducing relapse than the 12-step program. One year later, the mindfulness-based program proved better than the other two in reducing drinking and drug use.

Bowen says that when people cultivate mindfulness, they’re developing a tool to become aware of that inclination to want only pleasurable things and escape uncomfortable things. This makes mindfulness and recovery from addiction a winning formula.

Mindfulness also helps people learn to relate to discomfort differently. When an uncomfortable feeling like a craving or anxiety arises, people like Sophia are able to recognize their discomfort and observe it with presence and compassion, instead of automatically reaching for a drug to make it go away.

Bowen says that awareness of our experience and the ability to relate to our experience with compassion gives us more freedom to choose how we respond to discomfort, rather than defaulting to automatic behaviours.

Mindfulness is likely an effective tool in helping people with addiction because it is a single, simple skill that a person can practice multiple times throughout their day, every day, regardless of the life challenges that arise. With so much opportunity for practice rather than, say, only practicing when someone offers them a cigarette people can learn that skill deeply.

According to a recent study, Individuals with substance use disorder come to experience “increased reactivity to stress and negative emotion.” Gradually, a person may become dependent on substances as a means of regulating the dysphoria and anxiety stemming from increased stress reactivity, ensnaring them deeper into the cycle of addiction. These neurocognitive processes contribute to craving and elicit substance use behavior long after an individual has stopped using substances. Even when total abstinence is achieved, substance-related cues and negative emotional states can continue to trigger a relapse. Thus, interventions are needed to target the manifold processes undergirding substance use disorder and relapse. MBIs (mindfulness-based interventions) hold special promise in that regard.

Mounting evidence suggests that mindfulness and recovery from addiction work well together, as mindfulness strengthens basic positive cognitive processes. Mindfulness-based interventions may be clinically beneficial for treating a variety of substance use disorders, including addictions to alcohol, nicotine, cocaine, and prescription opioids.

With the help of addiction neuroscience, many treatment providers and medical practitioners are turning to the ancient practice of mindfulness to address unhealthy behaviors associated with substance abuse. Some mindfulness-based practices that have recently been integrated into recovery programs include:

• mindfulness-based stress reduction

• mindfulness-based cognitive therapy

• mindfulness-based relapse prevention

• mindfulness-oriented recovery enhancement

Mindfulness training is a promising intervention option for SUDs (substance use disorders) and relapse prevention. Mindfulness can be conceptualized as a state, trait, and practice. The state of mindfulness is cultivated during mindfulness practice and is characterized by non-judgmental, non-reactive, present-centered attention and metacognitive awareness of cognition, emotion, sensation, and perception. Two primary mindfulness practices are focused attention and open monitoring. The focused attention meditation practice involves attending to an object (eg, the sensation of breathing or walking, parts of the body, or visual stimuli) while acknowledging and letting go of distractions. The open monitoring meditation practice involves maintaining a metacognitive stance in which the practitioner remains cognizant of both the field of awareness and the flux of internal and external stimuli (e.g., thoughts, sensations, emotions, perceptions) arising within that field, without fixating on any specific object of attention. These practices are often combined during a single meditation session

As repeated mindfulness practice evokes the state of mindfulness, MBI participants exhibit increases in trait mindfulness over time. Trait mindfulness may be defined as the tendency to exhibit mind-full qualities in daily life, including non-reactivity to distressing thoughts and emotions, as well as the tendency to observe and accept one’s momentary thoughts, feelings, perceptions, and sensations. So, beyond the context of acute mindful states, mindful traits may decrease cognitive, emotional, and behavioural tendencies that help sustain substance misuse. Indeed, trait mindfulness has been found to be positively associated with heightened executive control functioning, and small but statistically significant negative correlations have been found between trait mindfulness and craving as well as substance use. As individuals with SUDs engage in mindfulness practices within MBIs, they learn to cultivate trait mindfulness, providing a bulwark against substance use and relapse.

For many people who are tackling the arduous, life-changing process of addiction recovery, combining the ancient practice of meditation with modern therapies may be the best course of action. By learning about and practicing mindfulness-based exercises, cognitive control can be restored and healthier behaviors can lead to durable recovery.

To learn more about the benefits of mindfulness and recovery from addiction, or to find out about how we use mindfulness at Samarpan Recovery, call our office today at +91 81809 19090.

Mridula Mishra BA! MA (Fine Arts) ABT

Most of us know that drugs and alcohol are injurious to health. They are bad for our bodies, and bad for our emotional and mental health. However, how do drugs affect the brain during the teen years? 

Why Is Brain Development Crucial During Teenage Years?

Adolescence is a critical stage of brain development. During these years, teens’ personalities are emerging they are effectively growing into who they will be for the rest of their lives. Teens are also learning many new skills and developing the capacities they need to become well-adjusted, responsible adults. Teenage brains are more adaptable to all types of experiences, and it is easier for them to learn new things at this stage than it will be for them as adults. But this also makes them more driven to try mind-altering substances and more vulnerable to sustaining harm as a result.

Right now, you may have a teenager who is experimenting with drugs or staying out late at parties with alcohol. You may be concerned about his or her health, but may dismiss this substance use as “just a phase.” Maybe you are looking to learn more about teenage drug use, wondering how exactly drugs affect the brain of a teenager. As a parent, it is important to get educated about how do drugs affect the brain of teenagers, so that you can take the proper steps to get your teen back on track.

The “Everybody is Doing It” Mindset

We often hear from teenagers (and parents) who justify early drug use as an experimental phase. You likely have heard from your own teen that “everybody” is drinking and using drugs. In some sense, this is true, and your teen is certainly not alone. Across the world, more than 27 percent of high schoolers have used an illicit drug in the past year, with marijuana being the most common.

However, the frequency of drug abuse among teenagers does not make it okay. The risks are great, yet often overlooked. Throughout the nation, 10 million young people (ages 12 to 29) need substance abuse treatment. This is because of the very negative effects that early drug use had on their brains. If you are wondering, “How do drugs affect the brain of a teenager?”

Some Background On The Teenage Brain

As parents, you likely know the importance of a child’s toddler years and how their brains are developing and making connections at rapid speeds. Early childhood is one of the most crucial phases of learning and brain development, but what many do not know is, so is adolescence. In adolescence (from age 13 up to a person’s mid-twenties), the brain goes through another wave of major, dynamic changes.

It is during this time that the brain conditions itself for future experiences. It prunes back the brain cells that get used the least and strengthens the cells and connections that are most engaged. If a teenager is taking several science courses, for example, but dropped their piano class years ago, their connections to music might get pruned away, while their knowledge (and retention) of the sciences might grow.

It is for this reason that adolescence is considered the most critical window for learning. The brain is still malleable, and highly capable of absorbing new things. As seen in the example above, the knowledge that is obtained and emphasized from ages 13 to 25 will be strengthened and retained for the future. However, the knowledge that is not utilized will dissipate. As a parent, it is important to ensure your teen is gaining positive learning experiences because what he or she learns now will shape his/her success down the road.

Not only is the teenage brain going through major developmental changes, but it is also unique in its level of maturity and capability. The frontal lobe of the brain, the brain’s thinking centre, which is responsible for decision-making, problem-solving, judgment, and self-control is not fully mature in adolescence. In fact, this lobe is the last to mature and does not usually happen until age 25. That said, teenagers neurologically are more likely to engage in risky behaviours. You may have noticed your teen has:

• Difficulty controlling or holding back his/her emotions

• An inclination towards high-excitement, yet low-effort activities

• More impulsive and risky behaviours (e.g., drinking and drug use)

• Poor planning and judgment (e.g., rarely thinking of negative outcomes)

Due to hyper-rational thinking and lack of impulse control, teenagers seek thrilling experiences at the moment but are not always able to weigh the consequences that may result. Teens also have baseline levels of dopamine in their brains, meaning they are bored and seek thrilling experiences more often. In adolescence, excitement is much more rewarding than in adulthood, reinforcing a teen’s inclination to do these things again. That is where the high risk of substance use comes into play.

What Is Normal Brain Function For Teenagers?

One aspect of a healthy brain’s complexity is its delicate balance of chemicals that keep the body and mind functioning normally. These chemicals are called neurotransmitters, and they carry messages between nerve cells and neurons, or nerve endings. Everything a person thinks and feels including their mood, energy level, consciousness, memory, ability to feel pleasure, and need for food and rest is affected by neurotransmitters, so it’s important to keep your child’s brain healthy as they grow.

Some Examples Of Neurotransmitters Are:

• Glutamate affects your memory and thinking abilities.

• Dopamine is responsible for your feelings of pleasure and reward. When you laugh or feel good, that is your dopamine at work.

• Serotonin helps you sleep, and affects your appetite, arousal level, and mood.

• Norepinephrine/noradrenaline helps you deal with stress.

• Epinephrine/adrenaline which interacts with norepinephrine/ noradrenaline, also helps you deal with stress.

• Oxytocin helps you relax, socially bond, and maintain a reproductive drive.

• Endorphins reduce your feelings of pain and stress.

Overall, these chemicals help you stay healthy and have feelings that are appropriate for whatever experiences you are exposed to. When you are in danger, your brain should make you feel scared, and give you a burst of energy the fight or flight response. When you are with friends, your brain chemicals should help you feel a sense of relaxation and trust. When your body needs food, your brain should make you feel hungry. And when your body needs rest, your brain should help you feel tired and ready to go to sleep.

Overall, these brain chemicals are designed to help you take care of yourself to eat right, sleep right and form social connections. Your brain chemicals, when working correctly, provide you with motivation to do the things required for your survival and happiness.

How Drugs Disrupt The Brain Of A Teenager

Because the parts of the brain dedicated to judgment, rational decision-making, and self-control are not yet fully developed, teenagers have a higher propensity to experiment with drugs and alcohol. And because of their stage of brain development, they do not always understand the potential risks. The problem is, early drug and alcohol use in adolescence and young adulthood bears the greatest risks, particularly the risk of chronic addiction. More on that in a minute.

When a teenager uses drugs, the drugs get absorbed into the bloodstream and carried to various organs, including the brain. When drugs enter the brain, they interfere with its normal processing, including the development of cells and the function of the brain’s neurotransmitters, such as dopamine.

Dopamine is the chemical in our brains that allows us to experience pleasure or feel good. It reinforces reward. For example, when we eat food, dopamine is released telling us that food makes us feel good and that we must continue to eat to feel satisfied and to survive. But when drugs enter the brain, they release an excessive amount of dopamine and overload the body with pleasurable feelings. The human brain, at any stage of development, is wired so that we repeat activities associated with great pleasure and reward. It is wired to feel as though these pleasurable activities are life-sustaining. Because teenagers have a greater tendency to seek pleasurable activities already (and a reduced ability to measure the consequences), they are highly vulnerable to the temptations of drugs and alcohol.

When drugs are used repeatedly, they make lasting changes in the brain and the way it functions. But when teenagers use drugs repeatedly, the consequences can be even worse. The teenage brain is learning and absorbing new behaviours. When something releases a high amount of pleasure such as drug use the brain considers that a very important activity. The brain remembers it and strengthens it, pruning back on other areas, instead. But because teenagers’ reward circuits are still being developed, their ability to bounce back to normal after using drugs is lessened, due to how drugs affect their brains.

Drugs are chemicals that tap into the brain’s communication system. Certain drugs can activate nerve cells improperly, damage brain connections, and send abnormal messages throughout our brain circuits. When drug use is introduced and repeated, the brain will send messages to the rest of the body saying that it needs the drugs to function. The body will feel this (through withdrawal symptoms, or intense cravings) and cause a user to seek out drugs once again. This is part of the addiction cycle, and therefore addiction is considered a brain disease. Users often cannot stop using drugs, even when they want to, because of the consequences that the brain and body experience.

You see, in response to an overload of dopamine, the brain will eventually send fewer “feel good” signals out to the body. This contributes to the low or down period after a drug wears off. And over time, as drug use is repeated and a user’s dopamine levels are reduced, a tolerance will build. That person will need more of the drug, more often, to feel the same pleasurable effects. This is a tell-tale sign of drug addiction, but the risks extend beyond that. Often, addicted teenagers will increase their drug dosages without thinking twice, and later overdose by taking too much.

The Risks Of Drug Use For Teenagers

So how do drugs affect the brain of teenagers? The impact of addiction on the teenage brain is great, in that long-term substance use can cause long-term issues with memory, learning, attention, coordination, and even IQ levels. According to one study, youth who drink heavily (20 drinks per month) or binge drink (more than 4-5 drinks on one occasion) show abnormalities in their brain structure volume, white matter quality, and activation of cognitive tasks involving attention, memory, spatial recognition, and executive functioning.

Even occasional drug use during the teenage years can cause severe effects, in that it can put a teen at an increased risk for a substance use disorder (i.e., clinical addiction). Remember, addiction is a learned disease. Introducing drug use just a few times in adolescence can put a teenager on the path to using them again (and again) in the future, assuming their brain remembers the pleasure from it.

Teenagers who begin using any addictive substance before age 18 are 6.5 times more likely to develop a substance use disorder. Those who start drinking before age 15 are 4 times more likely to become addicted than those who start at age 20 or later. 9 out of 10 people with substance addictions first begin using before they turned 18. The risk of substance addiction is highest for those who start using before their brain is fully developed.

So how else do drugs affect the brain of teenagers? In addition to the lasting cognitive effects of drugs on the adolescent brain, teenagers who use drugs or alcohol are more likely to perform poorly in school, get in trouble with the law, and have health-related, family, or social issues. However, there is hope. Teenage substance abuse and addiction is very treatable, with early intervention and professional help.

According to the National Institute on Drug Abuse, “When substance use disorders are identified and treated in adolescence, especially if they are mild or moderate, they frequently give way to abstinence from drugs with no further problems.”

If your teenager is using drugs even if recreationally, with mild or moderate use it is important to intervene. The effects of drugs on the brains of teenagers can be long-lasting if left unaddressed. Remember that you can always reach out for help.

REFERENCES:

Drug effects on developing brains – teens. Sandstone Care. (n.d.). Retrieved October 23, 2022, from https://www.sandstonecare.com/resource-library/drugs/effects-of-drugs-on-teens-developing-brains#:~:text=Drugs%20can%20also%20permanently%20change,develop%20properly%20in%20these%20areas.

Tadmin. (2021, January 26). How do drugs affect the brain of a teenager? Turnbridge. Retrieved October 23, 2022, from https://www.turnbridge.com/news-events/latest-articles/how-do-drugs-affect-the-brain-of-a-teen/

Effects of drug use on the teen brain. Drug & Alcohol Rehab at Windmill Wellness Ranch. (n.d.). Retrieved October 23, 2022, from https://windmillwellnessranch.com/blog/2018/09/11/effects-of-drugs-on-the-teen-brain

Health effects of teen substance abuse. Addiction Center. (2021, September 29). Retrieved October 23, 2022, from https://www.addictioncenter.com/teenage-drug-abuse/health-effects-teen-substance-abuse/

For people looking for substance misuse treatment, price is often a factor in their considerations. There are a multitude of options available for people in terms of cost, as well as approach. It is worth remembering that the effectiveness of rehab varies massively between centers. Some centers produce consistently solid long-term treatment outcomes, others do not. 

There Is Also The “Cost” Of Treatment Versus The “Price” Of Treatment.

In the addiction treatment field in India, there are a variety of treatment facilities. Some of these are expensive, some less expensive, and some are extremely inexpensive. Of course, there are significant differences in the programs offered, the experience, expertise, and quality of staff, the treatment approaches, the facilities, and in the effectiveness of rehab centers.

Quality is a significant factor in terms of price for all things. Something that is of better quality will often cost a bit more. It is the same in healthcare, which includes addiction treatment programs, as in other service industries.

At Samarpan, we are very focused on seeing you not only succeed in treatment, but in achieving positive outcomes from your treatment episode – this is critical. The success rates of many rehabs vary dramatically although, there are variances in how rehabs chose to define success. We understand that looking at outcomes is important however, we do not just look at if a person is clean and sober after a period of time as a success – effective treatment outcomes should be measured on a number of points, which are laid out as; the Office of National Drug Control Policy provides a good overview of what treatment is meant to do. A person receiving effective addiction treatment should show some of the following:

• Reduced amount and frequency of substance use, along with longer gaps between relapses

• Improved employment or education status and attendance

• Improved physical health, indicated by fewer medical visits

• Improved mental health, indicated by improved mood, personality traits, and behaviors

• Improved relationships with friends, family, loved ones, and others

• Improved legal status, such as the following probation or committing fewer crimes

• Improved safety, such as fewer car accidents or injuries

Some of these places are “affordable” but may not be very good. They are a factory version of the treatment, where “one size fits all” in terms of a treatment model, no matter what your history is, the substance involved, or your psychological profile. They may also have untrained staff, that have little or no addiction or mental health-specific training or credentials. Furthermore, the program may not be using evidenced-based approaches to treatment or approaches that are dated. The effectiveness of rehab centers like this is understandably low.

At Samarpan, our approaches to treatment are aligned with best practices, and continually develop our staff with training and supervision to ensure that our program keeps abreast with the latest evidence-based interventions as they evolve.

Other centres have many beds to fill because in their version of treatment the profit is based on volume. They may lack individual care and every person is treated the same, when in fact, no two people are the same. The larger a center, the more of an “institution” it can be, and the less individual care you can expect. Suffice it to say, that often treatment centres will cross-pollinate their community with people with various other issues – so it’s certainly not uncommon in India to find acute mental health patients and dementia patients being within the same facility as people within a substance misuse program.

At Samarpan we are a specialist in the Substance Misuse Primary Residential Program, which means we work only with people who have a Substance Misuse issue and may have other co-occurring disorders. We will not admit anyone just to fill a bed.

The most important part of any treatment facility is the individual treatment clients receive. The staff must be highly qualified and experienced to provide the best possible care. Samarpan has recognized Addictions Therapists with internationally recognized qualifications running the programs, with other staff undertaking further professional development to achieve recognized addictions credentials.

When considering rehab, you do need to consider other aspects such as the facility – private en-suite rooms, the food and nutrition, the physical training program, and other complementary approaches such as massage, reiki, yoga, EFT, meditation, and various other activities, including the communal areas and overall environment. Rehab is hard work… so don’t overlook the other factors that will play an important part in your recovery. At Samarpan, we have created an environment whereby everything within the centre is a therapeutic intervention deliberately set up to ensure that we enable our clients to address as many areas of their lives as possible whilst in treatment.

Some treatment centers will not conduct comprehensive assessments nor will they offer as many individual therapy sessions as we do at Samarpan because those sessions require a licensed professional and cost more. These interventions are extremely important for getting to the root causes of your addiction so it can be effectively treated. Often, clients only have one individual therapy session per week in these places and do not even have a treatment plan that they have collaboratively devised with their therapist. Again, effectiveness of rehab centers like this is low.

At Samarpan, we include a full nursing and health check-up on admission, and your health will be monitored daily by our 24-hour Nursing staff and supervised by our Medical Officer and Consultant Psychiatrist. Many places don’t include this, but we feel your health and safety going into treatment are critical and should not be overlooked.

In some of these other facilities, the group sessions often have too many people, so most people do not get to contribute or be involved, and people can “hide” in the crowd. In order for Group Therapy sessions to be effective, the group should not comprise more than 12 members otherwise it becomes unmanageable and clients effectively get nothing out of these sessions.

Some of these programs do not have all of the treatment interventions we are able to provide (CBT, 12-Step Facilitation, Relapse Prevention, DBT, Mindfulness, ACT, and Art Therapy) so we can truly customize and tailor your treatment program to your needs.

Additionally, in many places, the staff do not have the experience our staff has. We ensure that we hire people with formal qualifications in Mental Health, Psychology, and addictions, and have recruited staff from overseas to bring an international flavor to your treatment experience.

Lastly, there is the quality of the food, the comfort of our facility, and the many things you have to do here when you’re not in treatment. It all adds up. We know that providing a therapeutic environment where you are comfortable, whilst being uncomfortable is a necessity.

But the primary difference is this – you need quality treatment. That quality translates directly to outcomes. Let’s face it, if going through treatment at a less expensive facility only means you’ll end up going through treatment again, it’s actually more expensive. It’s absolutely imperative that looking for treatment should not be based on price alone. There are a number of important questions that you need to ask, and we recommend some of these questions as important

• What type of treatment approaches does your program use?

• Are your approaches individualized to each client’s needs?

• Is your program licensed and accredited?

• How long are your rehab programs?

• How much do your programs cost?

• Do you provide treatment plans and continuing recovery plans for clients?

• Are you able to treat clients with a dual diagnosis?

• What type of continuing care services do you offer after treatment?

• Does your program offer family support?

• What is the background of your staff?

• What makes your program different?

So, although the cost is important, it should not be the most important consideration. Your effectiveness of rehab is determined by a lot more than price. That is why at Samarpan we realize that we may not be the cheapest provider in India, but we certainly offer a thorough and structured continuum of care, whereby we plan and track our clients through their treatment journey, and also once they leave. That way we are continuously evaluating the efficacy and experience of our program to continue to improve and evolve it.

Should you require any information about our program for yourself or a loved one, then we are just a phone call away.

Ishita Akula M.Phil (Clinical Psychology)

“The Good Life Is A Process, Not A State Of Being. It Is A Direction, Not A Destination.” – Carl Rogers

The world, a few decades ago, was focused solely on our physical health. With the dominance of the medical model, the importance of medicines, exercise, and a balanced diet was propagated regularly. But, the same attention was not given to mental health. Rather, mental health and disorders were shamed, stigmatized, or worse, they were dismissed. However, in recent times, Therapy has gained some momentum and some have begun to understand why therapy is important. Social media has become a catalyst for this propaganda. However, misconceptions are still present.

Therapy is a dreaded word by most of the population. Therapy is often mistaken as talking to someone about how you feel. However, psychologists and counselors know the depth of it. Our job as MHPs is to be an advocate for counseling and therapy as well as clear any myths and misconceptions about it.

The reason why therapy has not been popular could be that mental health is not tangible hence, working on it doesn’t really give the same effect that working out in the gym would. The utter dismissal of mental health and its disorders also works adversely.

Below, I list some reasons why therapy is important and useful.

Therapy Can Help You Learn Life-Long Coping Skills

What are coping skills? Coping skills are anything that helps you through difficult times, whether it’s not getting the promotion you deserve, anxiety about driving or the death of a loved one. Therapists are educated and trained to help foster the natural coping skills everyone has. Coping skills will look a little different from person to person because everyone is unique. For example, an athlete will want to work out as a means of coping; a writer would journal their thoughts, and someone might go to the spa. All these are effective ways of coping, there is no “one size fits all” way for coping.

Therapists can also teach coping skills that might not be as easy. For example, cognitive behavioral therapists will often teach their clients that what they think has an enormous influence on how they feel & how they respond to others. Attachment-focused therapists might evaluate how their clients interact with people in their lives. Person-centered therapists encourage their clients to treat themselves with unconditional positive regard and practice radical self-acceptance. Regardless of the modality of therapy, the idea is to come up with techniques that help one deal with the crisis at hand.  Psychologist Rob Winkler  says “better-coping leads to better responses and better responses lead to better experiences, which create more opportunity and prosperity in all aspects of our lives.” So, while it may not seem as exciting as getting six-pack abs, learning coping skills improves your life exponentially in the long run.

Therapy Can Change How You Interact With People In Your Life – In A Good Way

Sometimes we’re not aware of just how many ways we’re negatively impacting our relationships. People snap and call others names when they are angry and then forget about it after the fight, not realizing the effect that it has on other people. On the other side of things, maybe we’re so used to keeping our feelings bottled inside that we have a hard time being expressive with the people we love. A therapist can help balance the way we communicate with our loved ones to improve our relationships. For example, for a client who has a hard time being assertive, the therapist might teach “assertiveness skills” which help them express their feelings or say “no’’ without upsetting other people or getting hostile. Therapy also helps in improving our family relationships. A therapist, especially a therapist specialized in family and relationship counseling, can give you the tools and support you need to make changes that will positively impact your relationships. Increasing the positivity of your relationships builds to a more fruitful long-term future – because when it comes down to it, life is about having fulfilling relationships with the people you love and being able to successfully navigate relationships with people you don’t.

Therapy Can Make You Feel Happier

Why else is therapy important? There are few things more important than happiness. True happiness is an intangible thing, and many times people chase the external – money, success, a fancy car – to try to achieve it. Even though it’s an old cliché, there’s truth to the statement that money can’t buy you happiness. Having too little money can cause unhappiness, but money doesn’t have an inherent value that makes our lives more fulfilled. Buying fancy things might give us a temporary thrill or a sense of satisfaction; however, these feelings don’t last and tend to scratch at the surface of true happiness. No one has ever claimed, for example, that the meaning of life is a car; the meaning of life is thought to have more breadth and importance than that.

True happiness is an intangible thing, and many times people chase the external – money, success, a fancy car – to try to achieve it. Even though it’s an old cliché, there’s truth to the statement that money can’t buy you happiness. Having too little money can cause unhappiness, but money doesn’t have an inherent value that makes our lives more fulfilled. Buying fancy things might give us a temporary thrill or a sense of satisfaction; however, these feelings don’t last and tend to scratch at the surface of true happiness. No one has ever claimed, for example, that the meaning of life is a car; the meaning of life is thought to have more breadth and importance than that.

So how does therapy help you feel happier on a deeper level? Talking over your past, present, and future with a therapist can lead to greater self-understanding. truly embracing who you are at the core is something that leads you to self-compassion. Greater self-compassion helps you handle the bumps in the road that inevitably happen in life without getting stuck in a swamp of negativity. Learning self-compassion in therapy has tangible benefits: High self-compassion has been found to lead to more health-promoting behaviors (Sirois, Hirsch, & Kitner, 2015), nurture well-being (Neely, Schallert, Mohammed, Roberts, & Chen, 2009), increase empathy and altruism (Neff & Pommier, 2012), and provide a buffer against anxiety (Neff, Kirkpatrick, & Rude, 2007).

Through Its Link To Happiness, Therapy Leads To More Productivity

In The Happiness Advantage, Shawn Achor explains yet another reason why therapy is important. Positive emotions lead to greater productivity: “Happiness gives us a real chemical edge…How? Positive emotions flood our brains with dopamine and serotonin, chemicals that not only make us feel good but dial up the learning centers of our brains to higher levels”. In other words, feeling positive emotions allows you to work harder and learn more because of the “feel good” chemicals in your brain. Increasing your levels of happiness—and with it, your productivity—not only helps you in your career but also helps you cope with the messiness and hectic pace of life.

Therapy can also help you discover obstacles blocking you from performing at your best. These types of roadblocks (e.g., perfectionism or overthinking) are challenges a therapist can help you work through to find an effective solution. You and your therapist can also discuss time-management skills and whether changing negative long-term habits—such as poor prioritization or inaccurate assessments—could help with your focus and productivity. These types of changes can lead to long-term benefits such as increased work performance, greater feelings of self-efficacy, and improved relationships.

Therapy Can Help Improve Chronic Stress

Another reason why therapy is important. A therapist can teach you methods of calming your body and mind, which might include techniques such as guided visualization, progressive muscle relaxation, and deep breathing. Therapists can also help problem-solve the sources of your stress and teach you stress-reduction techniques. They can introduce you to new concepts such as radical acceptance – that many things in your life are beyond your control and acceptance is the key to reducing your suffering. Best of all, once you learn these techniques, you carry them with you for the rest of your life. In other words, stress relief in the short term can build into long-term patterns of stress management.

So, Therapy is quite helpful in a number of ways. It is useful not just for treating and managing mental health disorders but also works in enhancing our lives.

If we are okay with accepting working out, dieting, and cosmetic surgeries to enhance our physical appearance then why not accept therapy as a way of enhancing our mental health? Even though popular culture has begun to accept therapy as a useful modality, we still have a long long way to go!