Pubdate: Tue, 18 Jul 2006
Source: Daily Press (Newport News,VA)
Copyright: 2006 The Daily Press
Contact:  http://www.dailypress.com
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/585
Author:  Alison Freehling
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/rehab.htm (Treatment)

STUDYING HOW TO HELP ADDICTS

A Speaker At A Major Conference On Addiction Says Newer Treatment 
Approaches Often Aren't Better For Patients.

WILLIAMSBURG --  Counselors need to get back to basics to help people 
stop abusing drugs and alcohol, according to a speaker who kicked off 
a national conference on addiction in Williamsburg on Monday.

While studies have shown programs such as Alcoholics Anonymous and 
Narcotics Anonymous work, some therapists look to newer approaches 
such as acupuncture, boot camps and long individual talk sessions, 
said Delbert Boone, a New York-based consultant who also is a 
recovering addict.

"It's amazing how complicated we've made things," Boone said. "Here 
we are hunting, trying to hunt something new." By coddling abusers 
and bickering over what services are most important, he added, "We've 
done so many things to handcuff ourselves, it's incredible."

More than 900 counselors from programs across the country are at the 
College of William and Mary this week for the 2006 Virginia Summer 
Institute for Addiction Studies. The annual conference, in its fifth 
year, is organized and sponsored by a number of state and private 
organizations that work with addicts.

This year's featured topics are methamphetamine abuse, the growth of 
gangs, drug use by teenagers and the challenges of re-entering 
society after getting sober.

Locally, heroin, cocaine and marijuana remain the three most commonly 
abused drugs, Pritchard said. But use of methamphetamine - a highly 
addictive stimulant made in illegal laboratories - is growing, he said.

So is abuse of prescription drugs and over-the-counter cough syrups 
and herbal supplements. On a positive note, more treatment programs 
are reaching out to all members of a family, not just the addict.

Boone said the counselors who helped him get sober were successful 
because they didn't pity him or let him reject their treatment plans.

That approach goes against the idea of waiting for people to be 
"ready" to help themselves. Today's programs also tend to stress 
individual counseling sessions that play into addicts' ability to 
explain away their problems, he said.

"We nowadays try to talk a dope fiend into getting well," he said. 
"We're working ourselves harder than the client."

Some of his tips:

Combine proven group programs - which involve plenty of listening, 
reading assignments and homework for participants - with 
detoxification, rehabilitation and outpatient therapy.

Make the public more aware of how often alcohol or drug abuse is to 
blame for tragedies such as car crashes, violent crimes, suicide and 
child abuse. Don't assume that the best counselors are recovering 
addicts themselves. Once learned, the symptoms of a problem are easy 
for anyone to spot. Look for positive traits in patients. The best 
counselors know how to build people up after breaking them down.

The Williamsburg conference should keep growing in upcoming years, 
Pritchard said. Many of the proceeds from this year's event will go 
to defray costs for counselors who want to attend next year, he said.

"All we want to do is reach as many people as possible."
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MAP posted-by: Beth Wehrman