Psychological interventions constitute the core of alcoholism treatment, but they should never exclude multidimensional approaches, including pharmacological and social interventions.
In 1999, the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) published a total of 13 principles, derived from thirty years of research, that were considered important for the effective treatment of drug dependence.
The first of the aforementioned principles states that “There is no single treatment that is effective for all individuals.” This is related to the psychological variability of each person and the need to take it into account.
At present, these principles remain in force and have not been questioned by any subsequent investigation.
Alcohol Addiction Intervention Techniques
- Treatment needs to be readily available
- Effective treatment must address the multiple needs of the individual, not just their drug use.
- An individual treatment and service plan must be continually evaluated and modified when deemed necessary to ensure that the plan meets the person’s changing needs.
- Effective treatment is closely linked to the evaluation and possible intervention of the individual psychological characteristics that can condition the therapeutic result.
- The long-term effectiveness of the treatments requires an understanding of the causes and processes of relapses, with the ultimate goal of developing strategies that reduce their presence.
Psychological interventions constitute the central nucleus, which gives the best response to the basic needs of treatment, but there is no single intervention for all alcoholics. Anyone who thinks that a single technique, applied to all alcoholics, can achieve results, is a mistake.
Not all alcoholics are the same and therefore not all can or should receive the same treatment.
The Objective Of All These Techniques Is Usually:
- achieve abstinence
- Increase motivation continuously
- relapse reduction
To achieve this, it is important to take into account the diversity of people and the evolutionary stage they are going through, together with their psychosocial context, so we must always start with an adequate evaluation.
Once this evaluation has been carried out, we will be in a position to know which is the most appropriate technique or combination of techniques in each case.
We are aware of the high number of dropouts from alcoholism treatment. The lack of motivation seems to be one of the main obstacles, both for the start of treatment and for its continuity.
This has meant that one of the most agreed upon psychological approaches in the treatment of alcoholism is the motivational approach, based on Prochaska and Diclemente’s transtheoretical model of change, which makes it possible to identify the different levels of predisposition for change and to act differently depending on the situation. the level we are at.
The post-theoretical model is usually complemented by the motivational interviewing and therapy developed by Miller and Rollnick in 1991, which is mainly based on Rogers’ client-centered therapy, combined with cognitive-behavioral strategies.
Motivational therapy is based on respect for the patient, his beliefs, and his value scales and stimulates motivation, giving great importance to his point of view and his freedom to choose.