Alcohol #20 Individualized Counseling.
The necessary skills for drug and alcohol counselors, individual counseling, and group counseling. The importance of the therapeutic relationship. Missteps, evidence-based practices types of groups and the necessary skills. Some of the therapies and other treatment approaches used in substance use disorder counselor.
How is treatment delivered to the individual with a substance use disorder? This video includes an overview of assessment of substance use disorders, developing a substance use history, modalities and some of the issues that come up in treatment.
By David Joel Miller, MS, Licensed Therapist & Licensed Counselor.
Stress.
Photo courtesy of Pixabay.com
Don’t fall into the trap of thinking that your life is out of your control. Suffering excess stress without taking action may result in both physical and mental illnesses. Modern life has come with a lot of physical advantages, but it also comes with potentially debilitating levels of stress. Here are some ways to reduce the impact of stress on your life.
Frequent or excessive headaches can be one sign of stress. Excess stress may interfere with sleep. Lying in bed, unable to fall asleep because you are thinking about all the problems in your life, should tell you your stress is out of control. Changes in appetite, unexpected weight loss, or excessive cravings for carbohydrates and sugar can also be the result of stress.
Using alcohol or drugs to cope with daily life may not only tell you that you’re under excess stress, but that your coping mechanism may be about to turn into a worse problem called addiction.
Stress can also manifest as emotional issues. If you’re becoming irritable, easily angered, or chronically depressed and anxious, your stress may be taking you down the road to mental illness. Lacking energy even after a night’s sleep may be the result of stress. If your day off doesn’t result in the return of energy, it may be because stress is wearing you out both physically and emotionally.
When we say stress, we often think of emotional or mental stress, but stress can also be physical. Good physical health practices can buffer you from the effects of normal stress. Skimping on sleep will not make you more productive. Not enough sleep will impair your decision-making ability, reduce your ability to handle stress, and can eventually lead to burnout.
Even a small amount of exercise can help reduce the impact of stress. Exercise doesn’t have to mean a strenuous workout in the gym. Getting up and moving around can help reduce the impact of stress. Walking each day for as little as 20 to 30 minutes has been shown to reduce the effects of stress and to improve the mood of people with depression.
Don’t confuse relaxation with switching to another type of stress. Passively consuming electronic media may sound like relaxation, but every time you see an exciting scene, your brain may release more adrenaline.
Consider taking up mindfulness or meditation practices. Do things like reading, which stimulate your imagination.
Having too many things on your to-do list doesn’t make you more productive; it will make you more scattered and stressed out. Having too many priorities results in you feeling bad about yourself for not getting everything accomplished. Make self-care the top priority so that you will be around to work on the other to-do items. Learn to say no to things you can’t do or don’t want to do, both in your personal and your professional life.
Don’t try to do everything yourself. Learn to accept help. Make time for positive people in your life. Humans are inherently social animals, and we need connections with others. Becoming lonely will drain you of resources you have to cope with stress. If you don’t have friends in your life, make them. If the people in your life are adding to your stress, either get them out of your life or spend some time working on that relationship. Remember, you are not the Lone Ranger, and even he had a constant friend to help him.
If stress is overwhelming you, reach out for help. The Counselor, Therapist, or other helping person can be just the resource you need to help you cope with your stress. Asking for help from a professional does not mean you failed; it means you’re smart enough to know when to reach out for help.
Other counselorssoapbox posts on this topic are at Stress.
Recommended Mental Health Books
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Staying connected with David Joel Miller
Seven David Joel Miller Books are available now!
My newest book is now available. It was my opportunity to try on a new genre. I’ve been working on this book for several years, but now seems like the right time to publish it.
Story Bureau is a thrilling Dystopian Post-Apocalyptic adventure in the Surviving the Apocalypse series.
Baldwin struggles to survive life in a post-apocalyptic world where the government controls everything.
As society collapses and his family gets plunged into poverty, Baldwin takes a job in the capital city, working for a government agency called the Story Bureau. He discovers the Story Bureau is not a benign news outlet but a sinister government plot to manipulate society.
Bumps on the Road of Life. Whether you struggle with anxiety, depression, low motivation, or addiction, you can recover. Bumps on the Road of Life is the story of how people get off track and how to get their lives out of the ditch.
Dark Family Secrets: Doris wants to get her life back, but small-town prejudice could shatter her dreams.
Casino Robbery Arthur Mitchell escapes the trauma of watching his girlfriend die. But the killers know he’s a witness and want him dead.
Planned Accidents The second Arthur Mitchell and Plutus mystery.
Letters from the Dead: The third in the Arthur Mitchell mystery series.
What would you do if you found a letter to a detective describing a crime, and you knew the writer and detective were dead, and you could be next?
Sasquatch. Three things about us, you should know. One, we have seen the past. Two, we’re trapped there. Three, I don’t know if we’ll ever get back to our own time.
For these and my upcoming books, please visit my Author Page – David Joel Miller
Want the latest blog posts as they publish? Subscribe to this blog.
For videos, see: Counselorssoapbox YouTube Video Channel
Focus.
Sunday Inspiration. Post by David Joel Miller.
Focus.
Photo courtesy of Pixabay.com
“Lack of direction, not lack of time, is the problem. We all have twenty-four hour days.”
― Zig Ziglar
“Focusing is about saying No.”
― Steve Jobs
“Always focus on the front windshield and not the review mirror.”
― Colin Powell
Wanted to share some inspirational quotes with you. Today seemed like a good time to do this. There are an estimated 100,000 words in the English language that are feelings related. Some emotions are pleasant, and some are unpleasant, but all feelings can prove useful information. If any of these quotes strike a chord with you, please share them.
Look at these related posts for more on this topic and other feelings.
Alcohol #18. Treating alcohol use disorders
This video describes briefly some of the considerations when the client enters a drug or alcohol treatment program. How do people recover from alcoholism? What are the stages of change? Alcoholism is a chronic disease. How to screen for alcohol use disorders. Brief alcoholism interventions and when someone needs medical attention before entering a treatment program.
Today September 11th – Dark Family secrets – Kindle edition will be free on Amazon.
What if your family secrets put you in danger?
Some family secrets can be deadly.
Doris Jones formally Doris Barnes desperate for a job moves back to her father’s hometown to take a teaching job at the high school. Doris discovers her family has dark secrets. Some people hate her because of her family and others want to harm her.
Alcoholism and other dysfunction change the functioning of the family. Some families develop specific roles for family members. People who grow up in a dysfunctional family may develop specific characteristics and are sometimes called “adult children of alcoholics.” Increasing their resiliency is important for people who have grown up in a dysfunctional family.
By David Joel Miller, MS, Licensed Therapist & Licensed Counselor.
Stress.
Photo courtesy of Pixabay.com
Everyone feels stressed from time to time, but some people experience more stress than they’re able to handle.
Stress is the body’s efforts to prepare for needed effort. Two things will determine how stress affects you. How you initially handle stress is critical. Some people may be able to handle physical stress easily, but not mental stress. You may not be able to manage financial stress equally to the way you handle emotional stress.
Athletes who train every day may recover from physical stress relatively quickly. If you’re one of those people who rarely exercise, doing something physically strenuous on the weekend may require several days for you to recover.
Moving from one house to another may be stressful until you have settled into the new home. Starting a new job can also be stressful. Being unemployed and homeless can remain stressful for a very long time.
Everyday stresses could be things such as getting ready and going to work every morning or getting the kids off to school. Most jobs involve routine stress. Extraordinary types of stress include such things as a death in the family, losing a job, or working at a job that has frequent episodes of high pressure.
Experiencing a traumatic stressor can result in several types of mental illness. After experiencing a sudden traumatic stressor, some people experience a short bout of Acute Stress Disorder. If the impairment from the stressor does not remit, it may become Posttraumatic Stress Disorder.
Job burnout is the result of high levels of stress over a long period, which results in a person feeling both physically and emotionally exhausted and not being able to recover during their time of duty.
Physically stressing your muscles can increase your strength and abilities. Mental stress can lead to learning and creativity. Happy events can sometimes be extremely stressful. Interviewing for a job, starting a new job, getting married, or the birth of a child can all be stressful events. What’s important is to give yourself time to rest after the stressful events. Stress only becomes bad when it exceeds your abilities, continues to long, or is traumatic.
Your automobile should be capable of rapid acceleration or high speeds on occasion. Run your car too many miles at high speed, and eventually something will break. While humans are not machines, the same principle applies. Living life with too much stress can eventually overwhelm you.
Good self-care can reduce the impact of the stresses you experience. Good self-care does not necessarily mean doing nothing or vegetating on the couch all weekend. Varying your activities can reduce the impact of chronic stress.
High levels of long-term stress are unhealthy. Continuing to mentally hold onto stress after the event will also damage your physical health. Excess stress can impair your sleep and appetite. Difficulty falling asleep, called sleep latency, is the result of ruminating about the thing that is stressing you. Chronic or excessive stress can also impair your immune system making you more susceptible to illness and infections.
You may experience excess stress in your body. Headaches, nausea, insomnia, and changes in appetite can all be symptoms of excess stress. Too much stress may also lead to irritability, anger, and sadness. Ultimately stress can lead to developing a mental illness such as an anxiety disorder or depression.
Many people feel that stress is just a part of modern life, and they try to tough it out for as long as possible. Failing to manage stress can lead to physical and emotional illnesses, job burnout, and even permanent disabilities. There are things you can do to reduce the impact of stress on your life. In my next post in this series, I want to tell you about ways that you can manage stress and reduce its impact on your life.
Here are some resources for more about stress and stress management.
The National Institute of Mental Health has a handy brochure on stress and managing it.
Other counselorssoapbox posts on this topic are at Stress.
Staying connected with David Joel Miller
Seven David Joel Miller Books are available now!
My newest book is now available. It was my opportunity to try on a new genre. I’ve been working on this book for several years, but now seem like the right time to publish it.
Story Bureau is a thrilling Dystopian Post-Apocalyptic adventure in the Surviving the Apocalypse series.
Baldwin struggles to survive life in a post-apocalyptic world where the government controls everything.
As society collapses and his family gets plunged into poverty, Baldwin takes a job in the capital city, working for a government agency called the Story Bureau. He discovers the Story Bureau is not a benign news outlet but a sinister government plot to manipulate society.
Bumps on the Road of Life. Whether you struggle with anxiety, depression, low motivation, or addiction, you can recover. Bumps on the Road of Life is the story of how people get off track and how to get your life out of the ditch.
Dark Family Secrets: Doris wants to get her life back, but small-town prejudice could shatter her dreams.
Casino Robbery Arthur Mitchell escapes the trauma of watching his girlfriend die. But the killers know he’s a witness and want him dead.
Planned Accidents The second Arthur Mitchell and Plutus mystery.
Letters from the Dead: The third in the Arthur Mitchell mystery series.
What would you do if you found a letter to a detective describing a crime and you knew the writer and detective were dead, and you could be next?
Sasquatch. Three things about us, you should know. One, we have seen the past. Two, we’re trapped there. Three, I don’t know if we’ll ever get back to our own time.
For these and my upcoming books; please visit my Author Page – David Joel Miller
Want the latest blog posts as they publish? Subscribe to this blog.
For videos, see: Counselorssoapbox YouTube Video Channel
Effectiveness.
Effectiveness.
Photo courtesy of Pixabay.com
Sunday Inspiration. Post by David Joel Miller.
“The human race has only one really effective weapon and that is laughter.”
― Mark Twain
“Those who love peace must learn to organize as effectively as those who love war.”
― Martin Luther King Jr.
“Know the rules well, so you can break them effectively.”
― The Dalai Lama
Wanted to share some inspirational quotes with you. Today seemed like a good time to do this. There are an estimated 100,000 words in the English language that are feelings related. Some emotions are pleasant, and some are unpleasant, but all feelings can prove useful information. If any of these quotes strike a chord with you, please share them.
Look at these related posts for more on this topic and other feelings.
Today August 7th – Sasquatch Attacks – Kindle edition will be free on Amazon.
Wandering through a hole in time they encounter Sasquatch. Can they survive?
The guests had come to Meditation Mountain to find themselves. Trapped in the Menhirs during a sudden desert storm, two guest moves through a porthole in time and encounter long extinct monsters. They want to get back to their own time but the Sasquatch wants to kill them.
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