By George A. Gonzalez, PhD, LMFT-S
Drug and alcohol problems affect individuals, families, relationships, workplaces, and communities. Yet one of the greatest barriers to recovery is the belief that a person should simply be able to stop using through determination or willpower.
Substance-use problems are often far more complicated. They may involve physical dependence, psychological distress, trauma, family and relationship difficulties, environmental pressures, learned behaviors, and powerful patterns of substance use that become increasingly difficult to change without professional help.
For these reasons, seeking treatment should not be viewed as weakness. Recognizing that help is needed can be an important step toward reclaiming one’s health, relationships, stability, dignity, and future.
Substance Use Affects More Than the Individual
Problematic alcohol or drug use rarely affects only the person using the substance. Its consequences may gradually extend into marriage, parenting, employment, finances, friendships, physical health, and emotional well-being.
Families may experience broken promises, mistrust, arguments, financial difficulties, fear, or uncertainty about what will happen next. Spouses and family members may find themselves repeatedly responding to crises or trying to protect their loved one from the consequences of substance use.
Over time, an entire family can begin organizing its life around the substance-use problem.
Treatment therefore involves more than telling someone to “just stop.” Effective recovery requires understanding what sustains the behavior and helping the individual develop healthier ways of coping, relating, making decisions, and living.
Why Professional Treatment Matters
People develop problems with drugs and alcohol for different reasons. Some begin using socially and gradually lose control. Others may use substances to cope with stress, loneliness, trauma, anxiety, depression, grief, relationship problems, or other emotional difficulties.
For still others, genetic, social, environmental, and behavioral factors may interact.
Professional treatment can help identify these underlying issues and develop an individualized plan for recovery.
Depending upon a person’s needs, treatment may include:
- Individual counseling and psychotherapy
- Substance-use counseling
- Motivational interviewing
- Cognitive and behavioral interventions
- Couples and family counseling
- Relapse-prevention planning
- Recovery-oriented support
- Case-management and community-resource coordination
- Treatment for co-occurring mental-health concerns
- Coordination with medical or psychiatric professionals
- Referral to detoxification, residential treatment, or another level of care when clinically necessary
No single treatment approach is appropriate for everyone. Good treatment begins by understanding the individual rather than simply treating the substance.
Recovery Is More Than Abstinence
Stopping harmful alcohol or drug use may be an essential goal, but lasting recovery often involves much more.
Recovery may require rebuilding relationships, restoring trust, developing healthier coping strategies, addressing trauma or emotional difficulties, establishing new routines, finding supportive relationships, and rediscovering meaning and purpose.
Relapse can also occur. When it does, it should not automatically be interpreted as proof that treatment has failed. Instead, it may indicate that the treatment and recovery plan needs to be reassessed, strengthened, or adjusted.
The goal is not merely to stop using a substance. The broader goal is to help the individual develop a healthier and more sustainable life.
Do Not Wait for Everything to Fall Apart
People sometimes postpone treatment because they believe their problem is “not bad enough.”
They may say, “I still have my job,” “I have never been arrested,” “My family hasn’t left me,” or “I can stop whenever I want.”
Treatment does not have to begin only after a major crisis.
If alcohol or drugs are interfering with your health, relationships, responsibilities, judgment, finances, emotional well-being, or ability to live the life you want, it may be time to speak with a professional.
Recovery often begins with a difficult but important decision: acknowledging that something needs to change and becoming willing to accept help.
How DelMar Can Help
At DelMar Behavioral Health & Recovery, we understand that substance use rarely exists in isolation. Alcohol and drug problems may be connected to mental health, trauma, relationships, family circumstances, stress, grief, and other challenges.
Depending on individual needs, location, clinical appropriateness, and service availability, DelMar can provide or coordinate:
- Substance-use counseling
- Mental-health assessment and psychotherapy
- Individual counseling
- Couples and family counseling
- Treatment for anxiety, depression, trauma, grief, and related concerns
- Support for co-occurring mental-health and substance-use concerns
- Motivational interviewing and behavioral interventions
- Relapse-prevention planning
- Recovery-oriented support
- Telehealth services
- Coordination with medical, psychiatric, and community providers when appropriate
- Referral to higher levels of care when clinically necessary
DelMar is also developing expanded outpatient substance-use treatment, Intensive Outpatient Program (IOP), and recovery-support services in selected jurisdictions. Services requiring state facility or program licensure will begin only after applicable state authorization has been obtained.
Take the First Step with DelMar
You do not have to face a drug or alcohol problem alone.
Whether you are concerned about your own substance use or worried about someone you love, DelMar Behavioral Health & Recovery can help you explore the next appropriate step.
Contact DelMar today to begin the conversation.
DelMar Behavioral Health & Recovery
Phone: 302-437-6742
Email: contact@delmarbhr.com
Serving clients in Delaware, Maine, Maryland, New Jersey and Texas, with telehealth available where clinically appropriate and legally authorized.
Recovery can begin with one conversation. Contact DelMar and take the first step today.
Important Safety Information
This article is provided for general educational and informational purposes only. It is not intended to diagnose a substance-use disorder or any other condition, establish a therapist-client relationship, or replace individualized medical, psychiatric, substance-use, or mental-health evaluation and treatment.
If you or someone else is in immediate danger, experiencing a medical emergency, has overdosed or may have overdosed, call 911 or go to the nearest emergency department.
If you are experiencing suicidal thoughts, thoughts of self-harm, or a mental-health crisis, call or text 988 to reach the Suicide & Crisis Lifeline in the United States. If there is an immediate threat to life or safety, call 911.
Do not abruptly stop alcohol or other substances when significant physical dependence may be present without appropriate medical guidance. Withdrawal from alcohol and certain drugs can be medically serious and, in some circumstances, life-threatening. Medical evaluation or an appropriate withdrawal-management/detoxification service may be necessary.
DelMar Behavioral Health & Recovery does not provide emergency services through its website, email, or routine telephone messaging. Do not use these communication methods for an emergency or time-sensitive crisis.
About the Author
George A. Gonzalez, PhD, LMFT-S, is an experienced behavioral-health professional whose career in counseling and psychotherapy spans more than three decades. His professional experience includes psychotherapy, marriage and family therapy, addiction counseling, pastoral counseling, clinical supervision, and behavioral-health services.
Dr. Gonzalez is a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist-Supervisor (LMFT-S) in Texas, License No. 2630. He also holds multiple professional credentials in Maine, including Clinical Professional Counselor (CC342), Professional Counselor (PC466), Marriage & Family Therapist (MF467), and Pastoral Counselor (LP269).
His clinical work reflects an integrated approach to behavioral health that recognizes the connections among substance use, mental health, relationships, family systems, personal values, and the broader circumstances of a person’s life.
Dr. Gonzalez provides behavioral-health services through DelMar Behavioral Health & Recovery within the scope of his applicable professional licenses and credentials.
