Group Counseling

Group Counseling

Introduction

Group counseling is a valuable approach adopted by a group of people to mutually accomplish the communally beneficial goals and purposes. It is important that in group counseling the group leader identifies the potency and power of the group. People in the group together can utilize the appropriate skills during the counseling to dig out productive and innovative ways of the discussion and run a smooth and effective counseling.

Session 1 - Open Group Counseling for Substance Abuse

All across the globe addiction is a very serious problem. As the substance abuse is identified in many sizes and shapes, the group counseling options for substance abuse should be equally diverse.

Objective of the Counseling

The objective of this group counseling is to help people who are addicted with drugs. The objectives are met with the support and help given to these people by the group counselor to overcome the addiction.

Counseling Dynamics and Stages

The addiction of substances in quite complex but its treatment is not impossible. The most prominent damage of these drugs affects the functions and behavior of the brain. It is important to identify that no single treatment is acceptable for everyone. The treatment and counseling of the substance user varies depending upon the characteristics of the patient and the type of drugs. The first stage of the group counseling is to recognize which type of substance abuse counseling will serve best for the patients. After that the group counseling requires the counselor to inhibit the habit of listening which will enable the patients share their problem.

People caught up in such addiction usually need a shoulder to lean on where they can speak their heart out and share what make them coerce towards such lethal habit. Having someone to listen to them is the first step toward getting them out from the addiction. Group counseling is an effective medium which will enable such people meet other who have or in the past had any sort of drug addiction. In addition to this group counseling will enable them identify the life outside of drugs (Prete, 2007).

It is important to note that many sociologists like Lindesmith proposed that addiction have very strong roots and requires continuous treatment, it can reoccur anytime. Therefore to cutoff the addiction effectively continuous treatments and tolerances are the two key resolving factors.

To make the group counseling more effective it is important that the ...