The Future of Nursing
QUESTION
Reflecting on the various theoretical approaches to understanding addiction, what is the most effective approach to treatment? Is there a universal strategy for addiction counseling? Is the efficacy of various approaches to addiction counseling dependent on the specific drug or the individual situation? Share your rationale.
The Future of Nursing
ANSWER
The Future of Nursing
Introduction
Addiction is the incapacity to avoid using a substance or practicing a behavior even if it causes mental and physical harm (Peckham, 2021). Various theories have been used to explain this condition. These are the genetic theory that explains that children can inherit addiction from parents, the exposure theory that explains that indulging in the use of a substance repeatedly leads to addiction, and the adaptation theory focuses on mental, environmental, and social factors causing addiction.
Most effective approach to treating addiction.
There are different approaches to addiction. Cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT), motivational interviewing, contingency management (CM), and brief interventions. The most effective approach to treating addiction is cognitive-behavioral therapy because it is believed to stop various addictions, such as addictions to food, alcohol, and prescription drugs. This approach helps addicts realize their unhealthy behaviors, identify influencers to such behaviors and develop management skills (Underwood, 2020).
Universal strategy for addiction counselling
A universal strategy that counselors must use to help patients stop addiction. It is made up of 12 steps, right from defining the patient’s addiction, whether it is recreational or abusive, determining the method of treatment to use, interacting with the patient through the process until they finally recover.
Rationale on whether the efficacy of addiction counseling depends on the specific drug or individual situation
An individual’s situation is an essential determinant of the efficacy of addiction counseling. The level of substance use disorder determines how quickly a patient is likely to recover from it, such that patients with mild SID recover quicker than those whose levels are severe (Resources, 2016). Also, the type of drug determines how fast one recovers from addiction depending on the drug’s impacts, mainly on mental health. For instance, alcohol only has mild effects on one’s mental health, unlike marijuana, and it is easier to recover from alcohol addiction than marijuana addiction.