Misunderstanding Addiction: Overcoming Myth, Mysticism, and Misdirection in the Addictions Treatment IndustryIf one tries to imagine the amounts of money that have been spent by federal and state governments, coupled with what has been spent by private citizens in battling substance abuse over the last thirty years, it would amount to an almost unimaginable figure. There have been many books written that offer criticism regarding the traditional twelve-step treatment approaches to addiction. The problem has been that most of these efforts have failed to offer a viable alternative to traditional treatment. Those that have attempted to do so have merely suggested that singular treatment strategies, such as Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, Psychodynamic Therapy, Gestalt Therapy, etc., should be implemented in conjunction with traditional treatment. Misunderstanding Addiction outlines a more holistic treatment method that can be implemented in a variety of environmental contexts that do not require patients to be institutionalized for them to be effective. Misunderstanding Addiction has the potential to radically alter the way that addictions are treated in this country. At a time when healthcare is foremost in the thoughts of our nation's citizens, Misunderstanding Addiction offers a timely and important look at how addiction treatment should be undertaken now and in the future to ensure an effective outcome for the patient. |
Contents
Acknowledgments | |
The Creation of a Mythical Disease | |
Misapplication of the Medical Model | |
Indoctrination Not Treatment | |
Unqualified People Doing Very Bad Things | |
Failure to Operationally Define Addiction | |
The Myth of Dual Diagnosis | |
Understanding Psychological Dependence | |
The Scylla and Charybdis of Twelvestep Treatment | |
Treatment Goals | |
Treatment Perspective and Technique | |