For those who struggle with Alcohol Use Disorder (AUD), achieving recovery can be challenging, especially without support or the proper systems needed to succeed. Fortunately, Treatment Professionals aim to equip their clients with the tools necessary to make recovery achievable and help them reach the ultimate goal of obtaining and sustaining long-term sobriety. Most Treatment Professionals want long-standing sobriety to be the rule when treating clients, not the exception for AUD recovery. Meaning, many clinicians hope to implement systems that ensure lasting recovery, not just a temporary treatment plan.
Through their past successes, the methods used to help those with AUD sustain their recovery by Licensed Professional Programs have proven to be both accessible and achievable. Therefore, modeling their practices after Licensed Professional Programs can be beneficial for Treatment Professionals. If Treatment Professionals implemented similar systems, it could be both lifesaving and assist their clients in achieving the ultimate goal of long-standing sobriety.
What are Licensed Professional Programs?
Licensed Professional Programs were initially created by physicians for physicians to support those in their particular field of medicine who struggled with alcoholism while additionally assisting them in achieving positive mental health. These programs have been used in career fields where there is a high risk of AUD, like aviation, medicine, and more recently, law.
Licensed Professional Programs utilize a methodology that focuses on long-term sobriety for those with AUD. In a 2008 study titled, “Five year outcomes in a cohort study of physicians treated for Substance Use Disorders in the United States,” researchers found that by detecting substance abuse issues early, and properly monitoring and treating the disorder for an extended amount of time, not just 30 to 60 days like most treatment programs, 79 percent of professionals refrained from using and only 21 percent had any sort of relapse. After these physicians had been studied and monitored for five years, it was clear that long-standing recovery comes with long-standing treatment.
Why are Licensed Professional Programs Successful?
Licensed Professional Programs have succeeded by implementing this strategy that focuses on long-standing sobriety known as the New Paradigm for Recovery. This methodology approaches AUD differently than other alcohol recovery systems. Instead of a quick or immediate fix, the New Paradigm focuses on long-term care and recovery of those with AUD, similar to how professionals approach chronic illnesses like diabetes.
Mirroring treatment plans of those who struggle with other chronic illnesses, the New Paradigm for Recovery begins with an individual assessment of the patient that leads into a signed agreement between the patient and someone in their Recovery Circle, like a Treatment Professional. Signing this agreement and establishing expectations helps keep one aiming for recovery accountable as they have a list of guidelines they must follow while reaching for their specific client-centered goals.
Contingent on the agreement, the individual in recovery agrees to alcohol monitoring, using a system like Soberlink to detect any breach in their sobriety. Utilizing an alcohol testing device, like Soberlink, helps keep a client’s accountability private in public settings while keeping their Treatment Professional and others in their Support Network aware of their progress.
In addition, the clients are also encouraged, and sometimes required, to continue to attend support groups like AA to continue to manage their sobriety. The New Paradigm focuses on sustaining sobriety by implementing systems like AA that are known to assist in long-term recovery and aid against a possible alcohol relapse.
How Treatment Professionals Can Successfully Model Licensed Professional Programs
By utilizing similar systems and guidelines as Licensed Professional Programs, Treatment Professionals can gain comparable results. To do so, they must use the steps of the New Paradigm for Recovery when treating their clients.
Mutual Agreement
First, it is essential to set up long-term goals and expectations with one’s client. This creates a system that feels rewarding for the person in recovery. With an agreement comes possible consequences, which encourages those aiming for recovery not to break their arranged contract and achieve their personal goals.
Monitoring Systems
The second step to modeling treatment of Licensed Professional Programs is implementing a monitoring system like Soberlink. Utilizing a tool that is easy and discreet to use, like Soberlink’s remote breathalyzer, helps those in recovery stay accountable while allowing them to monitor their sobriety in a way that makes them feel comfortable and autonomous.
Group Accountability
Long-standing sobriety is easier to achieve when those in recovery surround themselves with a supportive Recovery Circle. Attending AA meetings and remaining open and honest about their sobriety with those who support them in recovery can help them maintain their sobriety long-term.
Conclusion
The success of the New Paradigm Recovery methodology in Licensed Professional Programs has proven that, with constant support and long-term care, sustained sobriety can become the expectation for those pursuing recovery.
When Treatment Professionals use these steps and tools that have provided those with AUD in these programs with longevity in their recovery, they can make long-standing sobriety more than just an ambition, but instead, a reality for their clients.