Topic: assessment

It certainly makes sense that if you suffer from a major mental illness, you should stay away from pot.

Like a stroke patient who suddenly finds himself needing to relearn basic skills that were once automatic, it may require a level of personal commitment unseen for many years.

To a seasoned counselor, there’s another way to view it. For one thing, these aren’t isolated incidents.

The experience of addicts and alcoholics, particularly at the lower end of the socioeconomic scale, makes it clear that we could use more inpatient resources, not fewer.

Craving has finally been added to the symptom list. I was never entirely clear on why it wasn’t included in DSM-IV, since there’s an impressive body of research on craving measurement.

The personal story that recovering folks tell at 12 Step meetings is a reconstruction of episodic memories.

Really resistant clients are already planning to continue using alcohol or drugs throughout treatment, possibly in secret.

The principle behind most ASAM-based systems is to treat clients at the “least restrictive” level at which they can benefit.

By the time a client lands in treatment, it may be hard to tell whether their family relationships offer a potential asset or a problem set to address.

It isn’t that big a challenge; you simply add a basic questionnaire on the subject to your intake paperwork.