Individual Counseling

Individual counseling is a key to addiction recovery. Even before a patient arrives at Caron Texas, he or she has been assigned an individual addiction counselor who greets the patient and family at admissions. The role of this counselor is not only to counsel the patient on chemical dependency issues, but also work with the patient to create an individualized treatment plan, and coordinate all care with other substance abuse recovery professionals. 

During individual addiction counseling sessions, patients are given the support, encouragement and motivation they need to stay clean and sober. The goal of these personalized counseling sessions is to provide a safe environment to identify and explore issues that may be obstacles to their recovery. These blocks to recovery may include co-occurring conditions and cross-addictions. During a patient’s stay at Caron Texas, the frequency of individual counseling sessions vary based on a patient’s substance abuse treatment needs. 

In addition to the individual counseling treatment sessions, the counselor is also involved with some of the patient’s group addiction counseling sessions to observe the interaction with other members of the group. In addition to the group counseling staff, the patient’s individual counselor also communicates with other Caron addiction professional staff members who are involved in the patient’s care, updating and being updated on patient’s actions and responses to their individual treatment plan.

Because there are so many facets of care, the individual counselor fills the role of master coordinator during the patient’s stay at Caron Texas and assists in coordination of every aspect of the patient’s individual care. For instance, if the patient has a food allergy, the dietician will be contacted; an eating disorder will require a referral to the psychologist; a need for medications during rehab will involve a psychiatrist referral. With the patient’s permission, the individual counselor also will be the person who contacts the patient’s family to discuss important issues or scenarios.

The counselor also will be the person who maintains contact with the professionals who refer patients such as lawyers, psychologists, medical doctors, and other professionals who know the patient and most likely will be working with the patient when they leave treatment. The goal is a seamless flow of information into treatment and then treatment back to the patient’s home environment.

The American Psychological Association has established practice guidelines that stress the importance of counseling in addiction treatment programs. Recognizing the integral role of counselors in the patient’s recovery process, Caron Texas has a counselor-to-patient ratio of one to five. Among alcohol treatment and drug rehabilitation centers, this is considered a very beneficial ratio for personalized treatment and recovery.