Engaging in Healthy Habit Formation for Sustained Recovery

As the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) notes, healthy development is an important part of early childhood and adolescence. It is during the most formative years of your life that you discover, learn, and develop the characteristics and skills that help shape who you are. Learning how to talk, read, play, and share with others is invaluable to your development. Additionally, habit formation in your early life, like nutrition, sleep, hygiene, and physical activity, is also foundational to your well-being. Therefore, addressing the impact addiction has had on your habits is important for supporting the development of healthy habit formation in recovery.

At Driftwood Recovery, we know life is lived in the details. Thus, support does not start and end with abstinence. Sustained recovery is also about the little things; those everyday routines that help you build a new way of life. Forming healthy habits and building sustainable routines for your health and well-being does not happen overnight. Healthy habit formation requires daily practice and a commitment to active engagement with yourself and others.

Yet, you may question how to recognize unhealthy habits in your life. Thus, expanding your understanding of habit formation is vital to learning how to build healthy habits in recovery.

What Are Habits?

In general, habits are any type of behavior you repeat regularly with little or no thought. Moreover, habits are not innate but rather learned behaviors. Thus, a habit can be a part of any activity, like eating, sleeping, or even how you think. Yet, why do people form habits? According to Biological Psychiatry, habits have a critical purpose to make your behaviors more efficient and reduce decision burden. Your daily life is filled with countless decisions as simple as picking out a loaf of bread at the grocery store to as complex as navigating your health insurance plan. 

Decision burden or fatigue eats away at your willpower, which can contribute to ineffective decision-making, procrastination, and avoidance. Thus, habit formation can help free up mental and emotional energy to address more demanding tasks. However, habit formation can be upsetting when it feels impossible to kick unhealthy or frustrating habits like drinking too much coffee or biting your nails. Therefore, understanding the psychology of habit formation is important to dismantling unhealthy habit formation.

Understanding Habit Formation

Habit formation typically starts as an external response before it gets internalized as an involuntary action. Behaviors are often divided into two systems: goal-directed behaviors and habit-based behaviors. One of the major differences between goal-directed and habit-based behaviors is their driving force. Goal-directed behaviors are driven by their consequences. With goal-directed behaviors, flexibility is necessary to process information about your external environment and how your actions impact it. 

As a result, you make choices about your actions based on the consequences that could come from those actions. On the other hand, habit-based behaviors are driven by their situations with less flexibility. Yet, when is a behavior goal-directed, and when is a behavior habit-based? There are different models of understanding for the root of goal-directed and habit-based behaviors. Regardless of the model of development, habit formation is tied to the brain’s reward system, which is an important system for addiction. 

Relationship Between Habits and Addiction

The Dialogues in Clinical Neuroscience notes that understanding potential dysfunction for habit formation in the brain can uncover overly fixed behaviors in certain disorders. Disorders like obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD), autism spectrum disorder (ASD), and substance use disorder (SUD) have features of overly fixed behaviors. However, addiction indicates changes in brain activity across different brain regions due to SUD. The brain changes that accompany SUD can contribute to functional impairment and the failure of motivational, homeostatic, and impulse-control systems.

Further, the failure of motivational, homeostatic, and impulse-control systems are all potential routes to compulsive, unhealthy behavioral patterns. It is important to note that habit formation and addiction are not the same thing; rather, they share similarities and overlap with each other. For instance, habits and addiction use the reward system, but you typically have control over habits, while addiction is the loss of control. Habits can eventually cross over to addiction when you feel unable to control your use despite the consequences. Although habit formation does not equal addiction or relapse, unhealthy habits can be detrimental to your psychological well-being. Thus, poor mental health can contribute to a negative outlook and increase your risk of relapse. 

Building Healthy Habit Formation in Recovery

You are not expected to be perfect, but replacing unhealthy habits with healthy ones is vital to healing in mind, body, and spirit. Listed below are some ways you can  stop seeking comfort and an escape from unhealthy habits and build healthy habit formation:

• Start small 
• Practice mindfulness
• Eat nutritious foods
• Build an eating schedule
• Hydrate
• Track your progress
• Engage in regular physical activity
  • Go on walks
  • Exercise classes
  • Biking
  • Gardening
  • Sports
• Get plenty of sleep
• Build a sleep routine
  • Limit caffeine and screen time
  • Meditate
  • Journal
  • Read
• Nurture your interests
  • Hobbies
  • Volunteer
  • Take classes
  • Join a club
• Reach out for support
  • Spend time with loved ones
  • Sober activities and events
  • Counseling
• Give yourself grace

With healthier habits, you can continue to develop tools for adaptive coping to thrive in recovery.

Alumni Support: Fostering Healthy Habit Formation at Driftwood Recovery

At Driftwood Recovery, we offer resources and services to help you maintain healthy lifestyle changes in recovery. Our dedication to an active and vibrant alumni program is built on our belief in the power of continuing care. Much like life itself, recovery has successes and setbacks that attempt to hinder your recovery. Therefore, you deserve a community of support, resources, accountability, and guidance to cheer you on at every stage. No matter where you are on your journey, our alumni services remind you that you are not alone and you can truly live a courageous life in recovery.

Understanding the process of habit formation is invaluable to dismantling unhealthy habits in recovery. Addiction typically includes habitable behaviors that contribute to impaired functioning and the failure of motivational and impulse control systems. Although addiction and habits share similarities and overlap with each other, habits can be controlled. Yet, not only can unhealthy habits become addictions, but they can harm your psychological health and increase your risk for relapse. Therefore, at Driftwood Recovery, we are dedicated to helping you build healthy habits like hobbies, quality sleep, and connections to thrive in recovery. With access to support, resources, and guidance, you can continue to build and maintain healthy lifestyle choices. Call us at (512) 759-8330 to learn about our alumni program.

Motivational interviewing can be an essential form of assistance to those recovering from addiction or other mental health conditions. It’s difficult to self-motivate, especially when you feel like you can’t make meaningful changes. Self-motivation, however, is a skill that anyone can learn and practice with assistance. This is especially true when a professional can help you bolster your confidence and self-esteem.

That’s why motivational interviewing is used at Driftwood Recovery to assist in recovery. It’s particularly useful for those who are struggling with the concept of change itself. This is either because they are afraid of change, don’t understand the value of change, or need help accepting change. Change can be scary, especially when you feel powerless in the face of addiction. Utilizing motivational interviewing returns power to the individual, which allows you to face treatment with the courage to change.

Motivational interviewing on paper sounds straightforward, but there are important distinctions that set it apart from simple talking. Understanding what makes this technique so flexible and distinct can help you prepare to engage with this essential technique. 

A Basic Overview of Motivational Interviewing

Motivational interviewing is similar to psychotherapy, or “talk” therapy, where a treatment provider and a client sit together to talk. The goal of this is to, at its core, facilitate healthy life changes. This could mean many things, such as identifying the cause of why you may be reluctant to make changes, to creating goals. For the most part, you will talk while your provider listens. 

The role of the provider is to allow you to come to conclusions and gain insight yourself. They may guide and help through techniques like asking open questions or affirming your efforts. The provider will not, however, give you unsolicited advice, instructions, or warnings. Think of it as a guided style of communication to allows you to empower yourself. The provider is here to help you, but many revelations come about through personal introspection and reflection. 

Motivational interviewing is often used in addiction treatment, but it’s also commonly used by those with chronic health conditions that require life changes to be made. A good example of which is diabetes. This technique not only empowers people to make changes, but it also reduces the pain and fear of doing so. Part of self-motivation is also finding your inner courage and self-love. Motivational interviewing is often used to prepare you for other, more specific forms of therapy.

How Can Motivational Interviewing Help Me Meet My Goals?

Motivational interviewing helps you find insight about yourself that can prevent you from making and meeting goals in recovery. Some of the questions that motivational interviewing encourages you to ask yourself are:

• Why am I afraid of making changes?
• Am I afraid of change, or am I engaging in active self-sabotage? 
• Is there something in my past that is holding me back from making changes?
• Do I feel ready to make changes, and if so, what will it take for me to be ready?
• Is there a toxic influence in my life that is encouraging me not to make healthy changes?

Once you can address these questions, it’s time to formulate some goals. At this time, your provider can help you make these goals, should you need help. Now, it’s creating steps to help you meet your goals. It’s important not to set goals that are too “big” at first. Big goals take time to meet, and failure can be demoralizing. Instead, you can break down a big goal into smaller goals or steps. By utilizing this method, change feels less scary and more approachable.

The Driftwood Recovery Approach

Choosing Driftwood Recovery means choosing a treatment facility that values understanding, compassion, and healing. These values are a core part of all treatment at Driftwood Recovery, ensuring that each client will leave treatment as healthier and happier individuals. Motivational interviewing is no different, as it is a tool often used to empower and uplift those who need it. 

For example, removing toxic people from your life is an essential step for lasting recovery. However, taking this step can be very difficult, and many are reluctant to make this change. Driftwood Recovery will use motivational interviewing to help you identify the underlying reluctance that prevents you from making this change. Then, you find reasons to self-motivate to fuel the change. 

In this example, a person may be afraid to cut out a toxic individual because they fear being alone. They may have formed a co-dependent relationship and don’t know how to break free. Discovering this through motivational interviewing allows this individual to get further help to remove this toxicity. Then, it’s building them up by helping them establish a sense of self-love and courage. They will learn that they, much like you, deserve healthy and loving relationships. This empowers them to make the change to forge new friendships with people who care about them. As such, great personal changes are made that help ensure lasting recovery. 

Having a robust and comprehensive individualized treatment plan for each client means that motivational interviewing can easily complement other therapies as needed. Not everyone will need motivational interviewing, especially if they are self-driven enough. But for those who need extra help in meeting their goals, it’s an established and helpful tool to facilitate real and lasting changes – changes that can change your life, as long as you are willing to accept the help to make. 

If you are having difficulty finding the motivation to make healthy life changes, motivational interviewing can help. Being able to self-motivate is critical when tackling serious issues like addiction and other mental health conditions. However, self-motivation is a skill that needs to be learned and practiced. That’s why at Driftwood Recovery in Driftwood and Austin, Texas, clients gain the opportunity to take a look at themselves through motivational interviewing. Utilizing techniques such as motivational interviewing allows you and your loved ones who are struggling to achieve a successful recovery when part of a comprehensive treatment plan. If you are finding it difficult to take the first step toward recovery, don’t wait. Call (512) 759-8330 today.

Many people working in healthcare have an abundance of compassion and empathy for individuals struggling with addiction or mental health disorders. Professionals work every day to ensure clients feel safe, comfortable, and have their needs met. Driftwood Recovery encourages staff to treat clients like part of the family. Balancing compassion and professionalism allows clinicians to improve treatment outcomes and build stronger relationships with clients. Setting clear boundaries ensures clinicians and clients have a positive experience. 

Balancing Compassion and Professionalism With Clients

Addiction and mental health experts work with clients from all backgrounds and lifestyles. Staff must balance compassion and professionalism to connect on a deeper level with clients while providing the best care. Healthcare workers engage with clients in many ways, including through kindness, appropriate humor, validation of feelings, and emotional support. 

A few of the ways healthcare workers balance compassion, empathy, and professionalism include: 

• Practicing active listening 
• Maintaining emotional boundaries 
• Using clear and respectful communication 
• Validating client experiences 
• Staying present during every client interaction 
• Offering reassurances without overpromising 
• Continuously reflecting on and recognizing personal bias 
• Practicing self-care and modeling healthy behaviors
• Adapting to client needs and preferences 
• Following ethical guidelines to ensure clients receive the best care

Studies have shown that “[e]stablishing and maintaining a successful therapeutic relationship with clients can enhance treatment engagement, participation, and outcomes.” In addition, “Building a good therapeutic relationship with clients who have [co-occurring disorders] is especially important.” People recovering from one or more medical conditions face many challenges during and after treatment. Healthcare professionals provide essential guidance and support to help clients navigate setbacks and unexpected situations. 

Empathy and Professional Boundaries Enhance the Treatment Experience

Treating medical conditions may cause additional stress for both clients and clinicians. Staff at Driftwood Recovery enhance the treatment experience by developing genuine bonds with clients during the recovery process. Empathy, compassion, and professionalism create a welcoming and supportive environment where clients feel heard and clinicians experience less stress and pressure. 

Balancing empathy and professionalism benefits clients and clinicians by doing the following: 

• Creating a trust-based, healing environment 
• Encouraging honest and open communication 
• Reducing emotional fatigue 
• Enhancing treatment adherence
• Fostering mutual respect between clients and clinicians 
• Minimizing conflict and misunderstandings
• Supporting ethical decision-making 
• Improving workplace morale and teamwork
• Encouraging personal and professional growth 
• Supporting a more inclusive healthcare experience 

An empathetic and professional approach to client care ensures every individual gets treated with fairness and compassion. Healthcare workers also significantly benefit from creating an environment that balances compassion and professional goals. Developing relationships while keeping a distance allows clinicians to help clients to the best of their abilities without experiencing emotional burnout. 

How to Utilize Empathy and Professional Boundaries in Everyday Client Interactions

Every day, people in healthcare must navigate emotionally challenging situations. Clients often experience emotionally or physically distressing events. Most people work in healthcare out of a desire to help others or provide comfort. Seeing clients hurting and being unable to provide significant relief may cause some healthcare professionals to over-empathize and go beyond their personal or professional limits. Setting clear boundaries and communicating those to clients at the start of treatment reduces the risk of unhealthy connections forming between staff and clients. 

Ensuring Clients Feel Safe and Comfortable Improves Treatment Adherence

Being transparent about professional boundaries can make clients feel more secure during rehabilitation. Individuals who feel safe and comfortable with their care team are more likely to adhere to treatment guidelines and engage more fully in programs. 

Setting professional boundaries may help clients feel safe by doing the following: 

• Creating clear expectations within the therapeutic relationship
• Preventing confusion or blurred roles between clinicians and clients 
• Creating a predictable and consistent treatment environment 
• Reducing the risk of emotional dependency 
• Creating a clear distinction between professional support and personal involvement 

Setting clear boundaries also models healthy social interactions, allowing clients to improve their communication skills and reducing the risk of relapse or complications during treatment. 

How Does Driftwood Recovery Encourage Empathy and Professional Boundaries?

Driftwood Recovery encourages empathy and professional boundaries by doing the following: 

• Training staff to actively listen and validate clients while maintaining professionalism
• Modeling compassionate communication while maintaining clear boundaries and roles
• Providing clear guidelines on staff-client interactions 
• Offering supervision and guidance for boundary setting 
• Reinforcing the importance of ethical and professional conduct with clients 

The experts at Driftwood Recovery follow strict guidelines to ensure they maintain healthy boundaries and treat clients ethically. 

Setting Up Clients for Success Without Sacrificing Emotional Wellness

Individuals working in healthcare prepare clients for success without sacrificing their emotional wellness or professionalism by setting clear limits in the client-clinician relationship. Clients benefit from being told honestly and openly how to interact with the care team to retain healthy boundaries. Driftwood Recovery teaches clients and staff to respect limits and develop professional connections. 

People working in healthcare must set clear professional boundaries to ensure they provide the best treatment to clients while protecting their own health. Some people may struggle to balance empathy and professional boundaries. Empathy is an important skill for healthcare workers. However, empathy may become maladaptive if it reaches a point where empathizing with clients obliterates professional boundaries or affects a person’s ability to do their job effectively. Finding healthy ways to maintain boundaries while practicing empathy allows clinicians to support clients without sacrificing their own well-being. Driftwood Recovery encourages staff to set clear professional boundaries to protect their work-life balance. To learn more about our policies and programs, call us today at (512) 759-8330.

According to Behavioral Neuroscience of Motivation, addiction is a syndrome of dysregulated motivation. The prevalence of malformed motivation can be seen in the sensation-seeking and impulsivity of addiction. Thus, addiction erodes your motivation to maintain other aspects of your well-being, like relationships, employment, and health, in favor of the prioritization of substance use. Without health motivation, you lack the energy to empower yourself to effect positive change in your life. Therefore, fostering self-empowerment in recovery is invaluable to cultivating the motivation to remain engaged with support resources for sustained recovery.

At Driftwood Recovery, we recognize that your ability to turn clinical insight into action requires more than abstinence. How you relate to yourself and others is fundamental to building the self-empowerment needed to effect positive change in your life. As a result, we are dedicated to providing an active alumni program to support healthy attachment with yourself and others to heal. Recovery is a dynamic process that requires more than just listening or attending meetings to be effective. To heal, actionable steps like treatment and sharing are the building blocks to self-empowerment in recovery.

Yet, you may wonder: What is self-empowerment? Are empowerment and motivation the same thing? How do you enact empowerment in your daily life to thrive?

What Is Empowerment?

As noted in “Empowerment” by Lisa M. Haddad and Tammy J. Toney-Butler, empowerment can encompass a variety of things as a process or an outcome. Broadly, community-level empowerment is the process by which people, organizations, and communities gain power. Moreover, at the community level, people unite to accomplish common goals, as two underlying assumptions must exist:

• Everyone has the potential to become empowered
• Community empowerment is born from empowered individuals who work together to achieve mutual goals

Therefore, the process of community empowerment requires the fostering of mutually supportive relationships in the community. Yet, if community empowerment requires empowered individuals, where does individual empowerment come from? Haddad and Toney-Butler note that empowerment in cognitive psychology is to enable one to act. Thus, psychological empowerment at the individual level is the link between:

• Your sense of personal control and efficacy
• A willingness to change and take action

As a result, psychological empowerment enables you to understand the relationship between your actions and their outcomes. The understanding of empowerment as the relationship between action and outcome speaks to empowerment as an intrinsic motivation. Further, the intrinsic motivation of empowerment is made up of four cognitions:

• Meaning
  • Your beliefs, values, and behaviors
• Competence
  • Sense of self-efficacy 
  • Belief in your capability to perform activities and skills
• Self-determination
  • Sense of choice in initiating and regulating your actions
• Impact
  • The degree to which you can influence outcomes in your life

Looking at the four cognitions of empowerment highlights the value of understanding self-determination to support self-empowerment in recovery.

Addressing Self-Determination in Self-Empowerment

According to the International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, self-determination theory (SDT) argues that humans are born with the tendency to pursue growth, well-being, and health. Moreover, the encouragement of self-determination in self-empowerment is built on intrinsic and extrinsic motivation:

• Intrinsic: engagement in a particular behavior for your own sake
  • Motivation for enjoyment, satisfaction, and self-interest
• Extrinsic: engagement in certain behaviors due to external outcomes
  • Monetary rewards, awards, and social recognition

Furthermore, at the core of SDT is the recognition that social environments influence your motivation through psychological needs. As stated in “Application of Self-Determination Theory to Substance Use and Its Treatment” from Substance Use and Misuse, there are three universal psychological needs:

• Competence: Feeling capable
• Autonomy: Freedom to engage in a behavior
• Relatedness: Sense of connectedness to others

Thus, the social environments that support the three psychological needs foster autonomous motivation for improved behavioral adoption and maintenance. On the other hand, social environments that undermine the three psychological needs contribute to controlled motivation, which reduces behavioral maintenance.

In treatment and recovery, self-determination is the foundation from which people have the full capacity for decision management and proceed along a continuum of shared decision-making for greater support. Along the self-determination gradient, greater support is applied to the individual needs and capacity of each person. Therefore, self-determination is a valuable tool for self-empowerment in recovery. With self-determination, you gain autonomy, agency, and choice to support learning, self-monitoring, accountability, and quality care in treatment and recovery.

How Addiction Impacts Self-Determination

Yet, addiction can erode your self-determination and thus self-empowerment in recovery. The act of addiction robs you of self-determination and empowerment as you lose your capacity to make healthy choices. At its core, addiction is a loss of control and a loss of self (to the addiction). 

In addition, the impact of addiction on self-determination and self-empowerment in recovery is particularly harmful to underserved communities. People of color and women face additional barriers to services and resources for treatment and recovery. Therefore, access to resources that support self-empowerment in recovery is invaluable to sustained recovery for the most vulnerable. 

Uncovering Self-Empowerment in Recovery

Through empowerment-based services, you can learn how to take back control of your life to thrive. However, what services and resources can support self-empowerment in recovery? Some of the tools to support empowerment include:

• Finding your passion
• Setting goals
• Skill-building
• Awareness and access to resources
• Modalities that enhance self-awareness, self-worth, and competence
• Connecting with others

The building blocks of empowerment highlight the power of education, access to resources, and supportive connections for healing.

Unlocking Self-Empowerment in Recovery at Driftwood Recovery

At Driftwood Recovery, we are dedicated to providing community-based resources in a continuum of care for sustained recovery. With a comprehensive range of community-based resources, you can continue to heal and make positive changes in your life. Through our connection-driven alumni program, you can access tools that empower you to thrive in every stage of recovery. Your alumni family is here to encourage, support, and guide you as you rebuild your confidence to lead a courageous and self-empowered life in recovery.

Empowerment exists at both the individual and community levels to make actionable changes in your life. An important element of empowerment is self-determination, which supports intrinsic and extrinsic motivation to believe in your ability to make decisions and enact control over your life choices. However, when psychological needs like competence, autonomy, and relatedness are undermined, self-determination and (thus) self-empowerment are eroded. Addiction is one of the ways your psychological needs are undermined to rob you of control and selfhood. Access to support resources is invaluable to fostering self-empowerment in recovery. At Driftwood Recovery, we are dedicated to providing connection-driven services and resources for education, skill-building, and connection with others. Call us at (512) 759-8330 today.

Eye movement desensitization and reprocessing (EMDR) therapy can be an essential therapy for those living with trauma. Trauma can be the underlying cause of many mental health conditions, such as addiction and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). When trauma lingers, it can cause a great amount of suffering in an individual. However, trauma can be difficult to treat, especially when addressing it risks re-traumatizing you. This can cause a dilemma where mental health worsens because the trauma goes unaddressed, but addressing it causes suffering. 

A lot of time and research have gone into developing trauma-focused therapies to help those living with trauma. EMDR therapy is one such therapy. It has proven to be highly effective in treating PTSD and other trauma-related disorders. Driftwood Recovery and other mental health and addiction treatment facilities use EMDR therapy, as it has been proven to be safe and effective. Specifically, it’s found its greatest use in addressing trauma without re-traumatizing the individual. 

What Exactly Is EMDR Therapy?

EMDR therapy works by using bilateral stimulation or stimulating each hemisphere of the brain alternatively. This is done by using stimulating senses to ground the nervous system. Examples include tapping, sounds, or, most commonly, side-to-side movement of the eyes. The goal is to change how a traumatic memory is stored in the brain to reduce or eliminate the distressing symptoms that come from it. 

EMDR therapy works on the idea that unprocessed traumatic memories prevent the brain from healing. These memories can become “stuck” in the brain and cause a cascade effect of problems. A traumatic memory can remain unprocessed or “stuck” for a long time for many reasons, but most commonly it’s the result of said memory being too painful to address. By helping the individual process the memories safely, it lets the brain begin to heal. 

Processing traumatic memories allows you to look at not just the past but the present as well. Part of the healing process is understanding that you’re safe and that the trauma is over. Unprocessed trauma doesn’t allow this healing process, which keeps the nervous system in high alert. Grounding the nervous system through bilateral stimulation “unsticks” traumatic memories, allowing new information to be created in its place. It’s not forgetting that the traumatic event happened. Instead, it’s looking at the event through new eyes, processing it, and then placing it in the past so you can move on. 

EMDR therapy is particularly helpful because it does not require you to speak about your experiences. It only asks that you think about the emotions associated with them so you can change them. Thus, those who are not ready to speak in specifics about the trauma they faced have a viable therapeutic option available. 

What Can I Expect From an EMDR Therapy Session?

EMDR therapy is designed to work quickly with minimal distress to the client undergoing it. The steps or phases of EMDR therapy are as follows. 

#1. You speak to your provider about your history and treatment plans.

#2. Your provider prepares and explains the treatment to you.

#3. You are guided into activating the memory that needs to be processed once ready.

#4. Your provider helps you desensitize the memory by using stimulation, which helps memories settle in less distressing ways. 

#5. You continue to utilize stimulation while reinforcing positive beliefs, such as “I am safe.”

#6. Your provider helps you self-scan your body and emotions for any residual tension or pain that needs to be addressed. 

#7. You engage in a cool-down session for closure. 

#8. Your provider and you have a debriefing session to make sure you are staying on track to meet your goals. 

It’s not uncommon for one to feel strong emotions during an EMDR therapy session. Emotions like anger, grief, and fear can be present when facing a memory. However, these intense emotions will fade once desensitization begins and positive beliefs are reinforced. Over time, the feelings of distress will reduce, or even fade away entirely. 

Addressing Trauma for Continuous Recovery

Trauma that is left to linger is like a poison. It slowly, but surely, begins to affect your body, mind, and spirit. Over time, this can cause someone to seek methods of self-medication to soothe the pain of trauma. More often than not, this is how addictions begin, with the desire to lessen pain. An addiction cannot be fully treated without first addressing the underlying trauma that fuels it. This can’t be done if a person is too afraid to face their trauma.

Driftwood Recovery focuses on comprehensive and compassionate addiction and mental health treatment. We are uniquely equipped to help those struggling with underlying trauma or trauma-based disorders alongside addiction. This is known as a dual diagnosis, and it can be tricky to treat without a proper specialized treatment plan. Driftwood Recovery meets this need for comprehensive care by providing a wide range of treatments. Treatments like EMDR therapy often work well with other therapies, such as cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) and experiential therapy. With this flexibility and personalization in mind, anyone can find the treatment they need to recover.

Of course, the skills learned in EMDR therapy can be applied to life after treatment. Becoming aware of your emotional state is critical in spotting small troubles before they can become big ones. Practicing positive thinking and affirmations can lift moods and keep you mindful of your present self. But perhaps the most important skill is trusting that you deserve help and that people can help you. Keeping these skills in mind helps you face your future with courage and not pain. 

Trauma can be difficult to treat, especially when it is resistant to most conventional therapeutic techniques. Some may even be afraid of seeking therapy for their trauma, worried that doing so will just re-traumatize them. Thankfully, some methods can be used to help those struggling with severe trauma. Eye movement desensitization and reprocessing (EMDR) therapy is one such solution, offering relief to those in need of help. Driftwood Recovery in Driftwood and Austin, Texas utilizes EMDR therapy and other techniques to allow clients to process and heal from trauma. If you or a loved one is looking for a safe place to address trauma, don’t wait. Call Driftwood Recovery today at (512) 759-8330.

Healthcare professionals must know how to address a diverse range of client needs. Cultural competency and other practices allow people in healthcare to better understand the unique barriers and challenges facing clients and their families. According to Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery – Global Open, “[I]t is imperative that the healthcare system take measures to improve cultural competence, as well as racial and ethnic diversity.” Staff at Driftwood Recovery embrace cultural competency as a tool to improve client treatment and program outcomes. 

What Is Cultural Competency?

Social determinants of health (SDH) and other factors affect the type of support and resources clients need during treatment. Healthcare professionals must determine these needs while providing culturally relevant care. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), “Cultural competence is the integration and transformation of knowledge about individuals and groups of people into specific standards, policies, practices, and attitudes used in appropriate cultural settings to increase the quality of services; thereby producing better outcomes.” Driftwood Recovery uses comprehensive policies and other tools to ensure staff members treat every client with respect, dignity, and compassion.

People in healthcare improve cultural competency by doing the following: 

• Engaging in continuing education 
• Practicing active listening 
• Treating clients as individuals 
• Avoiding stereotypes
• Learning key phrases in other languages
• Using professional interpreters 
• Acknowledging and incorporating traditional healing practices 
• Promoting diversity in healthcare teams 
• Asking for feedback from clients and peers 

Individuals working in healthcare have many ways to educate themselves on other cultures. Being more aware of cultural differences and expectations may significantly improve treatment outcomes by motivating clients to maintain healthy lifestyle changes. 

The Impact of Culture on Client Care

A person’s culture impacts how they relate to others and interact with the world around them. Effective care plans consider cultural factors to ensure clients receive the most appropriate treatment. Healthcare professionals use a variety of tools to gather information about clients that allow them to provide treatment in a culturally sensitive way. 

Cultural competency in healthcare may impact clients by doing the following: 

• Enhancing client engagement 
• Building trust with clients 
• Reducing health disparities 
• Improving communication to avoid miscommunication 
• Enhancing client satisfaction 
• Creating a more inclusive healthcare environment 

Cultural sensitivity also reduces ethical or legal risks by ensuring professionals adhere to local, state, and federal requirements regarding client care. Everyone deserves to be treated with respect, dignity, and compassion. Cultural sensitivity ensures healthcare workers understand how best to serve clients of diverse backgrounds. 

How to Practice Cultural Competency in Healthcare

Cultural sensitivity builds trust, improves communication, and creates a more tailored approach to care. According to Focus, “Patient and family preferences, values, cultural traditions, language, and socioeconomic conditions are respected” by healthcare workers who embrace cultural sensitivity. 

People working in healthcare practice cultural competency by doing the following: 

• Increasing self-awareness 
• Learning about diverse cultural backgrounds
• Engaging in diversity and inclusion training 
• Asking clients about their cultural needs and expectations 
• Using clear, respectful, and inclusive language 
• Adapting treatment plans to align with cultural values
• Fostering an environment of curiosity and respect

Healthcare professionals should be open to feedback and willing to adjust treatment plans to accommodate client needs and concerns. 

The Importance of Collecting Accurate Client Information

Collecting client information during intake and subsequent follow-up assessments ensures healthcare providers offer accurate, relevant, and culturally appropriate care for clients in rehabilitation. Programs tailored to the unique needs of each client rely on professionals to gather necessary information from clients and their loved ones. Clinicians and support staff use those personal details to craft individualized care plans and improve communication. Everyone benefits from comprehensive client notes. In addition, the transition between different levels of care goes more smoothly if the care team better understands the client’s needs and preferences. 

Cultural Competency at Driftwood Recovery

A person’s culture impacts how they think about sobriety and mental health. The experts at Driftwood Recovery work together to create a welcoming and inclusive environment where clients and coworkers feel comfortable expressing themselves. Clients benefit from the cultural sensitivity, evidence-based care, and tailored interventions used to address SUD and mental health disorders. 

Discovering healthy ways to incorporate cultural traditions into care plans may also improve treatment outcomes. Healthcare professionals use their training to develop positive methods for integrating culturally relevant modalities into each client’s treatment plan. 

Treating Every Client Like Part of the Family

Clients come from all backgrounds and walks of life. Staff at Driftwood Recovery provide high-quality client care personalized to the unique needs of each individual. Clinicians treat clients like family, offering comprehensive support services and resources to ensure they have the best possible outcomes. Cultural sensitivity allows staff to provide personalized treatments to clients struggling with addiction or mental health issues. Professionals build trust in the rehabilitation process by collaborating with clients and families to develop more effective treatment options. 

Cultural competency allows healthcare providers to offer culturally relevant and appropriate treatment to individuals experiencing substance use or mental health disorders. Cultural competency involves understanding, appreciating, and interacting with individuals of diverse backgrounds. Healthcare professionals develop this skill by educating themselves on different cultures and increasing self-awareness. Clients and their families often feel more comfortable and find it easier to engage in treatment if they believe the care team has their best interests at heart and understands their cultural needs. Staff at Driftwood Recovery learn to provide culturally sensitive care to meet the needs and expectations of clients in rehabilitation. To learn more about how we support each client, contact us today at (512) 759-8330.

According to the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA), 72.1% (or 50.2 million) of people consider themselves to be in recovery from substance use disorder (SUD) and or mental health disorders. Recovery can feel both daunting and thrilling in its nature as a dynamic process of change. Change itself is inherently frightening, but recovery is more than change; it is an agent for personal growth and development. Despite the peaks and valleys of recovery and life itself, the progress of healing is made possible by a multitude of factors, including resilience. Thus, understanding resilience in recovery is an invaluable tool for finding joy and understanding at the peaks and the strength to weather the storms in the valleys.

At Driftwood Recovery, we know change is both positive and possible. The fear of change is born out of the uncertainty of the unknown, but belief in positive change is often built in resilience. Through the building of resilience in recovery, you are reminded of your strength, courage, and capacity for change. However, fostering resilience in recovery does not start and stop with treatment. Recovery and the fostering of resilience in recovery is a lifelong journey of self-discovery and growth.

As a result, we are dedicated to cultivating an environment built on the power of resilience in connection. With a greater understanding of resilience in recovery, you can effectively engage it for strength in your daily life.

What Is Resilience?

As noted in “Resilience” from the American Psychological Association (APA), resilience is the ability to successfully adapt to and bounce back from difficult or challenging life experiences. Through resilience, a capacity for mental, emotional, and behavioral flexibility to external and internal demands can be observed. Further, resilience is not devoid of stress or negative thoughts and feelings. Rather, resilience is both a natural and learned way of thinking for positive reinforcement to weather the ups and downs of life and move forward in growth rather than fear. Yet, where does resilience come from? How is resilience formed or built? 

Several factors can contribute to your resilience to adverse experiences. As stated in World Psychiatry, attachment and sociality are important factors in the plasticity of resilience. Through attachment and sociality, you develop the capacity to effectively contribute meaning to adversity cultural and spiritual systems in your life. Thus, resilience is the way you view and engage with the world, the availability and quality of social resources throughout your life, and the access to adaptive coping strategies. Understanding the adaptive and socio-cultural attachment of resilience can further highlight the facilitators and, thus, the benefits of resilience in recovery.

Facilitators for Resilience in Recovery

It is well-known that resilience can support you through adverse experiences. Yet, what does it mean to be resilient to adversity? What does it mean to have resilience in recovery? Resilience is foundational to positive mental health and adaptive coping skills. Thus, resilience must encompass various aspects of health, including physical and psychological health. 

From a health perspective, resilience is multi-dimensional. Each type of resilience helps you cope with different forms of stress:

• Mental
  • Ability to adapt to the uncertainty of change
    • Flexibility
    • Problem-solving
    • Hope
• Emotional
  • Ability to regulate your emotions in times of stress
    • Self-awareness
    • Self-understanding
    • Optimism
• Physical
  • Ability to respond to change and recover from physical demands, sickness, and injuries
    • Healthy choices
      • Physical activity
      • Sleep routine
      • Nutritious food
• Social
  • Ability to connect with others and work together to overcome challenges
    • Social support
    • Building a sense of community

Looking at the different types of resilience speaks to the various factors that promote resilience. Listed below are some of the facilitators that support resilience in recovery:

• Communication skills
• High emotional intelligence
• Self-esteem
• Self-worth
• Self-efficacy
• Optimism
• Positive reframing
• Active coping
• Humor
• Perceived social support

Many of the facilitators of resilience in recovery stem from personality traits, upbringing, culture, and other learned behaviors. Thus, resilience’s ability to be learned throughout life also highlights the possibility of erosion as well.

Factors that Impede Resilience in Recovery

Despite resilience’s association with adaptability to adversity, it is the impact of adversity that can erode resilience. Listed below are some of the adverse experiences that can contribute to the erosion of your resilience:

• Chronic health issues
• Financial instability
• Job loss
• Separation or divorce
• Loss of a loved one

Exposure to traumatic experiences can increase your risk for traumatic stress, burnout, and negative thinking. Fear of uncertainty, defensive coping, and a lack of social support also contribute to poor resilience. Together, poor resilience and other factors like stress, negative thinking, and a lack of social support can increase your risk for SUD and other mental health disorders.

Understanding Resilience and Addiction

The erosion of resilience at the hands of traumatic stress and other adverse experiences is often the root of addiction. As noted in the World Journal of Psychiatry, stressful experiences have a profound impact on the brain that increases your risk for SUD. Profound stress early in life is harmful to functions like cognitive processing and your physiological stress response. Yet, erosion does not equal a complete loss, as resilience can be learned and utilized as a moderating factor for sobriety and resilience in recovery. Expanding your awareness and access to tools to build resilience can be instrumental in maintaining your recovery.

Ways to Build Resilience in Recovery at Driftwood Recovery

Some of the valuable practices and resources that can support building resilience in recovery include:

• Meditation
• Positive thinking
• Reframing the situation
• Self-care
• Strong support network
  • Spending time with loved ones
  • Volunteering
  • Sober community events

At Driftwood Recovery, we understand the value of meaningful connection for sustained recovery. Therefore, we are dedicated to providing comprehensive alumni services and resources to help you thrive. With support, you can build skills to manage life stressors and unexpected crises. Through an active alumni program, you are given the guidance, accountability, and support to learn and heal together.

Resilience is an important part of your mental health and overall well-being. With resilience, you can adapt to and bounce back from adverse experiences. Various factors help facilitate resilience, such as adaptive coping, hope, self-awareness, self-care, and social support. However, resilience can be eroded by traumatic experiences, stress, negative thinking, and poor social support. The erosion of resilience can increase your risk for SUD and other mental health disorders. Yet, resilience in recovery is possible with access to support resources and practice. Some valuable tools for building resilience include positive reframing, self-care, meditation, and developing a strong support network. Therefore, at Driftwood Recovery, we are dedicated to providing connection-driven alumni services and resources for sustained recovery. Call (512) 759-8330 today.

Learning how to stay sober in a society that normalizes substance use can be complex. Mental health care and addiction treatment facilities, like Driftwood Recovery, know the importance of teaching clients how to preserve and encourage their sobriety. Skills like peer pressure navigation, boundary setting, and more are highly useful in helping you and your loved ones stay sober. Putting these skills into practice, however, can be nerve-wrecking for those who have finished treatment. Practicing these skills under the guidance of a mental health care professional is one thing. Upholding these practices while out in everyday life is another thing entirely. 

Luckily, it’s now easier than ever to manage and encourage sobriety. The fact that an average person has a miniature supercomputer in their pocket is nothing short of amazing. This ability to have quick and easy access to sobriety resources grants peace of mind to even the most nervous of people. To embrace the aid of technology for mental health and addiction treatment, some facilities like Driftwood Recovery have developed an app to assist their clients and alumni. Mental health professionals are now able to recommend digital tools to aid in healing. Consider these five technological tricks anyone can use to help promote sobriety in their daily lives. 

#1. Sobriety Tracker Apps

Several apps have been developed specifically for those who want to track their sobriety progress. A core feature of these apps is letting you tick off each day you remain sober. This allows you to see yourself hitting sobriety milestones, which is great for your self-esteem. The days can blur together, especially when you fall into a routine. These apps allow you to see for yourself how far you have come.

Many of these apps also come with regular motivational messages to help you stay on track. Others still will send you programmable reminders and access to goal-setting tools. Some are designed to aid in the recovery of specific substances, such as alcohol, allowing for specific and tailored assistance.

#2. Digital Journals

Journals have been traditionally used as part of mental health treatment for many years. Journaling allows both the treatment provider and the individual to access a log of thoughts, feelings, and experiences. These can offer an insight into one’s mental health. Journaling is great as a diagnostic tool, but it’s also helpful for those wanting to preserve their sobriety. 

Keeping a journal that’s easy to access, such as on your phone, lets you jot down experiences and feelings while they are fresh. This will allow you to look back and identify potentially triggering people or situations that can threaten your sobriety. On the flipside, when times are hard, reading about your past experiences where you overcame great hardships can give you the courage to face today. Creating and maintaining a digital journal is easy with the aid of private blogging websites and apps. 

#3. Alumni Apps

As mentioned before, many mental health and addiction treatment facilities are developing apps that help current clients and alumni stay connected. The Driftwood Recovery app is one such example. This app is designed to help you stay connected to your support network, including peers and treatment providers. It also alerts you to upcoming events that you can join, such as alumni outings or dinner events. 

Being reminded about how fun and exciting a sober life can be can make a real difference to your mental health. It’s especially true for those who otherwise have difficulty going out and having fun with peers. Alumni apps can open up the door to lasting friendships, which can be life-saving during hard times.

#4. Virtual Support Groups

Support groups are a vital lifeline in helping you find support during and after treatment. By offering an unbiased and understanding environment, it allows you to face upcoming difficulties with the aid of a peer. With how busy people get, it can be hard to find time to attend meetings in person. Some may be sick or injured, but still don’t want to miss out on essential support. 

To meet this need, some support groups have moved to digital or run digital tools alongside physical meetings. Using tools like video calling or chatrooms allows people to join in, even from the comfort of their bed. This is essential for those with mobility or immune system issues, which present a barrier to physical meetings. You will always need support to have a healthy, sober life. These particular digital tools make finding this support more accessible. 

#5. Help at the Press of a Button

Perhaps the most useful aspect of technology in sobriety is the ease with which you can get help. Some apps act like panic buttons. This allows someone to pre-program contacts into the app and, in cases of danger, send out a pre-written text or voice message to specified individuals for help. When you feel unsafe, these apps can quickly and easily contact a mentor or sponsor.

For example, imagine you are at an event without transportation and you are being pressured to use substances. Using a panic button app can summon a friend to come and collect you safely. In the event you feel like your mental health has taken a nosedive, you can press a button to get immediate contact with your treatment provider. These apps are especially useful when used alongside a mental health crisis plan. Talk to your provider first, as they can help you practice when to use these types of apps, as well as whom to contact in the event of an emergency. 

With many apps and digital tools available, it’s always helpful to discuss their use with your treatment provider. By embracing digital tools, you can have the safety net you need to face your new sober life with confidence and courage. 

The digital age has resulted in widely available tools to assist people in their sobriety. Apps can be downloaded to a phone and carried in your pocket, the ease of which makes sobriety feel more obtainable. Video calls and chat rooms also provide valuable support, showing you that you aren’t alone in your struggles. Driftwood Recovery in Driftwood and Austin, Texas, has made sure to stay current with the digital age, offering the Driftwood Recovery app to all clients and alumni. Knowing where to start can be difficult, but Driftwood Recovery is here to help. If you or a loved one is struggling with or recovering from addiction, call us today at (512) 759-8330.

Conflict happens sometimes in clinical settings due to a lack of trust between clients and clinicians, miscommunication with coworkers, unrealistic expectations, or other factors. According to Baylor University Medical Center Proceedings, “Conflicts may exist between physicians, between physicians and staff, and between the staff or the health care team and the patient or patient’s family.” In addition, “Conflicts have an adverse effect on productivity, morale, and patient care.” Conflict resolution is an invaluable skill taught to all staff members at Driftwood Recovery. Finding ways to communicate effectively and resolve tension creates a more supportive and welcoming treatment environment. 

Why Is Conflict Resolution an Important Skill for Healthcare Professionals?

Healthcare professionals must navigate many unexpected and sometimes unfriendly situations with coworkers and clients. Conflict is an inevitable part of communicating with other people. How healthcare professionals respond to conflict will determine the outcome of client treatment and workplace morale. 

Resolving conflicts in clinical settings using empathy, compassion, and professionalism does the following: 

• Enhances client trust 
• Encourages team collaboration 
• Improves client outcomes 
• Creates a culture of mutual respect 
• Encourages constructive communication 
• Prevents future conflicts
• Boosts staff retention 
• Ensures client-centered care

Professionals have codes of conduct and other rules they must follow during client interactions. Avoiding conflict is the goal. However, conflict cannot always be avoided. Healthcare workers must know how to safely discuss difficult conversations with clients without damaging the client-clinician relationship. Coworkers must also learn to effectively navigate tense situations to ensure clients receive the best care.

Safely and Confidently De-Escalate Situations

Medical issues often cause emotional distress for clients and their loved ones. In those circumstances, it takes very little to push someone into feeling angry, fearful, embarrassed, or other negative emotions that cause conflict. Healthcare workers must know how to navigate these situations. 

Being able to confidently de-escalate tension with clients or coworkers protects healthcare professionals by creating a safe space for everyone involved. Responding to conflict with confidence and compassion de-escalates the situation and builds trust. According to the Journal of Graduate Medical Education, “Effectively managing conflicts using the least traumatic intervention benefits the patient, the physician, and the health care team.” Driftwood Recovery teaches staff to recognize the potential signs of conflict to de-escalate before it reaches a point where clients or their families become physically or verbally abusive. 

How to Safely Resolve Conflict in a Clinical Setting

Some of the ways healthcare professionals safely resolve conflict in a clinical setting include: 

• Focusing on understanding all perspectives before responding 
• Maintaining focus to avoid escalating emotions 
• Using “I” statements to prevent blaming language 
• Establishing professional expectations to avoid miscommunication 
• Offering solutions instead of criticisms
• Adhering to established conflict resolution guidelines and codes of conduct
• Prioritizing patient well-being and comfort 

Conflict can happen anytime between anyone, making it essential for healthcare professionals to know how to get support and help if necessary. Driftwood Recovery has policies and procedures in place to keep clients and staff safe. 

Conflict Resolution as a Tool for Client Engagement

Client engagement is essential for program adherence and positive treatment outcomes. Studies have shown that “[a]n important aspect of treatment engagement is making certain that all program staff members greet new clients in a respectful, friendly, and supportive manner that reflects sensitivity to their situations.” If miscommunication or other issues affect how clients feel about their care team or the treatment process, de-escalation techniques may reduce tension and resolve conflict. 

Client engagement in treatment does the following: 

• Builds trust between clients and staff 
• Improves treatment retention 
• Increases motivation to actively participate in treatment 
• Encourages honest communication 
• Facilitates skill development 

Healthcare professionals facilitate client engagement in rehabilitation by providing a welcoming environment and consistent support. 

How Does Driftwood Recovery Utilize Conflict Resolution?

Every staff member receives training on conflict resolution. The treatment center has policies and procedures to keep professionals and clients safe during the treatment process. Resolving conflicts in a healthy and appropriate way reduces client stress and defensiveness while promoting trust and safety. 

Staff members at Driftwood Recovery utilize the following conflict resolution techniques: 

• Active listening 
• Empathy and validation 
• Reflective listening
• Collaborative problem-solving 
• Maintaining a nonconfrontational approach 
• Facilitating mediation 
• Modeling emotional regulation skills

Staff also provide psychoeducation to help clients understand the connections between triggers and behaviors. 

Helping Clients Overcome Issues With Trust

Many individuals with SUD may struggle to overcome issues with trust due to past negative experiences with authority figures or previous treatment programs. Healthcare professionals build trust by taking the time to genuinely get to know clients and their families. Conflict can often be avoided if staff take the time to learn their clients’ individual needs, history, and preferences before treatment begins. 

Individuals seeking treatment for chronic substance abuse or mental health disorders benefit from developing additional communication and social skills during rehabilitation. Healthcare professionals model these skills through everyday interactions and treatment services, making it easier for clients to regulate their responses and avoid conflict or tension. 

Healthcare workers face many challenging situations where they must act with professionalism and compassion. Many people experiencing medical conditions struggle to communicate their needs and concerns, leading to potential conflict and tension between clinicians and clients. Individuals in healthcare must learn to communicate effectively and de-escalate tense situations. Driftwood Recovery ensures staff know how to avoid conflict and manage communication with clients and their families. Rehabilitation programs also teach clients essential coping skills, including effective communication. Staff collaborate closely with clients to create a deeper connection and an open line of communication. To learn more about our programs and how we facilitate client healing and personal growth, call us today at (512) 759-8330.

Healthcare programs often involve complex topics and conversations that leave clients feeling vulnerable. Clients and their families may struggle to communicate their needs effectively. Studies have shown that “[g]iven the shift in healthcare to a more patient-centered approach and the positive association between high-quality communication with a healthcare provider and improved patient outcomes, it is essential to acknowledge and assess factors that generate dissonance between the patient and the clinician.” The compassionate staff at Driftwood Recovery helps clients and their families navigate difficult conversations by providing education and support. 

Language Matters When Discussing Complex or Delicate Topics

The language health providers use impacts their relationship with clients and families. Staff at programs for mental health and substance abuse must take special care not to stigmatize or disempower clients. Language humanizes or dehumanizes people depending on the word choices made. According to The BMJ, “[S]pecific word choices and phrases affect how patients view their health and illness, reflect healthcare workers’ perceptions of their patients, and influence medical care and treatments offered.” In addition, “Language in medical narratives also shapes how trainees think, talk, and act, perpetuating any ingrained biases.”

Some of the language healthcare workers should avoid in a professional setting include: 

• Stigmatizing terms (e.g., “junkie,” “addict,” etc.)
• Blaming language (e.g., “you need to do better”)
• Minimizing statements (e.g., “it’s not that bad”)
• Overly clinical jargon that may confuse clients 
• Insensitive humor
• Dismissive language (e.g., “you’re just not trying hard enough”)

Creating a healthy client-clinician relationship requires healthcare professionals to tailor their responses and word choices to each client. By taking the time to get to know clients on a human level and finding a positive way to connect, healthcare workers improve the treatment experience. Clients and their families are more likely to adhere to treatment guidelines and express concerns if they feel comfortable with their care team. Healthcare workers have an easier time treating clients who feel secure and confident in the treatment process. 

How Can Healthcare Professionals Navigate Difficult Conversations?

Some medical cases involve discussions about topics that may cause clients to feel fear, uncertainty, or embarrassment. Clients may react defensively or challenge their care team if they do not agree with or fully understand the information provided. Individuals in healthcare reduce stress on themselves by reassuring clients. Clinicians educate, empower, and support clients during these conversations, building a deeper connection. 

Healthcare professionals navigate difficult conversations with clients by doing the following: 

• Practicing active listening 
• Using empathy and validation 
• Remaining nonjudgmental 
• Setting clear professional boundaries 
• Adapting communication styles to the client
• Providing information and context to clients
• Encouraging collaborative problem-solving 
• Remaining calm and composed

Healthcare professionals may also use supervision or peer support to ensure clients and their families receive the best care. A mediator or outside support may help some clients feel more comfortable during these difficult conversations. 

Healthcare Workers Must Know How to Navigate Difficult Conversations at Every Stage of Treatment

Every stage of treatment comes with unique challenges, and it is impossible to accurately predict how each client will react to various setbacks or unexpected situations. Healthcare professionals can help clients experience a smooth transition between multiple levels of care and stages of healing by ensuring they know what to expect and how to manage their condition. Maintaining an open line of communication with clients and families significantly reduces the risk of adverse outcomes. 

Communication Between Team Members Ensures Consistency

Staff at Driftwood Recovery strengthen interpersonal skills and communication by frequently checking in with team members. Clients receive more consistent treatment, and staff report less workplace pressure if they communicate effectively with coworkers. 

Consistency in communication benefits clients and healthcare providers by doing the following:

• Building trust and credibility with clients and their families
• Making treatment more predictable to reduce client anxiety
• Reducing miscommunication and confusion about treatment expectations 
• Supporting emotional stability and helping clients process complex topics
• Making challenging conversations feel less abrupt and overwhelming for clients 

Consistency between stages of treatment reduces the risk of relapse and promotes resilience. Clients are more likely to have favorable outcomes if they communicate frequently and effectively with the care team about challenging topics. 

How Does Driftwood Recovery Instruct Staff to Navigate Difficult Conversations?

Staff at Driftwood Recovery practice compassion, integrity, and transparency during conversations with clients and families. Clinicians understand that some discussions may become emotionally distressing, making it difficult for clients or their loved ones to remain objective. Maintaining a calm demeanor and communicating without judgment allows healthcare professionals to carefully guide the conversation. Individuals in healthcare use specific strategies to discuss complex topics with clients, ensuring clarity and empathy. 

Some effective strategies and techniques professionals use include: 

• Active listening to validate client concerns and ensure a thoughtful response 
• Using simple and straightforward language to avoid miscommunication or confusion 
• Setting the right tone by speaking calmly and clearly 
• Regulating personal emotions to remain composed
• Acknowledging and validating the client’s feelings and concerns 
• Framing conversations in a positive way
• Providing reassurance to the client without offering false hope 
• Giving clients time to process information 
• Empowering clients by offering choices whenever possible 
• Following up to address any lingering questions or concerns

Staff at Driftwood Recovery work together to support clients and ensure each member of the care team feels comfortable navigating challenging conversations. 

Healthcare professionals must navigate many difficult and complex conversations with clients and families. Taking the time to make a deeper connection with clients allows clinicians to tailor conversations to the expectations and goals of each individual. Discussing complex topics requires healthcare workers to practice compassion and professionalism. Driftwood Recovery ensures staff members have the training and education necessary to have productive conversations with clients about challenging subjects. Experts adapt their language and conversation styles to the needs and preferences of each client. Developing effective communication skills allows healthcare professionals to educate clients and put them at ease. To learn more about how our professionals communicate with clients, call our office today at (512) 759-8330.