Treatment/Relapse Prevention Paper
Jeremy Roberts
Liberty University
February 25th, 2022
RUNNING HEAD: TREATMENT/RELAPSE PREVENTION PAPER
TREATMENT RELAPSE/PREVENTION PAPER
Diagnostic Impressions
John Moore is a 42-year-old Caucasian male. He is married and has been divorced. John has
three kids. His kids live with their mom since he lost custody. John currently lives with himself,
and he is unemployed and is disabled. John has a dependency on alcohol and marijuana. John
began drinking when he was just fifteen. He began smoking cigarettes at thirteen years old. The
addiction to nicotine began as a method for finding a place in his mind to get away from stress
and anxiety. Whenever John was thirteen years old, he was attacked by his stepdad physically.
His mom didn't completely accept that he wanted to be away and on his own. It didn't take no
time at all for his dependence to start on marijuana especially after smoking cigarettes. Within a
short time later, John began drinking from out of loneliness from being away from his parents
and having that level of intimacy.
John doesn't have a relationship with his mom by any stretch of his imagination now. He faults
her previous boyfriend for the physical attack, he doesn't necessarily blame himself for his
current action but focuses on past events. John's grandfather was his biggest support and
financial help during the tough times. At that time, he didn't cover any bills, he frequently would
purchase marijuana with the social security income he received from his medical procedure. He
would use that money to buy alcohol as well. John has dated varieties of different women and
utilized them to help pay for his addictions at times as well. His relationship with his dad is off
and on now and again. His father was never there for him, and he blames him for the violence
and trauma that was inflicted upon him over the years as his mother dated. John needs to utilize
both drugs consistently. On the days that John can't find any marijuana from a supplier, he will
drink the day away. John would drink two cases a beer a day. A certain trigger for John is when
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his mom brings up a memory of his dad in the means of a conversation. His addiction worsens at
this point. John prefers not to associate with his mom because of that reason. He blames his mom
but with or without her presence, he still wrestles with the haunting memories of his domestic
past. His mom doesn't uphold or give him issues over his habits but she will say something
randomly about his "habits." His mother does want him to seek recovery but doesn't believe that
he ever will. John hardly ever visits his children. His ex-wife has custody and brings the children
to see him every so often such as birthdays and holidays. That also depends on the condition that
his sobriety is in at the time of conversation for a visit. He will heavy clothes and wear large
amounts of cologne to cover up any scent that alcohol or marijuana might give off. That is the
main time that John tries not to drink is when he is seeing his kids. When John is through seeing
his kids, he goes right back to the bottle. The guilt of being this type of father and the results
always being the same in and out of a visit feels that it defines him as a person.
John experiences Major Depressive Disorder for the most part. John goes through this disorder
and suffers after a visit from his mom or children. John tries to conceal these feelings by using
the marijuana and drinking. The updated DSM for his depressive states this information: “At
least three of the following manic/hypomanic are present nearly every day during the majority of
days during the majority of days of a manic depressive episode.” (DSM-5 pp.184) This means
that for John, these episodes statistically are going to take place regardless of the situation and
what he experiences as triggers.
Treatment Recommendations
One treatment suggestion that would be help in regard to long term recovery toward marijuana
would be that: "Most people that successfully quit, have tried a few times then occasionally
relapsed, so it is important to perform "self-talk." "Self-talk is known also as internal dialogue,
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where we speak to our own consciousness about our situations and addictions." (Copeland, 2015)
There are many ways, shapes, and forms of the drug now that make this easily accessible. On
every street corner there is a gas station that sells even THC in the form of delta vaping pens.
For John to abstain from Marijuana usage long-term it would have to be that he would block out
all this noise around him about cannabis and be as determined as possible to stop.
For the client, there is an option for individual counseling that could be a huge benefactor for
John to break down his entire situation. This would be the next suggestion besides other forms of
group counsel that involve NA or AA. John is still dealing and battling with a great deal of injury
from the past and the maltreatment that took place from that as well. This has caused him to have
these toxic emotions that he carries around day to day. Individual counseling would allow John
to address every bit of her past hurt and track down any type of triggers that are necessary.
Fetting expresses in regard to a certain person's similar case study that: "Every bit of drug
addiction can be a substituted activity in light of the fact that another person's situation might be
more permissible based on the type of substance altogether."(Fetting, 2015) John uses his
addictions to conceal his pain and altogether it makes his situation worse for himself mentally
and emotionally. He also tends to show hurt and outrage from his mom for not protecting him in
his past and for the lack of trust he currently has in him. John is discouraged on the grounds that
he also lost joint custody of his children and feels isolated. Individual counseling with a therapist
would certainly assist him with facing his pain for every part of his stress.
Family therapy would be the last proposal. There is clearly a lot of family issues that John has
with different members, and this must be tended to. Mental Behavioral Therapy is successful in
treating alcohol and chronic drug use (Martin, S.C. 2014). One of the principal goals of CBT is
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that it helps relatives change and improve their connections (Sheperis & Drummond, 2016)).
This will be vital to John's treatment plan.
Treatment Plan Worksheet
Counselor Name: Jeremy Roberts
Client Name: John Moore
Case #: 063422
Problem 1.: Substance Abuse (Marijuana)
Goal 1.: Counseling (Individual)
Objective 1.: Inpatient Rehabilitation Center
Intervention 1. Go for individual counseling and consultation at Brentwood Springs
Objective 2. Having a better relationship with children
Intervention 1.: Inside of the recovery center, John will recover from the substances and
sustain his withdrawals. He will also focus on CBT and think of children.
Goal 2.: Detoxification
Objective 1.: SMART Recovery
Intervention 1.: John must work on how he relapses and what will trigger them
to occur. This recovery program will help address these issues that are tied to his stepdad.
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Objective 2.: Outpatient Rehab Center
Intervention 1.: The objective and intervention focus on finding John a rehab center that
helps him to adjust to society after he goes for group therapy for example.
Problem 2.: An addiction from Alcoholism
Goal 1.: Detoxification
Objective 1.: Therapy (Family)
Intervention 1.: John has several triggers within the family and from his children’s
mother. CBFT is a necessity for him in regards toward recovery.
Objective 2.: Alcohol Use Disorder
Intervention 1.: John needs to utilize a 12-step program for example to help with his
own sobriety.
Goal 2.: Keeping Sober
Objective 1.: Attend AA and NA
Intervention 1.: Needs to maintain his own sobriety but needs support eventually from at least
his mother while attending these groups. It will be good for John to meet other people going
through similar circumstances.
Objective 2.: Incorporating Individual and Group Therapy
Intervention 1.: What is important toward John’s recovery off both substances, is to excel at
both individual and participate in a family-oriented style therapy for his children’s sake.
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Therapist's Inclusion & Role
John must be able to have a level of understanding and respect toward his therapist. "A
significant undertaking of the advisor is to perceive which kind of self-objective reaction the
client requires so, all things must be considered in treatment" (Fetting, 2016, p.121). The
advisor's job is vital and impeding to the recuperation and care of the client altogether. John will
require this help all through his treatment and recuperating process. An intervening meeting with
his mother as a 1 on 1 will be essential to have with his family, Alcoholics Anonymous,
Narcotics Anonymous and the 12-step program is involved. John will keep on utilizing his
recovery and the SMART program will help to consume an important role toward his
recuperation plan. These projects will help provide resources in his local area, family, and
friends.
A therapist needs to be straightforward with their clients. The interaction and treatment toward
the recovery is difficult to explain. John must also be honest with his own self. John will need to
understand that he has an addiction and is not embarrassed with needing help. It would be like
looking at yourself in the mirror and realizing who your are on the inside and accepting those
facts. As a therapist you have to assist a client with all worries or concerns. Assuming that John
was a member of a church congregation, a Christian therapist would also include a word of
prayer with the client. The therapist would also quote scripture to encourage the client such as:
"Where there is strife, there is pride, but wisdom is found in those who take advice." (Prov.
13:10) It would be essential for the client that the process of rehabilitation involves bible study
and spiritual interaction through prayer and fasting. God assumes a significant role in an
individual's personal life. God sees and hears every prayer. The Lord is also omnipresent. We
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encourage our clients that the Lord is always with us when the hurting pain of withdrawal might
seem unbearable. This is the message that we send to those individuals who need our support,
that they are more than the choices they have made and the sum of their own mistakes.
Model for Addictions
The model of addiction that would be essential for John and to help him realize that there is a
hope and way out is the disease model of addiction which describes an addiction as a disease
with biological, neurological, genetic, and environmental sources of origin. The psychodynamic
type would be like John's past but as he has progressed in age, this addiction has developed. This
has now evolved into environmental origin and biological. While John is plugged into his CBFT
treatment he will realize through his findings that there are cognitive deficiencies that have taken
place in his family circle more than he will realize. This plays into John's treatment plan as to
what was passed down over time and the real question of why he was exposed to so many
addictions at such a young age. With all the information provided, John's therapy won't be
simple. John has still yet information to discover and some questions that need answering toward
the impulsivity that others displayed in examples from his past. There will be answers and
requests from me well before he begins inpatient therapy treatment. John has to face the facts of
the past and what he is born with and what has been passed down as well. Assuming he goes into
this research with an open mind and is enlightened on understanding this history of misery, his
recovery will be a reward that he can pay forward.
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References:
American Psychiatric Association. (2022). DSM-5-TR(tm) classification. American Psychiatric
Publishing.
Bible English New International Version, & International Bible Society Staff. (2010). Holy
Bible: New international version. NIV.
Clinton, T., & Scalise, E. (2013). The quick reference guide to addictions and recovery. Grand
Rapids, MI.
Copeland, Jan, et al. Quit Cannabis : An Expert Guide to Coping with Cravings and Withdrawal,
Unscrambling Your Brain and Kicking the Habit for Good, Allen & Unwin, 2015.
ProQuest Ebook Central.
Fetting, M. (2016). Perspectives on Substance Use, Disorder, and Addiction with Clinical Cases
(2nd ed.) Thousand Oaks, CA.
Martin, S. C. (2014). The SAGE encyclopedia of alcohol: Social, cultural, and historical
perspectives. SAGE Publications.
Sheperis, C. J., Drummond, R. J., & Jones, K. D. (2019). Assessment procedures for counselors
and helping professionals
