Therapy For Substance Abuse

Therapy For Substance Abuse

Weekly therapy groups to help people who struggle with Substance Abuse to live full and successful lives. 

Weekly therapy groups to help people who struggle with Substance Abuse to live successful lives.

Home » Therapy For Substance Abuse

substance Abuse Services

substance Abuse Services

Substance abuse refers to someone using any type of illegal drug, taking too much of a prescription medication, and/or over consumption of alcohol.

If you or a someone you know is struggling with substance then please call us at (301) 363-1063 so our counselors can provide you a confidential and safe space for you to discuss your concerns with substance abuse and addiction.

Our mission is to provide quality health services to the individuals in our communities. We make primary care accessible to our clients as well as providing support for individuals struggling with substance abuse and cooccurring symptoms. Clients will also have access to clinical specialists who can effectively manage their chronic pain. All services are established on the needs of the client, determined by an individualized Person-Centered Plan. With dedicated collaborative care, we bring focus to all aspects of your health

Substance abuse refers to someone using any type of illegal drug, taking too much of a prescription medication, and/or over consumption of alcohol.

If you or a someone you know is struggling with substance then please call us at (301) 363-1063 so our counselors can provide you a confidential and safe space for you to discuss your concerns with substance abuse and addiction.

Frequently Asked Questions
FAQ's

group & individual therapy options?

Will I have access to a Psychiatrist?

Yes, all patient will have access to Psychiatrist. 

Is there a waitlist to join a Group?

There are currently no waitlists! Just give us a call (301) 363-1063 or submit a contact form to get started.

Do you only offer therapy services?

What Insurances do you accept

We accept all insurances, that includes both medicare and medicaid!

Are Consultations Confidential?

Yes, all Consultations are discreet and confidential.

Do you have Accreditations?

We are Nationally Accredited with COA and CARF

are you offices currently open?

Yes our offices are open. We Are Focussed On Your Safety During Covid-19.

What Are My appointment Options?

 We offer in-person (socially distanced) and tele-health.

How It Works

How It Works

The first step is to contact us and schedule your first consultation. All initial consultations can be scheduled within a week. Each initial client consult is at least an hour long with one of our professional therapists.

During the first intake, a person-centered plan will be established with your goals in mind. After this consult, individual and group therapy services can begin.

All consultations can be setup within a week. Each consultation is a one hour session with one of our professional therapists. Here are the steps:

Contact Us

There are many ways to get in touch with us: Call (301) 363-1063, Email Us, or Submit a consultation form below.

Consultation

A one-on-one session with our professional therapists to establish your individualized care plan.

Care Begins

Schedule individual sessions or join our therapy groups (socially distanced or tele-health).

What Is Substance Abuse

What is Substance Abuse

The phrase substance abuse is frequently thrown around in conversations about addiction. However, substance abuse and addiction are not the same thing. Substance abuse refers to someone using any type of illegal drug, taking too much of a prescription medication, and/or over consumption of alcohol. Addiction refers to a disease, where the sufferer is physically unable to stop the destructive behavior. However, any engagement in substance abuse can lead to full blown addiction. Even if you do not consider yourself an addict, the unhealthy habits of substance abuse can result in dangerous and fatal outcomes. 

The phrase substance abuse is frequently thrown around in conversations about addiction. However, substance abuse and addiction are not the same thing. Substance abuse refers to someone using any type of illegal drug, taking too much of a prescription medication, and/or over consumption of alcohol. Addiction refers to a disease, where the sufferer is physically unable to stop the destructive behavior. However, any engagement in substance abuse can lead to full blown addiction. Even if you do not consider yourself an addict, the unhealthy habits of substance abuse can result in dangerous and fatal outcomes.

Types of Substance Abuse

Anyone can be susceptible to substance abuse. People who have a family history of addiction are more vulnerable to succumbing to substance abuse and becoming addicts themselves. People from all socioeconomic backgrounds engage in the destructive habits of substance abuse. And any use of psychoactive drugs (any chemical substance that changes brain function and results in altered moods, cognition, or behavior) can lead to physical and emotional harm. What may look like a harmless couple of nights hard drinking, or taking extra opioid pills from your prescription, are actually indicative of unhealthy habits. You may not characterize these actions as abuse, but it is critical to understand the danger associated with them.

How we define Addiction

Persistent abuse of these dangerous substances will inevitably lead to addiction. Something that you thought was harmless is now actively destroying different parts of your life. While some of these actions may have been initially your choice, they eventually turn into your prison. Addiction begins damaging the synapses of the brain that perform your highest functions to solely focus on reengagement with the damaging behavior (Psychology Today). You become stuck in a brutal biological and emotional cycle with the substance, only to be further trapped.

Addiction Complications

The ramifications of substance abuse can last longer than the actual activity. For example, using illicit drugs once may result in you causing a car accident, and hurting someone else. And now, you carry the emotional burden of causing harm to someone else who was disconnected from your choice. Ultimately, it is important to understand why you're engaging in this high risk behavior. Gemini Health can help you unpack this motivation, and start providing you with emotional clarity. Call us at (301) 363-1063 so our counselors can provide you a confidential and safe space for you to discuss your concerns with substance abuse and addiction.

Evidenced Based Practices

The medical team at Gemini Health also incorporate Evidence Based Practices (EBP) such as motivational interviewing, cognitive behavioral therapy, and cognitive processing therapy. These different methods allow the client to choose the most effective approach based on their unique concerns and expectations.

The medical team at Gemini Health also incorporate Evidence Based Practices (EBP) such as motivational interviewing, cognitive behavioral therapy, and cognitive processing therapy. These different methods allow the client to choose the most effective approach based on their unique concerns and expectations.

Motivational Interviewing

What is it?

Motivational interviewing is a collaborative counseling method that helps people address ambivalent feelings and insecurities to find and strengthen their own motivation and commitment to change their behavior. 

What to expect

In an accepting and compassionate manner, a therapist encourages clients to talk about  change and their own reasons for wanting to change. The interviewer listens and reflects back the client's thoughts so that the client can hear their reasons and motivations expressed back to them. Motivational interviewing is generally short-term counseling that requires just one or two sessions, though it can also be included as an intervention along with other, longer-term therapies.

Cognitive Behavioral Therapy

What is it?

Cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) is a solution focused evidenced based therapy model that addresses unhelpful thoughts and behaviors by replacing those thoughts and behaviors with more effective options allowing participants to view situations more accurately and respond to those situations in a more helpful way. Participants are also taught to question their unhelpful, negative thoughts and feelings versus accepting them to help ineffective behavior. 

What to expect

You will work together with your therapist to determine your treatment goals and identify the problems that you would like to address. You learn different skills in session to help you reframe your negative, unhelpful thoughts and feelings to more positive and constructive ones. Your therapist will likely give you homework so you can practice the skills you are learning in session in real situations in between sessions. You may find CBT alone is enough to help you, or you may combine it with other forms of treatment. 

Dialectic Behavioral Therapy

What is it?

Dialectical behavior therapy (DBT) in an evidenced based therapy model that helps people learn new skills to manage painful, strong emotions and decrease problematic behaviors and conflicts in relationships. Dialectic means that two opposite ideas can be true at the same time, and when those ideas are viewed together, they can create a new way of seeing a situation. The dialectic at the heart of DBT is acceptance and change. In DBT, individuals are taught skills that enable them to experience their emotions without necessarily acting on them. They are also taught to replace problematic behaviors, such as self-injury or bingeing and purging, with skillful ones. DBT specifically focuses on providing therapeutic skills in four key areas. First, mindfulness focuses on accepting, being fully aware,  and being present in the current moment. Second, distress tolerance on how to tolerance of negative emotions and pain in difficult situations without making the situation worse. Third, emotion regulation on how to manage and express intense emotions effectively. Fourth, interpersonal effectiveness on how to communicate with others to ask for what you want, saying no, maintaining self-respect, and strengthening relationships. 

What to expect

DBT treatment consists of individual therapy sessions and DBT skills groups. Individual therapy sessions are typically scheduled weekly with a DBT trained therapist who helps you address problematic behaviors and apply the DBT skills within daily life. DBT skills groups typically meet weekly lasting approximately 2 hours over a 6 month time period. Groups can be shorter or longer, depending on the needs of the group members. Group participants learn and practice skills alongside other group members. Members of the group are encouraged to share their experiences and provide mutual support. Groups are led by DBT trained therapists teaching skills and leading exercises. The group members are then assigned weekly homework, such as practicing mindfulness exercises. Some agencies may provide DBT informed therapy in which some people attend one-on-one therapy sessions without attending the weekly skills group; and others might attend group without attending the weekly one-on-one sessions.

Cognitive Processing Therapy

What is it?

Cognitive Processing Therapy (CPT) is a type of evidence-based cognitive behavioral therapy effective for treating post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and related symptoms for individuals that have experienced combat, sexual, childhood trauma. CPT addresses how the person perceives themselves and their environment related to ability to protect themselves and others; ability to trust the judgement and intentions of themselves and others; control and influence their lives and/or the lives of people they care about; seeing themselves or others as broken or evil; and to being able to connect or be understood by others. CPT focuses on teaching skills to challenge negative, unhelpful thoughts and gain control over the impact the thoughts have had on your life to help complete the recovery process. 

What to expect

CPT typically involves 12 weekly sessions, though this can vary depending on your needs. In CPT, you will work with your therapist to identify and explore the ways that the trauma may have altered your thoughts and beliefs in turn affecting how you feel and act towards yourself and others. Your therapist will specifically help you pick out thoughts (stuck points) that keep you fixed in the trauma and create barriers to recovery. You will learn a set of strategies to challenge and modify thoughts that are inaccurate and/or unhelpful, and will practice these strategies with your therapist in session and on your own in between sessions with worksheets and exercises. You may find it helpful, though it is not required, to write about the specific events of your trauma.

Contact Us

Contact Us

If you would like to schedule an appointment please give us a call or fill out the form to the right. If you would like more information or have questions, feel free to call us or use our email below.

If you are ready to schedule an appointment then please fill out the form. If you have questions or would like to schedule your appointment over the phone, then please contact using the phone number and email listed below:

(301) 363-1063 |  phone

(301) 363-1063  |  phone

(443) 545-7835   |   fax

(443) 545-7835   |   fax