Psychotherapeutic Approaches to Group Therapy for Addiction
Assignment: Psychotherapeutic Approaches to Group Therapy for Addiction
When selecting a psychotherapeutic approach for a client, you must consider the unique needs and characteristics of that particular client. The same is true when selecting a psychotherapeutic approach for groups. Not every approach is appropriate for every group, and the group’s unique needs and characteristics must be considered. For this Assignment, you examine psychotherapeutic approaches to group therapy for addiction.
Learning Objectives
Students will:
• Evaluate psychotherapeutic approaches to group therapy for addiction
To prepare:
• Review this week’s Learning Resources and reflect on the insights they provide on group therapy for addiction.
• View the media, Levy Family: Sessions 1-7, and consider the psychotherapeutic approaches being used.
The Assignment
In a 2- to 3-page paper, address the following:
• Identify the psychotherapeutic approach that the group facilitator is using and explain why she might be using this approach.
• Determine whether or not you would use the same psychotherapeutic approach if you were the counselor facilitating this group and justify your decision.
• Identify an alternative approach to group therapy for addiction and explain why it is an appropriate option.
• Support your position with evidence-based literature.
All references require creditable sources, nothing less than 5 years. References require doi or http. Please add conclusion. APA needs to be 7th Edition.
Laureate Education (Producer). (2013d). Levy family: Sessions 1-7 [Video file]. Baltimore, MD; Author.
Levy Family Episode 1 Program Transcript [MUSIC PLAYING]
FEMALE SPEAKER: You’re not dressed? You’re going to be late for work.
MALE SPEAKER: I’m not going to work. I’m sick.
FEMALE SPEAKER: Of course, you’re sick. You’re hungover. I don’t want the boys to see you like this. Go back to bed.
MALE SPEAKER: See me like what? I told you, I’m sick.
FEMALE SPEAKER: Well, what do you call it when someone is sick almost every morning, because they drink every night while they sit in the dark watching TV?
MALE SPEAKER: You calling me a drunk?
FEMALE SPEAKER: What do you call it?
MALE SPEAKER: I call it, leave me the hell alone.
FEMALE SPEAKER: Baby, you need to stop this. It’s tearing us up. The drinking, the anger– you’re depressed.
MALE SPEAKER: You said, for better or worse.
FEMALE SPEAKER: My vows don’t cover this. You were never like this before. You’ve changed. I want us back, the way we used to be.
MALE SPEAKER: That way is dead. It died when I went to Iraq.
Levy Family Episode 2 Program Transcript
FEMALE SPEAKER: I want to thank you for getting me this Levy case. I think it’s so interesting. Just can’t wait to meet with the client.
MALE SPEAKER: What do you find interesting about it?
FEMALE SPEAKER: Well, he’s just 31. Usually the vets I work with are older. If they have PTSD, it’s from traumas a long time ago. But Jake, this is all pretty new to him. He just left Iraq a year ago. You know, I was thinking he’d be perfect for one of those newer treatment options, art therapy, meditation, yoga, something like that.
MALE SPEAKER: Why?
FEMALE SPEAKER: Well, I’ve been dying to try one of them. I’ve read a lot of good things. Why? What are you thinking?
MALE SPEAKER: I’m thinking you should really think about it some more. Think about your priorities. It’s a good idea to be open-minded about treatment options, but the needs of the client have to come first, not just some treatment that you or I might be interested in.
FEMALE SPEAKER: I mean, I wasn’t saying it like that. I always think of my clients first. MALE SPEAKER: OK. But you mentioned meditation, yoga, art therapy. Have you seen any research or data that measures how effective they are in treatment?
FEMALE SPEAKER: No.
MALE SPEAKER: Neither have I. There may be good research out there, and maybe one or two of the treatments that you mentioned might be really good ideas. I just want to point out that you should meet your client first, meet Jake before you make any decisions about how to address his issues. Make sense?
FEMALE SPEAKER: Yeah.
Levy Family Episode 3 Program Transcript
JAKE LEVY: We’d be out on recon in our Humvees, and it would get so hot. We used to put our water bottles in wet socks and hang them right outside the window just so the water would cool off of a bit, and maybe then you could drink it. Man, it was cramped in there. You’d be drenched, nowhere to breathe. It’s like riding around in an oven. And you’d have your helmet on you, 100 pounds of gear and ammo. I swear, sometimes I feel like it’s still on me, like it’s all still strapped on me.
FEMALE SPEAKER: How many tours did you do in Iraq?
JAKE LEVY: Three. After that last recon, I just– There were 26 of us. Five marines in the Humvee I was in. I remember I was wearing my night vision goggles. We passed through a village and everything was green, like I was in a dream or under water. And then there was a flash, bright light just blinded me. There was this explosion. I can’t– I can’t—
FEMALE SPEAKER: It’s OK, Jake. Take it easy. I understand this is difficult. There’s something I’d like to try with you. It’s called exposure therapy, and it’s a treatment that’s used a lot with war veterans, especially those struggling with anxiety and PTSD.
JAKE LEVY: Exposure therapy?
FEMALE SPEAKER: Yes. It’s to help someone like yourself to confront your feelings and anxieties about a traumatic situation that you’ve experienced. It’s a– It’s meant to help you get more control of your thoughts, to make sense of what’s happened, and to not be so afraid of your memories.
JAKE LEVY: Put that in a bottle and I’ll buy 10 cases of it.
FEMALE SPEAKER: Well, one part of it is learning to control your breathing. And when you practice that, you can learn to manage your anxiety, to get more control of it, not let it control you, to protect yourself. Do you want to try it?
JAKE LEVY: Right now?
FEMALE SPEAKER: Sure.
JAKE LEVY: Why not?
Levy Family Episode 3
FEMALE SPEAKER: OK. Well, I know this sounds crazy, but a lot of people don’t breathe properly. And it really comes from bad habits. When they inhale and exhale, all the effort is here in their chest and shoulders. And the problem with that is you get a really short, shallow breath. And that really increases the stress and anxiety in your body. Instead, a more natural breath should always involve your diaphragm, right here in your abdomen. When you breath in, your belly should expand. And when you breath out, your belly should fall. OK?
JAKE LEVY: OK.
FEMALE SPEAKER: So, let’s practice. Close your eyes. Now, I want you put one hand on your abdomen and the other across your chest. Good. Good. Now, I just want you to take a few breaths, just like normal. What are you feeling?
JAKE LEVY: I feel my chest moving up and down. But my belly, nothing.
FEMALE SPEAKER: OK. So that’s what I was just talking about. That’s OK. Let’s try this. I want you take a breath. And this time, I only want you to allow your abdomen to expend when you breathe in and to fall when you breathe out. OK, let’s try it. Breathe in. Breathe out. Breathe in. Breathe out. You feeling better? More relaxed?
JAKE LEVY: Yes.
FEMALE SPEAKER: And the more you practice it the easier it will become. So when you find that stress and anxiety coming on, just do your breathing. You can keep yourself from getting swept by all those bad thoughts. OK?
JAKE LEVY: Yes. Thank you.
FEMALE SPEAKER: So, do you want to try to go back to what you were telling me about before?
JAKE LEVY: I can try. It was night. We were out on recon. It was my third tour in Iraq.
Levy Family Episode 4 Program Transcript
FEMALE SPEAKER: So do you want to try to go back to what you’re telling me before? LEVY: I can try. It was night. We were out on patrol. I remember it was so hot packed in our vehicle. Suddenly there was an explosion. We got tossed into a ditch. And somehow I made it out, and I could see it was the Humvee behind us. It’s whole front end was gone. It had hit a roadside bomb. Our vehicle had just driven past it, just mis triggering it. But not them. They didn’t make it.
FEMALE SPEAKER: Remember how we practiced. Slow your breathing down. Inhale and exhale from your abdomen.
LEVY: Thank you.
FEMALE SPEAKER: And just take your time. Whenever you are ready.
LEVY: So the bomb went off. I managed to get out. I had my night vision goggles on. And I could see the Humvee, the one that got hit. It’s whole front end was gone. And there’s this crater in the road. And inside it I could see– I could see Kurt’s– our platoon Sergeant, he was lying there everything below his waist was gone, blown off. And he was screaming. Screaming like nothing you’d ever heard. And then he was looking at me. And he was screaming for me to kill him. To stop his suffering. He was yelling, please. Please. And someone tried putting tourniquets on him. But the ground just kept getting darker with his blood. And I was staring into his face. I had my rifle trained on him. I was going to do it. You know. He was begging me to. I could feel my finger on the trigger. And I kept looking into his face. And then I didn’t have to do nothing. Because the screaming had stopped. He’d bled out. Died right there. And all I could think was I’d let him down. His last request, and I couldn’t do it. I couldn’t put a bullet in him so he could die fast not slow.
FEMALE SPEAKER: I can see and hear how painful it is for you to relive this story. Thank you for sharing it. Do you think this incident is behind some of the symptoms you’ve been telling me about?
LEVY: When I go to sleep at night, I close my eyes, and I see Kurt’s there staring at me. So I don’t sleep too good. That’s why I started drinking. It’s the only way I can forget about that night. So I drink too much. At least that’s what my wife yells at me. We’re not doing too well these days. I’m not exactly the life of the party. I left Iraq 10 months ago. But Iraq never left me. I’m afraid it’s never going to leave me alone.
Levy Family Episode 5 Program Transcript
FEMALE SPEAKER: It was such an intense story. I just kept seeing things the way he did, you know. The weird green of his night-vision goggles, his sergeant screaming for Jake to kill him. I just keep seeing it all in my head. [MUSIC PLAYING]
MALE SPEAKER: Why, do you think?
FEMALE SPEAKER: Why what?
MALE SPEAKER: Why do you think you keep thinking about this story, this particular case? FEMALE SPEAKER: I don’t know, maybe because it’s so vivid. You know, I went home last night, turned on the TV to try to get my mind off it. And a commercial for the Marines came on, and there was all over again– the explosion, the screams, the man dying. Such a nightmare to live with, and he’s got a baby on they way.
MALE SPEAKER: Could that be it, the baby?
FEMALE SPEAKER: Maybe. That’s interesting you say that. I mean, the other vets I work with are older, and they have grown kids. But Jake is different. I just keep picturing him with a newborn. And I guess it scares me. I wonder if he’ll be able to deal with it.
Levy Family Episode 6 Program Transcript
FEMALE SPEAKER: I know three of you did tours of duty in Iraq, and the others in Afghanistan. So I just wanted to follow up on that, talk about how you’re adjusting. [MUSIC PLAYING]
MALE SPEAKER 1: You say adjust to, but there’s no adjustment. You’re just thrown back into your life like you’re supposed to pick up where you left off, but that’s a joke. Two years ago, I was dug in, pinned down by 50 Cal sniper fire, just praying the chopper would get me out alive. Now, the hardest part of my day is standing in the grocery store trying to decide if I want yellow or brown mustard with my hot dogs.
JAKE: Nah, two six packs or a case.
FEMALE SPEAKER: You find that you drink more than you used to?
JAKE: Why not ask him if he finds he’s eating more hot dogs than he used to?
BILL: You know why?
JAKE: Why is that? Oh great, Buddha.
BILL: Because I’ve been where you are. You talk about booze like it’s some joke, but nobody’s laughing. You can’t get adjusted to anything when you’re trying to get loaded.
JAKE: I guess you won’t be joining me for a drink at the bar later. I was going to buy.
FEMALE SPEAKER: No, that’s a good point, Bill. Sometimes we do things to avoid dealing with unpleasant feelings, like adjusting to life back at home.
JAKE: What do you know about it? Give me a break. Back off, or I’ll make you. BILL: I drink too much too. But I’ve had enough of you mouthing off.
JAKE: My wife’s had enough of me too. She’s the reason I’m here. We never used to fight. I never used to drink so much, but now I can’t stop myself from doing either.
FEMALE SPEAKER: So why do you drink too much?
Levy Family Episode 6
BILL: It’s the only way I can shut it out, images of what I saw over there, horrible things that no one should ever have to see. I wake up some nights and I hear mortar rounds coming in. And I reach for my helmet and my weapon, but they’re not there. So I freak out. And then I see pretty curtains. TV’S on. And then I remember I’m at home. I realize I’m not going to get blown up after all.
FEMALE SPEAKER: Thanks for sharing, Jake. You make a good point. It can seem a lot easier to self medicate rather than face the fears, the bad memories that we have. So what do you think? What are some other things, maybe, you do to avoid the challenge to being a civilian again?
Levy Family Episode 7 Program Transcript
FEMALE SPEAKER: How did you find out?
MALE SPEAKER: There’s a guy who served in our platoon. He didn’t call. Wrote an email. He said it would bother him too much if he talked about it. Sorry to be the one who tells you that Eric committed suicide last night. The last time I saw him, he said he was adjusting to civilian life pretty well. His girlfriend told me it wasn’t true. She said he told everyone he was doing fine. But the nightmares kept after him even when he wasn’t sleeping. It just tore him up. I guess he decided he’d had enough. He ended it with a service revolver. Marine to the end.
FEMALE SPEAKER: I’m sorry, Jake.
MALE SPEAKER: Thank you. You know, I spend almost every night in front of the TV, drinking until I can’t remember anything else. But I read that email last night, and I didn’t drink a drop. I just kept thinking about Eric. You know we went through Parris Island together? FEMALE SPEAKER: I didn’t know that.
MALE SPEAKER: Yeah. I didn’t turn on the TV, either. I went straight to the computer. And before I knew it, I was reading about veterans and suicide. They say about 22 veterans commit suicide every day, 22. That’s like one every hour. Makes it sound like we’re time bombs. Makes you wonder which one of us is going to go off next.
FEMALE SPEAKER: You sound glad that you didn’t drink last night.
MALE SPEAKER: Yeah. I’ve been trying to quit for my wife. But that email– you know what else I read online? I checked all over with the VA, but it doesn’t look like they do anything to help prevent suicide. I mean, they offer help if you ask for it, but no prevention. Who’s going to ask for help, right? They train you to be stronger than everyone else, to endure. Asking for help is just not something most men do.
FEMALE SPEAKER: Do you need help, Jake?
MALE SPEAKER: I need a lot, but not like that. I’m not ready to check out yet. I got a baby on the way.
Levy Family Episode 7 I found out something else. I was reading about this veteran who committed suicide in another state. And they started this program in his memory that brings other vets together to help each other.
FEMALE SPEAKER: Peer counseling?
MALE SPEAKER: Yeah, that’s it. And I spent the whole rest of the night thinking, why don’t we have something like that? We should be reaching out to all vets, not just those who are already getting mental health services. I’d even volunteer to get something like that going. FEMALE SPEAKER: Well, that’s a great idea. But we’d need to find the money for a program like that. I mean, our budget is maxed out. We’d have to lobby the state legislature for the funding.
MALE SPEAKER: Well, I’ll do it. I’ll write the letter. I want to try.
FEMALE SPEAKER: Well, OK.
MALE SPEAKER: I can’t let Eric go without doing something for him. For me, too.
Psychotherapeutic Approaches to Group Therapy for Addiction
Introduction
The Levy family presents with multiple issues that stem from alcohol addiction and post-traumatic disorder. The husband does not realize that his alcohol addiction is causing significant family problems. The best psychotherapeutic approach is counseling therapy since it involves listening to the clients to identify the dynamics affecting them and the group or family (Breuninger et al., 2020). The listening tactic is essential since it helps the counselor to discover that Levy is a veteran who experienced war in Iraq. The best alternative is psychodrama since it is effective in helping people to understand themselves and their history. The purpose of the paper is to examine the psychotherapeutic approaches to group therapy for addiction in the Levy family.
Psychotherapeutic Approach
The group facilitator is using a counseling therapy approach to address the issues presenting in the Levy family. The strategy involves listening to the clients to identify the dynamics affecting them and the group or family. It helps therapists recommend strategies for coping with the challenges and adapting new strategies (Breuninger et al., 2020). The listening tactic is essential since it helps the counselor to discover that Levy is a veteran who experienced war in Iraq. The experience I traumatizing after his friends were killed in the war. He is trying to mask his pain by taking alcohol and drugs. He does not realize that he has a major problem that is affecting his family.
The therapy does not encourage the abuse of alcohol and drugs or rebuke it. For instance, Levy makes a joke that the therapist should put the therapy in a bottle and give him to drink. The therapist does not respond to the comment, which shows he does not encourage drug abuse. It helps the client move on and start a new life (Breuninger et al., 2020). The therapy applies to Levy’s family issues that are causing conflict.
Counseling therapy explores and understands the family dynamics essential for treatment. The case study shows that the wife is concerned about the husband. She knows that the behavior of the husband has changed significantly. Levy is concerned about the situation since he shows emotions during therapy. It demonstrates that he is worried that his behavior affects his family (Ghochani et al., 2020). The therapeutic approach shows that it is important to explore the strengths of clients. For instance, the case study shows that the wife supports the husband to overcome the post-traumatic disorder, such as finding alternative activities that can occupy the mind.
The wife is concerned that the husband should change the current behavior since it would set a bad example for the children. The therapist’s focus on counseling therapy is to help Levy’s wife develop appropriate support and communication (Ghochani et al., 2020). Counseling therapy is thus an effective approach that helps people cope with their challenges.
I would use the same therapy to handle the Levy’s family case study. The therapeutic strategy is effective since it promotes communication between a therapist and a client. During therapy, a counselor acts as a mediator to promote communication (Stone et al., 2017). It helps people to express suppressed emotions. For instance, the wife is disappointed with the behavior of the husband. The counseling sessions can present a safe opportunity to communicate the frustrations to the client (Stone et al., 2017). Another reason for using the therapy since it improves the self-esteem of the clients. When clients feel accepted, they contribute to solving the problem. For instance, the wife can effectively support the husband in overcoming the drinking habit. Self-esteem improves when people find an opportunity to communicate, express emotions, and share ideas (Stone et al., 2017). Therapists can thus utilize counseling therapy to generate solutions for the problems affecting diverse clients.
Alternative Approach
The best alternative for Levy’s family is psychodrama. The approach is effective in helping people to understand themselves and their history. It helps address trauma and improve intimate relationships among individuals or families (Cruz et al., 2018). The technique involves role-playing and dramatization that helps people to investigate and gain new insights. Psychodrama generates new information and helps people to reflect on their past behavior (Giacomucci, 2020). The approach is effective in Levy’s family since it will involve re-enacting the scenes that cause conflict. For instance, reenacting the scenes involving the wife and husband can help Levy to understand the pain he is inflicting on his family (Cruz et al., 2018). The revelation is essential in motivating him to resolve his behavior that involves alcohol addiction.
Conclusion
The Levy family is experiencing various challenges due to the husband’s alcoholism. The husband does not realize that his alcohol addiction is causing significant family problems. Counseling therapy is the best approach to deal with the issues in the family. I would use the same approach to address the multiple issues the family is experiencing. The best alternative method of addressing the issues in Levy’s family is psychodrama. The approach involves reenacting issues and helping clients to understand their behavior and relationship with others. The approaches are effective in helping the Levy family, and the individuals overcome multiple issues.
References
Breuninger, M. M., Grosso, J. A., Hunter, W., & Dolan, S. L. (2020). Treatment of alcohol use disorder: Integration of Alcoholics Anonymous and cognitive behavioral therapy. Training and Education in Professional Psychology, 14(1), 19. https://doi.org/10.1037/tep0000265
Cruz, A., Sales, C., Alves, P., & Moita, G. (2018). The Core Techniques of Morenian Psychodrama: A systematic review of literature. Frontiers in Psychology, 9, 1263. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2018.01263
Ghochani, M., Safarian Toosi, M. R., & Khoynezhad, G. R. (2020). Investigation of the Effectiveness of the Combined Couple Therapy for Couples on the Improvement of Intimacy and PTSD. The American Journal of Family Therapy, 1-22. https://doi.org/10.1080/01926187.2020.1813657
Giacomucci, S. (2020). Addiction, traumatic loss, and guilt: A case study resolving grief through psychodrama and sociometric connections. The Arts in Psychotherapy, 67, 101627. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.aip.2019.101627
Stone, D. A., Conteh, J. A., & Francis, J. D. (2017). Therapeutic factors and psychological concepts in alcoholics anonymous. Journal of Counselor Practice, 8(2), 120-135. DOI: 10.22229/nav074629
