From Uncertainty to Empowerment: A Therapist's Journey through Addiction & Substance Misuse Treatment Training
Kacy, our Addiction Therapist Program Lead at Khesed, reflects her experience of our Addiction Program with us below. Her passion for serving those struggling with substance misuse, working at Khesed, and forging a bridge between the two serves as an inspirational narrative for aspiring therapists.
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My journey to become a substance use therapist was not planned, nor was it ever what I envisioned for myself as a budding therapist. I had only one class in school related to substance use and, to knock it out as quickly as possible, I elected for an intensive two weekend class format. During that time, my thinking often went to stigmatizing thoughts like, ‘’just don’t drink,’’ or, ‘’how can a drug be more important than your family?”
Fast forward a semester: it was time for me to start applying for internships. When I reflected on my schooling thus far, I remembered how much I had struggled to wrap my head around substance use treatment. I knew that in order to be the best therapist I could be, I needed to understand substance use from a person-centered, nonjudgmental, empathic place.
I immersed myself into the substance use treatment world and completed my internship in a residential treatment center.
To put it bluntly: I struggled.
The therapists I worked with were uniquely direct. They told clients they were worried they were going to die, worked hard to keep people in treatment even when people wanted to leave, and were confrontational at times. They took long extensive histories of clients to try and understand the extent of their addiction, and held group sessions where people walked out, cried, and yelled. My stigmatizing thoughts shifted to empathy and compassion, but I still had no idea how to conceptualize substance use. What I saw happening in residential treatment was not how the fishbowl activities in class had gone.
In order to understand my role better, I read tons of substance use specific books, soaked up all the supervision I could, and volunteered to be on different units to see how different therapists approached clinical care. I cried, laughed, learned how important coffee breaks are, and tried on different techniques to see what fit me as a therapist–while also recognizing the unique needs of the population.
Fast forward yet again: I wrapped up my internship with a newfound confidence within my work and a sense of compassion for the population. I worked at the treatment center, continued my career in settings across the continuum of care, obtained my LAC, and dedicated my professional self to helping others be more confident in their ability to provide high-quality treatment to people with substance use disorders.
In order to best serve our clients, we need to feel comfortable addressing substance use. Addiction is prevalent and life threatening.
And in order to combat stigma, we must address our own uncertainties with working with substance use as therapists. My hope is that therapists don’t need to stumble into substance use treatment like I did, but rather, that we can intentionally learn how impactful and life changing substance use treatment can be.
The opportunity to build the Addiction Program at Khesed is in perfect alignment with my professional experience and my dedication to helping decrease mental health barriers for people with substance use disorders. The intent of our program is to help therapists gain their LAC while also having a kind space to discover who they are as a substance use therapist. Our program provides specialized training in issues that arise in substance use treatment, supervision, access to two or three day long LAC classes, a cohort of peers, and a private practice setting that allows for a calmer, more intentional pace of obtaining and seeing clients.
