Addiction Education/Disease Concept

Clients will develop a better understanding of what “Addiction” is and how to manage and change the symptoms.  Disease Concept, the medical model, will be discussed to help clients make connection that by acknowledging as an illness helps a client look at their stages of addiction, symptoms of their illness and how to successfully manage such symptoms. As with any other illness, without interventions, the disease only progresses which ultimately will lead to death. By managing one’s illness, identifying triggers, high risks, life stressors – one learns how to manage cravings, adapt healthier coping mechanisms and develop an overall healthier lifestyle. Clients will also learn about how people who are addicted to drugs and alcohol will substitute with other addictions including behaviors that are addictive. “Self-medication” (using alcohol, illegal drugs or drugs outside of those prescribed) may occur as an attempt to inhibit the discomfort of the disease.

Anger/Stress Management

Anger and depression play a large role in High Point’s clients’ lives and the two are closely connected. The group makes clients aware of these two emotions can pose a threat to their well-being and helps them develop coping skills to ensure to identify triggers and minimize the possibility of a serious problem arising. Anger is often the result of being frustrated or feeling powerless against a situation or person. When constant uncontrolled anger gets in the way of normal living – affecting relationships, work, and overall well-being – anger management can help. It aims to help clients understand the reasons for chronic anger, and how to express it in a healthier way that won’t harm them and others.

Arts and Music

The music and arts groups encourage clients to explore, process and express their feelings through these art forms. Clients generally appreciate being given this chance at artistic expression as it gives them a comfortable setting to express personal issues they may have suppressed for a very long time. These art forms stimulate the clients and put them in touch with their emotions.

Art Therapy

Creativity offers an effective and healthy way to explore emotions. This group allows members to learn to express their emotions through various forms of arts and crafts. Clients will explore different kinds of art to expand their knowledge and comfort level using different mediums. They will be encouraged to use their creativity to progress with their personal mental health goals.

Assertiveness

This group will help members/clients develop healthy communications skills, learn how to set healthy boundaries with others and distinguish between assertiveness and aggressiveness.

Case management

Goals of case management groups are to assist clients to identify current issues that need to be addressed, especially emergent needs beyond the normal daily needs.  These may include but are not limited to legal issues, Social Security, telephone calls for services needed, medical transportation, Board of Social Service needs etc. Counselors encourage and support clients in taking appropriate actions. Encourage task counselors to check in with their clients on asking to verbalize any emergent issues of the day and/or follow-ups to recent past day needs with monitoring the progress of such needs/goals. For example: a client identifies not feeling well, counselor follows up by assisting client with medical appointment. Assist with problems affecting client housing, serve as a collaborator with existing facility, advocate when needed, and may help to explore housing linkage if client is facing eviction etc. Counselors model and empower clients to be assertive in asking to have needs met and to complete tasks that are within their means.

CBT

Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) works with the premise that “what you think and do affects the way you feel”. CBT is all about discovering what keeps individuals from getting stuck in a cycle, and changing ways in your thinking to improve the way you are feeling.

Client Council

High Point strives to provide a voice to clients so they can be an active part of our health and social care services every step of the way. Our client council serves to encourage involvement, participation, and feedback to pave the way for better communication and service.

Coping & Stress Management

Stress has become such a fixture of modern life that many people complain about its effects on both their mental and physical health. Our experienced health professionals can help clients cope with and manage stress using a variety of therapies and treatments.

Emotions Regulation

The Emotions Regulation service at High Point is centered on behavioral intervention. The aim is for clients to learn to identify, be mindful, and describe their emotions at any level of intensity, so that they can manage them for better decision-making.  

Roadblocks to Recovery

Relapse is common among recently recovered addicts because there are many roadblocks preventing them from maintaining sobriety. These roadblocks could be untreated or misdiagnosed mental illness, the lack of a good support system, or even living in an environment susceptible to relapse and further addiction. The aim of this program is to recognize, understand, and overcome these obstacles that clients face daily in order to overcome them.

Self Esteem

Low self-esteem can be the result of a variety of things such as depression, anxiety, bullying, or abuse. High Point is proud to have professional staff and therapists to assist clients on building a healthy view of self and others in order to raise their self-worth, while taking into consideration their individual journeys so that therapy can be personalized and more effective.

Client Governance

Each month, High Point holds a meeting to seek input and insights from clients about the programs they attend. This is in keeping with High Point’s philosophy of ensuring that clients have a voice in their treatment, activities and diet. This participation helps to promote their self-confidence and sense of independence. Separate governance groups are held for mental health and substance abuse clients.

Cognitive Processing Group

Clients will learn cognitive/ behavioral strategies to promote problem solving, rational thinking, and symptom management through discussion, exercises and instruction. Clients learn how their thoughts inhibit /promote feelings and behaviors. Through establishing a safe environment, clients share personal issues/problems they are experiencing through active listening and empathy. This group helps promote the clients’ recognition of problem-solving and addresses distorted thinking by helping them explore self-defeating behaviors, inaccurate beliefs, faulty perceptions and “should” statements. The goal is to promote skill building and cognitive behavioral techniques to help develop effective problem solving and solution focused skills.

Communication Skills

Assisting clients in developing their ability to communicate is essential to their progress and their interaction with their peers. Through the group, clients learn appropriate ways to express their feelings. The group explores challenges in communication in a safe, supportive environment.

Co-Occurring Disorders

In view of the very high percentage of people with mental illness using drugs to self-medicate, there is a great need for clients to examine this issue. The group addresses medication compliance, diagnosis, and medication education. The goal is to integrate mental health and addiction treatment and to provide the tools need to manage co-occurring disorders.

Emotional Regulation/Conflict Resolution

Clients learn to increase insight into various emotional states of self and others.  To increase ability to manage anger and frustration and develop better conflict management skills.Clients learn effective means of communicating with others through the development of underlying skills including problem solving skills that promote good communication and reduce conflict socialization; develop awareness of multicultural issues as they impact their relationships. Clients learn to identify situations that trigger anger and their own personal warning signs of anger. They also learn appropriate ways to manage and express anger and emotions (employing relaxation techniques, assertiveness, I-statements, taking a time out, etc.) They Demonstrate the ability to problem-solve by seeking feedback from others.Learn and apply problem solving steps to circumvent conflict with others.Describe constructive vs. destructive problem-solving methods in order to resolve conflict effectively.

Health and Dimensions of Wellness

High Point believes in a holistic approach to care. This group helps clients develop techniques to take better care themselves in all respects: physically, mentally, socially and spiritually. Better all-round self-care results in improved self-esteem, reduced symptoms and increased physical well-being.

Journaling

The writing group gives clients the opportunity to explore and express their feelings, concerns, shortcomings and triumphs in a keepsake journal. They will keep the journal throughout their time at High Point, and through new entries and reflecting on old ones will more fully appreciate the progress they have made during their treatment.

Life Skills

One of the primary goals at High Point is to promote independence and self-esteem in our clients. This goal is pursued through education in basic finance, bill-paying, check-balancing, resume writing, the importance of health insurance, personal hygiene, medical tests, and STD testing.

Medication Education

Medications play a critical role in treatment of both mental illness and addiction. Through this group, clients will learn about medications that will assist them in their recovery. It will stress compliance with their prescribed medications, side effects and the great risk of using illicit drugs while on a prescribed medication. As a complement to the group clients may well see High Point’s psychiatrist/APN.

Relapse Prevention

High Point takes every possible step to reduce the chances of relapse for clients being treated for addiction. This group uses Hazelton’s MATRIX model, emphasizing the disease model of addiction and the stages of change.  The group examines the vulnerabilities for relapse and guides clients in avoiding circumstances that could trigger them. Discharge planning is an essential element in avoiding relapse and counselors work with each client to ensure the individual’s issues are addressed.  It also stresses peer support, which includes but is by no means limited to 12-step support.

Stress Management

Through various discussions, exercises and experiential learning, clients examine “what is stress”, how does both good and bad stress influence them in all aspects of their lives.  Clients identify how they are positively or negatively coped with stress in the past and the consequences associated with these past experiences. The goal of this group is to provide clients with techniques to relax, cope and appropriately express feelings of stress. By practicing such techniques as relaxation, mindfulness, meditation, imagery, to name a few, clients begin to utilize new ways to manage their stress and gain better balance in their lives.

Addiction is when a person has intense craving for the pleasure brought about by something and loses control just to obtain and consume that something (even after knowing the adverse consequences involved). At High Point, we believe that clients can overcome drug addiction, and that full recovery is possible.

Symptoms Recognition

Learning to recognize the symptoms of a group of disorders, including major depressive, bipolar, substance-induced mood, and mood disorders is key to getting the proper diagnosis and treatment for the client. Importance factors such as risk factors, prevalence, family history, and others are taken into careful consideration.