Counseling Continuing Education For Addiction Specialists

Addiction counselors whether specialists in drugs, sexuality, or another field, work with in a sometimes-volatile environment with unpredictable clients. Counseling continuing education can help them overcome barriers between them and a distressed patient as well as open better lines of communication so that they may offer workable solutions. Regardless of the specialization, all counselors can benefit from some basic training as well as by brushing up on these core skills that are required of the profession.

Communication:
How well you are able to interact and communicate with your clients will have a great impact on the effectiveness of your methods. Counselors need to be empathetic and good listeners, but they also need to know how to deal with manipulators. Addicts are masters at lying and deception, and will often tell you what you want to hear if they feel it will somehow benefit them. A good counselor will practice the art of reading clients so that they can avoid being conned themselves. Counseling continuing education can help you broaden or hone your communication skills so that you can better serve your clients as well as the community through your decisions.

Problem Solving:
As an addiction counselor, you need to provide your clients with several options and solutions to their problems. What works with one person will not necessarily clear the path for another. Sometimes, being creative and continually finding new ways to encourage and assist people can be draining if not impossible, which is where counseling continuing education can help. Courses, workshops, conferences, and lectures are a forum where likeminded professionals can meet and exchange ideas. Not only can it open new doors and push through creative blocks, but can provide an invaluable support system for when you feel stuck or without answers. There may be many solutions that you simply haven't had the opportunity to be introduced to yet.

Understanding:
A good addiction counselor will have a vast knowledge pertaining to drugs, sexuality, or any other specialization they choose to focus on. This is especially important when dealing with drugs as each can have a different effect on not only a client's emotional state but their physical health as well. Drugs are also constantly evolving and trends change over time, and it is necessary for a counselor to keep abreast on this information. Counseling continuing education in the form of pharmacology courses can help someone who may have no direct experience with a particular drug better understand the mindset and physical reactions to various substances. The deeper the understanding of an experience, the more they will be able to connect with the individual, and thereby offering better guidance.

Depending on your working title, your state may have mandates and require you to undertake a certain amount of educational credits on a yearly basis to maintain a current and valid license to practice. Courses accepted vary greatly and range from online classes to professional workshops. More information can be found across the Internet from psychotherapy organizations or addiction centers.