At Odyssey, we approach addiction from the inside out. What that means to me is blending current research and interventions for addiction with an understanding of how that is meaningful to our clients and how that information is helpful in treatment.
The spirit and style of CAC training at Odyssey means presenting the current information on addiction in a clear and understandable way while at the same time drawing on our personal and professional experiences to make it real. When I say: “our professional and personal experiences,” I mean everyone participating in the training sharing our stories and experiences of counseling and life, so all of us learn in a much deeper and more meaningful way. The instructor must be able to share their content expertise and its practical use in treatment through their clinical and personal experiences and foster that level of sharing and interaction in all the students… that’s learning from the inside out.
What’s an example of that?
The first example that comes to my mind is from a class in which I just recently trained, motivational interviewing skills (MI). A core concept in MI is the client’s ambivalence towards change. Understanding this ambivalence is key to working with motivational interviewing and the majority of our clients in treatment.
So, what does it mean when the client is ambivalent? How does that show up in treatment? How do you experience that sitting across from the client as the counselor?
When helping students understand the concept of ambivalence I ask them to think of someone they know who has been in recovery for at least several years. Once the students have thought of someone I tell them the first thing they need to do is congratulate that person on being in recovery for so many years. Then they need to ask this question – “How long did you think about quitting drinking and drugging before you actually quite and got into recovery?” What I’ve found is the answer for almost everyone in recovery that’s asked that question spontaneously answers…”Oh Years”. Well, that’s a long time, so the next question is this…”During those years, how often did you think of quitting?” The most common answer…Everyday. So every day for, years that person thought about quitting before they quit. So the final question is this…”During all that time who did you share that with? Who did you talk to about your thoughts of quitting?” The answer is almost always no one, not a living soul.
That is the picture of many people who will be sitting in front of you for their intake interview for their first treatment for the substance use disorder. It also captures a common phrase used in AA and that is “You are only as sick as your secrets” the secret being all your thoughts, dreams, fantasies about quitting drinking and drugging. From this perspective, when that client is not honest at intake and denies and minimizes their problems it makes sense because they have never told anyone. Why would they tell you, a complete stranger who threatens their addiction? This is why understanding Motivational Interviewing is so important and that getting the spirit of MI is central to practicing MI. Using MI helps us continue building a relationship with the client and exploring then hopefully resolving their ambivalence.
This is just one example of many many stories from my clinical and personal experience that illustrate important concepts in addiction and recovery. Every CAC student and instructor has stories that contribute to this understanding. Whether it’s a story about what a client shared with them, an experience growing up in an addicted family, what early recovery was like for them or a new innovative treatment approach that they heard about. I believe CAC training is enhanced when each of us has the opportunity to share our experiences that enrich everyone’s understanding of addiction and recovery.
Michael Connelly
A CAC III since 1980 and ADAD/OBH trainer since 1982, Michael contributed to shaping the culture of CAC training and treatment in Colorado. He received his Master’s in Educational Psychology the University of Colorado in 1995 and his LAC in 2004. Combining his 20 years of professional working experience with his education and his personal experience of being in long term recovery from addiction led him to open Odyssey Training Center in 1999. Michael believes that addiction counseling training must be taught from the “inside out”. That means combining current academic/scientific research of addiction with genuine compassion for people struggling with their addiction. All of Odyssey’s faculty are OBH approved, are active counselors with at least a decade of field experience, years of training experience and many life experiences. Odyssey’s mission is to give our students the most current and accurate information about addiction and the understanding of how to apply that knowledge in helping each client take the first step toward their recovery.
Odyssey offers both online/hybrid and onsite CAC classes for treatment programs throughout Colorado. If your clinic or organization is interested in onsite CAC training, please contact Michael at mconnelly@odysseycenter.
