National Institute on Drug Abuse - The Science of Drug Abuse and Addiction

Drug and Alcohol Findings home page Skywiz1's Essay Collection - A Personal Journey SMART Recovery - A US Abstinence-Based Program David Gilliver SMART Recovery is an abstinence program established in the US in the 1990s, using tools and techniques based on cognitive-behavioral principles. Alcohol Concern has helped set up SMART Recovery projects in six pilot areas across England with Department of Health funding, and earlier this month mounted a conference to provide guidance for organizations that want to expand peer-support options in their area. Those four key points are building and maintaining motivation to abstain; coping with urges; managing thoughts, feelings and behaviors, and lifestyle balance. ‘The entire structure is supported by fewer than the equivalent of three full-time people,’ he says. Self-empowerment is the program’s touchstone, and he points to studies on the effectiveness of treatment that try to determine the pre-requisites for successful recovery. This communication, however, is very much centered on the present and the future. ( 79 Votes )

Living the Recovery Programme The Recovery Programme Home - Living the Recovery Programme