The Benefits of a Holistic Approach to Recovery

By /

Have you heard of the term “holistic treatment” in addiction recovery? Holistic healing is an approach that considers the needs of the whole person—mind, body, emotions, and spirit. Holistic treatment tends to utilize traditional methods in conjunction with more unconventional ways of treating people with addiction. These supplementary tools can help prevent relapse and related emotional and mental health issues.

The “Whole Person” Approach 

Although recovery specialists agree that substance addiction is a brain disease, it is also widely agreed upon that exclusively treating the mental effects of substances is not enough. Addiction affects all areas of an individual’s well-being, including physical, emotional, mental, and spiritual health. Proper treatment should integrate a person’s body, mind, emotions, behaviors, and spirit.

This “whole person” approach characterizes holistic treatments that are designed to affect an individual’s overall well-being rather than targeting a particular symptom in a single dimension. Being a holistic treatment does not mean it is not evidence-based, because many holistic therapy methods have been proven effective, particularly in increasing self-awareness and reducing anxiety and depression.

Examples of Holistic Addiction Treatments

In the field of addiction counseling, “holistic psychotherapy” combines traditional talk therapy, psychoanalysis, and cognitive-behavioral therapy with new methods such as hypnotherapy and breathwork. Other common forms of holistic treatments include art therapy, music or dance therapy, yoga, nutritional therapy, aromatherapy, meditation and mindfulness, massage therapy, nature therapy, and more.

Because every recovering individual has unique needs and personal history, the best holistic treatment is customized to meet these needs, accounting for their history of substance use, co-occurring mental health issues, multicultural differences, gender-specific conditions, etc. Since there is a wide range of holistic methods for addiction recovery, various approaches can be combined to treat one person as long as they improve wellness and promote a better sense of self. For example, nutritional therapy can be beneficial for just about anyone, while not everyone may connect with dance therapy.

Holistic treatment methods can be helpful not only for substance addiction, but also other types of behavioral addictions, such as sex addiction, gambling addiction, social media addiction, food addiction, and gaming addiction. People who struggle with anxiety and depression can also benefit from many of these therapies.

Finding Holistic Treatment for Addiction Recovery 

Nowadays many addiction treatment programs have incorporated holistic therapies into their approach. The most common methods include nutritional counseling, yoga, mindfulness, meditation, and art therapy. You can review a given treatment center’s website to see what services they offer. If you want more in-depth knowledge, you can always seek out an addiction specialist who can offer consultations to help you find the right treatment provider to meet your needs.

It is also important to have the right expectations when you are looking for holistic treatment methods. This approach is all about empowering you to change by looking for the root of issues rather than treating your symptoms. Therapists can coach you on how to obtain certain skills to rebuild a healthy self-care routine, but you have to do the heavy lifting. Because the holistic approach often uses simple lifestyle changes to reduce stress and maintain sobriety, it can be a less costly and more lasting way to go.

Restoring a State of Balance and Health

The holistic approach is based on the belief that health problems occur because you have been out of balance. There is usually more than one area of your life that is driving this imbalance. The goal then is to restore your balance so that you not only break free of alcohol or drug addiction, but your overall system—including body, mind, and spirit—can be rejuvenated to a renewed and balanced state.

Most recovery specialists will tell you that the only way to guarantee sustainable recovery is through lifestyle modification. That is the benefit of the holistic approach. It will teach you how to make incremental lifestyle changes, with persistence and patience that lead you to full health. Do not expect holistic treatments to work quickly like medications often do. Give it time and trust your providers’ expertise. Consider yourself to be playing the role of an apprentice in learning the arts of holistic personal care.

Meanwhile, starting with a holistic treatment does not mean that you should forgo other traditional therapies, such as individual counseling, behavioral therapies, and medical detoxification. For people recovering from substance addiction, these traditional methods have been proven effective. They are still the pillars in the field, but because the human system is multi-dimensional, other methods can be used as complementary treatments. The overall goal is to restore the body, mind, and spirit to wellness and make it sustainable so that relapses do not happen.

The goal of recovery is to restore the body, mind, and spirit and make restoration sustainable to avoid relapse. For people recovering from substance addiction, many traditional methods, such as individual counseling, behavioral therapies, and medical detoxification have been proven effective. Because the human system is multi-dimensional, complementary treatment like holistic healing options can only help. If you are looking for a recovery facility where traditional and holistic methods are used, look no further than Laguna Shores Recovery. Here, our team of licensed mental healthcare professionals and therapists are experts in applying a wide range of methods to meet your needs. Most of our staff has been in recovery themselves, so we understand how implementing multiple treatment methods can help your recovery. Our full medical residential facility offers a range of treatments, including diagnosis, behavioral therapies, and 12-step programs as well as creative therapies, meditation, and mindfulness. Call us at 954-688-5806. 

The Benefits of a Holistic Approach to Recovery

Have you heard of the term “holistic treatment” in addiction recovery? Holistic healing is an approach that considers the needs of the whole person—mind, body, emotions, and spirit. Holistic treatment tends to utilize traditional methods in conjunction with more unconventional ways of treating people with addiction. These supplementary tools can help prevent relapse and related emotional and mental health issues.

The “Whole Person” Approach 

Although recovery specialists agree that substance addiction is a brain disease, it is also widely agreed upon that exclusively treating the mental effects of substances is not enough. Addiction affects all areas of an individual’s well-being, including physical, emotional, mental, and spiritual health. Proper treatment should integrate a person’s body, mind, emotions, behaviors, and spirit.

This “whole person” approach characterizes holistic treatments that are designed to affect an individual’s overall well-being rather than targeting a particular symptom in a single dimension. Being a holistic treatment does not mean it is not evidence-based, because many holistic therapy methods have been proven effective, particularly in increasing self-awareness and reducing anxiety and depression.

Examples of Holistic Addiction Treatments

In the field of addiction counseling, “holistic psychotherapy” combines traditional talk therapy, psychoanalysis, and cognitive-behavioral therapy with new methods such as hypnotherapy and breathwork. Other common forms of holistic treatments include art therapy, music or dance therapy, yoga, nutritional therapy, aromatherapy, meditation and mindfulness, massage therapy, nature therapy, and more.

Because every recovering individual has unique needs and personal history, the best holistic treatment is customized to meet these needs, accounting for their history of substance use, co-occurring mental health issues, multicultural differences, gender-specific conditions, etc. Since there is a wide range of holistic methods for addiction recovery, various approaches can be combined to treat one person as long as they improve wellness and promote a better sense of self. For example, nutritional therapy can be beneficial for just about anyone, while not everyone may connect with dance therapy.

Holistic treatment methods can be helpful not only for substance addiction, but also other types of behavioral addictions, such as sex addiction, gambling addiction, social media addiction, food addiction, and gaming addiction. People who struggle with anxiety and depression can also benefit from many of these therapies.

Finding Holistic Treatment for Addiction Recovery 

Nowadays many addiction treatment programs have incorporated holistic therapies into their approach. The most common methods include nutritional counseling, yoga, mindfulness, meditation, and art therapy. You can review a given treatment center's website to see what services they offer. If you want more in-depth knowledge, you can always seek out an addiction specialist who can offer consultations to help you find the right treatment provider to meet your needs.

It is also important to have the right expectations when you are looking for holistic treatment methods. This approach is all about empowering you to change by looking for the root of issues rather than treating your symptoms. Therapists can coach you on how to obtain certain skills to rebuild a healthy self-care routine, but you have to do the heavy lifting. Because the holistic approach often uses simple lifestyle changes to reduce stress and maintain sobriety, it can be a less costly and more lasting way to go.

Restoring a State of Balance and Health

The holistic approach is based on the belief that health problems occur because you have been out of balance. There is usually more than one area of your life that is driving this imbalance. The goal then is to restore your balance so that you not only break free of alcohol or drug addiction, but your overall system—including body, mind, and spirit—can be rejuvenated to a renewed and balanced state.

Most recovery specialists will tell you that the only way to guarantee sustainable recovery is through lifestyle modification. That is the benefit of the holistic approach. It will teach you how to make incremental lifestyle changes, with persistence and patience that lead you to full health. Do not expect holistic treatments to work quickly like medications often do. Give it time and trust your providers’ expertise. Consider yourself to be playing the role of an apprentice in learning the arts of holistic personal care.

Meanwhile, starting with a holistic treatment does not mean that you should forgo other traditional therapies, such as individual counseling, behavioral therapies, and medical detoxification. For people recovering from substance addiction, these traditional methods have been proven effective. They are still the pillars in the field, but because the human system is multi-dimensional, other methods can be used as complementary treatments. The overall goal is to restore the body, mind, and spirit to wellness and make it sustainable so that relapses do not happen.

The goal of recovery is to restore the body, mind, and spirit and make restoration sustainable to avoid relapse. For people recovering from substance addiction, many traditional methods, such as individual counseling, behavioral therapies, and medical detoxification have been proven effective. Because the human system is multi-dimensional, complementary treatment like holistic healing options can only help. If you are looking for a recovery facility where traditional and holistic methods are used, look no further than Laguna Shores Recovery. Here, our team of licensed mental healthcare professionals and therapists are experts in applying a wide range of methods to meet your needs. Most of our staff has been in recovery themselves, so we understand how implementing multiple treatment methods can help your recovery. Our full medical residential facility offers a range of treatments, including diagnosis, behavioral therapies, and 12-step programs as well as creative therapies, meditation, and mindfulness. Call us at 954-688-5806. 

Table of Contents

← Table of Contents
Scroll to Top
Skip to content