Weyland Consultation Services

Outcome Changes in Alcohol and Drug Treatment

 

High Bottom VS Low Bottom

I’d like to think we are more advanced today than ever before when it comes to getting people sober. It was an outgrowth of this very hope that the terms High Bottom vs Low Bottom originated.

What they are about is the idea or hope that we can get people into recovery with less consequences than ever before. The concept that people needed to almost die or lose everything and everyone of value to them to get sober is no longer true. I for one think this is wonderful and that it also speaks to the efforts of many fields/ and disciplines of endeavor that bring us to this point in time and state of being.

It is truly the blending of many modalities, such as psychiatry, general medical practitioners being more aware and catching things during general office visits, and a greater sense of what to look for than ever before that is allowing us to be more cutting edge in our approaches which in turn has supported all disciplines to work more collaboratively thereby creating a greater container for this population than ever before.

We therefore have a greater understanding and know that when addiction is at play we should always rule out possible psychiatric issues that may attend the substance use disorder. This way if someone is Dual Diagnosed (Addiction & a Primary Psychiatric issue), that suffers with a substance use and co-occurring psychiatric disorder we are more apt to catch this reality sooner than later. By so doing we bring relief to our patient because we are more informed of their needs and make good clinical decisions at the outset as opposed to finding out later and trying to play catch up.

I reference all of this because these are the very things that allow for that higher bottom while decreasing the incidence of psychological and physiological damage resulting from long term alcohol and drug addiction. It is also nice to note that we are adjunctively experiencing a lower incidence of legal problems or so called social norm violations especially among younger ages ranging from 17 – 23 years of age.

All of these factors point to the repeated assertion that treatment works and that more people are positively impacted by having sought treatment than not having done so. The purpose of this opinion article is not to make a case for treatment as I think that has already been done. Rather it is to highlight the ongoing need for ever increasing methods to make getting into treatment more accessible for he or she who does not have insurance or monetary support for treatment.

We need also to look at more eclectic methods of funding treatment programs as well as more government sponsored options again increasing accessibility for all who are need of a basic treatment options to the more complex Dual Diagnosed treatment settings those with primary mental health disorders.

At Weyland Consultation Services we believe that without a aggressive understanding and approach to creating accessibility for patients more people are left in harm’s way than not. For this reason we do all we can to work with people to make our services as accessible as possible so that we never have to turn anyone away if humanly possible. It is our core belief that if the person wants help, it’s our job to provide it.

We do this with an eye toward what works for our potential patient and that which will work for us. In so doing we hope to find that somewhat happy medium that allows all of us to work together in helping all who need it to get some form of help. The moment the process of help is initiated the potential for a higher bottom is realized.

Author: Fredrick Wade, CAS, RAS
Certified Addiction Specialist
Registered Addiction Specialist

Weyland Consultation Services offers Substance Addiction Assessment Services as well as Discreet and Confidential Intervention and Outpatient Alcohol and Drug and Treatment Programs for adults and adolescents in the greater San Francisco Bay Area. With their office in Walnut Creek they serve the Cities of Walnut Creek, Danville, San Ramon, Alamo, Lafayette, Moraga, Pleasanton as well as the greater San Francisco bay Area of California.

Weyland Consultation Services
Walnut Creek Addiction and Recovery
2930 Camino Diablo, Suite 110
Walnut Creek, CA 94597
(Serving the greater San Francisco Bay Area)
Phone: (925) 945-7816 ext. 41
Website: http://www.weylandservices.com
Website: http://www.weylanddetoxservices.com
Website: http://www.weylandinterventionservices.com
Email: info@weylandservices.com

When Hope Is Not Enough, by Fred Wade
- C.A.S., R.A.S. Certified Addition Counselor
This book provides families reference points to refer to when and if an alcohol or chemical abuse problem were to arise with someone they love. It will provide a framework for thinking about and responding to alcohol and chemical abuse problems, as well as a means to finding answers to many unique situations.

Book Excerpts 

Fred Wade holds both National and State certifications as an addictions counselor. He has worked in the field of addiction since the mid 80’s, having worked in both inpatient and outpatient settings. He is the founder and Chief Executive Officer of Weyland Consultation Services which specializes in outpatient treatment of addictive disorders for adults and adolescent males and females. Weyland Consultation Services is located in Walnut Creek California, and serves the greater San Francisco Bay Area.

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