Become a Certified Addiction Counselor

Choosing to be a certified addiction counselor is one of the best career choices you will ever make in your life. The profession is very humanitarian in that it gives you an opportunity to help a lot of people. Aside from that, you will have a more secure income source as addiction counseling is becoming more and more in demand. Finally, the profession can provide fulfillment in terms of personal proficiency with its concepts and theories and continuing education practices.

Importance of Counseling

Addiction is the body’s reliance on a substance or practice that is habit-forming. Objects of addiction can include, but is not limited to: Alcohol, computer games, gambling, narcotics, shopping, and stealing. At times, cessation of these addictions can cause psychological or physical trauma to the individual.

These types of addictions are what counselors aim to address. They provide support or therapy to persons undergoing rehabilitation programs. Support and counseling sessions are also given to the families of addiction victims.

Qualities of a Counselor

The profession requires you to develop certain traits to effectively assist patients in a professional manner. These qualities are:

Respect for Privacy. Addiction can be a sensitive subject on the part of a person’s medical history. Society can at times be judgmental or scornful to addiction victims. To decrease the unpleasant effects of being an addiction victim, you have to ensure that no personal details of your patients are divulged publicly.

Detachment. As an addiction counselor, you will need to remove personal feelings when carrying out your therapeutic sessions. Doing so will ensure efficiency of care. Once you get attached to a patient, there is the possibility of being biased in the treatment of other patients. It is also possible that standards of care would be decreased.

Empathy. Since you would be dealing with other people, it is significant that you are able to grasp their situation and how they feel about it. Empathy means putting yourself in another’s shoes. You should have the skill to immerse yourself in your patient’s world in order to determine his/her needs.

Passion for Others. Finally, you should possess a spirit of helping others. Counseling is a vocation that puts others’ needs above all. Other perks of the profession like pay and benefits cannot compare to the satisfaction received from being able to help a life.

Education and Training

Every state has certain academic requirements for being an addiction counselor. It would be wise to check with a career guidance counselor on the necessary education and experience. You could also make inquiries with counseling centers, professional organizations, and professional counselors.

More often, addiction counseling would need a bachelor’s degree in Human Resource, Psychology, Psychiatry, or Social Work. An alternative would be a certificate or associate degree in addiction counseling. Other courses that should be considered include: Education, Organization and Management, Sociology, and Therapy and Counseling.

After completion of academic requirements, you would need to take an internship program from the institution or from hospitals and rehabilitation centers. You could also acquire experience from other counselors needing experience or from school guidance offices.

After some years of experience, you can now apply to take licensing examinations provided by your state’s board of counselors. Once you pass the licensing exams, you can opt to apply for certification from professional organizations or engage in continuing education practices, in addition to practicing your profession.