When you think of a social worker, you’re often thinking of a therapist—and with substance use disorder, there are are social workers who address addiction specifically. Especially for young people in addiction, a social worker can really turn a young person’s life around and help them more forward to a future free of drugs and alcohol. Social workers perform assessments, diagnose, and organize treatment plans with the client in order for them to work together and work with their sobriety..

A social worker won’t only help you get through your addiction, they’ll help you get through your mental illness or another co-morbid illness. They will also help a client to deal with depression, anxiety, bipolar disorder, and other mental illnesses. Often, the symptoms that accompany a drug abuse disorder are mentally related. A social worker is an integral part of recovery because many people are in need of dual diagnosis due to the prevalence of co-morbid disorders in recovery—50 percent of those with a mental illness also have issues with substance use disorder. So it’s crucial for a social worker to address both symptoms of the diseases in order for the patient to effectively move forward. Usually, a social worker will use the technique of Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) which consists of a series of various techniques to help you to address negative thought patterns and behaviors.

A good social worker will be compassionate about your recovery, and believe that you are strong enough to heal. Helping you to reorganize your thoughts, reorganize your thought patterns, and move forward with your life, a good social worker will be available whenever you need them to be, and provide the best tools and techniques for a long life in sobriety. Even when recovery results in relapse (which it often does—relapse is a normal and even expected part of recovery), a social worker will be waiting and available to help you move past the darker days of addiction.