116 The Professional Counselor | Volume 14, Issue 1 I started stumbling over excuses about how I was only part, and that I was not really raised a part of the culture. And she said two pivotal things to me: “You are not part, your Indian blood flows through all of you” and “Do you know how powerful it would be for the adolescents that you are going to work with to see someone from their people that is a counselor and doctor? How much you can encourage them?” She was right. I do this work to advocate for my people. That is my passion. 4. Having a background in mental health and substance use counseling, what has been your experience navigating comorbidity? What changes have you seen socially and culturally as a result of the ever-changing landscape in our current society? When I co-led my first substance abuse group as a practicum student 17 years ago, the focus was on the substance of abuse (i.e., consequences of use, identifying triggers, and changing behavior to not use). There was little discussion regarding trauma or other comorbid mental health disorders. All therapy work was done in group format. This did not leave space for individual counseling to assist clients with working through their own personal mental health struggles. When I was working at a large urban treatment facility, we were not allowed to engage in individual therapy. To meet the needs of my clients, I requested to conduct individual counseling with my group members who met the criteria for comorbidity. I was told that I could, but I would not be paid for the individual sessions and offered to clients pro bono. I agreed. Once I started working with my clients in both individual and group sessions, I saw so much improvement. I have slowly been seeing a change in this perspective and clients getting counseling for both their substance use and other mental health concerns with the inclusion of holistic interventions. However, lately I have seen a focus more on mental health counseling only. In fact, through survey research by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (2022), it was found that of the 5.8 million adults aged 18 or older who reported a co-occurring mental health and illicit drug or alcohol use disorder in the past year, most (81.5%) received only mental health services. I think it is important that if a counselor is going to work with individuals who meet the criteria for comorbidity, they should be trained in both specialties. I know my educational training and clinical supervised experiences in both have been crucial to successful client outcomes. The emergence of reality shows (e.g., Addicted, Intervention, Celebrity Rehab) and scripted shows (e.g., Euphoria, Mom, Nurse Jackie, Painkiller) related to addiction have changed how our society views addiction. These shows have allowed the general public to understand more about drug use, how people become addicted, and the consequences of addiction. I believe this has resulted in our society understanding that addiction is a disease and the person with the addiction needs treatment and support, not punishment and disdain. While media has brought some insight to substance use, words such as addict, alcoholic, drunk, and junkie are still being regularly utilized. Rather than these labeling words that are shame producing, person-first language (e.g., person with a substance use disorder) is critical to creating a therapeutic environment. 5. It appears service is also an integral part of your counseling identity. What does service mean to you at the local, community, national, and international level? Service for me encompasses two main concepts: 1) leaving things better than how I found them and 2) working for a cause not for applause. Active involvement in the department, college, university, profession, and community is an important component of service for me as a faculty member.
RkJQdWJsaXNoZXIy NDU5MTM1