Empowered is one of those words sometimes I do not like. Comes across as sort of new age assertion type of thing. What is an empowered client in a drug rehab center? I think it may involve some of the following things. Firstly they would know the rationale and evidence of the treatment they are participating in at a drug rehab center, and are comfortable with it. They also know how to maximize the benefits they get in drug rehab.
Simple things like arriving on time and organized for their one to one counseling. Write down your questions as they occur during the day. Then you will not have to remember them during your counseling session. Write down things during the drug rehab groups that are confusing to you. Again order them as to which are more important to you in your life. Then proceed through the list with your counselor.
Do your reading before going to group. Being familiar with the material will greatly aid in how much you gain from the discussion. Simply by reading, you will understand any of the terms or lingo used. Another simple thing to improve you results in drug rehab is to be sure to eat properly. Have breakfast, even if you are not feeling great. Coffee will not give you the energy to focus and learn in the morning.
Be polite in your requests and questions. If you are at all acusatory in your approach, people will spend less time an tend to avoid you. If you start with, "Sorry for all these questions, maybe I'm just having a slow brain day, would you mind helping me through them?", everyone will help you. You may be able to get people to help only because you are paying and you can "demand" service, but you will never get the very best effort out of the other person. Just be polite is a good rule.
Thank people for their help. Even if they cannot get you the answer, thank them for their effort. Let your conselors know when they did something that really helped you. Everyone needs real praise for a job well done. If you try most of the suggestions here you will gain much more than just putting in time at drug rehab. It is your time and money, spend both of them wisely.
