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What is Substance Abuse Counseling?
More than 300,000 people are employed by 16,400 employers in the health and wellness sector. Centura Health, Children’s Hospital Colorado, Kaiser Permanente, Banner Health, and the University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus also employ thousands of providers.
Those who want to go into addiction counseling must obtain either certification or licensing before they will be legally allowed to act as a professional in the field. The State Board of Addiction Counselor Examiners (SBACE) provides the information and links to the education resources and forms needed by those looking to become counselors.
These licenses are required to be renewed periodically. This also requires counselors to update their continuing education hours and submit proof of earning those hours. In addition to the links for the forms and resources, the SBACE also provides news items, laws, resources, public notices, legislative updates, and meeting minutes for counselors who are interested.
An addiction counselor, also called a substance abuse counselor, is a mental health professional who is licensed to treat patients or clients with a chemical dependency disorder. Students earning their addiction counseling degree (or chemical dependency counseling degree) in Colorado may be ready to begin working in this field at the master’s level.
The addiction counselor may work with people who are diagnosed as having an addiction or with those who are concerned that they may become addicted to a substance. The work the counselor does helps their client face their addiction or fear of addiction, helping them to address their dependency so they can return to full self-sufficiency. A substance abuse counselor may also spend some sessions working with their client’s family.
The counselor has one goal in mind: develop a therapeutic rapport with their clients. The client may have difficulty trusting anyone, so developing this relationship with someone who is helping them regain their health may make the process a little easier.