Action Strategies

Abstract

While the counselling received at the contemplation stage may convince users of the need for change, many will need further help to gain control of their behaviour. This task requires a different set of procedures from those outlined in the previous chapter but the primary focus of the intervention will remain the user him- or herself. This chapter looks at a simple set of strategies for use at the action stage of change. Not only are the interventions conceptually simple but there is considerable evidence that if they are going to work, they will do so quickly and efficiently. In fact, we shall see that carefully designed self-help materials may be all that is required to bring about change in some drug misusers. This is not to say that addictive behaviours are easily resolved or that change will always last. The point is merely that the best treatment methods are not necessarily the most complex or protracted.