John Newport, Ph.D., Wellness and Recovery Associates The Wellness- Recovery Connection Practical...

John Newport, Ph.D., Wellness and Recovery Associates

The Wellness- Recovery Connection

Practical Applications For EAPs and Treatment Professionals

John Newport, Ph.D.


Importance of Wellness to Recovery


Wellness Defined:

Wellness can be defined as the dynamic process of taking charge of your health and programming yourself to attain optimal health and well-being.

• You are in the driver’s seat.

• You set your goals and priorities, design and implement your wellness program, and determine how far you want to go!


Why Wellness is Essential to Recovery

• Need to repair damage to body, stemming from years of excessive drinking and drugging

• A wellness lifestyle provides a valuable safeguard against relapse

• Wellness lifestyle becomes a Positive Addiction – reinforcing one’s commitment to sobriety

• Helps clients add decades to their life expectancies – and experience their recovery in “full-blown Technicolor”


Positive vs. Negative Addiction (Glasser)

• Negative Addictions – ingrained self-destructive behaviors that foster unhealthy dependencies and decreased self-esteem

• Positive Addictions – contribute to improved quality of life, heightened self-esteem and independence

• Examples: Exercise, yoga or meditation, hobbies, any challenging activity


Wellness and Recovery: Recent Historical Context

• Escalating Health Care Costs

• Paradox of high levels of health awareness – and “disconnect” in health-related behaviors

• Decreased resources for chemical dependency treatment – “Neglected Step-Child Syndrome”


Wellness- Recovery Connection in Preventing Relapse:

Relevant Research• Physical Exercise: (Sinyor) Canadian study of 58

alcoholics completing primary treatment with intensive physical conditioning component. At 3 months following completion of treatment, 69% of subjects in fitness group remained abstinent, compared with 39% of control group subjects.


Research Findings (Continued)

• Meditation: (Gelderloos) Review of 24 studies tracking daily practice of meditation against alcohol/drug consumption. All 24 studies reported reduced consumption, and increased rates of abstinence, among the meditators.

• Other Studies demonstrate reduced risk of relapse in conjunction with other components of a wellness lifestyle.


Wellness and Relapse Prevention – Author’s Research

• Study Focus: Investigating association between active involvement in a wellness-oriented lifestyle and sobriety maintenance, following completion of primary treatment.

• Study Design: Two groups of subjects (25 each). All subjects were poly-drug abusers completing a residential treatment program.


Study Design (Continued)

• Recovery Group: Maintained abstinence for 6 months or longer following primary treatment

• Relapse Group: Relapse to drinking/drug use following primary treatment

• Wellness Index Score: All subjects completed 24-item Wellness Lifestyle Assessment Questionnaire, focusing on 11 components generally associated with a wellness-oriented lifestyle.


Highlights – Author’s Study Findings

Mean Wellness Index Scores(Highest

possible score = 90):

• Recovery Group 54.8• Relapse Group 39.1• Likelihood of difference occurring by chance less

than 1 in 1,000


Statistically significant differences registered for virtually all component items, including:

• How they rated their overall state of health• Stress levels• Daily practice of meditation/relaxation exercises• Smoking behavior• Social supports• Overall life satisfaction


Meeting Attendance:

• 88% of subjects in Recovery Group reported that they attended 12-Step meetings at least once a week, compared with only 36% of subjects in the Relapse Group.


Ramifications of Available Research Findings:

• There appears to be a definite and positive association between actively pursuing a wellness-oriented lifestyle and reduced likelihood of relapse – AND –

• Available evidence also suggests that following a wellness lifestyle goes hand in hand with working one’s recovery program.


Summary: How Living Well Can Help Prevent Relapse

• Helps anchor clients in their recovery, reinforcing their commitment to clean and sober living.

• Wellness tools are particularly helpful in safeguarding against relapse during early recovery – when mind and body are most vulnerable.

• Learning Stress Management helps one require the resiliency needed to deal with life’s ups and downs.

• Sound Nutrition helps combat the biochemical triggers frequently associated with relapse.

• Exercise and other healthy behaviors serve as positive addictions, reducing craving for alcohol and drugs.


Practical Applications


In coaching clients to adopt a healthy lifestyle –

Transitioningis the KEY!


Nutritional Hazards of Alcoholism and Drug

Addiction include:

• Disruption of appetite and displacement of nutritious foods

• Alcohol’s toxic effects on the body• Excessive alcohol consumption leads to

predisposition to high-fat foods• Disruption of body’s blood sugar balance: The

Alcohol-Sugar Connection


Nutritional Foundation for Recovery

• Get the basics down – “3 + 3”• Emphasize nutritious whole foods (fresh

vegetables/fruits, whole grains/other complex carbohydrates, lean sources of protein)

• De-emphasize high fat foods, and go easy on sugar and caffeine

• Be aware of your personal “junk food triggers” – and consciously transition yourself toward a healthy diet.


Alcoholism and Nicotine as Co-Addictions

• Cigarette smoking is leading preventable cause of death – killing 440,000 Americans each year

• Between 80-95 percent of Alcoholics smoke cigarettes – and 70 percent are heavy smokers

• Chronic use of Alcohol and Nicotine produces cross-tolerance, or decreased sensitivity to effects of both substances

• Many Alcoholics carry their Nicotine Addiction with them into their recovery, although the majority report that they would like to quit!


Conquering Nicotine Addiction

• Exercise, Stress Management and other “wellness tools” help to successfully navigate nicotine withdrawal

• Medical Support: Obtain support from a primary physician who is familiar with addictions.

• Nicotine Replacement Therapies: May be helpful, but use should always be monitored by a physician (addictive tendencies)


Conquering Nicotine Addiction (Continued)

• Group Support: Low-cost, group support programs offered by American Cancer Society, American Lung Association, health plans – together with Nicotine Anonymous

• Don’t Get Discouraged: “Slips are not uncommon. Average smoker quits 5 times before quitting for good. Go back to square one and redouble your efforts!


Other Key Dimensions of Wellness and Recovery:

• Stress Management: Meditation/Relaxation Rituals, the Serenity Prayer as a stress mgmt tool

• Exercise: Three basic forms of exercise. Choose a core exercise that you can learn to enjoy, get started, and continue “raising the bar”

• Central Purpose, Spirituality and Life Satisfaction: Wellness and recovery focuses on quality of life – in addition to helping your clients improve their physical health status.


Action Planning for Wellness


Conducting Your Personal Wellness Assessment: Vital Signs and Health

Assessment WorksheetComponents include:• Basic Wellness Vital Signs (body weight,

height, body mass index, blood pressure, resting heart rate, cholesterol level, etc.)

• Personal Health History: Strong Points/Weak Links

• Family Health History: Strong Points/Weak Links


Wellness Planning Case Studies

• Joe: A recovering alcoholic/addict in his mid-40s who wants to give up smoking

• Sam: A recovering alcoholic/addict in his late 30s who is burnt-out and is contemplating a career shift

• Ellen: A recovering alcoholic in her early 50s who is a breast cancer survivor


Practical Applications for EAPs, Treatment Programs and Counseling

Professionals• Raising Awareness among Treatment Staffs• Raising Awareness Among Employers and Health

Plans (Cost containment, improved health status outcomes)

• Continuing Care (Relapse prevention, promoting quality sobriety)

• EAPs: Use low cost wellness program as referral sources – and use follow-up counseling sessions to reinforce health lifestyle choices


Practical Applications (Continued)

• Smoking Cessation: Actively support clients in recovery in quitting smoking

• Burn-Out Prevention for Treatment Staffs at all Levels (help them practice what they preach)

• Therapists: Consider broadening your role to serve as a “wellness coach”


To your health!!!

John Newport, Ph.D., Wellness and Recovery Associates The Wellness- Recovery Connection Practical...

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