How Hope Counseling is Different Than Other Counseling Services

For nearly 60 years, Teen Challenge Southeast alcohol and substance abuse addiction treatment has provided long-term recovery for tens of thousands of individuals. We are the largest and longest continuously operated group of addiction recovery centers in the world, with over 200 centers in the U.S. and over 1,000 more centers worldwide. Hope Counseling is part of the Teen Challenge Southeast national network of centers.

Hope Counseling is an affordable addiction and alcohol treatment program for men, women, and teens.  This program provides peer-to-peer, group and individual counseling, parenting classes, spiritual inspiration, relapse prevention, anger management, drug and alcohol education, recreational opportunities and vocational rehabilitation.

Hope Counseling is single-gender and a safe, clean, healthy environment, providing addiction treatment. Our caring staff is are well-trained, most having come through a similar addiction treatment program themselves.  Each individual in our care is treated with compassion and respect. Those seeking help must follow our proven plan and be ready to commit to a full year of recovery and life skills training.

Hope Counseling creates life change, for without life change, addicts and alcoholics will go right back to their addiction after a few days, weeks or months.  Anyone can go through detox and get off alcohol or drugs for a short while, especially in a highly monitored environment. Our goal is to provide long-term recovery and lifetime avoidance of addictive substances, once the individual leaves our program, even when hard knocks hit.

Addicts and alcoholics typically start “using” or drinking out of a personal need to cover up some internal issues, such as a need for love, success, forgiveness, belonging, acceptance, a spiritual void, or a lack of life purpose.  The individual fills such voids in their life with drugs or alcohol, which provide temporary relief for the mental anguish they are feeling.  However, these substances will take hold and build a chemical dependency in their body, taking away any ability for the addict to stop on their own. The dependency becomes too powerful and attempts to get off these substances can often lead to painful and sometimes life-threatening withdrawal symptoms. 

Once invited in, these substances can entirely take over the individual and their mindset, mentally or physically preventing them from stopping on their own. The cost of maintaining a habit can sometimes cause the addict to turn to theft (even from their own family), or selling drugs, which can lead to jail sentences. Usually, the substances are needed in higher and higher quantities or more frequently to achieve the same effect, until the addict overdoses or otherwise destroys their own body.

Without a totally new mindset and life focus to fill the void, the addict will return to their addiction, again and again, ravaging their relationships, trustworthiness, career, finances and their physical and mental health. The drug addiction will utterly destroy them.
The addict has failed, again and again, on many levels.  They know they cannot change on their own, due to their own feelings of inadequacy, guilt and repeated past failures.  So, from the very start of our program, a reliance on a “higher power” is emphasized.  We believe in the life-changing effect that a personal relationship with Jesus Christ can have on an addict’s their life.  None of us can change our own hearts — we need to cry out to our Maker and put the hard work on His shoulders.  Christ and the Holy Spirit become a constant companion to the addict, bringing peace, fulfillment, purpose, kindness, truthfulness and a desire to be clean and do what is right. 
 
At first, an addict or alcoholic feels unforgivable; like a huge failure for all of the hurt and damage they have done. But once they realize that Jesus Christ will accept them as they are, and forgive them unconditionally, a whole new window opens up to them.  They again feel worthy of moving on — worthy of being forgiven — because the Creator of the Universe has forgiven them and has taken a huge burden off their shoulders.  A deep desire wells up within them to also seek the forgiveness of others, and to serve others.  That is a critical step forward.  Through Christ, they gain the strength and a burning desire to seek the forgiveness of others in their life that they have harmed.  Surprisingly to them, others who see the change in their demeanor and attitudes are more than happy to forgive them, and that’s a huge relief.

Reintroducing Truth to the Addict’s Life

If there is one thing that is common to all addicts it is that they have become the best of liars — to friends, employers, family and even to themselves.  Moreover, they are blame-shifters, never taking responsibility for their own actions. Introducing Christ into their life also means introducing truth, where truth had become lost to them. Most of our staff are former addicts themselves, so they can see through the lies of the residents. Truth and transparency become a pivotal focus from this point forward, often taught with tough love, but always approached with acceptance, understanding and care.  Eventually, the addict or alcoholic realizes that the only way to live is to put away their constant lies and approach life from the truth, with the help of Christ.

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