Preparation

Goal for Client Intervention:

Encourage the replacement of the client’s typical drinking patterns with those in keeping with the LRDGs.

Intervention Options:

ADVISE:

• Focus on meaningful benefits.
  Your risk of________________ will improve if you can plan the first and next steps to decreasing the amount of alcohol that you consume in a day/week.

ASSIST:

• Assist to verbalize a plan with a starting point to decrease alcohol consumption.
  Tell me what your plan is to reduce the amount of alcohol you consume in a day/week. 
• Encourage the inclusion of family or peer support.
  Who is going to do this with you or encourage you to continue with it?
• Discuss what has worked and not worked in the past.
  What worked and what didn’t work when you tried to reduce your alcohol consumption in the past?
• Encourage avoiding, changing or removing cues that get in the way of decreasing your alcohol consumption.
  What do you see as your biggest barrier?  i.e., stress, loneliness, social events, friends, environment etc.
  How do you plan to get around it?
• Explain that relapse is part of the process and a learning experience.
  Some people experience some set backs.  It is what they learn from them and trying again with a better plan that moves them forward.

Future Intervention:

ASK:

• The last time we spoke you were making a plan to reduce drinking.  Have you been able to follow your plan?

Resources

The following resources may be helpful for clients progressing through the stages of change. 

• Low Risk Drinking Guidelines www.lrdg.net

• Centre for Addiction and Mental Health www.camh.net

• Simcoe Muskoka District Health Unit

A client enduring a relapse, or struggling with alcohol abuse/dependence may require a referral.