Substance Use Disorder Treatment in Sycamore and North Aurora IL
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If you are interested in counseling for Substance Use Disorders, call OakHeart at 630-570-0050 or 779-201-6440 or email us at [email protected]. We have counselors, psychologists, and social workers available to help you at one of our locations in North Aurora, IL, Sycamore, IL, and/or via Telehealth Online Therapy Services serving Kane County, DeKalb County, Dupage County, and beyond.
According to the 2023 National Survey on Drug Use and Health (NSDUH), approximately 48.5 million people aged 12 or older in the United States met criteria for a substance use disorder (SAMHSA, 2024). Of those, only 15.6% received any form of substance use treatment in the past year, reflecting a substantial gap between need and care. Substance use disorders frequently co-occur with other mental health conditions, including depression, anxiety disorders, trauma and PTSD, bipolar disorder, and ADHD.
What is a Substance Use Disorder?Substance use disorders occur when the recurrent use of alcohol or drugs causes clinically and functionally significant impairment, such as health problems, disability, and failure to meet major responsibilities at work, school, or home. According to the DSM-5-TR, a diagnosis of substance use disorder is based on evidence across four categories: impaired control, social impairment, risky use, and pharmacological criteria.
Impaired control. The individual may take the substance in larger amounts or over a longer period of time than intended. The individual may express a persistent desire to cut down or regulate substance use and may report multiple unsuccessful efforts to decrease or discontinue use. The individual may spend a great deal of time obtaining the substance, using the substance, or recovering from its effects. In some instances of more severe substance use disorders, all of the individual's daily activities may revolve around the substance. Craving is manifested by intense desire or urge for the substance that may occur at any time but is more likely when in the environment where the substance previously was obtained or used. Social impairment. Substance use leads to a failure to fulfill major role obligations at work, school, or home. The individual may continue to use the substance despite having persistent or recurrent social or interpersonal problems caused or exacerbated by the effects of the substance. The individual may withdraw from family activities and hobbies in order to use the substance. Risky use. This may take the form of recurrent substance use in situations in which it is physically hazardous (e.g., driving, operating machinery). The individual may continue to use despite knowing they have a persistent or recurrent physical or psychological problem that is likely to have been caused or exacerbated by the substance. |
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Pharmacological criteria. This includes tolerance and withdrawal. Tolerance is signaled by requiring a markedly increased dose of the substance to achieve the desired effect, or a markedly reduced effect when the usual dose is consumed. Withdrawal is a syndrome that occurs when blood or tissue concentrations of a substance decline in an individual who had maintained prolonged heavy use of a substance. After developing withdrawal symptoms, the individual is likely to consume the substance to relieve the symptoms. Withdrawal symptoms vary depending on the substance being used and can range from uncomfortable to medically dangerous (e.g., alcohol and benzodiazepine withdrawal can be life-threatening and require medical supervision).
Substance use disorders are classified as mild, moderate, or severe based on the number of criteria the individual meets. A mild SUD often responds well to outpatient therapy alone, while moderate or severe SUDs may require a higher level of care, particularly at the start of treatment.
Substance use disorders are classified as mild, moderate, or severe based on the number of criteria the individual meets. A mild SUD often responds well to outpatient therapy alone, while moderate or severe SUDs may require a higher level of care, particularly at the start of treatment.
How is SUD Treated in Outpatient Therapy?
Substance use disorders affect both brain functioning and behavior, making them complex but treatable. Effective outpatient treatment matches the intervention to the individual's substance use pattern, stage of change, co-occurring conditions, and goals. At OakHeart, treatment typically integrates several evidence-based approaches:
Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) for substance use focuses on identifying the thoughts, feelings, situations, and triggers that lead to use, building skills to cope with those triggers without using, and modifying beliefs that maintain the cycle of use.
Motivational Interviewing (MI) is a collaborative conversational approach that helps individuals explore their own motivations for change, including ambivalence. MI is particularly useful early in treatment when an individual is uncertain about whether or how to change their substance use, and it can be integrated with other approaches throughout treatment.
Relapse Prevention is a CBT-based framework focused on identifying high-risk situations, developing coping strategies, distinguishing between a lapse and a relapse, and building a sustainable recovery plan.
Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) can support individuals in developing a different relationship with cravings, urges, and difficult emotions, and in clarifying the values that make recovery meaningful.
Co-occurring condition treatment. When substance use occurs alongside depression, anxiety, trauma, ADHD, or another mental health condition, treatment addresses both concurrently. Treating substance use without addressing the co-occurring condition (or vice versa) tends to result in poorer outcomes for both.
Coordination with other providers. When medication-assisted treatment, prescribing psychiatry, or 12-step or peer support involvement is part of an individual's recovery plan, we work in coordination with those providers and supports. In cases of dual diagnosis where a substance use disorder co-occurs with another significant mental health condition (e.g., severe depression, PTSD, bipolar disorder, an eating disorder), co-therapy with a second clinician (either at OakHeart or another outpatient practice) may be clinically appropriate. In a co-therapy arrangement, one clinician focuses primarily on the substance use disorder while another focuses on the co-occurring condition, with the two providers coordinating closely to ensure that treatment is integrated rather than fragmented.
Treatment is individualized, and your clinician will work with you to identify the right starting point and adjust the approach as recovery progresses.
Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) for substance use focuses on identifying the thoughts, feelings, situations, and triggers that lead to use, building skills to cope with those triggers without using, and modifying beliefs that maintain the cycle of use.
Motivational Interviewing (MI) is a collaborative conversational approach that helps individuals explore their own motivations for change, including ambivalence. MI is particularly useful early in treatment when an individual is uncertain about whether or how to change their substance use, and it can be integrated with other approaches throughout treatment.
Relapse Prevention is a CBT-based framework focused on identifying high-risk situations, developing coping strategies, distinguishing between a lapse and a relapse, and building a sustainable recovery plan.
Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) can support individuals in developing a different relationship with cravings, urges, and difficult emotions, and in clarifying the values that make recovery meaningful.
Co-occurring condition treatment. When substance use occurs alongside depression, anxiety, trauma, ADHD, or another mental health condition, treatment addresses both concurrently. Treating substance use without addressing the co-occurring condition (or vice versa) tends to result in poorer outcomes for both.
Coordination with other providers. When medication-assisted treatment, prescribing psychiatry, or 12-step or peer support involvement is part of an individual's recovery plan, we work in coordination with those providers and supports. In cases of dual diagnosis where a substance use disorder co-occurs with another significant mental health condition (e.g., severe depression, PTSD, bipolar disorder, an eating disorder), co-therapy with a second clinician (either at OakHeart or another outpatient practice) may be clinically appropriate. In a co-therapy arrangement, one clinician focuses primarily on the substance use disorder while another focuses on the co-occurring condition, with the two providers coordinating closely to ensure that treatment is integrated rather than fragmented.
Treatment is individualized, and your clinician will work with you to identify the right starting point and adjust the approach as recovery progresses.
For Family Members and Loved Ones
Substance use does not affect only the person using. Partners, parents, adult children, siblings, and close friends often experience significant distress, including anxiety, sleep difficulties, financial stress, anger, guilt, hypervigilance about the loved one's behavior, and grief about how the relationship has changed. These reactions are common and are worth addressing in their own right, regardless of whether the person using substances is currently in treatment.
OakHeart provides individual therapy for family members and loved ones of people with substance use disorders. Common focuses of this work include:
OakHeart provides individual therapy for family members and loved ones of people with substance use disorders. Common focuses of this work include:
- Managing your own emotional responses to a loved one's substance use
- Distinguishing support from enabling, and identifying patterns that may have developed over time
- Setting limits in a way that is consistent with your values and that protects your own wellbeing
- Processing grief and loss connected to the relationship
- Addressing co-occurring concerns such as anxiety, depression, or trauma that the situation has contributed to or worsened
- Deciding when and how to engage in family-based recovery resources (e.g., Al-Anon, Nar-Anon, SMART Recovery Family & Friends)
Substance Use Disorder Related Blogs:
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With the holiday season in full swing, it can be easy to get caught up in the celebrations and overindulgence that can happen during this time of year. Below are a few tips to aid in keeping your sobriety from getting lost in the hustle of the season...Taking the time to prepare in advance for the upcoming holiday season can aid in making the season a success for recovery. If reading the information provided above resonated with you and you may be a good fit for one of my specializations, reach out. I’d like to connect and find out more about how I can support you on your journey...(to read more, click on the link above).
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According to data from the 2022 National Survey on Drug Use and Health, among the 137.4 million respondents aged 12 and older self-reporting current use of alcohol, 44.5% reported binge drinking, with the most prevalent age category being 18-25 years old (29.5%). Among people 12-20 years old, 15.1% used alcohol in the past month. Estimates of binge alcohol use and heavy alcohol use in the past month among underage people were 8.2% and 1.7%, respectively. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimate about 178,000 people die from excessive alcohol use in the U.S. each year (SAMHSA, 2024)...(to read more, click on the link above).
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Resources
Higher Level of Care, Detox, and Treatment Locators
SAMHSA National Helpline: 1-800-662-HELP (4357), free, confidential, 24/7, treatment referral and information
SAMHSA Treatment Locator: findtreatment.gov
Illinois Helpline for Opioids and Other Substances: 1-833-2FINDHELP (1-833-234-6343), helplineil.org
Peer Support and Recovery Communities
Alcoholics Anonymous: aa.org
Narcotics Anonymous: na.org
SMART Recovery: smartrecovery.org
Recovery Dharma: recoverydharma.org
Family and Loved One Support
Al-Anon: al-anon.org
Nar-Anon: nar-anon.org
SMART Recovery Family & Friends: smartrecovery.org/family
Education
National Institute on Drug Abuse
Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services
SAMHSA National Helpline: 1-800-662-HELP (4357), free, confidential, 24/7, treatment referral and information
SAMHSA Treatment Locator: findtreatment.gov
Illinois Helpline for Opioids and Other Substances: 1-833-2FINDHELP (1-833-234-6343), helplineil.org
Peer Support and Recovery Communities
Alcoholics Anonymous: aa.org
Narcotics Anonymous: na.org
SMART Recovery: smartrecovery.org
Recovery Dharma: recoverydharma.org
Family and Loved One Support
Al-Anon: al-anon.org
Nar-Anon: nar-anon.org
SMART Recovery Family & Friends: smartrecovery.org/family
Education
National Institute on Drug Abuse
Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services
