Over the years, experts and practitioners have developed several methods and techniques to treat addiction. As reported by the American Psychological Association (2016), addiction may be defined as a condition in which one’s body demands a certain drug in order not to experience physical and psychological withdrawal symptoms. The first phase of addiction is dependence, when one’s life revolves around the search for a drug; the second phase is tolerance development, when the addict becomes increasingly used to drug and needs larger doses of it (American Psychological Association, 2016).

Since addiction involves both physical and psychological mechanisms, it is important to combine detoxification and adequate medical treatment with psychotherapeutic treatment plans that address the addict’s behavioral, social and mental problems / disturbances. From an analysis of various psychotherapeutic approaches that are recommended for the treatment of addiction, I personally believe that Cognitive behavioral therapy is the most promising and effective one.

Cognitive behavioral therapy (henceforth CBT) is a therapeutic approach that can be used to treat a variety of disorders and conditions, including depression, anxiety-related disorders and addiction (NHS, 2015). As a talking therapy, CBT does not directly rid people of their problems, but assists them in modifying their thinking and behavioral patterns so as to change their actions and physical responses (NHS, 2015). With regards to addiction, cognitive-behavioral approaches are based on the assumption that substance abuse stems from certain learning processes that need to be analyzed in order to identify and address problematic behaviors. Specifically, CBT aims to enhance addicts’ self-control by helping them recognize cravings and situations where they are likely to feel the need to use drugs; at this point, practitioners assist patients in developing ad hoc strategies to avoid high-risk situations and cope with cravings (National Institute on Drug Abuse, 2012).

I would feel comfortable using this approach over alternative ones for two main reasons. First of all, empirical research has demonstrated that cognitive-behavioral therapies are very effective when treating addiction (McHugh, Hearon & Otto, 2010). Second of all, CBT is a common therapeutic approach that is widely regarded as a second line of defense in the treatment of addiction (the first one being medical treatment) by psychological associations and practitioners.