Group Dynamic Therapy
The Orchid Program at Palm Partners Recovery Center believes that women best heal from substance dependency as individuals in an honest, supportive, loving group of other women. While the main campus is a co-ed campus, women who chose The Orchid Program attend groups that are exclusively for women. These groups are facilitated by female therapists and nurture a supportive and safe environment.
A large part of our group process work is designed to encourage Relational Growth. After decades of research, experts of treating women with addiction found that the conventional explanations and treatments of addiction – based largely on the studies of males struggling with addiction– did not fit the realities of the majority of women with addiction. Empirical research has proven that women who struggle with substance use disorder show some striking differences to their male counterparts. Specifically, it was discovered that female substance abuse was strongly correlated with low self-esteem, symptoms of depression, fewer traditional job skills and, most importantly, a lack of a strong social support network.
Many experts believe that women have a natural affinity and need for building connections and community with other women. When trauma, fears, and other psychological barriers inhibit women from connecting to other women, sobriety becomes even more challenging to achieve. However, when women learn to trust one another and build a loving and supportive community, that community can form a strong base for individual healing and recovery.
The therapy sessions for women in The Orchid Program serve to strengthen and encourage the building of these female communities among our clients. Professional therapists help women to understand and work through the trust, shame and fear issues which prevent intimacy with other women. The all-female group sessions open women up to freely and openly share the feelings and thoughts that they might never discuss in mixed meetings.
During these sessions, clients in The Orchid Program at Palm Partners will frequently realize just how much they have in common with one another, and with recovering women everywhere. In the process, these clients often discover or rediscover, the joys of close feminine friendships and the valuable support these friendships can offer. When these clients leave addiction treatment, they not only have a strong recovery network of women to rely on but also a new sense of trust and openness to create new networks in their own community.
Further Reading