Educational Enhancement

20/08/2025

A Substance Use Counselor’s Guide to SAMHSA’s Guiding Principles of Recovery 🌱
Recovery is about more than just stopping substance use—it’s about hope, healing, and building a new life.

SAMHSA’s 10 Guiding Principles provide a holistic, person-centered approach that helps counselors create meaningful change. From trauma-informed care to peer support and self-empowerment, these principles shape recovery that lasts.

Are you applying these principles in your counseling practice? Learn how to integrate them into your work and help clients build a strong foundation for recovery.

📖 Read the full guide:

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Explore the journey of recovery from substance use disorders. Learn the guiding principles of recovery to promote holistic recovery. journeys

20/08/2025

You’ve seen the worst of it.
You’ve watched someone overdose in front of you and didn’t know what to say.
You froze.
I did too.
Back then, all I had was instinct and adrenaline.
Now I know better.
Crisis management isn’t about saving people.
It’s about not making it worse.
This blog post lays it out with no bu****it.
Real-world breakdowns.
No jargon.

Just how to keep someone alive when it gets real.
✔ How to recognize when someone’s about to spiral
✔ How to respond without shutting them down
✔ What CASACs, CADCs, and CACs are expected to do during a crisis
✔ Why you need more than good intentions

Every second counts when someone is standing on the edge.
You’ve got to be ready.
What’s one crisis you wish you had handled better?

Tag someone who gets it.

Learn the fundamentals and benefits of crisis management in substance use counseling and how CASAC, CADC, or CAC apply to client care

19/08/2025

Some people get high once and spiral.
Others use for years and walk away.
You ever wonder why?
It’s not about weakness.
Or willpower.
Or “bad choices.”
It’s about trauma.
Stress.
Isolation.
Genetics.
Mental illness.
And systems that fail people before they ever pick up a drug.

If you work in this field or lived this story, this one’s for you.
We break down the real factors contributing to substance use disorder and why counselors are more necessary than ever.

Read the blog: https://tinyurl.com/4saawhev

Explore the complex factors contributing to substance use disorder and understand addiction beyond mere choices.

19/08/2025

You’ve seen alcohol ruin lives. Maybe it tried to ruin yours.
I’ve been there too.
Woke up shaking. Lied about it. Drank to feel normal.

Told myself it wasn’t that bad—until it was.
Now I help people who are where I used to be.
But that only works if I can see what’s really happening.

This post breaks down what every substance use counselor, peer, or person in recovery should be watching for:

What early symptoms of alcohol use disorder look like
What changes in behavior actually mean
What physical and psychological signs get missed

How to respond without judgment
You can’t help someone if you can’t see the truth.
And they won’t always tell you.
You have to know what to look for.

What signs did you miss in yourself—or someone else—before it got bad?
Tag someone who’s doing this work from the heart.

👉 Read it here:

Explore the complexities of alcohol use disorder and learn about its warning signs and symptoms for effective intervention.

18/08/2025

What do you do when someone isn’t ready to stop using?

If your only answer is “come back when you are,” you’re not meeting them where they’re at. You’re leaving them behind.

The Harm Reduction course gives you tools to actually support people who use drugs—without judgment, punishment, or shame.

Here’s what you’ll learn:
• How to reduce risk without requiring abstinence
• How to talk to people who use drugs in a way that builds trust
• How to work with s*x workers and street-involved clients without moralizing
• Why safer use is a win, and why connection matters more than compliance

When I was still using, I didn’t need another lecture. I needed someone to talk to me like I was still a person. The counselors who knew harm reduction? They did that.

If you think recovery only starts after someone quits, ask yourself who you’re really helping.

The Harm Reduction course gives you 6 credit hours for CASAC or NAADAC renewal.

It gives your clients a chance to survive long enough to heal.

https://educationalenhancement.mykajabi.com/offers/KS3UJYKA/checkout

Educational Enhancement CASAC Online, an OASAS approved ( #0415), NAADAC Approved education provider ( #254148), and 2021 HRSA BHWET grant recipient, provides addiction professionals self-directed, professional development education and training resources.

We're confident that you'll find our training enjoyable. Yet, if it doesn't resonate with you, there's no need to fret. Within 3 days, a full refund is available.  It's our way of honoring your journey and ensuring you feel supported every step of the way.

17/08/2025

You’ve been through addiction. You know what rock bottom looks like.

Now ask yourself this.

Who would you trust more with your recovery—someone with credentials, or someone who’s lived it?

At Educational Enhancement, we believe recovery isn’t a weakness. It’s a qualification.
Here are 15 real reasons your lived experience makes you a strong candidate for a counseling career.
You’ll find examples, actionable steps, and how to use your story without needing a degree to start.

Read here:
https://educationalenhancement-casaconline.com/15-reasons-why-you-can-use-your-addiction-recovery-experience-to-become-a-great-counselors

Uncover the power of your addiction recovery experience. Your journey can offer hope and insight for others facing similar battles.

17/08/2025

Why relapsing didn’t mean I failed—it meant I needed a new plan
I used to think relapse meant I wasn’t cut out for recovery.
After I slipped, I felt like trash.
Like I’d thrown away every ounce of progress.
Like I had to start from scratch—or just stay high.
Here’s what I didn’t know:
Relapse isn’t failure.
It’s feedback.
What was missing:
• I had no aftercare plan
• I had no support system outside the group
• I wasn’t ready to face the trauma I kept pushing down
Relapse didn’t kill my recovery.
Shame almost did.
If you’ve been there, you’re not broken.
You just need a new plan—one that meets you where you really are, not where people expect you to be.
What helped you shift after relapse?
Tag someone who needs to hear this.

17/08/2025

You’ve been the one in crisis.
You’ve sat on the curb shaking.
You’ve begged a cop to call someone—anyone—who might care.

Now you’re on the other side of the desk.
And they’re looking at you the way you used to look at the world:
Like it’s already over.

You can’t wing it in those moments.
You need a real foundation.
This course gives you:

Tools for su***de and overdose response
Fast strategies that work when someone’s spiraling
Real-world case examples from addiction counseling
A framework you can trust in the heat of the moment
You’ve lived through hell.
That’s your credential.
But skills matter too.

📲 Learn how to show up when it counts:
https://educationalenhancement-casaconline.com/principles-of-crisis-intervention-for-substance-use-counselors

Tag someone who’s stepped up for others—after surviving their own crisis.

Explore the principles of crisis intervention essential for substance use counselors to effectively manage critical situations.

16/08/2025

3 things drug counselors need to understand about addiction and the brain:
Addiction hijacks brain circuits linked to survival
Trauma and stress change how the brain processes pain
Recovery takes more than willpower—it takes rewiring

Want the full breakdown, based on real neuroscience?
It’s in this blog post:
👉 https://educationalenhancement-casaconline.com/drug-counselors-the-truth-about-addiction-a-brain-disease
Do you think understanding the brain helps reduce stigma?

Explore why addiction a brain disease is debated and how it impacts our understanding of substance use disorder.

16/08/2025

Enroll in our New york, Tennessee, North Carolina, Florida, and Georgia programs. Gain the credentials to excel in addiction counseling. Learn more
https://educationalenhancement-casaconline.com/educational-enhancement-states-certified-as-an-addiction-counseling-education-provider

15/08/2025

Overdose Awareness Month isn’t just a hashtag.

It’s a reminder that too many people we love are gone.

It’s a reminder that overdose isn’t just fentanyl. It’s he**in. It’s co***ne. It’s pressed pills. It’s anything cut with something deadly.

People use drugs for more than just escape.

They use to belong, to cope with pain, to explore, to just feel normal.

If we keep flattening every story into “they were numbing themselves,” we’ll keep missing the chance to save lives.

Harm reduction works. Here’s how you can help:

• Carry naloxone

• Don’t use alone

• Test your drugs

• Start low, go slow

• Learn the signs of overdose

This August, don’t just “raise awareness.” Take action.

What will you do before September comes?

14/08/2025

Working in addiction treatment? Read this before your next session.
The cycle of addiction isn’t just theory—it shows up in every client story.

As a substance use counselor, here’s what you need to watch for:

• The binge phase—chasing that reward system spike
• The crash—withdrawal, depression, despair
• The obsession—preoccupation that drives relapse

Miss one? You miss the full picture.
And your client keeps spinning their wheels.

📌 If your substance use counselor certificate renewal is coming up—this blog is worth your time.

It breaks it all down without fluff.
https://educationalenhancement-casaconline.com/what-substance-use-counselors-should-know-about-the-cycle-of-addiction

Tag a counselor who takes their work seriously.

Explore the Cycle of Addiction and learn how understanding its stages supports effective substance use counselor certificate renewal.