Today's Best Therapies for Helping Those with Addictions
·11 min
In the third and final part of a three-part interview series, host Andy Dean (LCSW) discusses evidence-based therapy modalities for substance use treatment with Ken Pecoraro (LCSW, LCADC), who brings 30 years of specialization in addiction treatment. Ken advocates for motivational interviewing (MI) as foundational across all clinical contexts, combined with cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) and dialectical behavior therapy (DBT) for skill-building. He emphasizes trauma-informed care not as a separate technique but as a compassionate stance—remaining kind even when clients present defensively, recognizing that harmful experiences likely underlie behaviors. Ken stresses that treatment at CPC Behavioral Health builds on this MI/CBT/DBT foundation while maintaining trauma-informed engagement throughout. He advises new clinicians to develop through supervision rather than rushing their training.
