Mississippi Board of Examiners for LPC

This course is designed to enhance participants’ clinical understanding of denial as a cognitive, emotional, and behavioral process commonly associated with substance use disorders. Emphasis is placed on the relationship between denial and the progression of addictive disease, including how denial may interfere with insight, motivation for change, treatment engagement, relapse prevention, and long-term recovery.

Participants will examine denial as a treatment barrier that must be addressed concurrently with the underlying substance use disorder. The course explores common forms and stages of denial, their connection to the addiction cycle, and the ways denial may present in client communication, behavior, and resistance to treatment. Practical intervention strategies and structured therapeutic exercises are introduced to help clinicians support clients in increasing awareness, reducing defensiveness, improving accountability, and strengthening readiness for recovery.