“I’ve never had a run in with the law before and because of just one incident, I’ve been ordered to take an alcohol and drug awareness class! Where to start?”
This is a question that we often hear from our clients and might now be something you can relate to as well. You are an executive, teacher or student and had one night in which you were caught behaving badly. You realize it was a mistake that you would never repeat and can’t believe you’ve gotten yourself into so much trouble. Unfortunately, that one lapse in judgment has now caused you to miss work or school, incur legal fees, take time away from your weekends to perform community service work, and going forward, the final restitution is to take an alcohol and drug awareness class. You just want to get your life back to some resemblance of normalcy and can’t possibly miss any more of your daily responsibilities to attend a weekly class.
With today’s technology, the traditional in-person alcohol and drug awareness class is no longer your only choice. The easiest and most convenient way to learn the information and fulfill your court mandate is to take an alcohol and drug program online! Distance-learning classes are becoming more and more popular because they offer the client the flexibility and freedom to avoid a classroom and instead take the class from any Internet connected computer device like a Smartphone, PC, laptop or Tablet. Many of our clients really like the ability to take the class in complete privacy rather than in a classroom full of strangers, or with other people in the community that might talk about it.
As a potential client, simply go online and research high quality programs to help you decide which one to choose. Look for one that is designed by a licensed and practicing psychotherapist so you know that you are getting the most reliable, valid and current information. Check for an A+ rating with the Better Business Bureau. Furthermore, make sure that the company provides a good customer service help desk so you can get answers to any questions that arise in a timely manner.
Finally, read through the material to make sure that the class is designed to be court approved. You always want to check first with the judge, your probation officer or your attorney to make sure that an online class will be acceptable. If it is, then the class will include an educational curriculum that covers topics like:
- Risk factors for drug and alcohol abuse
- Understanding alcohol and the different types of drugs
- How dependency affects your family and others around you
- Health risks of abuse and addiction
- How exactly these substances effect the brain, central nervous system and entire body
- What the resulting behavior will do to your ability to drive, make good decisions and function
- Stress Management skills
- The best ways to communicate with others to support prevention
- Techniques to avoid abuse and relapse
Learning online enables our clients to really focus on the material in the quiet of their own home and on their own schedule. Parents can sit with their kids to go through the class, couples can read the material and have discussions together, or the client can choose to go solo. It’s completely self-paced and just like an in-person classroom; the client takes a multiple-choice final exam at the end to pass the course. Once this test is passed with a 70% or better, an official Certificate of Completion is sent out. This is the documentation necessary to prove the class was successfully completed. This is the best way to fulfill your court mandate with the least amount of stress, cost and publicity possible!