Why Most of the Week Is Group
Because in outpatient treatment it is the main event rather than a supplement. SAMHSA’s guidance on intensive outpatient programs states that groups form the crux of most of them, and describes individual counseling as an important, supportive adjunct to group sessions but not the primary form of treatment.1 That is how Sol’s three levels of care are built.
SAMHSA is direct about the value: group therapy can provide a wide range of therapeutic services comparable in efficacy to those delivered in individual therapy, and in some cases group therapy can be more beneficial than individual therapy.2
Whether a Women-Only Group Actually Makes a Difference
It is a fair question, and federal guidance offers a helpful answer.
SAMHSA’s guidance on group therapy in substance use treatment states that studies have shown women do better in women-only groups than in mixed gender groups. When women have single-gender group therapy, retention is improved, they are more likely to complete their treatment programs, they use more services during the course of their treatment, and they are more likely to feel they are doing well in treatment.3
Those four things are retention, completion, service use and how women rate their own progress. The guidance does not make a claim about abstinence or long-term recovery, and it was published in 2005, drawing on studies from the 1990s.
Staying in treatment and completing it matters, and a women-only room can make that feel more possible.
SAMHSA also describes what the setting provides: gender-specific treatment groups give both the safety women often need to resolve the problems that fuel their substance use disorders, and the environment they need to develop a healthier sense of self and connections to other women.3
The Kinds of Groups That Exist
SAMHSA’s guidance describes five group models used in substance use treatment.4 Not every program runs all five, and which of these run in a given week at Sol depends on your level of care.
| Model | What it is for |
|---|---|
| Psychoeducational | Expanding awareness of the behavioral, medical and psychological consequences of substance use |
| Skills development | Cultivating the skills needed to achieve and maintain abstinence |
| Cognitive behavioral and problem solving | Treating dependency as a learned behavior that can be modified, by identifying triggers, avoiding them, and building different responses |
| Support | Strengthening the ability to manage thinking and emotions, and building better interpersonal skills |
| Interpersonal process | Using knowledge of how people function psychologically to promote change |
Our groups usually run at about six to eight women. For comparison, SAMHSA’s intensive outpatient guidance describes an optimal group of between 8 and 15 members, with sessions often scheduled for 90 minutes.1
What a Group Actually Gives You
SAMHSA notes that treating adult clients in groups has many advantages, as well as some risks.2 Here are some of the advantages it describes.
Groups reduce the sense of isolation that most people with substance use disorders experience. Groups enable people to witness the recovery of others. Groups instill hope, a sense that if she can make it, so can I. Groups offer the opportunity to learn or relearn social skills. Groups add structure and discipline. Groups provide positive peer support and pressure.2
SAMHSA also notes that groups can help members face their substance use.2 Here, other women may gently reflect back what they notice, always with kindness.
SAMHSA also cautions that any treatment approach, group or individual, can yield poor results if applied indiscriminately or administered by an unskilled or improperly trained therapist.2 That is why we take care over who leads each group.
If the Idea of a Group Is the Thing Stopping You
If the thought of a group feels hard, you are not alone, and this section is for you.
SAMHSA’s guidance is that before any client is placed in a group, readiness for that particular group must be assessed, and that a trained staff member should meet with her first rather than deciding from a form.5
It also states plainly that no one should be forced to participate in group therapy, and names circumstances where group is a poor fit: someone in the middle of a life crisis, someone who cannot yet control impulses, someone who experiences severe internal discomfort in groups.5
So “what if I cannot do groups” is a real question with a clinical answer, not a character problem and not something to be talked out of. Raise it at assessment. Sometimes the answer is starting at a different level of care. Sometimes it is a specific group rather than all of them. Sometimes it is time.
Please do not let this worry keep you from calling. We would be glad to talk it through with you.
Group Therapy and Trauma
Group is the backbone of this program, and for trauma specifically, individual work plays an important role.
For PTSD specifically, the VA and Department of Defense clinical practice guideline is neither for nor against any specific manualized group therapy, and neither for nor against group therapy as an adjunct to primary PTSD treatment, on grounds of insufficient evidence.6 The VA further reports that one study found individual cognitive processing therapy more effective than the group version on PTSD symptoms, while depression and suicidal ideation improved equally in both.7
For this reason, trauma-focused work at Sol is individual. EMDR is delivered one to one, with the groups running alongside it rather than in place of it.
More on how the trauma work is structured on the trauma therapy page.
What the First One Is Actually Like
You will not be asked to speak. Many women simply listen during their first week, and that is completely okay.
You will be asked your first name, and that is all we ask on day one.
Walking in the first time can feel like a big step. Our team and the women in the room will welcome you gently.
Starting Treatment
1
Call or Send Your Insurance Details
Admissions answers 24 hours a day, seven days a week.
2
Assessment
A clinician works out which level of care fits, and which groups are right for you rather than assuming all of them are.
3
Verify Your Insurance
We contact your plan and walk you through your benefits.
4
Start Date
Set around what your week can hold.
If groups are the part you are dreading, say so on the first call. It is one of the most common things admissions hears and it changes the conversation rather than ending it.
In crisis right now? Call or text 988.
Frequently Asked Questions
Our admissions line is answered 24 hours a day, 7 days a week at (951) 972-5085.
Why Is so Much of Treatment Done in Groups?
SAMHSA’s guidance on intensive outpatient programs states that groups form the crux of most of them, with individual counseling as a supportive adjunct rather than the primary treatment. SAMHSA also describes group therapy as comparable in efficacy to individual therapy, and in some cases more beneficial.
Does a Women-Only Group Actually Make a Difference?
SAMHSA’s guidance states that women do better in women-only groups than in mixed gender groups, with improved retention, higher likelihood of completing treatment, more service use, and a greater likelihood of feeling they are doing well in treatment.
What If I Hate the Idea of Groups?
Say so at assessment. SAMHSA’s guidance is that readiness for a particular group should be assessed beforehand in a conversation, and that no one should be forced to participate in group therapy. There are circumstances where group is a poor fit, including being in the middle of a life crisis or experiencing severe discomfort in groups, and those are clinical questions rather than character ones.
Will I Have to Talk?
Not on the first day, and not before you are ready. You will be asked your first name.
How Big Are the Groups?
Our groups usually run at about six to eight women, so there is space for everyone to be heard. For comparison, SAMHSA’s intensive outpatient guidance describes an optimal size of between 8 and 15 members.
Is Group Therapy as Good as Individual Therapy?
SAMHSA describes it as comparable in efficacy, and in some cases more beneficial. For PTSD specifically the picture is different: the VA and Department of Defense guideline is neither for nor against group therapy for PTSD, and one study found individual cognitive processing therapy more effective than the group version. That is why trauma work here is individual.
Will Other Women Challenge Me?
Other women may gently reflect back what they notice, always with kindness. Nobody is there to argue with you or put you on the spot, and you can share at your own pace.
Does Insurance Cover Group Therapy?
It is part of your program rather than billed separately, so what matters is how your plan covers your level of care. Sol accepts most major insurance plans, including Aetna, Anthem, Blue Cross Blue Shield, Carelon, CareFirst, Cigna, UC SHIP and UnitedHealthcare. Sol can often work with HMO policies through a single case agreement. Sol does not accept Medi-Cal, Medicaid, Medicare, Molina, IEHP, Kaiser, TRICARE or TriWest. Every plan is different, so the quickest way to know is to verify your insurance. Our admissions team responds within 24 hours.
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A Room of Women Who Understand
If the group part is what is stopping you, that is worth saying on the phone rather than deciding alone.
4175 Brockton Avenue, Riverside, CA 92501
Confidential. You will not be asked to speak on your first day.
Sources7
- 1.Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration. Substance Abuse: Clinical Issues in Intensive Outpatient Treatment, TIP 47, Chapter 4. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK64094/
- 2.Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration. Substance Abuse Treatment: Group Therapy, TIP 41, Chapter 1. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK64223/
- 3.Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration. Substance Abuse Treatment: Group Therapy, TIP 41, Chapter 3, section on women. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK64215/
- 4.Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration. Substance Abuse Treatment: Group Therapy, TIP 41, Chapter 2. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK64214/
- 5.Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration. Substance Abuse Treatment: Group Therapy, TIP 41, Chapter 3, on placement criteria. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK64215/
- 6.US Department of Veterans Affairs and Department of Defense. Clinical Practice Guideline for the Management of Posttraumatic Stress Disorder and Acute Stress Disorder, Version 4.0, June 2023, Recommendations 12 and 13. https://www.healthquality.va.gov/guidelines/MH/ptsd/
- 7.US Department of Veterans Affairs, National Center for PTSD. Cognitive Processing Therapy for PTSD, professional section. https://www.ptsd.va.gov/professional/treat/txessentials/cpt_for_ptsd_pro.asp
Medical Disclaimer
This page is educational and is not medical advice. Whether group therapy suits any individual, and which groups, is a clinical judgment made at assessment. Sol Women’s Treatment is certified by the California Department of Health Care Services for outpatient and intensive outpatient services, certification 330246AP, and licensed by the California Department of Social Services, facility 331881576, and does not provide detox, inpatient or residential care. No two women respond identically and nothing here promises a result. In a medical emergency call 911. If you are in crisis, call or text 988.