Welcome and thank you for visiting. I offer treatment for alcohol and/or drug abuse, process addictions (gambling, porn, and sex), along with stabilization for co-occurring disorders (anxiety, depression, bipolar, PTSD, stress).

Accredited Counseling and Intervention Services is all about getting you the help that you need and want, for yourself or a struggling loved-one. We truly understand how frustrating and scary this time can be because we've been there too. Our mission is to help everyone with compassion, love, respect, and integrity. Addiction often affects every aspect of a person and their family; therefore, overcoming the pain can be daunting. There is good news, by taking proven steps you and your family can begin recovery. The journey toward recovery starts with taking the first step. Call us for a consultation or send us your questions using our contact form.

Alcohol

Alcohol is a sedative-hypnotic drug. Sedatives calm people down and reduce anxiety. Hypnotics cause people to become sleepy. In moderate amounts, alcohol helps many people relax and socialize more easily. It also makes many people feel more confident in themselves. However, the confidence alcohol gives is often misplaced. For instance, although many people think they drive well while drinking, they actually have slower reactions, poor concentration, and bad judgment. They are also more likely to say or do things that they later regret. Because alcohol is legal and easy to acquire, most users of other drugs also drink alcohol at least occasionally. It is important that you commit to abstinence from all mood-altering drugs, including alcohol.

Addiction

Addiction is a persistent, compulsive dependence on a behavior or substance. The term has been partially replaced by the word dependence for substance abuse. Addiction has been extended, however, to include mood-altering behaviors or activities. Some researchers speak of two types of addictions: substance addictions (for example, alcoholism, drug abuse, and smoking); and process addictions (for example, gambling, spending, shopping, eating, and sexual activity). There is a growing recognition that many addicts are addicted to more than one substance or process.

Addiction is a progressive syndrome, which means that it increases in severity over time unless it is treated. Substance abuse is characterized by frequent relapse, or return to the abused substance. Substance abusers often make repeated attempts to quit before they are successful. The economic cost of substance abuse in the United States exceeds $1.45 trillion, with health care costs attributed to substance abuse estimated at more than $874 billion.

By eighth grade, 52% of adolescents have consumed alcohol, 41% have smoked tobacco, and 20% have smoked marijuana. Compared to females, males are almost four times as likely to be heavy drinkers, nearly one and a half more likely to smoke a pack or more of cigarettes daily, and twice as likely to smoke marijuana weekly. However, among adolescents these gender differences are not as pronounced and girls are almost as likely to abuse substances such as alcohol and cigarettes. Although frequent use of tobacco, cocaine and heavy drinking appears to remain stable in the 2000s, marijuana use has increased.

An estimated four million Americans over the age of 12 used prescription pain relievers, sedatives, and stimulants for "nonmedical" reasons during one month.

In the United States, 15% of the population regularly uses tobacco. Tobacco use reportedly kills 2.5 times as many people each year as alcohol and drug abuse combined. According to data from the World Health Organization, there were 1.1 billion smokers worldwide and 10,000 tobacco-related deaths per day. Furthermore, in the United States, 43% of children aged 2-11 years are exposed to environmental tobacco smoke, which has been implicated in sudden infant death syndrome, low birth weight, middle ear disease, pneumonia, cough, upper respiratory infection, and asthma.

Eating disorders, such as anorexia nervosa, bulimia nervosa, and binge eating, affect more than five million American women and men. Fifteen percent of young women have substantially disordered attitudes toward eating and eating behaviors. More than 1,000 women die each year from anorexia nervosa. A Harvard study found that an estimated 15.4 million Americans suffered from a gambling addiction. More than one-half (7.9 million) were adolescents.

The prognosis for recovery from any addiction depends on the substance or process, the individual's circumstances, and underlying personality structure. Addicts using multiple drugs have the worst prognosis for recovery. The most effective form of prevention appears to be a stable family that models responsible attitudes toward mood-altering substances and behaviors. Prevention education programs are also widely used to inform the public of the harmfulness of substance abuse.

Treatment for addiction doesn't need to be approached alone.  Simply call Accredited Counseling and Intervention Services.

Services

Consultation --- to determine what's the first step, based on needs, wants, and what is feasible.

• Assess the situation, define the scope of the problem, and devise an effective plan of action.

Group Counseling --- up to 7 clients in a 60 minute supportive session.

• Group is a therapy format that approaches issues of personal growth through the use of interpersonal interaction – to interact with others to identify and understand our maladaptive patterns and how to change them.

Fees

Initial 15-minute phone consultation is complimentary.

Scott Henrywestwood is an Out-of-Network or Non-Contracted Provider for some insurance companies (Aetna, UHC, UBC, HealthNet), and In-Network Provider for Cigna/Evernorth, Carelon Behavioral Health, Military One Source, and other contracts are in process. Out-of-network contracted rates are accepted (we can work with what insurance will pay, and copayment from client).

Counseling services are $90.00 per 50-60 minute session. In an effort to make services available to all, a sliding scale for fees is available to those who qualify. Fees are based upon 50-60 minute session.

If you schedule a session, we reserve that time for you. We are not able to schedule anyone else for that session. If you cancel 24 hours in advance you may reschedule your private session at no charge. Cancel a session within 24 hours requires $80 payment for that session - NO EXCEPTION. If we are required to go beyond the standard refund policy i.e., letters, respond to outside parties, agencies, we also reserve the right to assess those fees directly to you, the client. Insurance will not pay for missed or late-cancel sessions. In these cases, you will be responsible for the minimum $80 session fee.

ACIS' intervention fees are $2000/flat-rate or $250/hour for licensed and certified professional counselor with an intervention specialty endorsement.  A Brief/Invitational intervention can take 4 hours, and a full family involvement model can take 6 to 10 or more hours. ACIS provides clients with an invaluable tool called The ACIS Intervention Handbook. The counselor-interventionist guides you through a detailed process outlined in the handbook to assure the best outcome --- the miracle of your loved-one accepting treatment.

In addition to our fees, we pass to you the cost of all flights (usually, Southwest), ground transportation, and (usually) a single night stay in an inexpensive hotel. The cost of an intervention should NOT include luxury hotel stays, expensive flights, or meal costs. We are happy to defer travel expenses by being transported by your family/friends, as well as staying overnight with someone.

Our interventionist is available to escort your loved one directly to treatment. And/or, you can escort them there yourself. We do charge an additional $80.00/hour plus flights and/or driving costs. We do require a deposit to guarantee services and accept credit card, FSA/HSA, money orders, and PayPal. Understandably, once payment is made there is NO REFUND. We do not charge for food, amenities, or other fees, and we only utilize rental cars as required.

The fee structures for recovery coaching, one-on-one relapse prevention, and addiction-free pain management are identical to individual counseling. See the full (desktop) version of our website for Relapse Prevention Support Groups fees.

The fixed fee for U.S. Department of Transportation Substance Abuse Professionals face-to-face assessment & evaluation, treatment plan, periodic check-ins, updated evaluation face-to-face, follow-up testing schedule, and reports --- entire process in our practice is $600.00, payable at the time of the initial appointment. Fee includes 4 hour online education.

Credit card payments can be made using this link.

Forms

Choose the PDF forms you wish to complete from the List tab above. All forms are password protected. Please call us to obtain the password before accessing the forms. Print and complete the forms, and then mail, fax or bring them with you to your first appointment. Alternatively, you can complete the forms online. Once completed, click on the Submit button at the bottom of the form to electronically send us your completed form. The submit feature won't work with your browser's PDF viewer. Use Acrobat Reader to submit a PDF form online. Once installed, click on a form from the list, and then select the option to open the form with Acrobat Reader. For forms that require signatures, Acrobat Reader has a draw feature which allows you to use the mouse to draw your signature and paste it in the form.

Download Acrobat Reader for Android. Download Acrobat Reader for iPhone.

• ACIS Accident Waiver and Release of Liability
• ACIS Authorisation for Telehealth
• ACIS Client Rights and Responsibilities
• ACIS Confidentiality of Client Records
• ACIS Consent for Follow-Up
• ACIS Covid-19 Liability Release Waiver
• ACIS Financial Agreement Counseling Services
• ACIS No Surprise Act Good Faith Estimate from January 2022

About

I provide counseling and intervention for those who are struggling with alcoholism and addiction, and for their family and friends who are impacted by it. We also provide counseling for process addiction such as gambling, porn and sex addiction. We offer recovery coaching, relapse prevention, and addiction-free pain management services. Our contact information with directions to our offices is given below.