Addressing the spiritual needs of a drug user living with human immunodeficiency virus: a case study

OBJECTIVES: To describe an application of Spiritual Self-Schema Therapy (3-S) with a human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)-seropositive, injection drug-using individual. INTERVENTION: 3-S is a structured and readily administered therapy for integrating a spiritual dimension into addiction treatments for HIV-positive drug users. It posits the existence of many potential "selves," salient among which are the "addict" self and the "spiritual" self. The central strategy of 3-S is to "deactivate" the addict self and "activate" the spiritual self. Techniques to achieve this shift are discussed. RESULTS: Over the course of treatment, this patient was able to use 3-S therapy to shift her dominant sense of self from that of an addict to a spiritual person and reported that this increased feelings of hope and the sense of control. CONCLUSION: A spiritually based therapy appears to help injection drug users with HIV infection and warrants further investigation.