Affiliations: Psychology Department of Federal University of Minas
Gerais, Minas Gerais, Brazil
Note: [] Corresponding author: Maria Elizabeth Antunes Lima, Rua
Califórnia, 390/101, Bairro Sion, Belo Horizonte, MG, CEP: 30315500,
Brazil. Tel.: +31 32852567; Fax: +31 34095027; E-mail:
antuneslima15@gmail.com
Abstract: BACKGROUND: Studies involving the therapeutic nature of the work
done by chemically dependent individuals undergoing treatment in therapeutic
communities are scarce, not only in Brazil, but also in the international
literature. OBJECTIVE: To clarify the role played by work as a therapeutic
element for patients who are undergoing treatment in a drug-free therapeutic
community setting in Brazil. Clients are free to choose their occupations
during treatment, that exercise their creativity and their responsability for
their recovery. METHOD: The Biographical Method was employed in two case studies.
CONCLUSIONS: The approach adopted by the community enabled clients
to recognize how they became chemically dependent, as well as their
possibilities for recovery. Clients expanded their interests and their daily
activities that were once exclusively directed towards the consumption of
drugs. Their personal development improved through their contact with reality
through work activities, in the context of a therapeutic community. From there,
clients were increasingly able to plan and execute life projects aimed at their
full recovery.
Keywords: Chemical dependence, ergotherapy, occupation
