Substance Abuse Counselors in Recovery: Implications for the Ethical Issue of Dual Relationships

The issue of dual relationships is a significant ethical challenge for all counselors. For the counselor recovering from an addiction to substances, this issue can be even more problematic. Existing codes of ethics offer insufficient guidance to the recovering counselor. Following an overview of dual relationships, the author reviews the ethical codes of the American Counseling Association and the National Association of Alcoholism and Drug Abuse Counselors, with particular attention paid to their applicability to the recovering counselor. Potentially difficult situations are considered, and recommendations are offered both for the recovering counselor and for the counseling field in general to minimize the incidence of unethical behavior due to dual relationship issues.