Exploratory Study of the Effectiveness of Neuro-Linguistic Programming (NLP) Techniques for Promoting De Addiction and Prevention of Relapse among People Who Inject Drugs in India

People who inject drugs (PWID) are vulnerable to infection with HIV and other blood borne viruses. Substance abuse disorders are relapsing conditions and treatment outcomes are often poor. Hence it is important to try novel methods and new therapies to find a way to improve treatment outcomes. An exploratory study was conducted with 10 PWIDs, undergoing de-addiction to understand the scope of Neuro-linguistic programming (NLP) as a therapy for PWIDs and its ability to keep them clean after leaving the centre. Fear was the uppermost feeling in all the PWIDs that caused them to start drug use. Participants described benefiting from the NLP therapy sessions. Using NLP as an alternative therapy with PWIDs for de-addiction can be investigated.