Psychotherapy of future thinking deficits in rehabilitation of addictive disorders

Future thinking deficits (FTD) may to a great extent explain the main issue of alcohol dependence (AD), and namely, one’s failure to stop drinking, even in spite of the serious negative consequences for health and life. Treatment and rehabilitation aim at changing the actual future of people with AD by improving their mental and physical health, quality and duration of life, expanding and improving social activity. Meanwhile, working with mental future thinking may also have a marked relapse-prevention effect. The article outlines the clinical picture of typical FTD in alcohol-dependent patients, provides simple and ecological methods for diagnosing and analyzing FTD that can be used in addiction treatment, by doctors, psychotherapists, or medical psychologists. The presented methods allow to structure psychosocial interventions in the medium term, and to identify significant targets in individual and group psychotherapy, psychological counseling, and psychoeducation that will strengthen therapeutic alliance and create a benevolent therapeutic space during medical rehabilitation. © 2025 Elsevier B.V., All rights reserved.