title: Calling for help? Considering function and meaning when patients drunk-dial psychotherapists.
abstract: Drunk-dialing is a term documented in both popular culture and academic literatures to describe a behavior in which a person contacts another individual by phone while intoxicated. In our collective clinical experience we have found that clients drunk-dial their clinicians too, particularly while in substance use treatment, and yet there is a noticeable absence of research on the topic to guide clinical decision-making within a process-based understanding of these events. As the parameters within which psychotherapy takes place become increasingly technologized, a literature base to document clients' idiosyncratic use of technology will become increasingly necessary and useful. We provide a brief review of the existing research on drunk-dialing and conclude with specific questions to guide future research and practice.
authors.affiliation: Yale University School of Medicine, Department of Psychiatry, New Haven, Connecticut, United States.
authors.forename: Kelly
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Serafini
authors.forename: Donna
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Lapaglia
authors.forename: Matthew
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Steinfeld
keywords: alcohol use; boundary violations; clinical process; drunk-dialing; substance use; therapeutic frame
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