Addiction Counseling 180 | hr

Where to start?

Firstly, I’m glad you’ve taken the first step to begin the process of finding relief. Upon meeting, we need to accurately access the amount, frequency, and duration of use. This will allow us to determine the best approach moving forward. Depending on the severity of use, it may be more appropriate to begin at a high level of care that provides more intensive support an treatment.

If the use is not creating substantial biological risk, then we can begin working together. It’s important for me to see who you are beyond the addiction, so don’t expect an addiction witch hunt when you come into my office. I view addiction as a symptom of a deeper struggle; therefore, talking about use is generally not at the forefront of my conversations with clients.

Instead, we begin to unpack the ways in which our emotional experiences, relationships, and upbringing may have caused an inability or struggle to navigate our own emotional states. After restructuring, re-labling, and re-identifying parts of your experience, we will begin to process the deeper emotions and gradually increase emotional intelligence and distress-tolerance.

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Where to go?

Substance use is complex and contextual. My approach differs from some addiction specialists— I believe that substance use is a symptom, a message to ourselves that parts of our lives are not providing connection, meaning, and wellness. It’s important for us to listen to what the substance use is trying to tell you and then to learn how to value the unheard, ignored, and lost parts of you.

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Most effective Approach?

Addiction can take a variety of different forms and shapes. Initially, it will important to assess:

  1. Frequency of Use

  2. Perceived unintentionally consequences

  3. Potential future negative impacts of use

  4. Biological Implications

  5. Current Stressors

  6. Prescribed Medications

Answering these questions will help provide us with a baseline and roadmap to where you would like to grow. It’s often not until we begin to expose the origin and contexts of our addiction that we are able to find the power to make the changes that we’ve been hoping for.

Substance use also often functions in a system. If you have a partner or family that wants to be involved in your treatment, it could be a very effective tool. If you’d like to include your partner or family in this process, I recommend my couples therapy and/or family therapy.