Addiction Counseling
What starts as a diversion can become a tyrant. Once addiction sets in, it is no longer as simple as simply stopping because you want to. If this were the case, people wouldn’t need counselors and rehab programs to support them. As a Licensed Addiction Counselor, I know how to enter your story and the shame experienced in addiction to bring hope and walk toward relief. Together we can walk among the landscape where psychology and Christian theology intersect to bring whole person healing and recovery.
What is Addiction?
Most simply put, it is “continued use despite negative consequences.” Those consequences can include mental health, physical health, relationships, employment, finances, and legal concerns.
Questions* that can be helpful to self-assess include:
Have you ever felt you needed to cut down on your drinking or substance use?
Have I ever been annoyed by people who tell me I should cut down on the amount I drink or use substances?
Have you ever felt guilty about your drinking or substance use?
Have you ever felt you needed a drink first thing in the morning (Eye-opener) to steady your nerves or to get rid of a hangover? Have you ever needed to use substances to keep from feeling sick?
Answering “yes” to any of these may indicate a problem. If you have not yet had any negative consequences for your use, thank goodness. If you have begun to experience them or fear that they might not be far around the corner you might consider seeking support in reducing or eliminating your consumption.
There are a few options out there for that support. I’ll list them in order of life disruption from least to most.
Individual Therapy: Good old 1:1 appointments with a therapist that usually last 1 hour at a time.
Group Therapy: Small groups all focused on recovery and led by a licensed addiction therapist. These typically last anywhere from 1 hour to 2 hours.
Intensive Outpatient Programs (IOP): Group therapy that meets 3-5 times per week for 8 to 12 weeks.
Residential Programs: You will live on-site for the duration of treatment that will last anywhere from 28 - 90 days. These are kind of like a boot camp for recovery. They will not be the entirety of the support one needs but are a great jump start and life stabilizer. You will want to follow it up with an IOP or individual therapy.
I provide the individual therapy option and have worked with people in recovery from alcohol, opioids, methamphetamines, marijuana, cocaine, Xanax and other benzodiazepines, and other substances.