Addiction

Are you tired of being told “just say no”? Are you tired of being called weak-willed or defective? Have you grown tired of being treated like a problem and not a person? Do you keep drinking or using in spite of the negative ways those habits affect your life? Having counseled people troubled by addiction for the past 10 years, I feel confident that recovery is possible.

I have multiple years of experience providing therapy in relation to substance abuse and addiction. Specific strategies in therapy will involve the following: Collaboratively setting goals, identifying underlying motivations for substance abuse, learning internal and external triggers, learning stress management tools, and developing problem solving skills.

Working in the addiction field has been my passion for most of my career. There is nothing better than helping someone one day at a time to get better, feel better, and stay better!

37 years of experiece in treating alcohol and substance use disorders (including affected family members) in inpatient, outpatient, and private practice settings. Hold a Master Addiction Counselor credential (MAC), attesting to significant expertise in working with individuals and families in various stages of recovery.

Overcoming addiction is a personal and transformative journey. I work with individuals to address the root causes of addiction, build self-awareness, and develop healthier coping strategies. My approach empowers you to end the cycle of substance use, rebuild your self-esteem, and find a path to lasting recovery. Whether you’re dealing with substance abuse or co-occurring mental health, I provide a compassionate, non-judgmental space to help you regain control of your life and move forward!

In addiction care, I focus on the intricacies of dependence, withdrawal, and relapse prevention. Leveraging years of experience, I create recovery plans that address the physical and psychological aspects of substance use disorders, fostering long-term wellness.

12-step recovery & harm reduction techniques

I have many years of experience in supporting people in better understanding their relationship with alcohol, drugs, or other behaviors (such as spending money, sex, relationships, gambling, food) so that they can make the changes they want to live a fuller, healthier life. Whether you are considering reducing the amount that you drink, or you are seeking support to achieve and maintain a sober life, I can support you. I believe that there are many paths in recovery, it is all up to you.

Addiction is something which I have several years of experience treating. People are often surprised to learn that treatment for substance abuse is not at all what they thought it would be. Typically, those with severe addictions will require a lifetime goal of sobriety while those with more mild addictions may acquire the ability to practice “controlled use” of chemicals. We will do a careful assessment of your symptoms so that effective goals for treatment can be established.

When it comes to working with different types of addictions some starting question are: 1. What is the person trying to escape? 2. Where is the emotional pain coming from? 3. What purpose does the addiction serve? 4. What was life like before the addiction? I help people emotionally navigate through these questions and arrive to their own inner-clarity and truth about themselves and the relationship they have with their substance/behavior addictions.

As an individual in long-term recovery, I intimately understand the challenges of getting and staying sober from alcohol and other substances. Loss of friends and your social circle, persistent feelings of isolation, and finding new means of coping with difficult situations/emotions/stress are just a few of the issues I tackle with clients in recovery. I am uniquely equipped to help both newly sober individuals as well as those in long-term recovery.

"The mind is a beautiful master, but a lousy servant." Ultimately the human mind (which we all have and experience) is the root cause of our attachments or addictions in life. How to learn for to peaceful detach to that addiction or attachment is the big question, but everyone has that answer inside them if they are willing to look. Through mindfulness, 12-step teaching, relapse prevention skills, and other therapy modalities, I teach out how to create and use a toolbox of coping skills.

Meeting clients where they’re at while providing the structure necessary to adopt healthy strategies to manage substance use dependency. Doing so establishes a collaborative effect in clients understanding how substance use is the symptom to undefined circumstances people use to cope with trauma, pain, loss, and depression.

I approach addiction from a trauma-informed lens, considering the "whole person" and their familial, societal, emotional, and behavioral influences that facilitate addictive patterns.

I obtained a certificate in drug and addiction studies while working towards my Masters in Social Work at the University of South Carolina. I have experience working in all levels of care as they relate to the evaluation and treatment of addiction, including intake services, detox, rehab, group and individual therapy.

Sometimes the use of alcohol or other drugs gets in the way of desired or necessary activities and important relationships. I've worked in a variety of treatment facilities aimed at helping people change their drinking or drug use and view addictive behaviors more as a symptom than stand-alone issue. We would work together to understand what maintains this behavior and create a personalized plan to shift away from harmful levels of use.

Have you been trying to cut back on drinking but keep finding yourself back in the same old pattern? Are you tired of feeling sick, out of control, and reliant on alcohol? You don't have to do this alone. By working one on one in therapy, we can identify ways that you can find relief and successfully reduce or abstain from drinking. Having a therapist that's experienced in alcohol abuse will support you in addressing underlying issues that have been keeping you stuck.

I have worked with addicts, alcoholics, and gamblers for many years, going as far back as 2003. I believe each day is a new day to learn something new about yourself. If you have a relapse you pick yourself up and assess yourself and get back on the wagon and be more open with yourself and your support system to help you get back on track with your recovery. I believe in being resilient and bouncing like a ball and not breaking like an egg. Life is going to challenge you each and everyday!

My graduate studies included a comprehensive addiction counseling specialization which familiarized me with the most recent and up to date approaches to addiction treatment.

12-step recovery & harm reduction techniques