Addiction and alcoholism, or Substance Use Disorders (SUD), is a chronic disease that affects a person's brain, vital organs, and behaviors, which leads to an inability to control the use of legal or illegal drugs, prescription medications, or beverages containing ethyl alcohol—whether it be called beer, wine, or spirits. A chronic disease, including addiction, is an illness that worsens over time, is irreversible, incurable, and without treatment, will lead to death. The only other outcomes for the addict or alcoholic are either incarceration or being institutionalized. Those diagnosed with a SUD most often experience periods of relapse and abstinence, followed by more of the same. Each return to the substance produces more detrimental consequences than the previous relapse, including but not limited to health, financial, relational, professional, and social problems. Addiction is characterized by increasing compulsivity and risk-taking to seek and use substances, taking precedence over everything valuable in life.
Addiction changes the brain through the limbic system or the “brain reward system.” This part of the brain produces feelings of pleasure and will manifest thoughts such as, “I deserve this” or “Let’s do that again.” The abuse of addictive substances and behaviors triggers this system which can prolong a continuous cycle of destructive behavior.
People who have developed an addiction may be unaware that it is out of control, so recognizing and accepting that a problem exists is the first step in recovery. Family support, an understanding recovery community, and structured therapy are essential to working through and managing addiction.
My structured therapy utilizes the evidenced-based core functions of addiction counseling: Client intake, screening, and assessment; orientation and treatment planning; psychoeducation on addiction; crisis intervention and referrals; progress tracking and case management; resources for community/group support including different recovery models and approaches; and relapse prevention techniques.
Most importantly, we look at the psychology behind your addiction. Substance abuse of any kind is almost always a symptom of deeper issues that we will address.