Can Therapy Help Me Overcome Addiction?
Hi, I’m Michele Ross LCSW, an addiction therapist in Los Angeles. I have over 25 years of experience as a therapist, and have worked as a Clinical Director at an addiction treatment center previously.
You don’t have to let this be another year where you struggle in silence with addiction.
I know it can be challenging to take that first step in seeking help for addiction. It shows a profound sense of self-awareness to recognize the need for change.
It can be the catalyst to change your life for the better
You’re not alone. Addiction isn’t a character flaw – it’s a health issue. The path to recovery is possible.
Understanding Addiction: More Than Just a Habit
Addiction is often misunderstood as a behavioral problem. However, overcoming addiction isn’t really about stopping the undesired activity. Instead, it’s about understanding how deeply ingrained responses to emotions, current stressors, and past traumas are impacting you.
In fact, scientific research shows that addiction actually changes the brain’s reward, motivation, and self-control systems. This makes it harder to enjoy everyday experiences, so over time it’s easier to fall into patterns of compulsion.
Addiction is a coping mechanism that manifests as a mental preoccupation with a behavior or substance. You might spend a significant amount of time planning around the addiction, often at the expense of work and relationships.
Your friends and colleagues might not even know about your struggles. Many people with addiction become secretive, even lying to protect the issue.
Shifts in access, engaging in the activity, and the after-effect can cause mood changes and altered sleeping patterns.
Compulsive behaviors, whether related to substances like alcohol and drugs or activities such as gambling and overeating, typically lead to self-destruction.
Therapy aims to address the root causes of these destructive actions, so you can understand your compulsions and eventually overcome them.
The Role of Mental Health Counseling in Addiction Treatment
Mental health counseling offers a safe and supportive environment to explore the underlying factors contributing to addiction.
Therapy is a way to connect with yourself so you can understand the source of harmful habits and address the thought patterns that lead to negative behaviors.
As a therapist, my core work involves helping clients not only to reduce the addictive actions, but also to process past events and memories. This dual focus allows clients to identify triggers and move past the negative sensations associated with them.
Many individuals struggling with addiction use these behaviors as a way to disconnect from feelings of stress, pain, worry, or fear. We work together to get "unstuck" and create positive life changes.
Therapy involves helping the brain to heal and relearn healthier ways to manage emotions and stress.
In my practice, I utilize evidence-based approaches like EMDR, Brainspotting, and Somatic work, which help your brain to repattern itself away from harmful habits.
For example, a research study out of Smith University found that addiction symptoms decreased with EMDR therapy. What really is impressive is that the positive results continued in the long-term.
A research review of psychotherapeutic interventions and substance use disorders found that EMDR helps to improve impulse control and stress-response regulation. It’s especially helpful for those with histories of trauma.
The NIDA states that therapy helps reduce your risk of relapse, and is part of their suggested treatment plan for a range of drug addictions.
What’s the process of therapy for addiction like?
One of the benefits of therapy is that your treatment can be totally customized based on your preferences, responses, triggers, and prior history.
That means that everyone’s experience with addiction mental health will look different.
In general though, you’ll likely start with an assessment to help you determine what is the best next step for you to take.
You’ll work with modalities that focus on current/past trauma, so you can break repetitive patterns.
Your goals will look something like this:
Understand causes of impulsive habits
Learn to recognize when you’re most wanting to engage in the behavior
Learn tools to regain control over impulsive behaviors
Improve emotional regulation and tolerance to stress
Address past trauma
Evaluate your life goals and core values
Sessions will be a time to learn new skills and healthy ways of coping with past traumas and current stressors.
Are you ready to make a change?
I utilize a direct, yet compassionate approach to help guide people like you to find solution oriented goals, so you can obtain healing and transformation.
Online therapy is available for those in the state of California, and I see clients in person in my Larchmont office. Call (213) 427-8658 or contact me here to set up your FREE 15-minute phone consultation.
