Addiction Therapists in Irwindale, CA.

Are you addicted to pornography, visiting massage parlors, paying for sex? Have you tried to stop and failed? Are you leading a double life, afraid of being found out? Has your partner discovered your secret life? There is hope if you're ready to change your life. I provide a confidential, non-judgmental place for addicts and their partners to share the shame of a double life and the pain of betrayal. I will help stop the out-of-control behavior and re-engineer your life to develop healthy intimate connections. There is hope and you will not be alone in the journey. Go to www.sexhelp.com for an online assessment.

No one likes pain. No one likes to feel alone, or stressed, or scared. Wouldn't it make sense to do what it takes to give ourselves relief from our despair? Turning to drugs, alcohol, food, spending, tv...you name it, can be our best way to get relief from our pain. And it works...momentarily. Unfortunately, it can become much bigger than we planned. Sometimes, it can hurt those we love and get in the way of living the life we want. Finding out what is underneath that pain, and helping it to be soothed without our addiction can be hard...but it can set us free. If you are ready to reclaim your joy, begin with this first courageous step of reaching out for help.

For many people, addictions can be a private pain that they keep hidden away from others. Often times, people feel powerless to overcome these temptations that may eventually impact their relationships and life functioning. In the safety of therapy, we will work towards identifying triggers or times when you feel most vulnerable to your addiction. We'll process through underlying issues and develop feasible steps for you to resist temptations and replace them with constructive and healthy ways of coping. Whether it's internet addiction, pornography, substance abuse, binge eating- you do not have to let your addiction consume you any longer.

In my work with clients battling addictions I work to help them discover the root causes for their addictive behaviors and find new ways to resolve them. We work collaboratively with their support system to create healthy lifestyle habits and associations, resolve old recurrent pain, set new healthier boundaries in their work and personal relationships, and find new meaning for their lives. When there are setbacks, my clients learn to explore them in a non-judgmental environment designed to help them move forward toward the sober, healthy life and relationships they are seeking.

I take an environment and harm reduction approach with her clients. I am caring and understanding of addiction issues. I have experience in working with families and friends suffering from a loved ones addiction. I assist my clients in finding the core and underlying issue of their addiction. I look at the client's whole environment and how that plays into their addiction.

I strongly believe that the first step in overcoming an addiction is to feel supported in a safe and comforting therapeutic environment. Without trust, it is nearly impossible to address the issues, including shame, that so often accompany substance abuse. My approach is to help my clients learn to identify the thoughts and beliefs (often negative thoughts about themselves and their lives) that lead them to turn to drugs or alcohol. Treatment helps the client unlearn old patterns of behavior and to learn new ways of coping with situations and thoughts that may have led them to use substances in the past.

Addiction is a mental health condition and I treat addiction by a multi-pronged process predominately from a Dialectical Behaviour Therapy (DBT) model. I help my clients understand the reasons they use a substance or engage in an addictive behavior, teach them skills regulate their emotions and tolerance distress that might otherwise lead them to engage in their addiction, and address any underlying issues that contribute to their addiction. I also help clients with with concerns about their substance use or compulsive behavior to avoid developing addictions.

There are many forms of addiction: Alcoholism & Chemical Dependency, Sexual Addictions, and Gambling are just a few. We believe there are root problems to every addiction that you can get to. Even if you don't consider yourself an "addict" you may have a problem in one of these areas. That can still be a very difficult thing to manage in your life on your own. We help people come to grips with addictions and problem behaviors that can get worse if left unaddressed. If you are struggling in this area don't try to go it alone. We can help.

As an addictions counselor, I understand the importance of providing a non-judgmental, open, safe space where you feel comfortable to share about your use and explore how you'd like to address this behavior. Whether your goal is complete abstinence or a harm reduction strategy, I will work with you to identify the most effective ways to accomplish your goal. Many times in addiction work it is more about the feeling we are trying to achieve from the addictive behavior we are engaging in. This is why it is important to understand and implement alternative healthier strategies that achieve a similar feeling or result. When we do this; change is possible.

I specialize in working with internet, video game, cell phone, social media, and porn addictions. These process addictions have acquired a power over you that is difficult to break. I take a multi-faceted approach to helping you experience the change you desire. I use Motivational Interviewing to help you solidify your desire to change, I utilize abstinence based strategies and methods to help you establish and sustain sobriety, I help you learn how to replace these addictions with real relationships and interests that foster real relationships and I support you in identifying or establishing a natural support network that helps you to maintain and sustain the new changes in your life!

In this generation, the growth of individuals with addictions is very significant. Addictions originally were isolated to alcohol and drugs. Today’s addictions are understood to also include, food, sex, money, gambling, video, internet, internet games, internet chatrooms, internet pornography and other types of prolonged, repeated and out of control behaviors and actions. Addictions take over a person’s ability to have of self- control of the action which leads to the fogging of any will power to stop the addictive activity even when a matter of great importance comes in conflict with the addiction. Addictions ruin people and all relationships surrounding them. Addiction counseling explores underlying factors leading to the addiction and looks to find...(view profile to read more)

I have many times worked in therapy with clients who struggle with addictions, among other issues. I have studied Motivational Interviewing, which is remarkably helpful in addictions work. Clients feel supported and not judged, and are able to find their internal motivations for change. Therapy with me can complement work in separate addiction treatment as well.

Most addictions whether they are gambling, pornography, internet, alcohol, drugs, or shopping are all rooted in the desire toward pleasure seeking and all result in an outcome which is unable to sustain that pleasurable experience. Often people seek treatment when the behaviors result in destructive outcomes. When a spouse or family member of an addicted person or the addicted person themselves, admits the behaviors are resulting in negative outcomes and the person is unsuccessful in stopping the behavior we define this as an addiction. We provide insight as to what is the root cause and teach them better coping skills.

Addiction is complex and encompasses many entities. One of them is the participation in an AA program, another one the therapist. I can help on the therapeutic side, as addiction is often connect to underlying trauma. We will work through the trauma and the tools needed, while AA provides the tools required for sobriety. It's an ongoing process, providing growth and stability over time.

There are many kind of addictions....chemicals....gambling....adultery....sexual...pornography....internet. These addictions often serve to "mask" intense emotions felt by an individual. The addiction serves, at least for the moment or hour to allow one to "escape". Obsessive Compulsive behaviors follow, often by the decline in quality of life. Working with a professional therapist will allow you to talk about your life, your emotions, your unresolved issues. This journey of discovery can lead to a better self image, better relationships (since addictions are "instead" of people) and better health.

An addiction can be hidden for years before a spouse or parent catches on. Addiction is not limited to street drugs and alcohol, people can become addicted to things like prescription medication, binge eating, video games, gambling, or pornography. Addiction always starts as something that seems harmless and innocent. It is common for a distressed person to turn to their addiction to escape from their problems--the drugs/action takes their minds off their problems. As time goes by, the physical dependency grows, and then the psychological dependency grows; the addiction grows and grows until it takes over the person's mind. I know what it is like and I can help the person get into recovery.

Gambling addiction is often an understood issue, yet many people and family members struggle with. If you or a loved one struggles with gambling issues, I'd be happy to explore those areas with you to find ways to make changes and take back the control in your life that this barrier has created. The California Office of Problem Gambling offers free counseling services to individuals and family members impacted by this difficult obstacle. Please contact me for more information.

We become addicted to certain behaviors when painful feelings about ourself cannot be recognized or expressed, and therefore unprocessed. Caught in these unrecognized feelings that never get understood, behaviors of accommodation take hold and keep us trapped. Therapy is a process of recognizing these emotional patterns leading to a personal empowerment to speak what one really desires and needs. This process breaks the addictive patterns.

Addiction can ruin lives. Whether it is a substance (like alcohol of drugs) or a behavior (like eating or gambling) it stimulates that part of or brain that is the reward center and makes us feel pleasure. Humans, not surprisingly, like all animals, seek pleasure and avoid pain. We can get addicted to such a degree that we lose sight of the important things in our lives; our family, friend, job etc. Anything and everything can get side-lined by our addiction. Breaking free can be hard, it can involve many attempts and yet the rewards are enormous. I don't have the magic bullet but I can walk alongside you and help you on the path to recovery and sobriety.

Few are aware that an addiction is a form of self-medicating where the addiction helps cover up deeper problems. This is especially true for a person experiencing major depression. The addiction serves to uplift a person out of the depression and into a state of pleasure. The problem is that the addiction serves as a temporary fix and becomes a problem in itself where chasing the high comes at an even greater cost than that experienced as depression. Suicidal thoughts, imprisonment, loss of income and financial problems, and poor health all come with the addiction. A person experiencing addiction must seek counseling for the addiction and for the root cause.

Is your addiction eating you alive? Perhaps you have received some bad news from a doctor or a loved one because of your addiction. No matter what you're experiencing, we're here to help you. You're not alone! We create a custom made system that fits your life to bring the greatest results through discovering your temperament. Call us now to see how we can help you.

I do not work with severe drug and alcohol addiction. I work with clients who are able to function, yet finding it becoming more difficult and needing to stop their behavior before they hit bottom. We use cognitive behaviorial techniques to protect them from acting out and build up a support network. We also begin to explore soothing and coping techniques which are needed and missing.

My approach to treating addiction incorporates aspects of motivational interviewing. The hardest part in breaking an addiction is acknowledging that you have an addiction and committing to rehabilitation. I differ from other rehabilitation programs like alcoholics anonymous, in that I believe that clients can practice selective sobriety, and that they should not replace their addiction with another addiction of group meetings.

Addictions can be tricky as they can often fly under the radar if they don't seem to impact other people, such as an individual who exercises to extremes; however, problems arise when addiction(s) begin to impact their social, academic, mental/physical health, financial or professional life. Looking at the difference between merely habit forming behaviors and true addictions can be examined during psychotherapy and looking at benefits and patterns of these behaviors. Supportive measures are key before addictions take over and become the sole purpose of an individual's functioning. I have worked with a number of individuals and psychotherapy can be of a great benefit towards recovery.

Struggles with addiction and substance abuse can often be accompanied by guilt and shame, and this guilt and shame are typically triggers for continued use/relapse. Use of a strengths-based approach to treating substance abuse can tap an individual's own strengths to gain insight and to increase coping skills. Motivational Interviewing, Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, and Interpersonal Therapy can also prove useful to address unmet needs, feeling "stuck" and challenging irrational thoughts that lead to continued use.