Addiction Therapists in Oakwood Hills, IL.

Not only do we treat addictive disorders of all kinds, we also tackle the underlying mental illness that often accompanies substance abuse. At Barn Life Recovery our licensed clinicians and doctors help each client achieve a sober lifestyle as well as receive the finest mental health care available at this time. Our long term care modalities help clients make lasting changes in their lives.

Addictions are hard to accept. Is it a problem? Is it manageable? Hard questions and hard answers. I encourage you to not face it alone. Ultimately, an addiction has to be replaced by relationship, a connection to something bigger and better. If a substance (or a behavior) is starting to take more than it gives, options for recovery are not as scary as you might think.

Addiction to any substance or behavior can have hugh consequences. Admitting that ones life is out of control is the first step to a successful recovery from any addiction. Learning new coping skills like mindfulness, emotional regulation, interpersonal effectiveness and distress tolerance will equip the client with life long skills that will allow them to live a more fulfilled life. Many times addicts are not running toward something they are running from something. Uncovering what that is might be another key to a solid recovery.

Additions can often be understood as an effort to numb the pain resulting in one’s failure in their relationship with the self. Feeling unable to experience adequate levels of self-esteem can reflect difficulty in loving and caring for yourself or accepting love from others. Feeling vulnerable and exposed can reflect difficulties in feeling able to protect yourself resulting from difficulties with setting effective boundaries, while losing yourself in the face of other’s beliefs can reflect difficulties with identifying and sharing who you know yourself to be. These and other symptoms can lead you to seeking to numb yourself from the pain of feeling overwhelmed. Reconnect with yourself.

I work with what is called process addictions including food, gambling, work, sexual, and relationship addictions. My hope is to help the person become healthy and understand the need that is leading to the addiction and constructive ways to meet those needs. Often it is about balance and learning limits and coping with those limits. The goal is to help the client move from addiction to freedom from addiction.

Have you ever tried to cut down your drinking or tried to stop other addicting behavior? It can be a very difficult process for you or for the people who love someone who has an addiction I am here to help. There us a way. It takes knowledge, commitment and finding inner strength. It is within your reach if that is truly what you want to achieve.

In my general practice, I employ many of the same approaches and strategies as the famed "12-Step" program. I have worked with drug and alcohol addicts who are able to function at school and work. I do not work with serious drug or alcohol addictions as I am not so qualified. However, I work with families of functional and non-functional addicts.

Signs of Addiction: Consuming a mind-altering substance that results in impairment in mental or physical functioning. Over-consumption of alcohol or non-prescribed drugs often results in relationship, occupational, educational, mood-related or legal problems TREATMENT: Abstinence training, drinking-management therapy, in-patient or out-patient therapy, 12 Step-oriented counseling. BENEFITS of treatment: Enhanced concentration, reduced moodiness, disappearing agitation and anger, vastly improved personal and work relationships, skyrocketing feeling of well-being and dramatic improvement in personal, academic and occupational performance.

Our team of professionals includes several clinicians with addiction treatment specialties. We understanding that the treatment of addiction involves understanding and treating the underlying problems of addition. We employ a holistic approach to addiction treatment involving counseling, medication management, and referral to outside support groups.

Release the chains of addiction that bind you! With counseling, we can help you find motivation in quitting your addiction, maintain sobriety and create new ways to enjoy life again. We treat all kinds of addictions: Alcohol, opiates (Oxycontin, vicodin, heroin, etc), gambling, internet sex, shopping and food. Not all additions require absolute abstinence. In the cases of non-opiate addictions, harm reduction therapy is our go to. Whereas Alcoholics Anonymous has ONLY 2% success rate, Harm Reduction Therapy takes a different approach - it recognizes that life time absence is impossible for 98% of people. Instead of banning everything, we reduce the harm done by those substances!

Treatment of an addiction must take a priority when initiating couples or family counseling. The disease is often inherited from previous generations and can lead to highly dysfunctional patterns evolving such as, codependency, physical or sexual abuse, and diffuse boundaries. At our practice, we offer evidenced-based practices in addiction including psychiatric evaluation, ongoing psychotherapy and family support therapy.

Often people become addicted to drugs, alcohol, gambling, the internet, spending and/or sex to help them feel better or cope with life. These people sometimes do not recognize that they are trying to escape or "self-medicate" from their difficulties or their addiction is a symptom of depression, bipolar disorder, anxiety, or ADHD for example. The first steps to successful treatment is admitting that you have an addiction problem and that you need help. It is not uncommon for me to see people who enter into therapy at the request of a loved one. Family or couples therapy may also be necessary to break the cycle of co-dependency.

There are many forms of addiction and I specialize in those that are considered a "Process Addiction" This is an addictions to an activity or process, such as gambling, eating, spending, sex, and work. Not to be confused with Substance Abuse Addictions. I do not treat people for substance abuse problems but will refer clients to others if that is the primary problem. Process addictions are compulsive behaviors that get in the way of peoples lives.