Groups I Work With

I have experience with the following addictions: eating disorders; alcohol abuse: drug; canibis; gambling;repetitive bad relationships[also an addiction].
Also self-attack and depression which can also be addictive.
When helping the client overcome and deal with his/her addiction there is a simultaneous release of new, or renewed, psychic material. The addiction has been, for all purposes, keeping parts of the personality anesthetized. As the addiction abates there is a reemergence of these personality elemeents. Almost always these personality elements lead to greater personal power greater self awareness and often creativity.
The formula then is: all addictions keep the person from fully actualizing his/her potential.In line with this is the inescapable fact that while there is an addiction that person cannot be fully 'in' a relationship nor can healthy parenting take place. The damage to the child or children is obvious and seriouxs.
Many clients come into therapy without realizining that they have an addiction. They think they are coming for other issues like anger management or relationship difficulties, anxiety,etc. All of those presenting symptoms are real however none of these problems can be permanently relieved until the addiction is addressed.I cannot more strongly stress how vital it is to deal with food, alcohol drug or bad relationship addictions first. Only while this is being dealt with can the concommitant problems, originally brought into the consulting room, be addressed.
The results are marvelous, startling and beautiful to observe.