Top addiction therapists in 92630: Lake Forest, CA.

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.

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.

Addiction is a confusing, complicated, overwhelming, and powerful force that slowly or quickly takes over all aspects of one's life. Uncover maladaptive patterns of behavior, discover root causes for these patterns, heal emotional wounds, learn new ways of living and interacting in the world, rediscover who you are and what drives you. Addiction recovery is not a solo journey. You're not alone and you don't have to do it alone.

I am an Internationally Certified Alcohol and Drug Counselor. I have a long personal and professional history with addiction, mental illness, and trauma. I specialize in counseling addiction clients who struggle with anger management, men's issues, and childhood trauma. However, that by no means a complete list of the issues I can assist you with. No matter what else you may be struggling with, we will work together to discover thoughts, feelings, and behaviors that just aren't working for you anymore. We will then get to forming new behaviors, perspectives, and strategies that will help you live a more fulfilling life!

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.

Need a therapist who specializes in addictions? One who knows about the mixed feelings of both wanting to continue in the addiction and also wanting to change? Sometimes the part of you who wants to stay addicted will be the most powerful, the most present, ...and that's okay. Other times you will so desperately want to climb out of the hole of addiction... and that's okay too. Thomas Schmierer, Catholic Therapist, LMFT can help you observe what it is like to be in both places at the same time using a technique called a "cognitive interweave." This technique is one of the latest methods for resolving this conflict and moving you towards freedom from your addiction. Contact Thomas today!

Often, when addiction becomes an issue which impairs an individual's ability to live life fully, the substance abuse is only the symptom and there is a co-occurring disorder present. Perhaps some past pain or trauma has been left unresolved. When working with the newly sober client, I first take time to cultivate a collaborative and safe relationship in which we may begin to explore ways to manage the triggers which may cause relapse. Once this is managed, we may gently and respectfully begin to explore the deeper issues which drive the triggers. Collaboratively, we will work to resolve these issues such that, triggers either become powerless or non-existent.

Addictions make us feel good, filling unmet needs in our lives, and have destructive ends if not controlled. While you were just having fun, it becomes an attachment, or even a secret affair. When relationships get difficult, we know where to go to escape the pain, thus getting stuck. Why family therapy? The cycle of addiction almost always intertwines with relationship patterns that I've helped successfuly resolve through increasing emotional awareness and intimacy. Ask me about our multi-family support group for families with recovering members (free as of Nov. 2011). I'm supervised by Dr. Ian Chand, LMFT (MFC 21263) of CARE Counselors.

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.

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.