Addictions
Are you ready to do something different?
Three questions to get curious about:
1. How is your substance or alcohol use helping you?
Some approaches to addiction treatment skip this question, but we need the answer so we can start to figure out how to help you choose something different. Does your drug or alcohol use relax you? Make you feel more comfortable? Make it easier to socialize or talk to people? Help you get things done? Can you sleep without it? Are you using it to manage grief, depression, anxiety, loneliness or trauma?
2. How do you feel about your life?
Do you feel in control of your life? Are you able to ask for the things you want and say no to the things you don't? Is your drug or alcohol use the only thing you really enjoy right now? Do you have safe and satisfying relationships? Meaningful ways to spend your time? Do you feel exhausted or overwhelmed much of the time?
3. How do you cope with difficult experiences and painful emotions?
If your coping toolbox includes only 'I try to distract myself and when that doesn't work I reach for something stronger', there are so many things to try and explore to change that. If you're trying to remove the one thing in your life that is helping you cope, we're going to have to replace it with something.
Each of these questions is a place to start, but you don't have to be ready to answer all of them at once.
My approach to addictions work is to provide you with options and ideas, and then to let you decide what you're ready for, and what you want to explore.
I work from a harm reduction model, which means you don't have to abstain from your substance of choice to come and talk with me about change. You decide what your goals are, and I am here to help you meet them.
If you come to see me for addictions work, you can expect conversations aimed at reducing shame, building resilience, exploring compassion, and figuring out how to learn from setbacks and keep going.
Fall down seven times, stand up eight.
-Traditional Japanese proverb
