Substance Abuse

Addiction is the uncontrolled use of any substance that affects normal life.  Besides the obvious substances such as alcohol, nicotine or illegal drugs, prescription drug abuse has seen a steep rise in recent years.  When occasional use crosses over to daily, or multiple times a day, or a person finds they can no longer do without that substance, changes in behavior or function at home and/or work, then it is time to seek help from a professional.  Both individual and group therapy sessions can be effective in teaching the skills needed to change addictive behavior and provide support during the recovery process. Psychotherapy will also explore when and why the addition began and address any underlying emotional struggles that may be related to the addition.  If an individual is evaluated in the first session as having a dependency on substances that cannot safely be addressed in individual counseling, they will be referred to detox prior to resuming counseling.