Category: Therapy

Addiction, just like depression, can rob us of our hopefulness, our joy and our optimism. We can feel totally stripped of our faith and depleted of our energy. We might have had plans for the future, ambitions we held close to our hearts, things we felt hopeful about. Addiction can take all of that away. […]

The term “inner demons” refers to the issues and worries in our lives, the troubling and distressing thoughts we find ourselves most plagued by. Our inner demons often cause a tremendous amount of anxiety and stress. Sometimes we obsess about them and experience recurring thoughts that we feel consumed by. Our thought patterns can become […]

If you are struggling with thoughts of suicide, PLEASE call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 1-800-273-TALK (8255). Living with addiction means we’re often holding onto many years’ worth of suppressed emotions. One of the most destructive and debilitating emotions that we hold onto is shame. We all make mistakes and have regrets that we […]

If you are struggling with thoughts of suicide, PLEASE call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 1-800-273-TALK (8255). If you’re reading this, you might be contemplating suicide. You might feel as though you’ve completely lost hope. You might feel as though your shame is unforgivable and that you’d be better off dead, the pain of […]

One of the major things holding us back in our growth and recovery is our fear. While some of our fears are conscious and obvious to us, many more are under the surface and stored in our subconscious mind. One of the fears we’re not always aware of is our fear of the future. Recovery […]

We talk about self-love a lot pertaining to the healing process, but how do we go about actually practicing it? Instinctively we know it’s harmful to hate ourselves. We sense how limiting and destructive it can be when we don’t love ourselves. When it comes to practicing self-love and incorporating it into our daily lives, […]

When our loved one is struggling with addiction, it can feel unbearably painful to watch them as they self-destruct and continually hurt themselves. We might have tried everything we can think of to help them, or we may have felt it was best not to get involved but then felt guilty for feeling like we […]

Our addictions not only harm us, they also adversely affect our loved ones. Addiction rips apart our lives and the lives of everyone who cares about us. Since we don’t live in isolation, our addiction can touch anyone who has any involvement in our lives. Our partners, friends, family members and co-workers can all be […]

Beginning the recovery process is a demanding and challenging undertaking. We have to be ready to do the rigorous emotional work. We also have to be willing to make certain sacrifices. When we make the ultimate choice that our health and peace of mind are most important to us, there are some things we will […]

The hardest part of the healing process may be taking the very first step – confronting our trauma. Very often our addictions rely on the denial of our trauma and the avoidance of our pain. We bury our emotions under our addictions to try to escape them. The substances and behaviors we’re dependent upon become […]