What We Treat

Sex addiction, or hypersexuality, can be described as a compulsive relationship with a sexual behavior that interferes with normal living and ultimately causes severe distress to self and to loved ones. Despite the emergence of serious negative consequences, the behavior is repeated again and again in a manner that is essentially beyond the person’s control. If you are experiencing sex addiction, receiving sex addiction treatment or therapy is an important step to recovery.

Alcoholism can essentially be described as the development of a maladaptive coping style that becomes habitual and ultimately leads to a progressive deterioration in the quality of one’s life. It is a pathological relationship with a mood-altering substance that continues despite adverse physical, mental or spiritual consequences.

The primary needs of a child are for safety and protection. If these needs are unmet, or worse violated, the consequences can be traumatic and last a lifetime. A trauma occurs when an event or series of events causes an individual to become emotionally, physically or mentally overwhelmed, and fearful that he or she will be hurt, killed or have a psychological breakdown. It is important to understand that an individual’s own experience determines whether the event will or will not result in post-traumatic symptoms.

Originally the concept of codependency came out of the twelve-step program of Alcoholics Anonymous, based on the realization that the problem was not solely that of the addict, but also of those intimately involved with the addict. It was believed that the codependent (usually the spouse) “enabled” the addict to stay in his or her addiction by continually trying to minimize, control or manage the situation rather than detach from it. Now codependency is seen in a much broader light, as a personality style much more prevalent in the general population than had previously been imagined, and defined by a particular set of characteristics and behaviors.

Most people experience some form of anxiety before an important event or performance, and many people can feel down now and then due to disappointments in life. But when people feel chronically worried about life in general, are irrationally frightened or distressed, or have persistent feelings of sadness, irritability or hopelessness, they may be dealing with a psychological disorder in need of professional treatment.

Long-term relationships always start with the best of intentions. Physical attraction, romance, intellectual connection and shared aspirations all contribute to the making of a powerful bond. Yet, when life’s challenges begin to exert pressure on the relationship, difficulties can emerge, showing up as unsatisfying communication, loss of trust, anger, disappointment, and recurrent frustration.