Alcohol Addiction Counselling Auckland

Alcohol addiction counselling can help you you feel compelled to drink even though you don’t want to? Or even when you know drinking might offer some short-term relief but longer-term negative consequences? If using a substance, whether it is drugs, alcohol, food, shopping, gambling, to change feelings, then it may quickly result in relationship issues, financial issues and mental health issues. With counselling, hypnotherapy and NLP, we can examine underlying reasons for using alcohol, break free of old patters of behaviour and create the changes you want to experience.

Why should I go to alcohol addiction counselling?

Some clients come to us initially with a goal of moderating drinking to 1-2 standard drinks, once or twice a week. Some clients can be successful achieving this goal but most find that eliminating alcohol is easier in the longer-term, certainly in the shorter-term. Whether your goal is moderation management/harm reduction or total abstinence, we can assist to increase coping skills, manage high-risk situations, avoid substance-use triggers and control cravings using a combination of motivational interviewing, cognitive behavioural therapy, mindfulness, positive psychology and relationship counselling skills to increase motivation, identify, recognise and avoid negative thought processes associated with use and create a client centred relapse prevention plan. I have gained experience at world class international drug and alcohol residential treatment centres as well as community alcohol and drug programs. My approach is a strengths based, solution focused approach, cognitive behaviour, psychodynamic approach to reduce harm in line with clients goals. Most of my clients found that after a period of abstinence, the benefits were so great that they continued with a goal of abstinence.

Do I have an alcohol addiction problem?

The Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders V recognises that anyone meeting two of the 11 criteria during the same 12-month period receives a diagnosis of AUD. In the past year, have you:

  1. Had times when you ended up drinking more or longer than you intended?
  2. More than once wanted to cut down or stop drinking, or tried but couldn’t?
  3. Spend a lot of time drinking? Or being sick or getting over the aftereffects?
  4. Experienced craving – a strong need, or urge to drink?
  5. Found that drinking – or being sick from drinking – often interfered with taking care of your home or family? Or caused job troubles? Or school problems?
  6. Continued to drink even though it was causing trouble with your family and friends?
  7. Given up or cut back in activities that were important or interesting to you, or gave you pleasure in order to drink?
  8. More than once gotten into situations while or after drinking that increased your chances of getting hurt (such as driving, swimming, using machinery, walking in a dangerous area or having unsafe sex?
  9. Continued to drink even though it was making your feel depressed, anxious or adding to another health problem? Or after having had a memory blackout?
  10. Had to drink much more than you once did to get the effect you want? Or found that your usual number of drinks had much less effect than before?
  11. Found that when the effects of alcohol were wearing off, you had withdrawal symptoms, such as trouble sleeping, shakiness, irritability, anxiety, depression, restlessness, nausea or sweating? Or sensed things that were not there?

*Depending on current alcohol and substance use, a medical detox/GP support may be necessary prior to gradually reducing consumption in counselling/hypnotherapy with us.

What causes alcohol addiction?

There can be biological, psychological and social reasons for addiction. Some studies have shown that 50% is due to genetic predisposition and 50% due to distress intolerance or poor coping skills. For more on this, read blog article which goes into more details on genetic, psychological, environmental and social reasons. 

Cocaine Addiction

Counselling can help support cocaine users to safely reduce and finally end drug use. Addiction counselling can help you develop an awareness of how the addiction may have started and enable empowerment by sharing effective new coping strategies and tools to end cravings. Addiction counselling will include identifying triggers and will give the best treatment plan on how to manage all the common challenges that can result in lapse and relapse.

How is cocaine addiction is affecting you?

Many people start using cocaine for different reasons however end up relying on it as a coping mechanism for lifes problems. While at the start, it may have produced energy, pleasure, joy and freedom from worries, because you are looking at this page, I am assuming that cocaine/drug use is no longer fun and family life, mental stability, physical health or career have been adversely affected.

What cocaine addiction counselling involves:

Addiction counselling will include identifying triggers and will give the best treatment plan on how to manage all the common challenges that can result in lapse and relapse. Counselling can help support cocaine users to safely reduce and finally end drug use. Addiction counselling can help develop an awareness of how the addiction may have started and enable empowerment by sharing effective new coping strategies and tools to end cravings. In our sessions, we will safely examine core beliefs, triggers, relapse plans and emotional memories that are stored below the conscious awareness and use behaviour techniques to introduce new healthy patterns and behaviors. H2: Negative consequences associated with cocaine use can include:

  • Anxiety, paranoia, mood swings
  • Depression, lack of motivation
  • Hallucinations
  • Violence
  • Suicidal thoughts
  • Changes in personality
  • Loss of interest in anything other than getting high
  • Difficulty in paying attention, forgetfulness
  • Insomnia
  • Increased risk-taking
  • Cravings for more as the drug begins to wear off
  • Damage cartilage in nose
  • Nausea, vomiting or excessive sweating
  • Increased heart conditions,
  • Cocaine can bring previous mental health problems to the surface
  • Financial implications

Cocaine and alcohol

When alcohol is mixed with cocaine, a toxic by-produce cocaethlyene is produced which some researchers believe account for a significant percentage of the sudden, unexplained fatalities that sometimes occur in cocaine users. Combining alcohol and cocaine increases the already impulsive and risky side effect from each drug, reduces cognitive function and ability to make judgements and results in increased damage to liver and kidneys.