Individual Counseling

Get connected with the best individual addiction therapists in New York and out-of-state. Start off your recovery with individual counseling.

Individual Addiction Therapists in New York

Kicking substance abuse or addiction is a major win. While it is a feather in your hat, it ultimately helps you stay healthy. Usually, addicts go through a detox program. During and after detox, they need to learn how to manage their cravings, stressors, and avoid relapse.

Counseling or therapy, the mainstay of drug abuse and addiction treatment will help. It includes one or the combination of Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT), family counseling, individual therapy, and other types of therapy. 

What is individual counseling exactly?

Individual therapy (also called psychotherapy or talk therapy) is a one-on-one session with a trained mental health clinician. It is conducted in a safe, caring, and confidential environment.

Individual counseling is normally an outpatient visit. You visit after making an appointment with your therapist. Therapy sessions focus on overcoming the barriers to full recovery. Your therapist may include behavioral therapy and other methods to eliminate or cope with resorting to substances.

The general belief is that a person never fully recovers from addiction, especially if it involves a traumatic experience. Individual counseling can help you deal with the objects of your addiction. These include grief, anger, depression, anxiety, marriage or relationship challenges, parenting, school and career difficulties, etc.

Advantages of Individual Therapy

  1. Confidentiality: Therapy is most effective when you can be open and honest without fear of information leaving the room. Individual therapy lets you talk about uncomfortable emotions, thoughts, or behaviors with your therapist, who will not judge you. Your therapist is also ethically bound not to disclose any identifying information about what you shared in therapy.
  2. Privacy: A session is one-on-one and usually in your therapist’s office. However, you can also have it outdoors or in an environment where privacy is assured.
  3. Duration: A psychotherapy session usually lasts up to one hour. While the frequency and duration depend on your needs, therapy is at least one individual session per week.

How Does Individual Addiction Therapy Work?

Individual therapy sessions are not one-size-fits-all. The underlying factors in your addiction, including age, genetics, environment, trauma, stress, and extent of exposure are considered.

Style of therapy differs from individuals. Your therapist may have you talk about whatever comes to mind. This helps you gain insight into how your experiences influenced your addiction. It may also examine how your emotions and beliefs influence your addiction and help you become less judgmental about your struggle.

A therapist may use an approach called contingency management. In exchange for achieving a certain number of sober days or reaching another personal goal, you may receive tokens or other tangible rewards.

Therapy sessions touch on many topics, but the focus is on you. You and your therapist will mostly talk about:

  • Recovery progress
  • Barriers to sobriety
  • Interpersonal relationships
  • Cravings and withdrawal symptoms
  • Integrating new coping mechanisms
  • Goals for the near future

A session often ends with both of you working together to set goals for the days ahead. It may include attending specific meetings or trying a new recovery activity.

Finding Individual Therapy in New York

Individual counseling usually takes place along with a detoxification program. While detox is a medically managed, it is incomplete without therapy. Your therapist will help you work through the emotional stress of detox, as well as help you change the behaviors that caused the addiction in the first place.

Finding a therapist for individual addiction counseling in New York might be an arduous task if you fail to look in the right direction. As a New York resident, you do not need to travel out of state to get the much-needed help. With our resources at Mid Hudson Addiction Recovery, you can access individual therapy to make your vision of an addiction-free life a reality. Call our helpline for more information.

Addiction Resources for New York

Residents of New York searching for addiction help now have plenty of resources to fight substance abuse. Our team of professionals is here to guide and support you during this difficult time. We work with a variety of Hudson Valley addiction treatment programs personalized to fit your needs:

Find individual addiction therapists in New York