Counseling Affiliates Sexual Addiction Treatment Center in Houston, Texas The professional help we provide is in an out-patient treatment program setting. Our treatment is exclusively for sex addicts and their partners and families. We provide specialized sexual addiction services in a comprehensive program consisting of individual counseling for both addicts and partners, couples sessions for those in relationship, family counseling as needed, and group therapy for addicts and for partners. Participation is on a weekly basis and free 12-step work in the community is encouraged to supplement and reinforce the therapy program work. Our staff is comprised of a
male therapist who specializes in working with male sex addicts (and male
partners of sex addicts) and a female therapist whose specialty is working with
female partners in relationship with sex addicts (as well as female sex addicts).
Both therapists also have experience treating different aspects of sexual
addiction within the gay-lesbian-bisexual-transgender community. To see more
detail about our staff, click on the Staff tab under the "About Us" side bar, or scroll to the bottom of this page. For general information about different aspects of sexual addiction, see the side
bars. For a descriptive glimpse of the treatment process in our program, read
the synopsis provided in the following paragraphs. First, to clarify terms, we
refer to those coming in for help as clients rather than patients, from our
view that the “patient” designation is more appropriate in a medical setting.Generally, the treatment
process goes something like this—The first session is
basically an exchange of information concluding with a decision as to the next
step that the client chooses to take. The client provides the therapist with
information about the problem situation; the therapist provides an assessment
for the client, answers questions and gives information about the treatment
process. If there is doubt about whether sex addiction is the issue, individual
sessions are recommended for further assessment. If sex addiction has already
been identified, individual sessions that follow will focus on specific work
that coincides with the particular stage of the recovery process at which the
client currently is.If the client is in a
committed relationship, the couple is advised to come together to the first
session to meet with the two therapist specialists. Receiving input from both
members of the relationship enables the therapists to construct a more complete
picture of the problem. It also allows both relationship partners to meet both
therapists and hear from the treatment perspective of each specialist. The non
sex addict partner not only gains new insights about the addict and the
addiction but also learns about the advantages of receiving support and
guidance through the painful healing process that is available for the partner.
It is also important to explain that if the first session is with both the
addict and the partner, caution and sensitivity is utilized to deal with
potentially highly volatile feelings as well as premature or overwhelming
disclosures. An outline is presented of the steps and stages by which these
unique challenges are faced and resolved.Following the initial session
for a couple, the addict proceeds as described above. The partner is advised to
begin her (or his) own individual therapy process in which s/he can express the
pain and betrayal that always is part of the partner’s experience. The partner
also receives essential information to avoid pitfalls and additional pain that
is inevitable without specialized help. As the partner moves further into the
recovery process, s/he discovers habits and beliefs that s/he begins to realize
need changing in order to be compatible with the addict’s transformation. If
both partners pursue a recovery process with the help of our program, they
periodically are seen together, in addition to their individual work, in order
to address the needs of the relationship.Whether the client(s) is a
single person or a couple, much of the work is similar: replacing dysfunctional
or addictive patterns with functional and healthy behavior. Throughout the
therapy process the client(s) is/are learning and practicing powerful tools for
keeping the addiction under control, for healing the wounds created by the addiction,
for addressing the origins of the addiction (as well as the origins of the
partner’s unconscious attraction to the addict), and for eventually
experiencing true intimacy that was formerly out of reach.One of the most powerful
components of our program is the group therapy process. We conduct same-gender
groups for sex addicts and for partners. In these groups there is the benefit
of relating to others with a similar history and the same kind of challenges.
In addition, the structure of the groups provides a systematic means of
accomplishing major recovery tasks.The help we provide is powerful and effective, focusing on support, guidance, information and intervention. We respect the dignity and individuality of our clients, using explanation, encouragement and illustration, as well as confrontation, when addictive distortions in one’s thinking or actions must be challenged. All participation is strictly voluntary. Our program has proven highly effective in all of the following areas: arresting sex addiction, maintaining consistent recovery, empowering partners, repairing emotionally damaged relationships, and improving the quality of people's lives. |
