Understanding Addiction and Self-Sabotage

Addiction and self-sabotage aren’t just about poor choices or lack of willpower—they’re often ways we’ve learned to cope with unbearable emotional pain and inner conflict.

Addiction is a symptom, not the root.
Substances, compulsions, or destructive habits often serve to numb feelings that once felt too overwhelming—like grief, rage, fear, or loneliness.

Self-sabotage reflects unconscious guilt.
Many people hurt themselves—emotionally, relationally, or physically—because of deep unconscious guilt or shame. These feelings can arise from internalized early experiences where needs or emotions were punished, rejected, or ignored.

There’s always a reason.
No one chooses suffering for no reason. The therapy process is about uncovering the emotional logic behind self-destructive behavior—often rooted in childhood survival strategies that no longer serve us.

Defenses once protected you—but now they keep you stuck.
Avoiding emotion through addiction or self-sabotage might have once kept you safe. But over time, these defenses create isolation, confusion, and pain.

Healing happens by facing—not avoiding—your inner world.
Rather than managing symptoms alone, we can help you access and feel the emotions driving the behavior. When the root is addressed, the compulsion to act out starts to lose its power.

Real transformation is possible.
Freedom from addiction and self-sabotage doesn’t come from white-knuckling—it comes from becoming emotionally free. When you reclaim your full emotional range, self-care starts to feel natural, not forced.