Elizabeth Schofield-Bickford, MFT
Child and Adult Jungian Analyst, Certified Sandplay Therapist
Addiction and Its Many Faces
It is a challenge for the many that answer to the call of what Linda Schierse Leonard refers to as “the Demon Lover.” Addiction can be a push-pull love affair with a variety things. Manipulating, abusing or becoming dependent on alcohol, drugs, food, sex, love, people, work and/or gambling is the psyche’s way of helping certain individuals navigate the discomfort of the everyday world. But along with the acting out, the visible aspects of the dis-ease, comes a personality structure that can be difficult and inflexible. This causes addiction to be overlooked and misdiagnosed by many. The obvious signs and fallout from addictive and compulsive behaviors are just the symptoms. Anxiety and depression are often underneath. You may feel hopeless, but the situation is not.
Make no mistake, this is terrifying. Getting help could change your life.
"It is a joy to be hidden and disaster not to be found."
D.W. Winnicott