What Actually Happens in One-on-One Therapy for Addiction?
Walking into a therapist’s office for the first time can feel intimidating, especially when addiction is involved. Many people put off getting help partly because they don’t know what to expect. Will they be judged? Will they have to talk about things they’ve spent years avoiding? Understanding what individual therapy actually looks like can make that first step easier to take.
More Than Just Talking
One-on-one therapy for addiction goes far beyond casual conversation. A trained therapist works with you to uncover the patterns, beliefs, and experiences that fuel your substance use. This might involve exploring childhood experiences, relationship dynamics, trauma, or the ways you’ve learned to cope with stress and emotional pain. The goal isn’t to dwell on the past for its own sake but to understand how it shapes your present behavior.
Sessions typically involve a mix of discussion, targeted questions, and specific therapeutic techniques. Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, or CBT, helps identify and reframe the thought patterns that lead to destructive choices. Dialectical Behavior Therapy, known as DBT, builds skills for managing intense emotions without turning to substances. For those with trauma histories, EMDR can help process painful memories that talk therapy alone may not fully resolve.
Why Frequency and Expertise Matter
Addiction doesn’t take days off, and early recovery is often an emotional rollercoaster. Weekly therapy sessions, while helpful in some contexts, may not provide enough support during this critical period. The more frequently you meet with your therapist, the faster you can work through the issues that surface and the less likely those issues are to derail your progress.
The therapist’s qualifications matter too. Addiction is complex, often tangled up with depression, anxiety, trauma, and family dysfunction. Working with someone who holds advanced training in psychology means they can recognize and treat these overlapping conditions rather than addressing addiction in isolation.
Seasons in Malibu structures its program around this principle. Clients receive up to 65 one-on-one therapy sessions per month, and all primary therapists hold doctorate degrees in psychology. That level of frequency and expertise allows for deeper work than most treatment settings can offer.
What You Can Expect to Feel
Therapy isn’t always comfortable. Some sessions bring relief and clarity. Others stir up emotions you’ve been suppressing for years. Both experiences are part of the process. A skilled therapist knows how to pace the work so you’re challenged but not overwhelmed, and they’ll help you build coping strategies to manage what comes up between sessions.
Over time, most people find that therapy becomes something they look forward to rather than dread. The relationship you build with your therapist becomes a foundation for the honesty and self-awareness that lasting recovery requires.
Taking the First Step
If the unknown has been keeping you from seeking help, let that fear go. Individual therapy is simply a structured space where you can finally be honest about what you’re experiencing and get expert guidance on how to change it.
