| back to the articles' index page from www.sextreatment.com Treatment for Adult ADD and the addictions Dorothy C. Hayden, LCSW, is a Manhattan-based psychotherapist who specializes in treating Adult Attention Deficit Disorder and the addictions (alcohol, drugs, sex and food). Ms. Hayden’s approach to Adult ADD is that it is a frontal lobe dysfunction which produces trouble with the individual’s capacity for "executive functioning" including disorganization, hyperactivity, impulsiveness, forgetfulness, attention dysregulation, and trouble in interpersonal relationships. Treatment gives an individual enhanced "executive functioning" which translates into the person feeling that he is adequate to meet life’s requirements (a critical component of self-esteem). Fear and chaos that were once a part of daily living are replaced with confidence, a sense of control over one’s life, and knowledge that one can meet the challenges of day-to-day living. The ultimate goal of treatment is the achievement of serenity, focus, productivity, more reflectiveness about the consequences of one’s actions, integration of the personality, better interpersonal relationships and enhanced self-esteem. Ms. Hayden focuses on helping her clients to set realistic goals and to meet and excel in the daily challenges of living with ADD. She provides mechanisms in goal setting, time management, increasing effectiveness, career advancement /transitions and work/life balance. Through the process of ADD coaching, together with the use of Neuro-Linguistic Programming (NLP), hypnotherapy and EMDR, proper use of medication, homeopathy, diet, exercise and meditation, the left and right sides of the brain become integrated, resulting in the client’s ability to heal trauma-based dissociation, learn new life skills, increase reflective abilities/decrease impulsivity and raise self-esteem. In addition, feelings of restlessness, anxiety, depression and shame often associated with a life-time of living with ADD can be dissipated with the use of the above mechanisms. What is Neuro-Linguistic Programming (NLP)? The practice of NLP with a certified practitioner gives you in-depth knowledge of the skills essential for powerful interpersonal and intrapersonal communication. NLP teaches us how to establish and achieve your goals while fine- tuning your perception. Discover patterns that will lead to deeper understanding of yourself and others. Develop skills and techniques for building communication to your unconscious mind to change unwanted habits and resolve inner conflicts quickly, without painful reliving of past memories NLP gives us the tools that change our internal programs that no longer serve, leading to resourceful, confident and powerful states of mind and emotions. NLP provides the tools for clearing past traumas and unproductive habits leading to more consistent states of positive choices and inner peace. NLP helps people change by teaching them to program their brains. We were given brains, we are told, but no instruction manual. NLP offers a user-manual for the brain Anthony Robbins is undoubtedly the most visible graduate of the NLP training. He started his empire after transforming from a self-described "fat slob" to a firewalker. Robbins has been called "the nation’s foremost authority on the psychology of peak performance and personal and professional turnaround". His work is an off-shoot of NLP. The areas most commonly treated with NLP include relationship problems, anxiety and stress, depression, substance abuse and other addictions, self-sabotage and lack of motivation. The therapeutic goals of NLP include self-esteem and self-worth; conflict resolution, confidence and self-assuredness; balance and centeredness and safety and intimacy. Use of NLP practices also relieves impulsivity, increases the capacity for self-reflection which decreases behavioral disinhibition, teaches how to improve memory and concentration, and increases serenity so the ADD feelings of not being comfortable in one’s own skin disappears. Furthermore, long-standing family/relationship problems so characteristic of ADD are ameliorated though learning about other people’s "model of the world" and empathizing with it. Other rapport building and communication skills can resolve long-standing conflicts with other people. NLP is, essentially, a pathway to enhanced "executive functioning" by imprinting life-skills that decrease the individual’s sense of chaos, fear and low self-worth. What is Eriksonian hypnosis and how does it help with ADD symptomology? This skill is based on the revolutionary work of Milton Erickson, the founder of modern-day hypnotherapy. Through the use of trance-states (which are nothing more than states of deep relaxation), the hypnotherapist helps the client identify the ways in which he has been "programmed" to think, act and feel and, through communication with the unconscious, learns how to free himself from unwanted limiting habits and beliefs. In this way the client creates more richly rewarding choices. Hypnosis teaches how to effectively and efficiently direct thoughts, feelings, language and behavior to achieve more effective and more rewarding personal and professional outcomes. Trances can put people in states of deep relaxation to alleviate the anxiety and restlessness associated with ADD, can allow the unconscious to find creative solutions to problems and unwanted states, can increase memory and concentration, establishes an embedded sense of time management and organization, can help with motivation and procrastination, can help a person to become more reflective and less impulsive and enhances self-esteem. What is EMDR and how is it useful in the treatment of ADD? Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR) is a powerful therapeutic method for healing trauma-based problems, grief, depression, anxiety, for healing the ADD symptoms of restlessness, attentional dysregulation, disorganization, forgetfulness, clutter, and conflicted interpersonal relationships. Through the use of sound and vibration, long-standing problems are healed and reprogrammed by an actual change in the person’s neurology. The pathways in the brain are actually re-programmed to ensure quick, thorough and long -lasting change. EMDR is used to develop inner resources for ego strengthening (or "executive functioning"). Through integrating the left and right side of the brain, the person becomes more integrated, has more self-awareness, and has the power to overcome procrastination and underachieving. EMDR is also a powerful tool in leaving behind the uncomfortable feeling states often associated with ADD. Dorothy’s Bio Dorothy C, Hayden, LCSW, has been in private practice for 15 years, specializing in substance abuse, sexual addiction and in the treatment of Adult ADD. She became interested in studying/treating ADD when, 10 years ago, she realized that more than half of her private patients with compulsive, self-defeating behaviors had ADD. Dorothy has been interviewed extensively in major publications. She recently was interviewed on an HBO documentary. In addition, she has been interviewed on "20/20" as an expert on cybersex addiction. Ms. Hayden received her M.S.W. from New York University, her MBA from Baruch College, her psychoanalytic training at the Post Graduate Center for Mental Health and the Object Relations Institute. In 1992, she was awarded the Credentialed Alcoholism Counselor (CAC) certificate from the State of New York. Her articles about deviant sexuality appear on numerous sites throughout the world. She is a certified NLP practitioner, a certified hypnotherapist, and a certified EMDR practitioner. In addition, she studied Rational/Emotive Therapy with Albert Ellis. She is a member of CHADD, National Attention Deficit Disorder Association (ADDA), and Manhattan ADD support groups. With convenient locations is the East Village and Murray Hill, Ms. Hayden also works extensively on the phone. Fee range is negotiable, starting at $75.00 to $150.00 per hour. Dorothy Hayden, LCSW New York, NY www.sextreatment.com E-mail:dhayden@nyc.rr.com back to the articles' index page
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