About Attachment Centred Therapy

- I am a member of the UKCP (UK Council for Psychotherapy) and certified by them as an Integrative Psychotherapist through the Metanoia Institute.
- I work with addictions, co-dependency, relationships, family of origin, issues of trauma, abuse or neglect, developmental and personality problems, lifestyle development, personal growth and development and other life issues.

These days my work is centered on attachment. The reason for this is that I believe there is convincing evidence that almost all of the above problems stem from disruptions in attachment in childhood, and sometimes later years. For this reason I have undertaken to educate myself regarding attachment. To that end I have read hundreds of articles and books about attachment theory and research. I’m even working on a book of my own about it.

I have trained extensively with Dr. Patricia Crittenden, who was a protégé and student of Mary Ainsworth, who was herself the student and protégé of John Bowlby, the originator of Attachment Theory. Dr. Crittenden has created the Dynamic Maturational Method of attachment analysis.

I use the Adult Attachment Interview as a way to get started in therapy. This assessment provides a dynamic and revealing way to quickly identify what went wrong and why, and also immediately begins to provide the healing necessary to fix it.

Previous areas of training and interest:
- I have been certified as a Masters Level Addiction Professional, a Certified Criminal Justice Addictions Professional, and I was certified by the International Counseling and Reciprocity Consortium.
- These certifications are not current, as I found that I just had too many certifications to keep up with them all, especially now that I am concentrating my work and training in Attachment.

Sexual Addiction Counselling
- Next I moved into treating sexual addiction in 1992 when I entered private practice. I also treat relationship or romance addiction (sometimes referred to as "love addiction").
- I have trained extensively with Dr. Patrick Carnes, the leading researcher and writer in the field of sex and relationship addiction. I am a Certified Sex Addiction Therapist and a supervisor for counselors seeking certification.
- I also served on the Advisory Board for Certified Sex Addiction Therapists, and am a past board member of the National Council on Sexual Addiction and Compulsivity (now known as the Society for the Advancement of Sexual Health).

Relationship, Couples and Marriage and Family Counselling
- We have long known that addiction is a family illness. Most people who develop problems with addictions come from families where addiction or co-addiction is present. In addition, the addiction has a grave impact on families where it is present.
- It quickly became apparent to me that a knowledge of family dynamics and the best skills available for couples and family work were an important part of the recovery process. Many relationships survive the addiction only to fall apart during recovery.
- I have trained with Dr. John Gottmann, the leading researcher in the U.S. in the field of marriage, relationship, and family counselling. I am an associate member of the American Association of Marriage and Family Counselling.
- In addition to doing therapy with addicts and their relations in recovery, I also provide marriage and family and couples counselling to others who do not have problems with addictions.

Co-dependency counselling
- Many people who grow up in dysfunctional or addictive families become what we call "co-dependent". That is, they are excessively dependent on others for their own sense of self worth, or they compulsively caretake others, often getting into dysfunctional relationships that either they can’t get out of, or if they do, they soon find another dysfunctional relationship to take it’s place.
- Because much of my work is done with people in later stage recovery when co-dependency issues begin to emerge, this field became a natural outgrowth of the other work that I do.

Eating Disorders
- While I do not deal with these problems primarily, I have seen many clients who have had these issues since addicts often have more than one addiction to deal with.

My training, work experience and any achievement

Areas of Specialization:
Addictions, attachment issues, and family and personal relationships form the main focus of my work. However, most other issues fall under the umbrella of one of these three. Accordingly, I consider myself more of a generalist than a specialist.

Personal Approach:
I attempt to tailor my approach to psychotherapy and counselling to meet the needs of the person or persons concerned. I generally take a holistic approach, although I am capable of a quite focused approach for certain problems that may only take one or a few sessions, such as phobias. In general I believe that we are all capable of unlimited growth, and so I delight in helping clients with discovering their potential. Even though my work often starts with helping people to solve their problems, that is where I always hope that it will go so that we are realizing potential rather than making up for deficits.

Education:
Master’s Degree in Agency Counseling, University of Alabama at Birmingham, Birmingham, Alabama, 1992.
Juris Doctorate, Tulane University School of Law, New Orleans, Louisiana, 1974.
Bachelor of Arts, Drama & Speech, Birmingham-Southern College, Birmingham, Alabama, 1970.

Attorney:
Admitted to practice law and a member in good standing of the Alabama State Bar Association, 1974 to present.
Private practice of law, general practice, Birmingham, Alabama, 1976-1983.
First Alabama Bank of Birmingham, Birmingham, Alabama, 1974-1976.

Certifications, Memberships and Professional Relationships:
- UKCP: United Kingdom Council for Psychotherapy membership and Certification as an Integrative Psychotherapist, September, 2011.
- Metanoia Institute, December, 2010.
- International Association for the Study of Attachment, Founding Member, December, 2007.
- British Association of Counselling and Psychotherapy, January 2007.
- Executive Council, Certified Sex Addiction Therapist Certifiers, International Institute for Trauma and Addiction Professionals, 2003 to 2007.
- Certifier of Sex Addiction Therapists, 2002 to December 2013.
- Time Line Therapy Trainer Certification, Time Line Therapy Association, September, 2001.
- Certified Sex Addiction Therapist, International Institute for Trauma and Addiction - - - Professionals, May, 2001.
- Neuro-Linguistic Programming, Time Line Therapy, and Hypnotherapy Certified Trainer, August, 1999.
- Neuro-Linguistic Programming, Time Line Therapy and Hypnotherapy Certified Master Practitioner, July 1999.
- American Association for Marriage and Family Therapy, Associate Member, 1998.
- National Certified Counselor, National Board for Certified Counselors, 1997.
- Employee Assistance Professionals Association, 1997 to 2004.
- Certified Counseling Supervisor, Alabama Board of Examiners in Counseling, 1997.
- Master’s Level Addiction Professional, Alabama Alcohol and Drug Association, 1997 to 2008.
- Board of Directors, Alabama Alcohol and Drug Abuse Association, 1995 & 1996.
- Chair, Ethics Committee, Alabama Alcohol and Drug Abuse Association, 1995 & 1996.
- President and Co-Founder, Alabama Therapy Associates, Birmingham, Alabama, 1994.
- Board of Directors, National Council on Sexual Addiction and Compulsivity, 1994 to 1997.
- Chair, Curriculum Committee, National Council on Sexual Addiction and Compulsivity, 1996 & 1997.
- Certified Criminal Justice Addictions Professional, 1993 to 2008.
- Alabama Alcohol and other Drugs Addiction Association, 1993 to 2008.
- National Council on Sexual Addiction and Compulsivity, 1992 to 2008.
- Chi Sigma Iota, International Counseling Society, 1992 to 2004.
- Kappa Delta Pi, International Honor Society in Education, 1991.
- American Counseling Association (ACA), 1991.
- The Adlerian Society of Alabama, founding member and member of the Board of Directors, 1991.
- Alabama State Bar Association, 1974 to present.

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