Addiction Therapy in Savannah, GA
- Home
- Addiction Therapy
At For Your Smile Christian Counseling, we work with people in Savannah, Springfield, and the surrounding Coastal Georgia communities who are ready to deal with addiction honestly, with their faith built into the process instead of set off to the side. Sessions are led by Dr. Lakesha Dean, an ordained minister and Christian counselor with more than fifteen years of combined experience.
What This Usually Looks Like
Addiction doesn’t always announce itself clearly. Some of the people we meet with already know exactly what they’re dealing with. Others come in describing something quieter – a habit that’s grown teeth, a few too many nights they can’t fully account for, a relationship that’s gotten harder to explain. A few things people mention often in that first conversation:
- A habit or substance that’s gotten harder to put down than it used to be
- Lying, or getting vague on purpose, about how much, how often, or where the time or money went
- A spouse who found out, or who’s started asking questions you can’t answer honestly anymore
- Using a drink, a pill, food, a screen, or something else to get through grief, anxiety, or a memory you’d rather not sit with
- Feeling far from your faith and not being able to say exactly when that happened
None of that means you’re too far along for this to work. It usually just means it’s time for a conversation.
How Therapy Works Here
Sessions are built around Scripture, prayer, and honest conversation, but they’re also practical. We talk through triggers, patterns, and what accountability actually looks like on a Tuesday afternoon, not just what it sounds like on paper. If you want prayer to be part of a session, it will be. If you’re not there yet, we start somewhere else and let that come later, on its own timeline.
Where This Fits With Medical or Clinical Treatment
We want to be upfront about this rather than let you find out later. If you need medical detox, medication, or a formal diagnosis, that has to come from a licensed physician or addiction specialist, and that’s not something we provide. What we can do is help connect you with someone who can, and keep working with you and your family on the faith and accountability side of things while that treatment is happening. A number of the people we see are doing both at the same time, and that’s completely fine.
Who We Work With
- People just starting to admit a habit isn’t as under control as they’ve been telling themselves
- Someone who relapsed and is carrying more shame about it than they know what to do with
- A spouse or parent trying to sort out what’s actually theirs to carry, and what isn’t
- Young adults dealing with substances, vaping, or screen habits that have gotten out of hand
- Church members, and sometimes ministry leaders, quietly dealing with something they’ve never said out loud to anyone
- Someone finishing a treatment program who wants faith-based support to continue afterward
What Happens When You Call
The first conversation is mostly us listening. What’s been going on, what you’ve already tried, what you’re hoping looks different a few months from now. From there, we work out a pace that actually fits your life instead of running you through a set program everyone follows the same way. Some people need weekly sessions for a while. Others do better with something closer to monthly, with more contact in between if things get harder. We adjust as we go, based on what’s actually happening, not on a schedule set in advance.
Where Faith Comes Into This
We’ve sat with a lot of people rebuilding their lives after addiction and here’s something we keep noticing: the ones who actually get somewhere aren’t usually the ones with the most willpower.
They’re the ones who stop trying to earn their way back to God first and let grace do some of the work instead. We bring that into sessions because we’ve watched it change how people’s stories end, not because it reads well on a website.
Other Support That Might Help
Addiction rarely shows up on its own. If anxiety, grief, or strain in a marriage is part of what’s going on underneath it, it can help to combine sessions with our Depression and Anxiety Counseling, Trauma Sensitive Counseling, or a Faith-Based Clarity Assessment to get a fuller picture before we build a plan.
Reach Out When You're Ready
You don’t have to have this fully figured out to make the call. Most people don’t. Reach out, and we’ll take it from there, one conversation at a time.
Questions People Ask Before Their First Session
Is this the same as rehab or clinical treatment?
No, and we’d rather say that plainly now than have you find out later. This is Christian counseling, not licensed psychotherapy or a clinical treatment program. If your situation calls for medical detox or a formal diagnosis, we’ll help connect you with someone who can provide that, and we can keep working together alongside it.
Do I have to already call it an addiction?
Not even close. A lot of people come in just trying to make sense of a habit that’s grown bigger than they meant it to. You don’t need the label sorted out before you sit down with us.
What if I’m not in a great place with my faith right now?
That’s alright, honestly. Some of the more useful conversations we’ve had started with someone telling us they were angry at God, or hadn’t prayed in years and felt strange even bringing it up. We work with wherever you actually are, not where you think you’re supposed to be.
Can my spouse come with me?
Yes, and for a lot of couples that’s part of the plan from fairly early on.
If the relationship itself needs its own attention, our Couples Counseling sessions work well running alongside individual recovery work.
Is any of this confidential?
Yes. What’s said in session stays in session, the same as it would with any counselor.