Malgorzata Zolek, a psychotherapist with the New York State CASAC credential and the international ICADC addiction counselor certification, offers addiction counseling in Polish and English at her office in Greenpoint, Brooklyn. She helps people struggling with alcohol, drugs and prescription medications, and family members dealing with codependency.
Malgorzata Zolek runs the Office of Psychotherapy and Personal Growth in Greenpoint, Brooklyn. In addition to her New York State psychotherapy licenses (LMHC, LMFT), she holds the New York State CASAC credential in alcoholism and substance abuse counseling and the international ICADC certification in alcohol and drug counseling. She completed CASAC training at the Outreach Training Institute in Queens and has also been trained in treating compulsive gambling and tobacco dependency. Sessions can be held in Polish.
When drinking or using gets out of control
Addiction usually develops slowly and can go unnoticed for a long time, even by the person affected. Warning signs include needing more alcohol, drugs or pills than before, promises to quit that do not hold, and hiding drinking or using from family. Over time, problems appear at work, at home, with health and with money. Many people explain it all away with stress, long working hours or loneliness after moving abroad. Shame makes people reach out late, even though the earlier help comes, the easier it usually is to stop the spiral.
How addiction counseling works at the office
In individual sessions, clients look at what the substance gives them and what it takes away, learn to recognize the situations and emotions that push them toward a drink or a drug, and build a daily life in which the addiction no longer has a place. The office also runs support groups and group therapy, and because addiction affects the whole family, individual work can be combined with couples or family therapy. Psychotherapy does not replace medical care: severe withdrawal symptoms, such as shaking, sweating, agitation or confusion, call for a doctor or a medically supervised detox program.
Codependency: help for family members
One person’s addiction changes the lives of everyone at home. Partners and children of people with addictions often spend years controlling, rescuing, making excuses and covering up the problem, while their own needs wait. Malgorzata Zolek writes about the point where love ends and codependency begins. Therapy can help family members regain balance, set boundaries and take care of themselves, whether or not the person with the addiction is ready for treatment.
Gambling, nicotine and lasting change
Addictions are not limited to alcohol and drugs. Compulsive gambling and nicotine dependence can also wreck finances, health and relationships. Quitting is only the beginning: what comes next matters just as much, including learning to live without the substance, coping with cravings and rebuilding trust within the family. Difficult days and setbacks do not erase earlier progress; in therapy they are discussed openly as signs of what still needs attention. To begin, clients can call to schedule a free 15-minute consultation. Everything discussed in sessions is confidential.
Other areas of the practice
On Poland.us we also describe the other issues clients bring to Malgorzata Zolek: individual psychotherapy for anxiety, depression, trauma and self-worth and couples, marriage and family therapy. Personal struggles, relationship problems and addictions are often connected, so therapy looks at the whole person, not a single symptom.
Contact
Office of Psychotherapy and Personal Growth, Malgorzata Zolek, Greenpoint, Brooklyn, NY: 718-360-3144. By appointment only; call to schedule a free 15-minute consultation.
Office address and more information: Malgorzata Zolek, MPsy, LMHC, LMFT on Polish Pages.
This article is for general information only and does not replace a consultation with a specialist. In a mental health crisis or emergency, call 911 or call or text 988 (Suicide & Crisis Lifeline, available 24/7).
