About

Me.

My name is Debbie Kahng and I am a Certified Drug and Alcohol Counselor in the state of California. I have been working with families of addicts and alcoholics for the last 10 years and love what I do. I currently am working toward my LMFT/LPCC as well as becoming a Certified Psychodramatist. My heart is in helping families of addicts and alcoholics find the peace that they are desperately in need of by learning more about the Disease of Addiction, about Codependency, and about how to heal from the Trauma caused by the Family Dis-Ease of Addiction.
I strongly believe that addiction is a inter-generational disease fueled by codependency causing dysfunctional coping strategies for all who have been impacted by its wrath. It is important for families to identify how it has been impacting them. Most people are unaware that they have the symptoms of codependency due to this trans-generational effect.

The Horse.

I went to a retreat once and worked with a horse as part of my therapy. My job was to simply walk the horse around the corral. Being the person I am, I wanted the horse to go in a perfect circle, however she did not want to. The equine therapist told me to go around, so went around and continued on with the circle until I came upon the same spot. She did not want to go over there, yet I still tried. I did this same pattern 3 times before the therapist told me, “Debbie, you’re not going to get this 1000lb horse to do what she does not want to do.” And a moment later someone opened the gate and the horse took off.

I, of course, let go of the lead.

My primary therapist was so excited that I had let go, and when I asked her why she was so excited, she had said “Debbie, how many times have you been dragged around in dirt, mud and shards of glass from all the relationships you’ve held on to?” It was in that moment that I had learned the most important lesson of all,

Let go or be Dragged.

It was easy to let go of the 1000lb horses lead, however it is not so easy to let go and let a person you love just BE, when what they are doing to themselves in their addiction is scary. The healthier you are, the stronger you will be able to make wiser decisions for the health of the family as a whole.

Thank you for visiting my site. I look forward to interacting with you.

-Debbie