Chris Groff

After careers as a lawyer and businessman and a struggle with addiction in my younger son, I felt a call to teaching and counseling. My wife Michelle and I, together with a couple local counselors, started Parenting by Design, a parenting nonprofit. We wrote and presented a parenting curriculum through DVD’s, CD’s, online learning, and live presentations for more than ten years, and wrote a workbook and a couple of books on parenting. My introduction to counseling came in the hundreds of parents and kids we met over the course of that time, and the stories they told of struggle and redemption. I learned that life is very difficult without close relationships that a person can count on when they are in the midst of the trials of life. During that time, through personal experience, talking and counseling with parents and kids, and lots of training, I discovered I had a heart for people and families struggling with addictions. As a pastor for a couple of those years, I learned how often sexual compulsivity in particular shattered families and how often shame and guilt kept people from seeking help. And I saw that it is not just substances that are addictive, but also behaviors that become compulsive and which the addict cannot quit despite obvious, severe consequences. What really struck me was how often addiction seemed to be a symptom of a bigger struggle, rather than the primary issue. Studying the literature and listening to experts on addiction helped me understand the genesis and development of addiction and the lack of understanding of the causes, effects, and most importantly the best practices to heal addicts and their families. I made the decision to concentrate on addiction counseling, with a specialization in sex and porn addiction. I also saw the need for couples counseling, and have studied Emotionally Focused Therapy (EFT) to be able to offer healing to couples in crisis. My counseling is offered from a Christian worldview, but is not limited to faith-based therapy. I will meet you where you are and go where you are comfortable going. It’s your story