James Ott, LCSW
Executive Director, Interventionist, Licensed Therapist
“I believe therapy is a collaborative effort between the client and therapist. While a person may know what they want, they may not understand how to change. My role as a therapist is to create a safe environment through compassion and non-judgment so that a person can talk about past hurtful events. By confidently talking through the past, a person gains an understanding of what needs to change to create the life they want to be living.”
” I don’t believe that all we need to do is change our behaviors. Our belief system determines how we act. So, to make true change we need to challenge our old beliefs and establish a new set of healthier beliefs. After this, our behaviors follow the new beliefs into healthier patterns.”
Provides
- Individual Therapy
- Family Therapy
- Couples Therapy
- Family Interventions for Drug and Alcohol
- Family intensive workshops
Specializations
- Drug and Alcohol Addiction
- Process addictions (Gambling, pornography, sex, etc)
- Depression and Anxiety
- Bipolar Disorder
- Professionals in Recovery
- Assessment of Addiction
- Mindfullness, spirituality, and religious challenges
Certifications
- Certified Intervention Professional (CIP)
- Certified ARISE Interventionist (CAI)
- Licensed Clinical Social Worker (LCSW) State of Utah
- Master’s degree of Social Work (MSW) from New Mexico State University
- Neuro-Linguistic Programming Certified Practitioner
Clinical Experience
- Opened Private Practice for individual, couples, and family therapy in October 2000
- Extensive work with a wide variety of mental illness including depression, anxiety, and bipolar disorder.
- Extensive work with people struggling with drug and alcohol abuse and process addictions.
- Worked 10 years with the University of Utah Neuropsychiatric Institute (UNI).
– Crisis/admissions work
– Medical detox unit with Dr. Elizabeth Howell
– Core psychotherapy group facilitator
– Point therapist for IRT clinic with Dr. Lorna Benjamin
– Intensive Outpatient (IOP) substance abuse therapist
Administration Experience
- Board Chair of SOL Scholarship Foundation, board member since 2011
- Associate Director of ARISE® Service
- Clinical Director of Recovery Help, a group tele-therapy addiction treatment program.
- Assisted with creation of clinical programming for the start up of Nexstep Medical Detox, a private medical drug and alcohol detox facility in Provo, Utah.
- Past Clinical Director of Recovery Ways, a startup residential treatment center (drug and alcohol rehab) in Salt Lake City, Utah: created the clinical programming, supervised clinical and frontline staff, created all clinical documentation procedures
- Assisted with accreditation by the Joint Commission (JCAHO) for Steps Recovery Center in Payson, Utah. Facilitated accreditation by the Joint Commission (JCAHO) for the following facilities: Ascend Recovery in American Fork, Utah; Cold Creek Behavioral Health in Kaysville, Utah; Phoenix Recovery in Sandy, Utah; Acqua Recovery in Heber City, Utah; Willow Tree Recovery in Pleasant Grove, Utah; Alpine Recovery in Alpine, Utah. Completed all required documentation, facility inspection, staff training, and facilitated site visit.
About James Ott
I started my professional career in 1993 working with chronically mentally ill persons in a community mental health center in Portland, Oregon. I received my Master’s of Social Work degree in 1997 from New Mexico State University, whereupon I worked in a number of mental health agencies providing help to individuals and their families in crisis, providing services to the homeless, and connecting people with HIV/AIDS to health resources. After moving back to Utah, I was employed with the University of Utah Neuropsychiatric Institute (UNI) as a clinical social worker. I worked at UNI for 10 years providing assessments, utilization review, individual and family counseling, group therapy, and case management. I worked for the last 4 years on the medical detox unit; specifically helping people through the detox process, providing education to family members about addiction and treatment, and setting up appropriate services for when they discharge. I was the daily psychotherapy group facilitator and also the point therapist for the Interpersonal Reconstructive Therapy (IRT) clinic. At UNI I was able to gain understanding and skills in working with people with a wide variety of mental illness, which increased my competency and compassion for all those whose lives are impacted by mental illness and addiction.
Since 2010 I have contracted my services with a medical drug and alcohol detox center and an addiction treatment facility. I was also recruited as the Clinical Director for a startup substance abuse residential treatment center (drug and alcohol rehab), where I created the clinical programming, authorization procedures to secure payment from insurance companies; and the policy and procedure for the day to day operations–including managing the patient medications. I also supervised all clinical and frontline staff. My most recent endeavor was to write and review all policy and procedure for several local residential treatment centers and take them through the steps necessary to receive Joint Commission accreditation.
I started my private practice in 2000 which is my main passion. In this, I am able to support people directly in getting well. I enjoy working with people individually and with their families in identifying unhealthy patterns and changing them. As part of this, I provide education about addiction and mental illness to individuals and families as well as church clergy, to strengthen the family and stop enabling and co-dependent actions, however well intentioned.
I also provide services as an interventionist, working with families to assist a loved one to receive treatment for substance abuse or process addictions, whether in residential care or outpatient groups. I am trained in the ARISE invitational intervention model; which has been clinically proven to be the most effective method for having an addicted person admit and complete treatment. I am also well connected to local substance abuse treatment programs, and network with a number of national referral sources to help people identify the most appropriate treatment program for the addicted person.
