Find Your Own Reasons for Meaningful Change
Sometimes you know something needs to change, but knowing and doing are two different things. Part of you may want to move forward while another part feels uncertain, afraid, or not ready.
Motivational Interviewing, commonly called MI, is a collaborative counseling approach that helps people explore mixed feelings about change. Rather than telling you what you should do, MI helps you identify what matters to you, understand what may be getting in the way, and strengthen your own motivation.
At Wings Counseling Center, Motivational Interviewing may be incorporated into individualized treatment for clients throughout San Diego County. Care is available through our Carlsbad and La Mesa offices, with virtual appointments when clinically appropriate.
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You do not have to arrive at therapy completely certain or ready to change. Contact Wings Counseling Center to talk about what is happening and what you may want to be different.
What Is Motivational Interviewing?
MI is a respectful, goal-oriented method of communication used within therapy and other health settings. It is based on the idea that lasting change is more likely when people understand their own reasons for making it.
Many people feel two ways about change. You may want relief from a behavior’s consequences while also relying on that behavior for comfort, connection, escape, or routine. Ambivalence is not a failure. It is often a normal part of making a difficult decision.
An MI-informed therapist does not lecture, pressure, or confront you. The therapist uses open questions, careful listening, reflection, and affirmation to help you hear and explore your own thoughts about change.
How Does Motivational Interviewing Work?
MI often follows four overlapping processes. Engagement focuses on building a respectful working relationship. Focusing helps identify what you want to work on. Evoking explores your values, concerns, hopes, and personal reasons for change. Planning begins when you feel ready to identify realistic next steps.
A therapist may ask what you enjoy about a behavior, what concerns you, how it affects other parts of your life, what would be different if you made a change, and what would make change feel possible.
The conversation is not about finding the “right” answer. It is about developing a clearer picture of what you want and increasing confidence in your ability to make an informed decision.
Motivational Interviewing and Substance Use
MI was developed in the context of alcohol and substance use treatment. It can help people talk honestly about the role substances are playing without beginning from judgment or confrontation.
You may explore when and why you use substances, what needs they meet, what consequences concern you, and how use affects relationships, health, school, work, finances, or personal goals.
Some people are ready to stop. Others want to reduce use, consider options, or simply understand the pattern. MI can help clarify where you are now and what you may be willing to do next.
MI can complement other substance use and mental health treatment, but it is not a substitute for medical evaluation, withdrawal management, emergency care, or a higher level of treatment when those services are needed.
More Than Substance Use Treatment
Motivational Interviewing can support many kinds of behavior change and treatment engagement. It may be incorporated when someone is working on medication adherence, health behaviors, emotional regulation, relationships, parenting, school participation, treatment attendance, lifestyle changes, or another personal goal.
MI is often used alongside therapies such as CBT, DBT, and ACT. It is typically a method used within a broader treatment plan rather than a stand-alone solution for every concern.
MI for Teens
Teenagers are often asked to make changes before they understand why those changes matter to them. Pressure from parents, schools, or other adults can make treatment feel like another demand.
MI can give a teen space to discuss their own goals and concerns. A therapist may explore what the teen wants life to look like, what is working, what is not working, and what feels difficult about making a change.
Parent or caregiver involvement may be appropriate, but the approach should respect the young person’s developmental needs and voice. The therapist can help establish expectations for privacy, safety, and family communication.
MI for Adults
Adults may feel stuck between intention and action while balancing work, relationships, caregiving, health, finances, and other responsibilities. MI can help slow the decision-making process down, identify competing priorities, and develop achievable next steps.
When mental health and substance use concerns occur together, MI may be incorporated into a broader plan addressing anxiety, depression, trauma, relationships, substance use, or another clinically appropriate concern.
What Can I Expect at Wings Counseling Center?
Your therapist will begin by understanding what brought you in, what feels important, and what you hope will change. If MI is appropriate, sessions may help you identify personal goals, explore mixed feelings, recognize strengths, consider the benefits and costs of current behaviors, and develop realistic next steps.
The pace is collaborative. You are not expected to have every answer, and your therapist will not decide your goals for you. Treatment may also include other evidence-based approaches based on your needs.
Why Choose Wings Counseling Center?
Wings Counseling Center provides individualized mental health care for children, teens, adults, couples, and families. Our clinicians bring different areas of experience to the team and consider each person’s goals, relationships, symptoms, strengths, and readiness.
In-person therapy is available through our Carlsbad and La Mesa offices for clients across San Diego County, with virtual options when clinically appropriate. Our team can help you find a clinician who incorporates Motivational Interviewing into individualized care.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is MI only for substance use?
No. MI began in substance use treatment, but its principles are used to support many forms of behavior change and treatment engagement.
What if I am not ready to change?
That is okay. Exploring uncertainty is an important part of MI. You do not have to begin therapy with a final decision.
Does MI involve confrontation?
No. MI emphasizes collaboration, empathy, personal choice, and a person’s own reasons for change.
Can MI be combined with other therapies?
Yes. MI strategies may complement CBT, DBT, ACT, family work, substance use treatment, and other approaches when clinically appropriate.
How long does MI take?
There is no standard number of sessions. The length depends on the goal, how MI is being used, and the person’s broader treatment needs.
You Do Not Have to Have It All Figured Out
Maybe you know exactly what you want to change. Maybe you are only beginning to wonder whether something needs to be different. Wherever you are in that process, Wings Counseling Center can help you explore your goals and consider a practical next step.