Question 1

What is holistic addiction treatment?

Accepted Answer

Holistic addiction treatment addresses the whole person rather than the behavior alone. At Sanctuary Tulum that means one-to-one therapeutic work on the trauma and emotional patterns underneath the compulsion, combined with physiological recovery — sleep restoration, nutrition, movement, bodywork, breathwork, and physician-supervised integrative therapies. There is no group therapy, no 12-step programming, and no replacement-drug protocol. Every client's plan is different and is set after medical and psychological screening.

Question 2

Does a holistic approach work for behavioral addictions?

Accepted Answer

Behavioral addictions are recognized clinical conditions — gambling disorder appears in DSM-5 and gaming disorder in the WHO's ICD-11 — and they involve the same reward, stress, and impulse-control systems as substance addictions. That is why an approach targeting sleep, stress physiology, nutrition, and trauma alongside behavior is a reasonable clinical fit. Evidence for individual components varies, and we do not publish success-rate figures or promise outcomes. What we can describe is the structure: individualized, medically supervised, and non-pharmaceutical.

Question 3

How is this different from traditional addiction treatment?

Accepted Answer

Traditional programs are typically group-based, 12-step oriented, and organized around substances, often with medication to manage symptoms. Sanctuary Tulum runs no group sessions and no 12-step content, caps the property at five clients, and focuses on process addictions and the mental health conditions that accompany them rather than opioid or heroin detox. Care is delivered one-to-one by licensed medical and therapeutic staff, with founder Johnny Tabaie contributing the programme framework as an educator rather than as a physician.

Question 4

Which behavioral addictions do you treat?

Accepted Answer

Sanctuary Tulum treats sex addiction, porn addiction, gambling addiction, shopping and compulsive spending, and crypto and trading addiction, along with the depression, anxiety, trauma, and burnout that usually accompany them. Each has a dedicated program page describing how the shared framework is adapted to that behavior. We do not provide opioid, fentanyl, heroin, or methadone detox at this property.