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If you’ve researched sex and porn addiction treatments, you’ve probably come across the acronym CSAT beside the names of many professionals in the field. But, what is a CSAT certification? 

What is a CSAT?

CSAT stands for Certified Sex Addiction Therapist, meaning the individual has special training to work with people living with sex addiction and their partners. 

When you’re looking for someone to help with you or your partner’s sex addiction, you want someone who understands this disorder on a profound level. 

Certified Sex Addiction Therapists specialize in healing those suffering from sex addiction. They go through specific accredited, intensive courses to learn how to help you heal. 

CSAT therapists have highly specialized knowledge of the underlying trauma, experiences, and emotional wounds related to sex addiction.

You can think of therapy as planning to build a home. If you come with blueprints, a hammer, nails, and other professionals, you will build the house. But if you show up with a hot glue gun, some glitter, and the instructions on how to set up Bluetooth on your phone, you’re not going to be successful. 

Your therapist, just like you, needs the proper tools to achieve the goals set out for them.  

CSAT Training and Skills

Those who pass the CSAT certification process are highly skilled and possess specific abilities that other therapists and counselors may lack. 

During the certification process, the therapists gain expertise in assessing your type and level of compulsive sexual dependence. Therefore, they can choose the most appropriate therapy styles to help you recover. 

With the tools they gained in their CSAT certification process, the therapists can get to the heart of the issues at hand. They also can assess whether there are multiple coexisting types of addiction at play.

The training and certification process for CSAT therapists is intensive and holistic. With more than 30 hours of direct supervision coupled with a certification renewal every two years, these specialized therapists stay on top of all cutting-edge therapy styles. 

This guidance and experience mean they are the best possibly equipped therapists to help in your recovery. 

History of CSAT

Dr. Patrick Carnes founded the International Institute for Trauma & Addiction Professionals more than 20 years ago. IITAP provides training, certification, and resources for sexual addiction practitioners. Officials in this certifying body created CSAT. 

Dr. Carnes created CSAT training to help therapists learn the “task approach” to addiction recovery. 

Carnes is considered the founder of sexual addiction and varying therapy types surrounding the subject. As a significant figure in addiction and sexual health, Carnes was awarded the Lifetime Achievement Award from the Society for the Advancement of Sexual Health. SASH bestows the prestigious Carnes Award annually to researchers and clinicians who have made remarkable contributions to the field of sexual medicine. 

Carnes also directly trained the founder of Begin Again Institute under whom our team of expert clinical staff apprenticed and studied for several years.

Qualifications of CSAT

You must have extensive training and credentials to qualify to attend CSAT training.

To attend CSAT training, you must:

• Be Degreed and Licensed. You must already be a fully licensed practitioner. This prerequisite means you have a master’s degree or higher from an accredited institution in psychology, counseling, or related mental health field.
• Have Certification. You also must be certified and licensed to practice without supervision through a state board or international equivalent as a counselor, social worker, therapist, doctor, psychiatrist, or psychologist. 
• Have Experience. You must have five years of direct clinical counseling or therapy experience.

CSAT Training Process

If you meet the criteria for the CSAT training course, you must apply and gain acceptance into the process.

Following your acceptance into the course, you must complete four training modules separately, each one lasting roughly four and a half days. 

As a final step, you must complete 30 hours of direct clinical supervision before you can apply to receive your CSAT certification. 

Seeing a CSAT for Sex Addiction

Finding the right therapist is crucial for your recovery from sex or porn addiction. CSAT therapists and practitioners have gained the tools for treating sex addiction and compulsive behavior and are best suited to aiding you in your recovery. 

These highly-skilled practitioners have intensive, experiential training from the best in the field of sex addiction. In addition, they must continually undergo observation and renewal to make sure they have the most up-to-date tools at hand. 

If you want to build a house, you’re not going to do it with some chewing gum and instructions on constructing a couch. You need the right tools to get the job done. Therapy and sex addiction are no different. 

How BAI Can Help

At the Begin Again Institute, we apply the TINSA treatment model to every aspect of our healing. Our CSAT therapists, trauma specialists, and certified clinical partner specialists understand the origins of addictive thinking and behavior. We integrate this understanding into all aspects of your specialized healing process. 

Learn more about our team and who you’ll work with at Begin Again Institute.