About the Author

Victoria Towery, LPC-A is a Licensed Professional Counselor Associate specializing in LGBTQ+ mental health, relationship trauma, and addiction recovery. Victoria's journey into this specialized work began both professionally and personally—through witnessing the struggles of queer clients caught in destructive relationship patterns, and through navigating their own healing journey from love addiction.

While working with LGBTQ+ clients experiencing relationship distress, Victoria repeatedly encountered a frustrating gap: the existing literature on love addiction and codependency, though valuable, was written almost entirely from heteronormative perspectives. These resources failed to address how minority stress, internalized oppression, limited relationship models, and the unique challenges of queer dating contexts contributed to addictive relationship patterns. Clients would read the available books and feel that something crucial was missing—that their experiences as queer people weren't fully seen or understood.

This gap in the literature became even more apparent through Victoria's own recovery work. Navigating their own healing from love addiction while simultaneously supporting clients through similar struggles revealed the urgent need for resources that directly addressed how love addiction manifests uniquely in LGBTQ+ lives. From the scarcity mindset created by smaller dating pools to the intensity born of finding acceptance after years of hiding, from trauma bonding through shared oppression to the absence of healthy queer relationship scripts—these specific dynamics deserved direct attention and affirming guidance.

Drawing on frameworks from leading experts in love addiction and codependency recovery—including Pia Mellody and Kelly McDaniel—and integrating research on minority stress, attachment theory, and the neuroscience of addiction, Victoria offers a comprehensive approach that acknowledges both the universal aspects of love addiction and the specific challenges faced by LGBTQ+ individuals. This work combines clinical expertise, evidence-based practice, and the deep understanding that comes from personal healing—creating a resource that finally speaks directly to the realities of love addiction in queer contexts.

Victoria is committed to making recovery accessible, compassionate, and grounded in the lived experiences of LGBTQ+ individuals—recognizing that healing happens not through forcing ourselves into frameworks designed for others, but through approaches that honor the full complexity of our identities and relationship histories.