Dr Miranda Sonntag

Dr Sonntag is an adult psychiatrist with subspecialty training in addictions. She primarily sees older adolescents and young adults (16 to 30 years old). She manages the entire spectrum of addictions including substance use and behavioural (process) addictions such as gambling and gaming disorder.
She has a particular interest in young adults with ADHD and is able to provide comprehensive assessments for ADHD and support ongoing management if this is indicated.
Her approach to practice is blended. She feel addictions are disorders of the reward system and of impulse control and need to be supported through biological and psychological approaches. She seeks to combine medical management with targeted psychological based therapy to understand the drivers of the addiction and to support change. She is conversant with pharmacological management of the addictions including specialised anti-craving and reward-modifying agents.
There is increasing research suggesting links between addictions and other disorders of impulse control including OCD, emotional dysregulation and eating disorders (such as Binge Eating Disorder). There is a notable overlap of ADHD with Gaming Disorder.
She finds many young adults are seeking to understand why they may be struggling to manage the transition to the demands of the adult world and often a finds a diagnosis provides a sense of relief, understanding and optimism for the future.