Gerard Love, PhD

EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, BRITELIFE RECOVERY AT HILTON HEAD

Dr. Gerard A. Love has worked in the addiction treatment & recovery field for over thirty years. His professional orientation is developmental and constructivist. He believes that recovery from a substance use disorder (SUD) is achievable for anyone who commits to a collection of daily behaviors with focus on sobriety as a new way of life. A holistic and creative approach to treatment that addresses dimensions of wellness via experiential learning sets the stage for a successful recovery.

Dr. Love has served in a variety of roles and settings including alcohol and other drug counselor, family therapist, twenty-eight-day residential treatment program director, employee assistance counselor, collegiate AOD intervention and Executive Director of Collegiate Recovery. Dr. Love developed and implemented the first clinical mental health addiction counseling program in Pennsylvania, a master’s degree program he directed for over twenty years. While serving as director of the master’s program, Dr. Love taught graduate level addiction courses as well as group counseling, lifespan development, and social and cultural diversity. He also developed a residential collegiate recovery program, and pre-field experience collaborations with a university counseling center and Gateway Rehabilitation Center of Pennsylvania.

Dr. Love holds a bachelor’s in psychology from Saint Norbert College, a master’s degree in counseling psychology from the University of Missouri and a doctorate in human development counseling from Vanderbilt University. Dr. Love presents nationally on substance use disorders and recovery. Recovery as an identity, collegiate recovery programming and the role of nutrition in recovery are long term professional interests as well as advocating for treatment access and challenging societal stigma toward those with substance use disorders.