Diabetes, a broken arm, a heart attack—these are all widely recognized as medical conditions. But what about a chronic brain disorder? How does it relate to addiction? In some cases, the patient may have even contributed to the onset. Right? And yet . . . A sedentary woman diagnosed with type 2 diabetes receives understanding, […]
Is Your Addiction a Chronic Brain Disorder? Read More »
Recovery offers a beautiful opportunity to view each day for all of the potentials it holds. And yet. Sober individuals live the same ol’ adulting life as the rest of the world: We have to work and keep a job. Have to prioritize relationships. We must take care of your body. And it’s that last
“No Prescription Opioids, Please.” Read More »
If you work as a first responder, I’d like to start by saying thank you. Secondly, if you are one of the millions of first responders battling addiction, I want to tell you, there is hope. We all owe a great debt of gratitude to our local emergency medical technicians, firefighters and police officers. You
To Our First Responders Battling Addiction: There’s Hope for You Read More »
Substance use disorder and mental health issues often deliver a one-two punch—occurring at the same time for people who could really use a break. Or, to borrow another cliche, these dual diagnoses kick folks while they’re already on the ground. What’s up with that? Why do we see a prevalence of co-occurring mental
What is Dual Diagnosis and How Does it Happen? Read More »
Where do you turn when you need help understanding addiction? There’s a book for that. They have a way of transporting us from all that we know into a completely unknown world—that is, from our own mind to the mind of the narrator. We see and understand things as they see and understand them.
3 Books to Help You Understand Addiction Read More »
If you have an addiction, you’re an addict, right? No? OK, can I make a confession? As a writer, it pains me to mess with the easygoing flow of a sentence in order to meet a need for a client. Let’s say they want me to include the phrase “feathers of a peacock in
Is It Okay To Call Someone An “Addict?” Read More »
DBT. Ah, the elusive acronym. Ever find yourself in the middle of a conversation nodding your head along to phrases like “Send a QFE to the BCD, ASAP, will ya?” Okay, so maybe that’s an exaggeration, but the feeling remains. Before we agree to do something, we’d like to get our heads around that
The Importance of DBT in Substance Abuse Treatment Read More »
Illness Management and Recovery (IMR) is a program that teaches coping and self-management skills. This program helps people with serious mental health conditions. IMR focuses on helping people stay in treatment and improve their quality of life. IMR is included in many addiction treatment programs to help individuals and their families with long-term mental health
Illness Management And Recovery Read More »
Expectations matter – especially when considering a substance abuse treatment center. When we know what’s to come, we can set our mind to the task at hand. We can prepare to work hard, practice patience or all sorts of things in between. Expectations also offer hope. The reward becomes easier to imagine and
What Are My Options For Substance Abuse Treatment? Read More »
We’ll get straight to the point: do not let your age stop you from getting addiction treatment! We’ve all heard the saying, “You can’t teach an old dog new tricks.” Maybe you’ve even said it yourself a time or two. Thankfully, like plenty of other crabby-clichés, just because we’ve all heard it before doesn’t make it
Overcoming Addiction: Age is just a number Read More »