For many people, starting the new year off with a hefty list of New Year’s resolutions just makes sense, but for someone in recovery from a substance use disorder, things like weight loss or saving more money can seem pretty trivial. About 40% of the population participates in forming resolutions these days, but a mere...
If you’ve made the decision to get help for drug or alcohol abuse, you’ve conquered one of the toughest challenges on the road to recovery. Before you begin your journey of learning how to live a sober lifestyle, you need to have a clean, substance-free system. Most addiction treatment programs begin with a medically-supervised detox to...
Addiction isn’t the only problem that addicts may be wrestling with when they enter rehab. Many also battle the mental disorder of depression. Some people may be clinically depressed and suffer from concurrent disorders upon entering a drug treatment center. “Mental health disorders and substance abuse commonly go hand in hand. Either disorder can occur...
Many individuals experience trauma during their lifetimes. Although many people exposed to traumatic situations demonstrate few or no lingering symptoms, those who have experienced repeated, chronic or multiple traumas are more likely to exhibit pronounced symptoms and consequences, including substance abuse, mental illness, and health problems. People of all ages, ethnic backgrounds, sexual orientations and...
The American Society of Addiction Medicine defines addiction as a primary, chronic disease of brain reward, motivation, memory and related circuitry. Dysfunction in these circuits leads to characteristic biological, psychological, social and spiritual manifestations. This dysfunction is reflected in an individual pathologically pursuing reward and/or relief by substance use and other behaviors. But what if...
