Browse Drug and Substance Abuse

ADDICTION 101 As anyone who has known an addict quickly realizes, no one just wakes up one day with an addiction. Addiction is a biochemical disease that is created over a period of time as one consistently uses substances resulting in increased deterioration of the body. However, once a ...ADDICTION 101

Most people experience a great deal of stress in that period of time betwee Thanksgiving and New Years, fondly known as “The Holidays”. Many of us, find ourselves becoming irritable, with our patience and tolerance stretched to the limit. Much of the impatience and intolerance involves unrealistic and/or unreasonable expectations of others, especially those we are closest to. Being raised in our own individual families of origin seems to set us up for conflicts about expectations for the holidays.

Like so many people, I bet you have a vacation, reunion or wedding to slim up for. And just like every other year, you will map out a diet and exercise plan complete with visualizations of the many jealous onlookers noticing your toned physique as you jog down the beach in a Baywatch montage, or dance at a party as fat, lonely wall flowers gaze in envy. You will engage this plan with a verve and dedication never before seen by man. This is your year!! This is the summer!! You will reach your goal – starting tomorrow of course.

1. Meth addiction is a complex but treatable disease that affects brain function and behavior. Drugs of abuse alter the brain’s structure and function, resulting in changes that persist long after drug use has ceased. This may explain why drug abusers are at risk for relapse even after long periods of abstinence and despite the potentially devastating consequences.

We experience sensory, emotional/psychological, cognitive, environmental, and physical cues on a daily basis in early recovery. These cues or triggers, if left unchecked can turn into powerful cravings for the chemical. Cravings can lead to relapse. In order to avoid relapse it is crucial that you identify your cues, take action, and not let them turn into cravings. One powerful set of cues that can set off cravings are emotions or feelings.

Many recovering people who begin the process of becoming clean and sober, harbor the notion that they can continue to hang on to some remnants of an old drinking/using lifestyle. They often initially believe that specific drugs are The Problem. Initially alcoholics/addicts may not consider use of other drugs (including alcohol) as problematic. When the idea of being addicted to all mood altering drugs does come up, the idea is often dismissed as not being applicable.

One of the most important tasks of early recovery from alcohol and other drug addiction is learning to replace the chemical with health living skills. When you have taken the chemical out of your life, it leaves a big gaping hole, where something of substance was. Alcohol or other drugs have served many purposes over the course of addiction. They have played many roles. They had meaningful functions in your life. When the chemical is removed from your behavioral repertoire, how will you deal with stress, an annoying coworker, insomnia, and task overload?

Associations between particular feelings, people, places, and events becomes intertwined with the alcoholic or addicts drinking and drugging behavior. When alcoholics and addicts find their way to recovery, the old associations between the drinking and drugging and the old feeling, people, places, and events persist, often triggering cravings to drink or use. When these cues trigger drinking or using memories and perhaps euphoric recall, unless you take action to prevent cravings and possible relapse, you remain extremely vulnerable to losing your recovery.

Was Sigmund Freud a twisted, deranged, sexual pervert with no evidence to support his theories? Or was he a competent physician, an effective theorist, and a creative professional exploring and developing new concepts? The answer to these questions is yes. He was a competent physician and ...

Critical thinking (sometimes referred to as directed thinking) is purposeful, reasoned and goal directed--it is thought and knowledge and the relationship between them. To break it down more: the critical component is the evaluation that is most often agreed upon, and thinking is obtaining the ...

In The Future of an Illusion, Freud (1961) shares that: "I am reminded of one of my children who was distinguished at an early age by a peculiarly marked matter-of-factness. When the children were being told a fairy story and were listening to it with rapt attention, he would come up and ask: ...

Sigmund Freud When I think of Freud in relation to addictive behavior, the id, ego, and superego come to mind. The id is hedonistic--sleazy, fun-loving and pleasure seeking. The id says, "John, use that money to buy bag of dope and then share it with her. You'll surely get laid for your ...

Substance abuse is the overindulgence in and dependence of a drug or other chemical leading to effects that are detrimental to the individual's physical and mental health, or the welfare of others. n The disorder is characterized by a pattern of continued pathological use of a medication, non-medically indicated drug or toxin, that results in repeated adverse social consequences related to drug use, such as failure to meet work, family, or school obligations, interpersonal co

Ok, so you have decided that your life needs a little help and to accomplish this, you have decided to quit smoking pot. You have flushed or given away your stash. You have gotten rid of the paraphe alia. It has been a couple of days since you smoked pot and you're feeling cranky. You are not sleeping well. You feel anxious and jittery. You're sweaty; you're experiencing shakiness and you're sick at your stomach. You just don't feel good and you keep thinking that just a couple of hits from a joint will take the edge off. Those detox symptoms will go away if you don't use.

“Angry”, “mad”, “irritable”, “frustrated”, “annoyed”, “irate”, “seething”, “agitated”, and “cranky” are all labels for anger. This list, although it could be a lot longer, reflects varying degrees in intensity of anger. Anger, although a normal emotion, can be problematic for recovering alcoholics and addicts who not feel fully competent in dealing with their anger. Many recovering alcoholics and addicts have an unrealistic expectation that when they get clean and sober, that they will not have to experience uncomfortable feelings, especially anger.

One of the most important tasks necessary for maintaining abstinence and growing in recovery is learning how to appropriately work through feelings. Many people use alcohol and other drugs in place of dealing with or managing emotions. Alcoholism/drug addiction often involves skill deficits. When the chemical is eliminated, the roles that the chemical played in the addict's life must be replaced by healthy living skills. Sometimes recovering alcoholics/addicts must re-lea to do routine daily tasks without aid of the chemical.

The roots of the word prison comes from prisune from before 1112, which means confinement. Prisune was influence by pris, which means taken. As a result of a growing and changing prison population in this country, I will reiterate statistics of the presence of an archetype. Personal observation ...

Chemical dependency has been beaten like a dead horse. There are causal theories from genetic predisposition to various theories of learning, which has contributed greatly to a social construction of reality--a clearing that needs to be re-visioned. Discussed here will be psychological and depth ...

Having previously written on prison stereotypes and archetypes, I separated them into two groups: the old prison stereotype and the new prison population who personify archetypes. In motion pictures, Humphery Bogart, James Cagney and many others have since portrayed gangsters, sociopaths and ...

Many people, while active in addiction, engage in deceptive, dishonest behavior, and diversionary tactics. These are part and parcel of addiction and the need to keep the extent of their problem hidden. It is difficult to juggle all the demands of being addicted with all the "normal" demands of living, plus hiding the addiction from others. Other people in an addict's life are affected by the addiction. Conflict is inevitable. Performance in various areas of an addict's life begins to slip as the disease progresses.

To decide during childhood, whether as an ideal from a dream or fantasy, or from being impressed or influenced by others in the community, to delve into the netherworld of drugs and alcohol--actually choosing to live a life of chaos is one of those mysteries of human behavior. Most addicts do ...

The difference between a psychopath and a sociopath is blurred, at least according to the fourth edition of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM). The DSM-IV lists both definitions together under the heading of Antisocial Personalities because they share common traits. ...

Many couples get into a dysfunctional pattern of conflict escalation and withdrawal as they attempt to discuss the problems and issues in their life. Each unsuccessful attempt to solve the identified problem sets the tone for the next time that they attempt to resolve the issue. Unresolved issues tend to be self-perpetuating and can persist over decades. A common pattern is where a couple identifies some relationship issue or problem to discuss and starts talking. They begin to get upset, bring out the dirty fight tactics, and the argument is "on".

Couples often come to counseling in a last ditch effort to avoid divorce and save the marriage. They have many goals and objectives in mind, often involving helping the therapist fix the other spouse. The real underlying goal is often the desire to restore the positive feelings toward the spouse and to feel loved by the spouse. Invested in their own solutions, these same partners often go about trying to accomplish this goal by pointing out what their spouse is doing "wrong", how they "always" engage in undesirable behavior and "never" do the things that are requested.

I do not believe that I am now dreaming, but I cannot prove that I am Not." Philosopher Bertrand Russell 1872-1970 Freud: Are dreams relevant? The scientific community does not seem to think so. If it can not be proven by the scientific method, it does not exist. It must not exist then. Freud ...

While most people realize that relapse is a common experience for addicts in recovery, they often do not know how to get back on track after relapsing on alcohol or other mood altering drugs. Although relapse is commonplace, it is predictable, and thus preventable. For many recovering people who relapse, the idea of a return to twelve step meetings may bring on a panic attack, or an overwhelming sense of shame. Although the recovering person knows that going back to meetings is the appropriate thing to do, s/he prevent themselves from doing so, due to false pride.

The roots of the word prison comes from prisune from before 1112, which means confinement. Prisune was influence by pris, which means taken or seized. From Latin prehenso--to lay hold of, clutch at. Prysner--one kept in prison: probably 1350-75. Is prison a deterrent to crime? Judging by the ...

Experiencing a traumatic life event can often leave us feeling both mentally and spiritually debilitated. We are often unable to clearly see the road to recovery. Instead, we may find ourselves looking inside the hole of a deep abyss of bottomless pain. Somewhere along the way, we chose to “fill” the abyss with everything and anything to make the pain less; to make the sadness and the suffering go away…if only for a moment.

"It is estimated that 70% of adults in the United States will experience one or more traumatic events in their lives, and 20% will go on to develop PTSD"1 For individuals who suffer from PTSD and other psychological disorders, conventional treatment methods may not be enough to bring about balanced psychological and physical health. Based upon their effectiveness, several complementary and alte ative holistic PTSD treatments, including shamanic soul retrieval, have increasingly gained popularity in helping those who suffer from PTSD, anxiety, depressio

Since the 1930’s 12 step recovery programs have become the preferred method to treat alcoholism, drug abuse, co-dependence, or other addictive behaviors. 12 step recovery programs are deeply rooted within the belief that addicts are powerless over their addiction and the key to sobriety is avoiding the first drink or drug. These programs are based on abstinence because alcoholism and addiction are incurable diseases and there is no other alte ative. Some would say that 12 step recovery programs are based in fear.

Try a little cognitive therapy to reduce your holiday stress. Cognitive therapy examines the thoughts and beliefs that lead to feelings, and thus to behavior. Everyone has some cognitive distortions which are irrational ideas, thoughts, or beliefs, that get in the way of optimal functioning. People acquire these cognitive distortions in many ways, including family of origin, cultural norms or biases, and personal experiences. Cognitive distortions are often a major symptom of mental health problems such as depression, anxiety disorders, and personality disorders.

Are you worried that you may be involved in a codependent relationship? You are not alone. Most people associate codependency with a partner who has an alcohol and substance abuse addiction, but there are other situations that can foster a codependent relationship. Following are 12 signs that you may be involved in a codependent relationship. The good news is that if you're a codependent partner, you have the ability to recover, transform your life, and reclaim your soul's destiny. What is a Codependent Relationship?

Commit yourself to permanent abstinence from alcohol. You do not need alcohol to survive. The human brain is much smarter than the booze brain, which doesn't understand that you can live without alcohol. You can outsmart your booze brain by learning to think of it as something other than yourself. nnThis way, when it demands alcohol, you can tell it "never." When you think about this, you might hear your booze brain objecting and pleading with you to "never say never." It doe

Puer Aeternus is Latin for eternal boy. Senex is Latin for old man. However, this is just one archetype--a split archetype. Hillman (1970) explains "that the senex is a complicatio of the puer, infolded into puer structure, so that puer events are complicated by a senex background." (p. 146). ...

Alcoholics/addicts do not normally live in a circle made up exclusively of alcoholics and addicts. Most people suffering from addictions have a multitude of people in their lives who are affected by the addiction. Even alcoholics and addicts that are estranged from their significant others, ...

What is alchemy? Many of us are drawn to the mysteries of the past to enlighten the quality of the present. Mythology, astrology, the tarot, runes, and I-Ching have drawn the interest of many in recent years, and is being enjoyed and utilized in fresh and innovative ways. Ancient wisdom imbued ...

When we imagine our children becoming addicted to drugs we often envision dimly lit alleys filled with questionable characters persuading our impressionable children to smoke, snort, or even shoot illicit street drugs. However, the most realistic threat to our children’s sobriety is not in the street, but much closer. In fact, it is in your medicine cabinet.

Psychological trauma can change the course of a person’s life and in some cases leave devastating life-long scars. Trauma can come from any situation that poses a threat to personal safety or sense of wellbeing. The events can be real or perceived; trauma is any event that the psyche can’t cope with or process as it happens. A traumatic event may be etched in our conscious memory, or it may be stored directly in the unconscious mind. In either case, the limbic brain creates coping mechanisms which keeps us in states of hyper vigilance and chronic fight or flight mode.

One of the most important tools to develop or restore communication skills is the use of “I” messages. "I" messages are not as likely to elicit defensiveness. They actually increase the probability that your message(s) will be heard. With this simple change in how you communicate with your loved one, you are more likely to actually accomplish your communication goal.

After having attended 12-step meetings for over eleven years, I still didn't understand what they meant when they shared about spiritual experiences. Since then, I did a research study with AA members to find out, and have consequently come to understand that there are many forms of spiritual ...

Are you sabotaging your own recovery? How many times have you been in rehabilitation only to relapse back into the madness that you swore you would leave behind? You want to recover. You want to lead a recovered life, but in the end, the result is always the same. You sabotage yourself, your life, and return to addictive patterns of behavior. Holistic addiction treatment offers addicts the pathway to full recovery by treating the root cause of self-sabotaging behavior.

We rise upon the earth as wavelets rise upon the ocean. We grow out of her soil as leaves grow from a tree. The wavelets catch the sunbeams separately, the leaves stir when the branches do not move. They realize their own events apart, just as in our own consciousness, when anything becomes ...

Cross addiction is one of the leading causes of relapse in early recovery. Cross-addiction involves being addicted to all mood altering drugs. The following are illustrations of cross addiction. 1. Some people become cross-addicted in their efforts to camouflage their addiction. Alcoholics may change to a different drug of choice to hide the smell, or the impairment of fine motor skills. 2. Cross addiction can occur in the process of withdrawal mediation. This is where you use a different drug to avoid or reduce the symptoms of withdrawal. 3.

When you have a drinking or using dream, you may wake up not really knowing if it actually happened. Many people in early recovery find it disturbing and frightening when they experience a "using" dream. Drinking and using dreams are those dreams where the central theme or experience is about drinking or using.

When someone makes a decision to get the help that they need to quit drinking and using other drugs, everything begins to change. As an addict’s body begins to detox and as she is consciously trying to interrupt the momentum of addicted use of a chemical (including alcohol), she goes through all kinds of changes. Physical detox can involve a wide range of possible symptoms, including physical, psychological, and emotional. The addict who is involved in trying to separate herself from the chemical often experiences an emotional rollercoaster. Depression is common.

The family dynamics of recovery is rarely smooth sailing. Relapse, which is a process, has a tremendously negative effect on significant others. Family members who have labored and struggled to remain with the addict through all the active years of addiction, to assist them in finding their way into recovery, find their hopes and dreams dashed in the midst of relapse. Anyone in a relationship with an alcoholic/addict is affected by addiction. Loved ones would understandably be upset and angry with the alcohol/other drug (AOD) addict when they relapse.

One of the common experiences of the earliest efforts toward quitting drinking and becoming sober, is grief over the loss of the chemical. For many people with an alcohol or other drug problem, the chemical, (whether it is alcohol or oxycodone) has become the addict's best friend and constant companion. When this best friend is given up, the alcoholic/addict experiences grief. The chemical plays all kinds of roles in the alcoholic's life and these roles are necessary and meaningful.

My loved one has only been sober for 1 month. Why aren’t they answering their phone? Did he/she relapse again? Oh no…not again. You call. They don’t answer. You drive by their favorite restaurant; their favorite bar. They aren’t there. You call their friends. No answer.

Addiction Recovery Programs Take on Many Forms

Addiction, Nutrition And . . . You?? Getting In Touch With Your Inner Addict Addicts are known for their clichés like “I’m sick and tired of being sick and tired” or “one is too many and 100 is not enough.” But how often do health professionals get to the bottom of the “feeling crappy syndrome” and the seemingly insatiable physical cravings that addicts and chronic substance abusers experience? And can the “normal” people in our population learn anything from their as yet unresolved pain?