Dissociation & Addiction Addiction can be viewed as a form of dissociation. The dissociative states are depersonalization, an individual’s separation from a sense of personal identity, and derealization, a detachment from reality, or the external environment. Through addiction there is a separation, an estrangement from both self and environment. It is as though the [...]
The Dry Drunk Long-term recovery requires some of the most diligent work of our lives. In addition to not picking up a drink or a drug, we regularly make efforts to improve ourselves. This can seem like a daunting task. One must have faith that if he or she sticks with their program of [...]
Acceptance & Change It's easy for an addict to say something like, 'I'm an addict' or 'I'm addicted to...' whatever. They may say it, but it’s only lip service and not enough to produce change. They don’t really accept it down in their soul. They don’t accept it wholeheartedly, and so somewhere down the [...]
What Is Holistic Addiction Treatment? A holistic approach to substance abuse treatment focuses on the entirety of a person. That focus is a balance of the spirit, mind, and body in order to achieve a healthy state of being. Some of the more sophisticated approaches to addiction treatment today offer programs to help guide [...]
Kicking A Meth Habit While the physical symptoms of meth withdrawal sometimes are not quite as bad as the symptoms associated with quitting other types of drugs, it’s not fun either. Crystal methamphetamine is not usually considered a strongly physically addictive drug, common withdrawal symptoms may still include restlessness, fatigue, irregular sleep schedule, and [...]
Addiction Intervention An addiction intervention іѕ a mееtіng between an addicted реrѕоn аnd hіѕ or hеr fаmіlу members and frіеndѕ. Pеорlе often hоld іntеrvеntіоnѕ іn a соmfоrtаblе еnvіrоnmеnt ѕuсh аѕ thе аddісtеd реrѕоn’ѕ hоmе or a rеlаtіvе’ѕ home. Thе рurроѕе оf аn аddісtіоn іntеrvеntіоn іѕ tо соnvіnсе thе аddісtеd реrѕоn to seek treatment fоr [...]
Attachment Theory: A Childhood Blueprint The Attachment Theory argues that a strong emotional and physical bond to one primary caregiver in our first years of life, is critical to our development. If our bonding is strong and we are securely attached, then we feel safe to explore the world. We know there is always [...]
What Does The Term 'Bipolar' REALLY Mean? Maybe you’ve heard the term 'bipolar' used to describe someone who’s moody, or who has mood swings, but this colloquial use of the term is different from bipolar disorder. Bipolar disorder, which used to be called manic depression, is a serious mental illness that causes a person [...]
Benzo Abuse: No Joke Benzodiazepines (benzos) work on the brain by releasing something called GABA. GABA acts as a sedative and will create a sense of calm, also when somebody ingests a benzo there's going to be a release of Dopamine which creates pleasure or euphoria. Now usually benzos are going to be prescribed [...]
Treatment For Obsessive Compulsive Disorder Double-checking things is a pretty common human behavior, like—did I shut the garage-door? Better double-check. How about locking the front door? Double-check. Gas-stove and oven off? Double-check. We all do it. But what if you feel compelled to triple-check it, or even quadruple check it, or quintuple check it [...]
