Many people consider trauma to be the gateway drug to various addictions. Although it is not guaranteed that someone who has experienced trauma in their lifetime will wind up becoming an addict, it is fairly common. The reason being that trauma can activate survival tactics that lead to addiction. Trauma, especially childhood trauma can influence someone’s entire personality. Substances can...[ read more ]
Not to mention the different health risks, users of Methamphetamine tend to have many different traits such as visibly faster speech, poor hygiene or tooth decay. However, there are also many more health risks associated with the use of this drug. Since it typically creates a sense of euphoria and tends to create many sleepless nights, methamphetamine can cause hallucinations,...[ read more ]
The pandemic and shelter-in-place order brought uncertainty about the future, but it also helped shine a laser focus on what is most important in life. Covid-19 created not only job loss, but also a lot of fear of other people and health in general. Different strains of the virus continue to be on the rise. On one hand, what it...[ read more ]
The addict is their own worst enemy, yet they lash out at everyone else especially their family. Addicts tend to lie, cheat and steal. As a result, their family members will fight and argue. The situation becomes intolerable. The family has become dysfunctional, how can they begin to heal? When one person is sick the whole system suffers. The family...[ read more ]
I personally haven’t had the experience to parent an adult child in recovery, but I know many people who have including my own parents. I decided to ask my mother her opinion on what it was like having a child in active addiction, as well as an adult child in recovery. My mom said the most important thing for her...[ read more ]
During the midst of the Covid-19 pandemic, the world shut down causing a lot of people to be out of work and sheltering in place. People who are in recovery from substance use disorders were highly affected. In-Person meetings were paused for over a year in some places, and while Zoom meetings were available, what was missing was face to...[ read more ]
Often, after one has been abusing substances for a while, they lose sight of the healthy things that previously brought them joy. Finding hobbies is necessary to avoid idle thoughts. Revisiting things that have in the past brought pleasure are good ways to pass the time, especially for those new in recovery or at risk for relapse. If the person...[ read more ]
12-step meeting come in many different forms nowadays, there is not only AA and NA, but now different branches such as Recovery Dharma, SMART Recovery or LifeRing. With the recent Covid-19 pandemic, meetings have been made even more available. With a lot of locations sheltering in place, all a person needed to attend a meeting of any sort was some...[ read more ]
Gratitude Too often people fixate on what is wrong in their life and all the things that irritate them. This contributes to stress, anger and agitation that doesn’t lead to good choices or help good relationships. Concentrating on what is good in one’s life can help center the focus on what is truly meaningful. Gratitude is an emotion or can...[ read more ]
Substance Use Disorders can affect the family as a whole. Substance abuse can wreak havoc on a family in many ways, whether it be lack of trust, poor communication, dishonesty, worry and much more. When there is a loved one who is in the midst of their addiction, the whole family tends to suffer. However, when the identified patient seeks...[ read more ]