Category: Uncategorized

Contradictions in Addiction Treatment

At NewDay Counseling, we deal with contradictions. Recovery from alcoholism or some other drug addiction is riddled with contradictions. The addict most often hides the truth, or shades/spins the truth. If you can’t relate to drug addiction, perhaps you can relate to a person…

Alcohol is not as dangerous as illegal drugs

This is another myth — the idea that alcohol is not as dangerous as heroin or cocaine or other illegal drugs. Alcohol, directly and indirectly, causes more premature deaths than all the illicit drugs combined. About a third of all emergency room visits are…

Alcoholism Myth # 1

I’ll write, over a period of months, a series of posts related to myths about alcoholism. The first myth I want to tackle is the idea that anyone who drinks enough alcohol will become an alcoholic. Most people have a built in physical defense against…

Freedom From Addiction

This phrase, freedom from addiction, is trite and cliché, but it became so because those who’ve recovered from addiction appreciate freedom in ways many take for granted. Commonly, one hears people in recovery talk with passion about the freedom they feel now that they’re no…

No Alcohol – Become a Millionaire

Most heavy drinkers have no idea how much they spend on alcohol and consequences related to alcohol, but it adds up through the years. Even moderate drinkers who go out to a bar twice a week spend an incredible amount of money over time…

Long Term Addiction Recovery

I was with a group of people in recovery or who work in the addiction or mental health fields, or just concerned citizens, for a get together at Lake Mayer basically to celebrate recovery. One of the main ideas discussed was ongoing recovery and community resources…

Why AA is effective

Alcoholics Anonymous has been around for many decades now. AA has been praised, criticized and condemned. Mostly, though, AA has been misunderstood and misrepresented, even by it’s own members. The problem with AA, like all organizations, is that it’s filled with people. Individuals can be…

Several Addiction Awareness Announcements

First of all, September is National Recovery Month. Below is an email I received, plus another addiction awareness announcement: September is National Recovery Month Celebration to Culminate with Star-Studded Concert in Washington, DC NADCP is once again honored to be a partner for National Recovery…

Depression and alcohol

Through the years I’ve dealt with many alcoholics who complained primarily of depression. These clients were convinced that the drinking problem was a direct result of depression, and, if they dealt with the depression, they could drink moderately in the future. In the great majority…

More on Medication-Assisted Treatment

The current misunderstanding around Suboxone as a medication-assisted treatment, MAT, for opiate addiction is confounding. Addiction treatment professionals, whether federally funded treatment providers or private treatment providers, who ban Suboxone from their treatment have much explaining to do. Addiction treatment is complicated in many ways. The job of…