Because so many people become addicted to opiates from prescriptions for pain, the opiate addict thinks of their problem as a pain management condition, but this is usually just a way to minimize or deny the addiction problem. Everyone involved, including healthcare providers, can pretend…
I suppose the language we use to describe alcohol and drug problems will continue to evolve, but I hope the language evolves toward clarity nor obscurity. As I wrote a week or so ago, there are many old ideas about alcohol and drug problems that…
Knowledge isn’t the entire answer, but knowledge is indispensable in recovery from addiction. Knowledge about addiction is power. Ignorance, even self-imposed ignorance as in denial, can kill an alcoholic or drug addict. In treatment we use education as a large part of the treatment experience….
What I’m seeing with Suboxone and other opiate withdrawal medications is both encouraging and worrisome. Suboxone is certainly a great drug to medically treat opiate addiction, but Suboxone is so effective with withdrawal it gives the false impression that addiction is solved by simply taking the medicine. Recovery from…
I haven’t covered all the old ideas about addiction that don’t square up with facts and experience, but hopefully this will cover the major old ideas. Sticking with alcoholism as the addiction example, alcoholics come from all walks of life, and their backgrounds and…
This is Part II of Old Ideas About Addiction. How can addiction be a brain disease when people freely choose to drink or do drugs? Doesn’t this relieve the addict of all responsibility? This is a common rebuttal when discussing addiction. If we go…
Heroin deaths quadrupled between 2010 and 2013. The greatest increase has been since 2010. Still, prescribed painkillers cause more deaths than heroin and cocaine combined. Opiate addiction is not subsiding — it’s increasing. While most people think of heroin as something used by street people, it’s used…
Alcohol, drugs and nutrition — when it comes to preventable illnesses, disabilities and deaths, addiction is the top cause. This is amazing when you think of the lack of resources available to deal with addiction. Insurance companies haven’t treated addiction like other causes of illness,…
We believe that recovery has to address the whole person. There’s a psychological component to treatment – mental health is crucial to long term recovery. Emotional issues are dealt with in order to avoid dangerous emotional ups and downs. A big part of recovery is learning to face emotions, talk…
Although Alcoholics Anonymous, AA, has been around since 1935, there is still much confusion surrounding AA, what it is and what it isn’t. One of the main criticisms is that AA is religious and pushes “God” on new members. When talking about AA, you…
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