Sometimes addiction is a slow process that develops over time, or it can happen quickly, depending on genetics or other factors. Because it’s a complex brain disease, it can have extremely negative consequences on the person and those involved in their life. We’ll discuss what constitutes addiction and the most effective methods of treatment. Characteristics…
Any substance that we use for pleasure can be an addiction—this includes sugar. Research shows that our brains are hardwired for pleasure, and sugar works much like many addictive drugs in that it affects the brain’s limbic system, the part of the brain that’s associated with emotional control. In today’s blog, we will discuss the…
At one point, addiction wasn’t viewed as a disease or brain disorder, so the idea of someone going through recovery and being “done” wasn’t unheard of; however, we now know that an alcoholic will always be one. Now that experts label addiction as a disease, it’s important to distinguish the lifelong challenge of being an…
Once you take that first step in admitting you have an addiction to either alcohol or drugs, the next hardest step is telling your family. Today, we’ll discuss some helpful ways in which to tell your family, so you receive the most support. Telling Your Family You’re an Addict Telling someone, “I’m an addict,” could…
You might have seen some disturbing signs of your teen abusing drugs and noticed them acting strangely. You even thought about confronting their behavior. Is what your seeing something else, like anxiety and depression? Or, did you not educate them enough about drugs so as not to worry about the issue? There might be a…
Mental health and substance abuse have proven to be strongly linked. Though neither necessarily causes the other, both seem to amplify the other. Dual diagnosis is a diagnosis of both mental illness and addiction—it is prevalent. The National Survey on Drug Use and Health, in 2018, about 9.2 million adults in the US experienced both…