As the COVID-19 pandemic continues across the country, so does the opioid epidemic. The pandemic has affected the use of drugs and alcohol, as more people are staying home and attempting to cope with isolation in a newly challenging world. The numbers are climbing...
It is not uncommon for mental health and substance use disorders to be linked. An individual experiencing depression, for example, may turn to medications in an effort to cope with the symptoms. That drug use can then turn into an addiction. Likewise, a person...
Denial can have a strong pull, especially when you are addicted. You may make up excuses for your behavior or try to convince yourself (and others) that you don’t really have a problem. In addiction treatment, admitting and accepting your situation is a critical...
When your loved one is addicted to drugs or alcohol, you naturally want to help them. However, there is a fine line between helping and enabling. The connection between addiction, enabling, and codependency can actually prove detrimental to you and to your loved one....
Sometimes, the professionals who work the hardest to help others need help themselves. First responders, healthcare professionals, and those in safety-sensitive positions, such as airline pilots and transportation professionals, experience a tremendous amount of stress and trauma. When they turn to drugs or alcohol...
Finding the right treatment center for your drug or alcohol addiction can be challenging. You are struggling but you are ready to make a change in your life, for the better. Of course, you want to be sure you make the right choice in...
Drug addiction and alcohol abuse are often seen as issues occurring mostly in young people. In fact, research has shown that most high school students have tried some form of alcohol or drugs. Young minds and bodies are not developed enough to fight off...
Drug and alcohol addiction affects people in every state in the US. Across the country, opioid abuse continues to present at crisis levels. In the state of Texas, the numbers are lower than many other states but are still staggering. A look at addiction...
Alcohol plays a small role in some people’s lives and a much larger one in others. How problematic alcohol use becomes depends on many factors. When drinking starts to cause serious consequences, the question becomes when is someone considered an alcoholic? There are several ways...
So much of our suffering is completely unnecessary. From an early age, we take on ways of thinking that create a useless burden, which traps us in a constant state of sadness and anxiety. We make assumptions, we harbor ill will toward others at...
Words carry incredible power. We rarely think about the many hidden meanings of the words we use to describe others, particularly when it comes to addiction. It’s important to understand that there are reasons addiction professionals choose their words carefully. The medical community has come...
Aftercare monitoring in addiction treatment is a bridge from residential programs to a substance-free life. After months of learning the tools you’ll need in recovery, aftercare monitoring teaches you to integrate these lessons into your daily routine. The longer a person with a substance use...
