Addiction | Substance Use Disorders | Treatment
The Second Step – The Fork in My Road and My Final Wager
The following is a guest post by Tim Cheney, who has been in long-term recovery for over 30 years, and shares his thoughts on the second step of AA. Tim is the co-founder and managing partner of Chooper’s Guide, a web-based treatment and information resource for addiction, and owns and operates an apple orchard in…
Read MoreThe Importance of Continuing Care in Addiction Treatment – Whitney Houston’s Story
The importance of continuing care in addiction treatment was sadly, starkly shown in Whitney Houston’s story. Her death is a reminder of the power of the chronic, often relapsing brain disease of addiction. It also points to the importance of developing a solid “Continuing Care Plan” to follow the acute detox/rehab treatment period in order…
Read MoreAre You a Child of an Alcoholic?
If you are a child of an alcoholic, you’ll want to read this post – even if you’re not convinced your parent is necessarily an alcoholic, but their drinking and the behaviors that result cause you pain. It is a guest post by Cathy Taughinbaugh, founder of TreatmentTalk.org, and author of the book, “101 Natural…
Read MoreWondering What to Do About a Loved One’s Substance Abuse?
Loved one’s substance abuse – does it have you worried? are you wondering what you can or should try to do? I get a lot of phone calls from people — especially family members — husbands, wives, siblings, parents — desperate for answers about what to do for a loved one with a substance abuse…
Read MoreAbout Diet | Nutrition as a Key to Brain Health | Recovery
Diet | Nutrition are a key to brain health | recovery from addiction. Brain health is a key element of addiction recovery because addiction (whether to drugs or alcohol) is a chronic, often relapsing brain disease. As I’ve mentioned in other posts, nutrition is one of the four key “things” a person can do to…
Read MoreDual Diagnosis | Co Occurring Disorders – Status of Treatment in U.S.
Dual Diagnosis | Co Occurring Disorders – what do these terms mean? How are they treated? A dual diagnosis | co-occurring disorders is the name of the diagnosis given when a person has both a mental illness and an addiction. According to the Center for Substance Abuse Treatment (CSAT), 50-75% of Americans who seek treatment…
Read MoreContinuing Care – the Equally Important 3rd Phase of Addiction Treatment & Recovery
Continuing care – the equally important and often neglected 3rd phase of addiction treatment. This sentence in Abigail Sullivan Moore’s January 20, 2012, article, “A Bridge to Recovery on Campus,” appearing on NewYorkTimes.com, really grabbed my attention: “….Until recently, public policy focused on prevention and treatment. “We never talked about recovery as a kind of…
Read MorePTSD and the Sleep Connection
PTSD and sleep – why is this connection important to understand? Given mental illness (of which PTSD is one) is one of the five key risk factors for developing an addiction and that sleep (the peaceful, restful kind) is one of the key things a person can do to heal their brain from an addiction,…
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