So you've gone through several months of rehab and now the holidays are coming up. You haven't experienced the season to be "Merry" sober for years. After all, aren't the holidays a time to celebrate, bring in the cheer and even give cheers? You might wonder, "how can I get through this season and stay [...]
Looking back on my life and how my addiction started, I can trace it back to finding a group of kids in middle school that would accept me. I was advanced in school, which made me feel like I couldn't relate to most kids. The kids that drank and did drugs didn't care if I [...]
We all have them, the nagging thoughts of how we wish we would have or could have done things differently. Regret by definition means, "to feel sad, repentant, or disappointed over something that has happened or been done, especially a loss or missed opportunity." What do we do with these pesky thoughts that creep in [...]
Drug and alcohol addiction has many negative effects on the mind and body. The use of drugs affects breathing, and heart rate, the ability to control emotions and feel happiness. In addition, problem-solving, planning, and decision-making abilities are inhibited. It is also difficult for people who use drugs to process information provided by their senses. [...]
We form many different types of relationships throughout our life. These relationships have different dynamics and no two relationships are alike. In this article we are going to address the relationships associated with a former addict who is in the process of recovery. The right kinds of relationship with the right kind of people will [...]
So you finally decided to seek recovery after many years of using and abusing. You committed to a rehab to help you succeed in your quest for sobriety. It has been months, you are feeling better, but now you are facing many thoughts and feelings that stem from regrets. During your years of abusing drugs [...]
My story of addiction/alcoholism began for me in my mother's womb. My father was a Navy man and we were stationed on the Island of Crete in Greece. When my mom was around 5-6 months pregnant with me my father who was an alcoholic struck her or pushed her down while he was drunk. One [...]
Self-sabotage is any behavior, thought, emotion, or action that holds us back from getting what we consciously want. Self-sabotage is the conflict that exists between conscious desires and unconscious wants that manifest in self-limiting patterns of behavior. Self-sabotage not only prevents us from reaching our goals but also plays the part of a safety mechanism [...]
Does mental illness occur before or after drug addiction? Studies show that people who suffer from mental illness are more likely to become addicted to a substance, often called "self medicating". Conversely, people who have suffered from addiction for years may later get diagnosed with a mental illness, this is called "dual diagnosis". Some individuals [...]
