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 [...]
No one factor can predict if a person will become addicted to drugs and/or alcohol. A combination of factors influences risk for addiction. The more risk factors a person has the greater the chance that taking drugs can lead to addiction. Some common factors are : Genetics, Environmental, and Developmental. -Genetics: The genes that people [...]
Your loved one is in the grips of addiction. You feel helpless because they aren't showing up for work, they're not paying their bills, and their rent hasn't been paid in two months. You fear they will lose everything if you don't intervene. Maybe you started paying some of their bills. You think if you [...]
Our previous blog "From Prescription to Addiction" discussed the Opioid Crisis with doctors prescribing pain medications, primarily Oxycontin and Vicodin, to their patients to manage pain following surgery or other pain causing event. Many of these doctors and their patients may be unaware of the highly addictive nature of these medications. Inadvertently these patients may [...]
One may unknowingly get caught in the grip of addiction just by following their doctors orders. Doctors usually have their patients best interests in mind, nevertheless some recommend or prescribe medications that could potentially harm the health and well being of their patients. In the late 1990's pharmaceutical companies reassured the medical community that patients [...]
San Diego Area Sober Living Home for Men A sober living home is a group home for people with addiction issues. They operate like a co-op because residents contribute for the home’s maintenance and upkeep. Most of these homes are privately-owned. But some groups are owned by businesses, religious groups, and charitable organizations. Some are [...]
For many that struggle with an addiction, there comes a time when the implementation of available treatments become exhausted. Be it alcohol, drugs, gambling or pornography, the pattern remains the same for those who have tried conventional methods, yet still tend to relapse when life comes crushing in.The Twelve Step recovery program has its merits, [...]
Many people struggling with drug addiction think that recovery is nearly impossible for them. They’ve heard the horror stories of painful withdrawal symptoms, they can’t imagine life without drugs, and they can’t fathom actually being able to get through a drug recovery effort. But people do recover from drug addiction – every day in [...]
