More than half of individuals living with an alcohol or substance use disorder meet the criteria for a dual diagnosis. When mental illnesses like depression, post-traumatic stress disorder, or eating disorders affect people living with addiction, such instances are referred to as co-occurring disorders.When seeking addiction treatment, it is...
Long-term addiction recovery depends on transforming the mind, body, and spirit. Neglect the brain—the body and spirit will suffer. Ignore physical wellbeing—mental health and a person’s connection to something “deeper” will decline. Merely put, the whole person is only as strong as its weakest link. When a person enters into...
The impact that addiction has on the family is immeasurable. Those who contend with alcohol and substance use disorder put enormous stress on their loved ones. In the field of addiction medicine, experts refer to alcoholism and chemical dependency as family diseases. They do this for two primary reasons...
Most Americans, by now, are acutely familiar with the addiction epidemic disrupting millions of lives. While heroin and fentanyl remain the focus of many news stories, prescription narcotics are still a significant issue. It has become more difficult to acquire such drugs from doctors, but they are still misused...
Men and women who serve in the military are entitled to receive adequate medical and psychological care. Those who deploy overseas face significant obstacles, risking both life and limb. The impact this type of existence can have on such people is high. Many servicemen and women who come back...
First responders work on the front lines of tragedy. Police officers, paramedics, and firefighters routinely put the needs of others ahead of their own; and, such people work in environments that hardly allow them to talk about their own problems. The paradox is that the very same people who...
Most Americans will never know what it is like to see a good friend die in their arms; grasp the sensation of being shot at; and, we will never understand what is like to get into a military transport with the risk of driving over an improvised explosive device....
Few people in addiction and co-occurring disorder recovery will find the results of a 2014 survey by the National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI) surprising. The data indicates that 64 percent of people with mental illness find the holidays make their conditions worse.“For many people the holiday season is...
