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Category: For addicts

  • Drug abuse and teens – The adolescent addiction challenge.

    Guest author: Clint Stonebraker Recovery from any addiction is a difficult process. It involves an individual’s willingness to take responsibility for his or her actions, a concrete decision to make significant lifestyle changes, and the courage to repair damaged relationships. The level of emotional maturity involved in taking these steps is usually somewhat foreign to…

  • Internet Porn Addiction – Why is free porn so irresistible and what can love addicts do?

    In a recent post on Internet addiction, we briefly mentioned addictions to internet pornography. There’s no doubt that the easy access, and anonymity, of online access to any and every sexual whim conceivable is at the heart of online porn’s draw. Here we will take a more in-depth look at how Internet porn addiction develops.…

  • Alcohol – Blackouts, Brownouts and how they affect your body

    Do you remember what you did last night? Have you ever not remembered what you did after drinking? Drinking alcohol affects the brain and can cause lasting damage including, but not limited to, slips in memory. These memory slips can be due to lack of blood flow to brain areas that are important for memory…

  • Simply Sober Won’t Do – From Crystal Meth Addict to Scholar

    This is a “reprint” of an article I recently wrote for a NY publication called Spotlight On Recovery: For an addict, the prospect of no longer using whatever it is that gets them through each day is daunting. There’s a comfort in knowing what life is going to look like even if all it entails…

  • Physical addiction or psychological addiction – Is there a real difference?

    This is another one of the basic questions I get regarding addiction. It seems that people think about physical addiction and psychological addiction as somehow separate processes. I think this distinction makes no sense. Even if people really meant what they were saying, the brain is undoubtedly part of the body, and therefore, psychological addictions…

  • Addiction help, exercise, and recovery – Running to stay clean

    As we mentioned in recent posts, giving up addictive behaviors can be difficult. Research on interventions has long shown that it’s a lot easier to reshape existing behaviors than it is to stop them. Therefore, refocusing, or rechanneling, your energy into something that will improve, not devastate your life should prove easier than simply stopping…

  • About addiction, my self, and the fight to be altruistic

    One of the core personality traits that many addicts, including myself, eventually identify in themselves in a strong streak of selfishness. The question is: What do I do with this insight once I’ve gained it? I’m starting to come up with my own answer and hopefully my solution will help others find their own. The…

  • Kids perceive regular marijuana use less risky – Some tips.

    The pendulum swings again. After years of decreases in use and in perceptions about use, a recent report indicates that high-school kids are once again beginning to use , and consider less risky the use of, marijuana. The movement is no doubt part of a semi-regular cycle. After lack of awareness about prescription drugs and…

  • Heroin Addiction and HIV infection – Dirty needles and a place for harm reduction

    Co-authored by: Jamie Felzer Many people today know about the dangers and risky behaviors (sharing needles, unsafe sex, and mother-to-child transmission) that can increase the risk for HIV/AIDS infection. The question lies in whether or not they are able to take appropriate actions to prevent contracting the disease themselves. Heroin addiction, dirty needled, and HIV…

  • Cravings – The all consuming experience of wanting something

    In my studies of addiction, the concept of cravings comes up often. Researchers talk of “wanting” versus “liking” of drugs and of the idea that cravings are a programmed response to environmental signals that have been connected to drug use through experience. What are cravings? I agree with these descriptions and the idea that cravings…