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Influential factors in college drinking
Co-authored by: Jamie Felzer What influences students’ college drinking decisions? Do friends peer pressure them? Do they do it because they are bored? Do they drink to relieve depression or anxiety? Researchers recently tried to answer these questions by surveying college students… 65% of the participants reported having at least one drink in the past…
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Men and women are not the same: Sex differences in addiction research
You may not have realized it, but men and women are different. Really. Though the statement may seem like the most unnecessary, obvious, expression since the dawn of time, it’s surprising how rarely the importance of these differences comes up when we talk about addiction. Still, there’s little doubt that if our hormones, brain development,…
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Body image and medicalization: Socially relevant behavioral “addictions” beyond drug use
We know that addiction can go beyond drug use, but are we becoming addicted to making our bodies perfect? I put “addiction” in parentheses here because I think it’s important to distinguish substance-related addictions from behavioral ones. There’s no doubt that people’s behavior can become compulsive in the same way addicts become compulsive about using,…
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What makes the 12 steps (and other social support groups) a good part of addiction treatment aftercare?
I’m not a devout 12-step believer, though I think that AA and the offspring programs have some serious merit, especially when it comes to addiction treatment aftercare. In this discussion, I’m talking about all group-support based programs, including Smart Recovery and others. I’m personally a fan of non-religious groups, but that’s just me. Chronic conditions…
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Social anxiety and drugs: A lesson about addiction from monkeys.
If you ever doubted the idea that monkeys are über similar to humans, read this: A number of researchers at Wake Forest University school of Medicine looked at the social organization in 4 groups of monkeys. They then took either a dominant or subordinate monkey and put it in a cage next to a group…
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About addiction: Weed, early recovery, teens and alcohol, and robotripping
We started this thread last week and I’m going to do my best to keep it up. Here are some links you may find useful on other blogs: The Addiction News Network – Brain damage in young adults who smoke weed Spiritual River – The usefulness of social support in early recovery Breaking the Cycles…