-
Rubber-band addiction recovery – No shame
There’s a specific issue that keeps coming up with nearly every addiction client I work with who is in early recovery. Regardless of whether they’re trying to stop unhealthy alcohol or drug use, sex or gambling behavior, or anything else, this issue keeps returning. It doesn’t even seem to matter if this is their first…
-
Overcoming mental health problems is more than possible
Addicts and others with mental health issues continuously feel as if they need to hide their problems as well as hide from them. But an ongoing west-coast (U.C.L.A. and U.S.C.) study with a group of mental health patients suggests that hiding may be the wrong approach. The participants in the study, all successful individuals with…
-
Loss, but not absence, of control – How choice and addiction are related
In a recent post the notion that “loss of control” is an addiction myth was raised by our contributing author, Christopher Russell, a thoughtful graduate student studying substance abuse in the U.K. Though I obviously personally believe in control- and choice-relevant neurological mechanisms playing a part in addiction, this conversation is a common one both…
-
A word about animal research and animal rights
Animal research is a controversial topic in some circles. As some of you may know already, a UCLA group has recently banded together to counter-protest the fear-mongering tactics used by animal rights activists. Before UCLA Pro-Test became a reality, researchers on campus would hide away when on campus demonstration came our way. No more. Dr.…
-
Teen learning exaggerates rewards – Bad decisions and brain development
Teens tend to make some seriously stupid decision (including teen drinking and driving), at least when compared to younger kids and older adults. We’ve all heard that brain development during that part of life plays a role in this but the question is: What exactly about brain development makes teens more risky? There are a…
-
About Addiction: Drug Withdrawal in Newborns, Heroin, and Harm Reduction
There’s so much to learn about addiction nowadays – Psychological theories, new stories, neuroscience research, and more. At All About Addiction we try to make the information easy to digest, so when you need to sort of the latest information about addiction, come see us, we’ll help. Harm reduction – Heroin and Injecting Drugs Irish…
-
Recovery from addiction: Stigma and many obstacles, but no excuses!
Many of the people in my life nowadays forget that I’m an ex-convict. Still, I get daily reminders that the “ex” part of convict doesn’t carry much weight. I also know that I have it easy because I have a Ph.D. after my name. For many others in recovery, things are even harder. Still, when…
-
Tying up every loose end – Keeping my head above water
You may have noticed (or maybe not) that I’ve been slacking a little on the writing end of All About Addiction (A3). I love my readers and so I wanted to make sure that you were all in on everything that’s going on so that you don’t feel left out (my wife taught me that!). Now…
-
UCLA coverage of All About Addiction – Adi in the news
We don’t normally toot our own horn, but this one is big! If you haven’t yet had a chance to check it out, make sure you read the recent UCLA Newsroom story about Adi Jaffe, A3’s originator, and about All About Addiction. The story chronicles much of the stuff we’ve already talked about on A3,…
-
A million ways to treat an addict
When I was still attending my addiction counseling classes at UCLA, we often discussed the many different tools now available when treating drug abuse (CBT, 12 step, medications, rapid detox, etc.). Still, most of the class members focused on how many of these don’t work with everyone and how some have actually resulted in problems…