Both alcohol and drugs create a dangerous welcome mat for any disease – coronavirus included. For alcohol users, excessive drinking can damage many internal organs – including your overall immune system. For drug users, especially opioid users, it can directly affect lung compacity. All of this means that those with substance use disorder can be
Many people are drawn to this industry because of personal experience or a passion for working with substance use disorders. Some people find recovery for themselves and then want to share the gift with others, while some people focus their studies on this population while in graduate school. Not me. When I was nearing graduation,
Addiction covers a wide spectrum. Some people perceive addiction as a voluntary lack of discipline while others view it as an involuntary physical condition. So what is addiction? Well, according to the American Society of Addiction Medicine (ASAM), addiction is a primary, chronic disease of brain reward, motivation, memory, and related circuitry. It’s important to
There is no doubt that we are in the midst of a devastating heroin epidemic. Every day, opioid overdoses are responsible for more than 130 deaths across America. These overdoses are destroying families and ravaging entire communities. They are ruthless and terrifying. Nobody is immune to these horrifying statistics, and people of all ages and
Withdrawal can undoubtedly be the ugliest part of the addiction and recovery cycle. It can be emotionally and physically excruciating for the individual experiencing it. However, even for loved ones, it can be just as challenging and heartbreaking to watch. Fortunately, most withdrawal processes are not life-threatening. With appropriate supervision and monitoring, peak symptoms often
It’s your greatest fear. It’s a living nightmare, and it’s a nightmare that keeps you anxious, hypervigilant, and even obsessed. Watching loved ones struggle with an addiction is one of the hardest experiences you can encounter. There is such a moment of relief when they complete treatment or start to embrace the concepts of sobriety.
America has a devastating opioid problem, and heroin rates continue to rise every year, with about a million people using it in the past year. Heroin, of course, has its distinct, life-threatening risks. Every use results in potentially fatal consequences. Furthermore, as more and more drug dealers lace heroin with harder, cheaper substances like fentanyl,
If you or a loved one has struggled with alcoholism, then undoubtedly you have had some experience with alcohol cravings. When someone is addicted to a drug like alcohol, the chances are that they’ll experience a very strong desire for that substance when they don’t have any. Learning to manage these cravings is one of
It’s no doubt a ravaging addiction epidemic is plaguing both large cities and small rural towns across the country. In the past two decades alone, there has been an explosion of prescription drug misuse. Approximately 18 million Americans abuse their prescription medication, with 5,480 people initiating prescription pain reliever use each day. While many people
Drug addiction is not only dangerous for the person who is struggling with it, but for those around them. It can be challenging to understand and deal with someone who is addicted to drugs – especially if you’re not confident that they’re dealing with a drug problem. Because of the way that many struggling addicts
