Addiction and Recovery Articles

?The Serenity Prayer: How it Can Help Your Recovery from Addiction God, grant me the serenityr To accept the things I cannot change, The courage to change the things I can, And the wisdom to know the difference. These days, a lot of people have heard of the Serenity Prayer.

Anyone who has been around 12-Step programs for any length of time has inevitably heard the old saying "Denial is more than a river in Egypt." Indeed, when it comes to addictive behaviors of any sort, denial is definitely a whole lot more than a slogan. It is often the underlying dynamic that keeps an addiction ...

The term "codependency" can mean different things to different people. Over the years, a number of authors have offered a variety of definitions for this difficult dynamic that seems to affect more people than we can imagine. My definition is a very simple one: "codependency" occurs when we put other people's needs ...

Have you ever wondered about the impact of your thoughts? By now, most people have either seen the movie The Secret or have heard about it. By showing a number of different situations and how people respond to them, The Secret teaches that we are creating our lives with every thought we have, every second of the day ...

Most of us are aware that we want to be treated with respect by other people. You probably find yourself becoming upset, angry or hurt when someone acts in a disrespectful way toward you, because it feels as if that person does not value you enough to treat you well. SELF-RESPECT: WHAT EXACTLY IS IT?

In the immortal words of John Lennon, another year is over and a new one's just begun. Isn't it interesting how we, as a society, agree that this is the time to give ourselves and our lives a complete and total new makeover? We have decided that at this time of the year we will revisit the year we're leaving behind ...

I'm not at all shy to admit I was a regular pot smoker for over 7 years of my life. I smoked almost everyday because I enjoyed it. It was something that eased my mind and gave me a sense of relaxation. Over time however, I began to see that everything I thought I enjoyed about it was only an illusion. I was giving my power away to smoking weed. I thought I couldn't be happy, creative, or not stressed out without it. It became my "umbrella" so to speak. My protection and esca

According to Patrick Carnes, there are 11 sexual addiction behavior types. This information is important when when working with sexually addictive or codependents or co-addicts of sex addicts. As you will see, sex addiction comes in many forms and types. Anything from the lone web surfer who spends 5 hours a night looking at pornography, to the patron of a prostitute, to the exhibitionist (man in the raincoat), the voyeur, and others. Sexual Addiction Behavioral Types 1. Fantasy Sex - Sexually charged fantasies, relationships, and situations

Relationships are the heart and soul of our society. If our relationships with others were to disappear, most of us would feel all meaning slipping away from our lives. Our husbands, our wives, our children, our parents and extended family, our co-workers and our friends help to create what we become in life. We are a social species. Relationships unfortunately can falter. And when your relationship with your life partner is faltering, you need to act decisively.

Being married to a functioning alcoholic can cause many problems in a family. Tens of thousands of families in North America alone are struggling with this issue. A drinking problem can begin in many ways. For some people it begins with social drinking. Social drinking can gradually deteriorate into alcohol abuse and eventually into alcohol dependence. The drinking became a habit and the habit became alcohol dependence or alcoholism. It matters not whether the alcohol is in the form of beer, wine or hard liquor. Alcohol is alcohol in any shape or form.

Life is full of events that lead to personal distress. And stress can build upon stress which can lead to marriage problems. If one of you drinks to reduce stress, in time the drinking itself causes stress and becomes a major roadblock to solutions. Quite naturally, you look around to see what’s causing your distress and the only person there is your spouse, so you instinctively blame him or her for upsetting you. Blaming your spouse is a gut reaction that escalates marriage problems, because it generates resentment and alienation. It is the Achilles’ heel of an intimate relationship.r

Will You Use this Key Step to Change your Life? Commitment is one key to losing weight, getting in shape, learning a new skill, finding your soul mate, getting a better job, learning a new language, running a marathon, going back to school, drinking less, spending time with your kids or communicating better with your partner. Commitment gets things going. You may be one of those people who can commit to personal change and follow through just like the women in the weight-loss adds on TV. If so, congratulations! But, for the rest of us, it's not always that easy.

If you live with an alcoholic you will almost certainly feel shame. Some people will experience it to a very high level others less so but almost everyone who lives with an alcoholic experiences it to some degree. You will probably feel anxious that people will discover your secret, that they will judge you and, inevitably, will find you unacceptable to be around decent people. Seeing it written down like that it probably seems stupid. How could anyone feel that.

The Flame of Love Byr Payam Ghassemlou Ph.D. On a daily basis, many of us spend a lot of time thinking about our life challenges. We think about all sorts of difficult situations, like financial problems, and make ourselves believe we can’t handle them. Catastrophic thinking about our lives bombards us with anxiety and contributes to our feeling of insecurity.

What Is Codependencyr Codependency is a learned behavior that refers to an obsessive need for affection, attention and affirmation. It is also known as “relationship addiction” because; this relationship based on emotional dependency is the other side of the coin of emotionally destructive and abusive.r

When you free-associate with the concept of creativity, what arises? Perhaps what you connect to involves turning ideas into reality and plumbing the depths of imagination. Perhaps you think of particular artistic mediums, or of ways of being that entail risk taking, and exploration. For some, creativity is a soulful expression of self in whatever way fully reflects that person’s essence. Humanistic psychologist Abraham Maslow asked, “The key question isn’t ‘what fosters creativity?’ but it is why in God’s name isn’t everyone creative?

As many people in recovery have probably heard, (and often ignored or debated) it is detrimental to early recovery to become involved in romantic relationships. This article will discuss some of the reasoning behind the often-proposed suggestion “no relationships for the first year.” Perhaps ...

When you walk into a 12-Step meeting, one of the first things you may see is a sign that says, “We Care.” Though short and seemingly insignificant, this message highlights one of the components of 12-Step recovery that makes the program so effective: empathy. What Is Empathy? In its broadest sense, empathy is central to what it means to be fully human. It allows us to tune into how someone else is feeling and gives us insights into the thoughts, emotions and behaviors of other people.

“One ring to rule them all, One Ring to find them. One Ring to bring them all, and in the darkness bind them. In the Land of Mordor where the shadows lie.” -J.R.R. Tolkien

Dysfunctional relationships are relationships that create more emotional turmoil than satisfaction. Relationships are part of the human experience. But what happens if one or both partners have never been involved in a happy relationship, or had one modeled for them as a child? Chances are they ...

There are very fuzzy boundaries between helping and enabling. If you’re enabling, you think that you’re helping, but what you’re doing is anything but helpful. Here's some information so that you don't confuse the two. Helping When you help someone you are doing something that they cannot do for themselves -- but here’s where the line gets blurred. Ex: If I ask you to help me by mailing my letter, the nice thing would be to do it.

The human ego is like a chained up dog. It is always hungry, and it depends on others to feed it. Go a day without social validation and you will feel deep pains of starvation in your soul. It’s as though the little man or woman inside encounters others with a silent plea, “Tell me I’m okay.” Not receiving the desired affirmation is painful enough. But what happens when we receive subtle or not-so-subtle indicators that someone thinks we are not okay—that we are not

With the costs of private rehab reaching as much as $20 000 per month and more, those people without private health insurance or the means to pay for rehab often wonder what they can do to better painful and crippling addictions to drugs and or alcohol.nnIt's unfortunate that everyone is not in a position to benefit from the high standard of care as is offered at better private rehabs, but as our current health care reality precludes universal access, we are left with few opt

Alcoholism is a serious problem affecting nearly 18% of all Americans at some time in their lives. There are several factors which can make a person more susceptible to an addiction to alcohol. These include a family history of alcohol addiction, a personal history of mental illness, high levels of stress or major life changes. Peer pressure can even play a role in the development of an addiction to alcohol. Moderate drinking is defined as 1 to 2 drinks per day for men and 1

Drug smuggling operations can rely on willing or unwilling couriers. In either case, the transport possibilities are seemingly limitless. Cartels and small-time transporters alike are driven by the high profitability of the drug trade and they will go to any length necessary to accomplish their goals. Here are some of the most widely-used methods of drug transport. -Willing Couriers- People willingly transport drugs from one country to another every day. Their methods range f

Methamphetamine is much different from regular amphetamine pills. Without going into a chemistry lesson, meth is simply a more refined or condensed form of amphetamine. It is much more powerful than what some people might think of as diet pills or speed. It produces both an intense feeling of energy and strong euphoric pleasure at the same time. Some of the intensity depends on how quickly it gets into the system. This drug in pill form, taken orally, is slow to produce this effect. Injecting it or smoking it is a completely different experience.

According to the most recent statistics, the divorce rate, often quoted (even by this author in psychology classes) as 50% of marriages, is actually closer to the low 40 percentile. (Divorce Rate: It's Not as High as You Think, By Dan Hurley, The New York Times, April 19, 2005). But that does not negate the fact that the United States has the highest divorce rate in the world per capita. The fact that so many American marriages end in divorce leads to the question is marriage an outdated institution? I think the answer is dependent on some of your personal variables.

Purple Drink Promethazine and Codeine containing cough syrup abuse has become popular in certain circles, especially in Houston and the South. Mixed with soft drinks and soda, it is drank and taken in high doses creating a euphoric effect that can "slow" people down. This relatively new phenomenon of abuse is different from over-the-counter cough syrups such as Robitussin DM which contains dextromethorphan. The promethazine and codeine cough syrups are available only by prescription, but as with many drugs, people are finding legal and illegal ways to find it. A Potent Combination

Where is the line between support and enabling? Support means you’re doing something because someone can’t do for themselves -- caring for a two-year-old, or preparing meals for your elderly grandmother, for instance. Enabling is giving assistance that makes it easier for someone to continue on the wrong track -- like paying credit-card bills for a shopaholic, making excuses for work absences caused by drunkenness, or supporting a person who uses drugs.

Depression, in its various forms, affects nearly 19 millio Americans each year according to the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH). With prolonged major depression, shortages or imbalances of mood-influencing chemicals in the brain usually play a role. Studies show that depressive ...

Codes of ethics and standards of practice are set forth by professional associations such as the American Counseling Association (ACA) and the National Association of Alcoholism and Drug Abuse Counselors (NAADAC). Such codes define principles of ethical behavior required by the profession. Additionally, treatment centers such as the Hazelden Foundation defines requirements for employees designed to ensure consistent ethical behavior across the organization (Hazelden.org).

Whenever I have used the word cure in speaking about alcoholics or addicts in the presence of people who work in substance abuse treatment, they’ve cut me off in mid-sentence, as if I had uttered an obscenity. “There’s no such thing! Alcoholism and addiction are forever!” I was told again and again.nnSome therapists actually feel threatened when they hear me speak of a cure, and they become quite aggressive. They constantly hold up that basic precept of Alcoholics Ano

Understanding the Role of Values Values are intended to help you lay a solid foundation for permanent change. This three part series is focused on the single most important aspect of your recovery: your values. Specifically, your ability to recognize, develop and use your values in practical ways. Values: What Are They?

Over the past few years, I have examined the effectiveness of Alcoholics Anonymous and a lively discussion has followed these posts. AA is a group that many have very strong feelings about - both positive and negative. For some, AA has been a life-saver and allowed them to manage their addictions, while for others, the experience has not been as positive, and, in fact, has been quite horrible.

Why is it so important to enter into an inpatient drug rehab rather than an outpatient? For one, the alcoholic or drug addict will be committed to staying for the duration of the rehab program and not be able to use drugs or alcohol. Also there is no outside environmental condition like drug dealers, drug friends, or relationship problems that will enter into the person who is receiving treatment. These issues are generally why outpatient is not effective. Not to mention duri

Often when I teach alcohol awareness classes clients query me , "Is drinking really that bad for me?" This article will talk about some of the main physical benefits of abstaining from alcohol, and then will discuss the mental and psychological advantages of quitting boozing.

Computers are a very important part of our life. One can say that, playing computer games, surfing the internet, chatting with friends, social networking etc. are regular activities a person may perform every time he or she logins. Sometimes the above mentioned activities can become an obsession that gives us an unhealthy emotional attachment. Computer addiction can occur before we know it. Valuable hours spend surfing and playing games can affect our daily lifestyle as a per

One of the most successful advertising campaigns is Nike's "Just do it." It works for selling sneakers. It doesn't work for overcoming sex addiction. Anything – reading, eating, exercising, working, talking - can be used addictively. About 20 years ago I helped a woman who went to sleep whenever she felt stressed out. She'd spend days in bed, then wake up suffering a sleep addiction hangover. She couldn't overcome her addiction by "just doing it." In the world of addiction,

If you knew the real figures, you would be astonishedhedat how many of the men and women in your life secretly have a pornography addiction. Some of the fresh surveys indicate that as many as 70% of men and 25% of women struggle with this topic. And unfortunately, they have to keep it a secret. Ask people at the local supermarket, or in your church, and you would think this was no more than a conundrum in some other city. But ask the people who see the truth- the local divorc

Anxiety attacks aren't always composed of sudden, debilitating bouts of depression, melancholia, and worry like some people would have us think. As a matter of fact, anxiety and stress is at it's most troubling when it creeps up on us slowly, in the course of our daily lives. Instead of being a ...

The "dance" of codependency requires two people: the pleaser/fixer and the taker/controller. This inherently dysfunctional dance can only happen with one partner who is a codependent and another partner who is a narcissist (abuser or addict). Codependents do not know how to emotionally disconnect or avoid significant relationships with individuals who are selfish, controlling, and harmful to them. They find partners who are experienced with their dance style: a dance that begins as thrilling and exciting, but ends up rife with drama, conflict, and feelings of being trapped.

I recently received an e-mail from a woman who believes her husband is a functioning alcoholic. Joan (alias) recently took the Alcoholism Test and then emailed me. Although a few details are changed or left out for privacy reasons, Joan began with: "I was researching functional alcoholism and came across your site. I took the Alcoholism Test to determine if my husband would be considered a functioning alcoholic. I have not yet spoken with anyone about this, but just researched Al-Anon and plan on attending a meeting . . . " Joan went on to make the following points:r

If you’re looking for advice on how to stop drinking and taking drugs, hopefully I can help. But before I do that, let me give you the bad news first ... If you’re looking for a genuine solution to alcoholism or drug addiction and really want to stop drinking and using, ultimately ...

Your pain is the breaking of the shell that encloses your understanding.rn- Kahlil Gibran The intention of this article is to encourage the healing of the traumatized child. Carl Jung said: “ In every adult there lurks a child – an ete al child, something that is always becoming, is never completed and calls for unceasing care, attention and education. That is the part of the human personality which wants to develop and become whole.” Healing from trauma is a complex and courageous journey back to the ete al child…returning to the inherent longing for wholeness.

Alcoholism, drug abuse and eating disorders are often misunderstood. These diseases include a soul-sickness. The people in the grips of these afflictions are spiritually ill, too. The illness can even spread to family members and friends. The recovery process has produced countless untold ...

Boy do we hate change. Before recovery I had few tools or healthy ways of dealing with change. If something ended in my life, it often felt like the end of my life. Once I entered the hallway, it was dark indeed. As I worked through recovery, I learned many valuable life lessons. The first was ...

Despite a rather exhaustive search of the literature and Internet, there is a scarcity of information comparing Cranial Electrotherapy Stimulator (CES) devices to one another in terms of mechanism of action or efficacy. While Cranial Electrotherapy devices may have markedly different waveforms, they all seem to have similar benefits for as of yet scientifically unclear reasons.

Ok, so what do I do about it? Here we go and lets get right down to it! Mental Chatter versus Emotions Victim Behavior is associated with many emotions, Shame is probably the most prevalent. Feeling overwhelmed is another. Feeling shame and being overwhelmed isn't particularly useful-nso let's divide and conquer by breaking this down into 5 bite-size steps: Summary Step one- Identify your dysfunctional characteristics -- habitual (recurring), problematic behaviors. Step tw

All people to some extent have a narcissistic personality, in that they are self-interested and want to secure well being, love and success for themselves. These are the defining factors of a person who has a healthy self-esteem and wants to progress in life. There are however, great differences between ‘normal’ narcissistic tendencies and the ‘pathological’ narcissistic tendencies which define an individual with narcissistic personality disorder. Another way to descr