Alcoholics and drug addicts typically go through a common array of emotions in an addiction recovery program. Following the initial period of physical withdrawal, they will experience periods of exhaustion, then elation as they enjoy their first days away from the substances that they have abused. They inevitably hit a period of boredom and fatigue
Category: Other Disorders
Being a Man Means Admitting When You Screwed Up
History is replete with examples of men who have proven the aphorism that “the cover-up is worse than the crime.” It may be out of vogue in popular culture to discuss how a person can achieve or improve a level of “manliness”, but admitting and taking ownership of mistakes is a hallmark of maturity and
How Methadone is Used to Treat Heroin Addiction
Individuals who are addicted to heroin and other opiate products, including oxycodone, will experience severe and often-dangerous physical and psychological withdrawal symptoms when they stop using these drugs. Those symptoms are cited as a primary reason for relapses when heroin addicts are in rehab. Methadone is used to ease the worst of those symptoms and
An Introduction to a Traditional 12-Step Addiction Recovery Program
Traditional 12-step addiction recovery programs have been endorsed by numerous public health organizations, including the U.S. National Institute of Health, the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, the American Psychiatric Association, and the U.S. Department of Veterans’ Affairs, as a cost effective approach to addiction treatment and recovery. They have been proven effective to
What Does Crack Cocaine Do To Your Body?
Crack cocaine is the same chemical product as powdered cocaine, but with a different delivery system. Powder cocaine is a water-soluble “salt” form of the chemical, while crack cocaine is a fat-soluble form that is absorbed more readily and more quickly into a user’s body when it is smoked. Crack’s effects are felt more quickly
What Is Going Through An Addict’s Mind?
Individuals who are fortunate not to suffer from drug addiction or alcoholism will have a difficult time in understanding the mind and thought processes of a drug addict or alcoholic. It will seem apparent to everyone, including a substance abuser, that drugs and alcohol are harming every aspect of the addict’s or alcoholic’s life, including
Alcohol Poisoning: Why Binge Drinking Is Not Harmless
Binge drinking and excessive alcohol consumption can and will cause you grievous harm even if you are not an alcoholic. At high levels, alcohol is a fatal poison that can cause irreparable brain damage if it does not kill you. Because alcohol absorption and processing rates are different for different people, you might suffer alcohol
How Marijuana Use Has Changed Through History
Marijuana has been used for almost five thousand years. Early Chinese medical texts include records of marijuana’s psychoactive and medicinal properties. Trade and cultural cross-breeding took marijuana from China and into North Africa and Europe, where it continued to have medicinal and occasional recreational uses. Spanish settlers brought marijuana to the North American continent in
How Does Your Brain’s Dopamine System Work?
Long before man developed a capacity for logic and reason, his brain developed a dopamine reward system that gave him an intuitive and instinctive capacity to distinguish good from bad. When intuitive man experienced what we now recognize as pleasure, his brain released a dopamine neurotransmitter that attached to certain receptors in his brain to
Recognizing the Signs and Symptoms of Meth Abuse
You don’t have to look long or hard to find photo evidence of the physical effects of chronic meth abuse. After several years of meth abuse, an addict’s skin will be scarred and sallow. He may have lost several teeth and his remaining teeth will be discolored and cracked. He will be thin from malnutrition.