This study referenced in a recent Medical News Today article showed that teens undergoing treatment for substance abuse reduced their own craving for alcohol and drugs when helping other adolescents do the same. The results highlighted that juvenile offenders who helped others with the same substance abuse problems largely increased their treatment responses.

The study was conducted in Northeast Ohio at the largest adolescent residential facility for substance abuse treatment, where the majority of the participants were marijuana dependent. Sixty percent of participants were dependent on alcohol and were all interviewed in their first 10 days of treatment and then again two days after their discharge.

Pagano and colleagues discovered that the 12-step program improved more than half of the end results and included decreases in two types of cravings, reduced egotistical entitlement and improved their psychosocial functioning.

Teens also participated more in treatment if they had religious practices such as prayer and worship, which led to better health outcomes. Pagano explains that youth entering treatment with a religious background tend to have an easier time in the recovery program.

Teens Helping Other Teens with Substance Abuse Decrease Their Own Cravings is a post from: Drug Addiction Treatment

To diminish the association, therapists often work with the patient on establishing a new association to a stimulus. For instance, if a bar setting triggers a response to smoke for a patient trying to stop smoking, a therapist may encourage a different association with bars. However, when the patient encounters the stimulus in a real-world setting, the cigarettes win out and the patient relapses. In response to this problem, many therapists instead encourage the patient to avoid the stimulus altogether, or as much as possible.

An article published in Current Directions in Psychological Science, a journal of the Association for Psychological Science, concludes that this method is not effective because the therapist has no control over the environments that the patient is in. The authors of the paper are Ralph R. Miller, a professor of psychology at the State University of New York at Binghamton, and SUNY’s Mario A Laborda.

Miller says that a more effective route is to make the new memory as strong as possible. The process, referred to as “extinction” by experts, is a way of teaching the patient new memories that replace the old memories. It is also often referred to as “exposure therapy.”

The researchers believe that there are four key elements to making the extinction memory more vibrant and more long-lasting. The first is to give more therapy, and the second is to conduct the sessions in various locations and settings, such as in different rooms. The third key is to strategically space the extinction sessions over the period of therapy. Finally, the paper recommends that the treatment sessions be separated by time.

Miller explains that strategically spacing the sessions to increase the therapy’s effectiveness takes advantage of known principles of learning. Increasing practice reinforces what the patient has learned and spacing the sessions provides better results than lumping all of the sessions close together.

Miller also explains the importance of animal laboratory studies in discovering new addiction treatment options. The use of animals is improving, says Miller, because there have been new developments in the modeling of human psychopathology for not only screening medications, but also for understanding behavioral treatments.

The paper highlights the use of careful timing and varied location contexts to reinforce the use of new memories to overcome an addiction.

Creating New Memories for Addiction Treatment is a post from: Drug Addiction Treatment

Melanie Griffith, daughter of the Hollywood beauty Tippi Hedren, says that her entrance into a life of addiction started at a young age. The 54-year-old actress says that she never felt fully loved as a child and so began to erase difficult emotions with alcohol as early as age 10. Drinking wine as though it were soda pop led her down a dangerous path.

By the time she was 18, she says that she was living a wild lifestyle that included alcohol, cocaine and sex. She married actor Don Johnson (twice) and the two lived in addiction until they were finally divorced. Next, Ms. Griffith married and divorced actor Steven Bauer. When that marriage ended, she turned again to alcohol to blunt the pain.

In 1989, she entered a drug rehab facility for the first time (which would be followed by two other drug rehab attempts) after the director on a movie set pulled her aside for showing up to work drunk. It was in drug rehab that former husband Don Johnson, himself now clean of drugs, offered to support Griffith’s efforts to change her life.

Ms. Griffith eventually married her current husband Antonio Banderas and the couple has remained together for over 15 years. He stood beside her when she entered drug rehab in 2000 for addiction to painkillers and again in 2009 when she succumbed once again to the abuse of prescription drugs. Mr. Banderas described his wife as a lion in her fight against addictive behavior.

The couple has been open about other fights, too. Hollywood couples have marriage issues just like the rest of us. But their determination to fight for health and family seems to have won the day. During her last visit to drug rehab, Ms. Griffith says that the entire family went with her to therapy and spent at least two weeks together actively supporting her efforts to change.

As often happens in lives marked by substance abuse, Ms. Griffith tried for years to muffle the pain of emptiness in her life with a temporary “buzz.” It doesn’t work, even for the beautiful, talented and famous. Thankfully, she has been as open about the value of her support network in battling addiction as she has been about the battle itself.

Melanie Griffith’s Life-Long Battle with Addiction is a post from: Drug Addiction Treatment

Our healthcare system, at that time, consisted of hospitals, mental institutes, religious paths, and short-term and street programs that housed addicts. These approaches were grossly negligent in providing what addicts needed, according to NJ.com, and eventually programs ventured into self-help and more long-term treatment and recovery programs. These programs were more effective in retaining the addict for treatment and getting them on a path towards long-term recovery.

In the past three to four years, there have been a number of avenues to help with detox and continuum care to meet the needs of those with addiction – and there has been plenty of research on their effectiveness. The role of the addict in helping themselves continues to be the mainstay of effectiveness in their recovery and ongoing treatment.

However, the federal government seems to be moving us back in time by favoring the short-term method popular in the 1960s. The role of the addict helping themselves is not part of the equation. The ACA, or Affordable Care Act, gives no mention of the need for long-term treatment as part of the plan for helping addicts. There is little reference to the addict helping themselves as part of the approach to recovery.

What Is the Best Way to Approach Addiction Treatment and Recovery? is a post from: Drug Addiction Treatment

The actor said in interviews that his story started during his teen years with experimentation with cigarettes and marijuana, along with alcohol use. Eventually, the experimentation included crystal meth and other substances, leading Jeremy Jackson to describe periods of total desperation in his discussions with media sources. Jackson made a decision to leave the Baywatch cast, a decision many reports say are linked with the changes the drug addiction caused.

In 2000, Jackson faced arrest for producing methamphetamines; his total rehab experiences stand at five attempts. Now in this 30s and calling himself in full-time recovery, Jeremy Jackson has also appeared on VH1′s “Celebrity Rehab,” addressing his multi-year drug and alcohol addictions on the national camera.

While the actor is reported to be living without drug and alcohol addiction today, and has been for a few years, his addiction story also includes another element – injected steroid abuse. Jackson says the pressure to have a body that would be accepted at acting auditions pulled him in to steroid use, which he addressed on Celebrity Rehab. He said that the steroids quickly drew him away from meaningful activities and led him down a path of unhappiness.

Reflecting on his work to overcome the steroid addiction, Jackson says the realization that his inner life and inner-self were more important than his outer self marked a tangible turning point. This turning point, he says, began to occur through his time on Celebrity Rehab, helping him escape the use of steroids as a way to boost his self-esteem. Now, says Jackson, his life focus includes assisting others with substance abuse addictions to chart their own path to recovery.

Steroid abuse, or anabolic steroid abuse, is linked to serious health risks and death, including severely elevated blood pressure and dangerously abnormal cholesterol levels. Liver damage, skin problems and heart damage are also side effects linked to steroids. The drugs were medically developed in the 1930s to treat growth-related conditions, but abuse by athletes led to a ban from all major sporting institutions and events. According to the National Institute on Drug Abuse, teen use of steroids is at 1.3 percent for eighth graders and sophomores, with around 2.2 percent of high school seniors experimenting with steroids.

Many teens and young adults can be drawn to steroids for the short-term feelings of strength and confidence, but the mental effects of steroid abuse are also severe. Bouts of mania or aggression can lead users to commit acts of violence or self-harm. Severe mood swings are also reported, and can be escalated by coexisting substance abuse or alcohol abuse problems.

Addiction Recovery from Drugs, Alcohol, Steroids is New Message from Jeremy Jackson is a post from: Drug Addiction Treatment

1. You Awake Each Day with a Sense of PurposeGoing through rehab and getting to the point where you begin recovery takes a lot out of you. Now that the treatment stage and getting clean and sober is behind you, looking at your new life in sobriety is a whole new experience. For many it is the breath of fresh air that they haven’t known in many months or years. For others early recovery is a chance for a do-over, a fresh start, a chance to create a life that’s worthwhile and open to discovery.

   It may seem like waking up each day with a sense of purpose is a natural thing – and it is. But it doesn’t occur overnight. True, you may have some days when you’ve had a string of good things happen in your recovery and you feel really great about your progress, but there will also be other days when you feel as if you’re climbing through mud uphill. It does get better.

   Think of each day as a bright and shiny gift. If you look at the day unfolding and feel a sense of purpose – you know what you need to do and feel confident about your ability to do it – you will know that your recovery is working. Again, it doesn’t have to be every day that you feel such sense of purpose for your recovery to be working. If the majority of the mornings when you awaken you feel this way, though, you are definitely on the right track. Keep doing what you’re doing and your recovery will continue to strengthen.

1. You Embrace Change as a Positive Aspect of GrowthComing from where you once were in your addiction – substance abuse of drugs or alcohol or both, process addictions such as compulsive gambling, compulsive spending, compulsive sexual behavior, workaholism – it may be extremely difficult to begin to embrace change. After all, you reason, you’ve had to go through a tremendous amount of change already and maybe you don’t feel up to tackling much more at the present time.

   That’s perfectly normal, so don’t beat yourself up about the fact that you may be a little leery about change – right now. Just do yourself a big favor and hold out the possibility that you may wish to look at change in a different light. How can this help, you ask? Good question. Here’s the answer.

   Consider the seasons in nature. Without change, there would be no growth. Everything would stagnate. Without the rains of spring, no new growth would appear. Full bloom occurs in summer, and fall begins the time for shedding. Winter allows for deep roots to grow and for rest and preparation for spring. Human beings are like the seasons in that there are specific times for change and different processes we go through to become nurtured and grow. When we are addicted, we are a little like the death stage of nature, but we counter that by going through rehab and getting our bad habits pruned. Then, like spring, we’re ready to bloom. See? We’re talking about natural change.

   Any period of gloom that may descend during early recovery isn’t cause for alarm. You may just need a little more time to get acclimated to your newfound sobriety. Continue going to your 12-step meetings, get a sponsor and start working the steps and network like crazy with fellow 12-step group members. Re-connect and/or strengthen the ties with your family – your other crucial support network. Gradually, a little bit each day, you will start looking at your life in recovery in a more positive light. You will begin to see that change is something not to be feared, but to be welcomed.

   If you are at this point now where you embrace change as a positive aspect of growth, you know that your recovery is on solid footing. Good work. Keep it up.

1. You are Able to See How you Build Upon your SuccessesHaving perspective means that we’re able to see beyond the present and to view changes in our lives with the ability to assess how well we’ve done and where we can make improvements. Not everyone is equipped immediately upon completion of rehab to be able to think things through and see how all actions fit in perspective. This is something that takes time to develop.

   And you do need to develop this ability. What it boils down to is a little bit of trial and error. You go to 12-step meetings and have intense discussions with your 12-step sponsor. You talk about and listen to others tell their experiences about what is the best strategy to employ to overcome triggers and cravings and urges, how to deal with insomnia and anxiety or depression, how to begin to build self-confidence and a whole range of topics that are so important to those new to recovery.

   What happens is that you start out trying whatever looks and sounds good. Never mind that you have no experience in doing any of this. You know that you need to “work the steps” and you’re eager – and a bit frightened and confused – to get going. Guess what? Sooner or later you stumble upon a winning combination. You’ve tried something your sponsor talked about that worked for him, added something you heard in the rooms, and then put a finishing touch on it by tailoring the strategy to your own circumstances. Voila! This is a success, and one that you should feel justifiably proud of.

   The key to one success is to be able to build upon it. Just as you analyzed what was available in your toolkit (coping strategies, how to decrease stress, better ways to communicate with others, and so on), you need to be able to look at the string of successes you’ve achieved in your recovery and see how you can build upon them to take yourself to the next level.

   In other words, you are advancing in your recovery journey, able to tackle steps that may have seemed too formidable to you before. Each step that you work through is yet another success in the foundation that is your recovery.

   When you see how you can build upon your successes, you are surely on the right path in recovery. Your recovery is working, and that’s a tremendous achievement.

1. You are Flexible and Adaptive to Bend and Compromise When NecessaryRemember the Aesop fable about the oak and the reed? If not, here it is:

   “An oak and a reed were arguing about their strength. When a strong wind came up, the reed avoided being uprooted by bending and leaning with the gusts of wind. But the oak stood firm and was torn up by the roots.”

   Right away, you can get what the value of remaining flexible and adaptive means in recovery. Sure, there are going to be many obstacles and hurdles that will come your way, just as they do for every person in recovery. It doesn’t matter if you are only a few weeks new to recovery or if you’ve been in effective recovery for many years, tough times and crises major and minor will still occur. It isn’t the fact of the occurrence of these challenges – since they are bound to occur – but how the individual makes use of all that he or she has learned, is flexible and adaptive enough to bend and compromise when necessary.

   Sound too difficult? On the other hand, does it sound too easy? The interesting thing about recovery is that no two situations are alike. Even the same person will react differently each time a similar situation arises. This is the benefit of cumulative experience, of learning how to build upon your successes, and embracing change as a positive aspect of growth.

   You can’t allow yourself to become bowled over by a crisis. If you feel ill-equipped to deal with it, don’t sit home alone and stew about it. Ask for help from your 12-step sponsor and fellow group members. Talk with your loved ones about what you need. Give yourself time to think about the best way to handle whatever’s going on and then take the appropriate action.

   Filter everything that you do through the lens of how it fits with your recovery plan. Recognize that you cannot remain rigid and still be standing after a hurricane (or major crisis) strikes. You need to be flexible – like the reed in the Aesop fable – and adapt to changing circumstances. With the knowledge that you gain day by day and the wealth of successes you’ve achieved, you will soon realize that your recovery is working. You are flexible and adaptable – both hallmarks of someone who’s recovery is on-track.

1. You Feel Increased Self-Confidence and Self-EsteemEveryone who enters early recovery remembers what it was like to feel beaten and hopeless. Some experienced such trials and tribulations during the depths of their addiction that they considered or tried suicide. Some were incarcerated. Others lost family, jobs, went into bankruptcy and personal ruin. Self-hatred, loss of self-confidence and self-esteem were etched deep into each person’s persona.

   When you first entered recovery, you may have felt a plethora of emotions. On the one hand, you heard and tried to believe that you had made a great achievement simply by getting clean and sober and completing rehab. It certainly wasn’t easy, but now that you’re in recovery that’s not so easy either. You wonder where you’re going to be able to find that rainbow you so desperately seek. Where is the horizon of self-confidence and self-esteem that your counselor told you marks effective recovery?

   Those of you who have been in recovery for some time know – and are probably smiling right now – that self-confidence and self-esteem builds over time. With each day, week, and month of sobriety that you actively work the steps and concentrate on your recovery you get stronger and better able to deal with whatever comes your way. This is you building up your self-confidence. And, as you make strides by increasing your store of self-confidence, guess what? Your self-esteem begins to be restored as well.

   In fact, for some individuals who have been in long-term addiction, this awakening marks a kind of total rebirth. Lacking any sort of self-confidence or self-esteem, once such feelings start to blossom, it can be akin to a miracle – not only to the person in recovery but also to those who love and care about him.

   When you feel an increased sense of self-confidence about your abilities and capabilities, and your sense of self-esteem is restored or instilled, you know that your recovery is working. Don’t worry if it took a long time. The fact that you have it now is a testament to all your hard work and dedication. You deserve to feel great about yourself and your abilities in recovery.

1. You are Motivated to Help Others New to Recovery Get Their FootholdRecovery experts say that working recovery is a lifelong journey. You will always be in recovery. It isn’t a race. Recovery is forever. Therefore, you should never feel as if you have to hurry up and get there. The there is here and now. You can only live in the present. Here and now is where you act.

   Oftentimes people forget that they can’t change what happened in the past. It is also important to stress that you are not defined by your addiction. You have made the choice to be clean and sober and live in sobriety. That’s who you are. You act today to work your recovery. You also cannot worry about the future. That’s pointless. The future will evolve out of what you do or do not do today.

   Knowing that recovery is a lifelong journey, that you need to actively work your recovery each and every day, that you build upon your successes and increase your store of self-confidence and self-esteem, what’s the clue that you’re continuing to have effective recovery? If you’re doing everything as you should and things are going well, isn’t that enough?

   Well, it can be if that’s what works for you. There is no timetable etched in stone that says you need to be at this particular point at such and such a date. You decide how you feel. If you are inclined to want to help someone that’s new to recovery better understand how this whole recovery thing works, you may wish to consider becoming a sponsor. Remember how important your own sponsor was during your first days and weeks of recovery? You can be that pillar of support and understanding to someone else just walking in the room for the first time.

   Not ready to commit to being a sponsor yet? Don’t worry. There’s nothing that says you have to be a sponsor. You can help newcomers in other ways. Lend an understanding ear if someone approaches you. Talk about what worked well for you during group. Offer to help with group activities, to pick someone up and bring them to and from meetings if transportation is a problem. See how and when you can contribute of your time and expertise to benefit the entire group.

   You could also work in the greater 12-step organization, helping out at the district level or working national conventions. If you feel motivated to help others new to recovery get their foothold, start by talking with your sponsor and indicate that you’re ready. When you get to this point, you should feel confident that your recovery is working. Now, maybe you can help someone else begin their journey.

Recap

Let’s recap the six ways you know your recovery is working:

• You awake each day with a sense of purpose.
• You embrace change as a positive aspect of growth.
• You are able to see how you build upon your successes.
• You are flexible and adaptive to bend and compromise when necessary.
• You are motivated to help others new to recovery get their foothold.

If you already see yourself in each of these, you’re to be congratulated. If you’re there with some but not others, you’re probably well on your way. In any event, you’re doing all the right things, so just keep doing them. Recovery is a gift – one that you have truly embraced.

Six Ways to Know if Your Recovery is Working is a post from: Drug Addiction Treatment

"Generosity is not giving me that which I need more than you do, but it is giving me that which you need more then I do." – Both quotes by Khalil Gibran, Lebanese poet, writer, philosopher (1883-1931)

When we think of generosity, our thoughts usually center on the receipt of largesse, not the giving of ourselves. Yet in recovery, being generous of our time, effort and spirit is exactly what we most need to do. Why? Generosity is important to recovery because by giving to others more than looking to receive something ourselves we are moving beyond self-centeredness into the all-important area of growth that derives from caring for others.

It does take some doing to improve our ability to be generous toward others, however. Many of us are ill-equipped at first to do anything more than sustain our own sobriety – and that is hard enough. Over time, and given practice, each of us can do a little more in the way of opening ourselves up to doing more for others. A few kind words here, an extension of our help there, and we’re well on our way to building up our capacity to be generous.

When we see a newcomer to recovery struggling with doubts and confusion, offering our support and understanding – even while we need the same for ourselves – is being generous of spirit. It also helps us heal to be of service to others. In fact, there are countless ways to demonstrate our generosity. All it really takes is a willingness to want to do something good for others that takes us outside of ourselves. Start with a smile and a welcoming handshake. Everything else can flow from this beginning.

What if we start to feel as if we’re giving more than we should? If this thought occurs to us, perhaps we’re not being truly generous. Examine our motives for doing whatever it is that we’ve done. Are we looking for recognition and praise or are we really trying to help another? If, at the heart of it, we’re just looking to get something out of it, we’re not really being generous at all. In fact, the opposite is true.

The best way to improve on our own capacity for generosity is simply to begin to be generous. After some practice, it won’t seem that difficult at all. On the contrary, it will start to feel normal.  

Feeling Generous? How to Improve This All-Important Recovery Trait is a post from: Drug Addiction Treatment

Examine Your Motives

Before you can go into this wholeheartedly, it’s important to examine your motives for getting clean. Is it that you really want to ditch drugs and alcohol abuse once and for all and start living a clean and sober life? Or are you trying to detox yourself for a while to see what it’s like to live without substances? For some, it’s been so long that they can’t even remember what it feels like to wake up without being either in withdrawal or itching for a fix. They’ve been coked up, drunk, or stoned out of their mind for far too long to trust most of what they think or believe.

How can you know if your motives are sincere enough to help you withstand the rigors of detoxification and the treatment process? This is really a very personal decision, and only you will be able to determine if you genuinely want to change your life. And make no mistake about it, you do have to make some major changes.

Are you trying to change your behavior to impress someone else or because you’ve been given an ultimatum to clean yourself up or else? Neither of those motives will provide enough staying power for when the times get tough. You need more of a driving force coming from within yourself that motivates you to get clean – and stay that way.

The reason we start with motive is that only you can overcome your addiction. No one else can do it for you. They won’t be going through all the hard work. They won’t be the ones going through withdrawal and trying to learn new and healhier behaviors. Of course, if loved ones go through family treatment while you are in rehab, that’s another story. But it’s still you overcoming your addiction. Family members can – and should – learn about the disease and how they can best support your recovery, but it’s you that goes through the treatment process.

So, if you truly want to change your life by overcoming your addiction – even after years of substance abuse – you’re ready to go on to the next step.

See Your Doctor

The best place to start, especially after years of substance abuse that may have left you with a number of physical conditions brought on or exacerbated by addiction, is with your doctor. Make an appointment and go in for a complete physical exam. You need to have a brutally honest discussion with your physician about your addiction. No sugar coating the details, since that will just cloud the picture. You’re not there to paint an idyllic picture of your life. You’re there to tell it like it is: I’m addicted and I need help to get clean.

Your doctor will likely do a number of tests and will give you a rundown of the results, along with his or her recommendations. If you’re up-front about wanting to kick years of substance abuse, be prepared to answer some pretty probing questions. It’s important to be totally honest with your answers.

Ask for referrals or recommendations to treatment facilities that specialize in rehab for the type of substance abuse or addiction that you have. If you have multiple addictions – such as alcoholism and addiction to OxyContin and cocaine – or substance abuse and co-occurring mental health disorder, be explicit about your situation. Tell the doctor what you take, when you take it, and how often you take it.

Research Available Treatment

Those who have been abusing substances for years often have no clue where to start to find treatment. After visiting with your doctor, you should have at least a couple of suggestions, but there are other avenues to find appropriate treatment facilities.

Go on the Internet and do a search of the vast database of treatment facilities that’s maintained by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA). It’s called the Treatment Facility Locator (http://dasis3.samhsa.gov/) and includes more than 11,000 addiction treatment programs, including residential treatment centers, outpatient treatment programs, and hospital inpatient programs for drug addiction and alcoholism. Listings include treatment programs for cocaine, marijuana, and heroin addiction, as well as drug and alcohol treatment programs for adolescents, adults, seniors, and special groups (those with HIV/AIDS, gays, lesbians, criminal justice populations, and more). You can also contact the toll-free 24-hour confidential Treatment Referral Helpline at 1-800-662-HELP.

Once you find several drug addiction treatment centers that specialize in treating your particular type or types of addiction, get further information directly from the facility either by visiting their Web site or by calling them. Be sure to ask all the questions you need, and remember that while most of the facilities listed are capable of treating any substance abuse problem, it’s best to ask – especially if you have a co-occurring substance abuse and mental health disorder. Few facilities are equipped with the staff or training to handle dual-diagnosis clients.

Go More In-Depth with Investigation

Now, you’ll likely have narrowed the list down to a few treatment facilities, say two to three. Your next step is to gather as much information about each of them so that you can make an intelligent decision as to which one best serves your needs.

If you have insurance, you want to find out whether your coverage will accommodate your stay at the treatment facilities you’re looking at. If you need financial assistance, make sure that the facility offers a “sliding fee scale” or “payment assistance.” Inquire what is included in the cost of the program and what is considered extra. Definitely find out what type of aftercare or continuing care services are part of the overall treatment program.

You may wish to personally visit your short list of treatment facilities. The reason for this is to satisfy yourself that the facility will be able to handle your needs and that you feel confident in the professionalism and track record of the staff.

Enroll in Treatment

After all this legwork, now the hard part begins. You enroll or get admitted to the treatment facility and undergo a comprehensive interview and evaluation. This is similar to what you went through with your family doctor, if you took that initial step, but different in that this is a specialized facility that only deals with treating clients who are trying to overcome their addiction.

Following the interview and evaluation, a personalized treatment program will be created for you. Everything will be explained, including the length of the treatment plan, what, if any, medications will be prescribed (to help minimize discomfort and cravings during detox, for example, or to help with anxiety and depression), and how treatment will progress.

Then, if the facility includes medically-supervised detoxification services, you’ll go through a period where your body safely purges itself of harmful substances. Detox generally doesn’t last that long, but it’s vitally important because no treatment can begin until you are clean.

After detox, active treatment begins. While treatment is tailored to the individual, it generally consists of psychotherapy on an individual and group basis, educational lectures and discussions, various treatment modalities, as well as recreational and leisure activities. Each client is assigned a core treatment team that consists of a primary therapist, family therapist, psychiatrist, medical doctor, nurse and any other appropriate professionals. Most substance abuse treatment programs also include participation in 12-step groups.

Mindset During Treatment Makes a Huge Difference

Once you’re in treatment, you will do yourself an enormous favor by adopting a positive mindset. Treatment is not always going to be pleasant, although there will be many rewarding aspects about it that you will come to appreciate later. And you’ll become acquainted with individuals who can help you discover things about yourself that you didn’t know or talents that you never thought yourself capable of. But treatment isn’t a cake-walk. Don’t expect it to be.

Expect that during treatment you will have good days and bad days – and some in-between. Look at it this way. You’ve spent a lifetime abusing substances. It’s bound to take some time to undo all that damage and put your life back on track. For some, treatment affords them the opportunity to be clean and have a normal life for the first time in decades.
Time will go by very quickly. Before you know it, you will be creating your recovery plan with your therapist and getting ready for discharge. Make the most of your treatment time by learning all you can about how to deal with cravings and urges, how to manage depression, what to do when anxiety strikes, and how to live a healthier lifestyle.

Make it a point to find out what aftercare or continuing care services are available to you, when and where they are held, and any and all specifics about this invaluable care that you can get before you leave the treatment facility.

Home Again – Now Reality Sets In

Whether you were in treatment for 30, 60, 90 days or longer, the time comes when you leave the facility and go home. For long-term addicts, there may be a transition to a sober living home or other facility to assist in the reintegration back into society.

But let’s say you do go home. You have a family that’s there to support and encourage you in your recovery efforts – or you don’t have anyone. Either way, you’re bound to face some intense pressure, anxiety, bouts of depression, uncertainty – and some overwhelming cravings and urges. It’s different for everyone, of course, and coming home is harder for some than for others.

You can help yourself by sticking to your recovery plan, making your daily schedule and going to your 12-step meetings as often as you can. You need to take good physical care of yourself as well, since the ravages of addiction have likely resulted in a lot of accumulated damage. Be sure to eat well-balanced meals, drink plenty of water to hydrate yourself, and get 8 to 9 hours of sleep each night.

Don’t forget the value of physical exercise. This is often overlooked as something unneeded, when just the opposite is true. Not only does exercise help you become healthier physically, vigorous physical exercise produces endorphins. And these feel-good chemicals in the brain are nature’s natural pleasure resource that can wipe away depression and give you an emotional boost just when you need it most.

Prepare for Changes

One thing you’ll need to be ready for is a great deal of change. Your life can’t go on like it did before you entered treatment. That means that you’ll need to change your social life, avoid the so-called friends that you used to hang out with and get high, even change where you live or work, if that’s what it takes.

While drastic changes are discouraged during the first year of recovery, that only applies to deliberate change of major life events. You shouldn’t plan to get married or divorced, buy or sell a house, decide to have children, or up and quit your job the first thing when you get out of treatment.

But you do need to change the way you behave, the things you do on a daily basis, how you think about life and what it means to live clean and sober.

And, again, it won’t be easy.

Some days you may dread getting out of bed. Some nights you won’t be able to sleep for the cravings that keep you up. If you’re anxious, depressed, feel a total lack of self-confidence, call your 12-step sponsor, go see your therapist, or ask for the support and encouragment of your loved ones or close friends. Don’t be afraid to say you’re having a rough time. If you do feel the least bit uncomfortable, understand that this, too, is normal. After all, you’ve been living for years under the cloud of substance abuse. It takes time to just figure out what normal is. Give yourself time to adjust.

And you will adjust.

You do need to make new friends, people who are sober and share your desire to live a healthier lifestyle. You can start with your 12-step group members. They have all been in a situation similar to yours, although each person’s story is naturally different. What doesn’t change is that they’re all committed to helping newcomers to recovery. They’ll be invaluable allies as you face crises and opportunities. Listening to their stories and what’s worked for them will give you new insight into how you may be able to adapt their suggestions to your own situation.

What if You Relapse?

The “R” word shouldn’t cause you undue anxiety. The fact is that relapse, while common, doesn’t always happen – not even to those who have been addicted for years. Granted, it may be more likely with some long-term addictions than others, but it’s not automatic.

So, you shouldn’t fear it. Fear is counter-productive, anyway. Recovery experts and 12-step groups like say that relapse should be looked at in a different light. It isn’t a failure if you have a slip. It’s an opportunity to learn what didn’t work and to concentrate instead on the things that do work – and do more of them.

In fact, as long as you learn something from a relapse, you should just get back on track and keep moving forward in recovery. It doesn’t mean you have to start all over again. If, on the other hand, you have a major relapse, don’t get disheartened. Some individuals who had long abused substanves need to go through treatment more than once.
If your heart and mind are in the right place, if you truly want to undo a lifetime of substance abuse, perseverence and determination will help you get there.

Will Others See the New You?

You’re no longer the same individual that walked through the door into treatment. Over the months after you are in recovery and making progress each day, you will start to see for yourself the major changes you’ve made in the way you choose to live. This is, after all, your life. What you create for yourself in the future in terms of goals and dreams begins with what you do today.

Others will begin to notice the changes as well. You will have a light shining from within you that was all-but extinguished before when you were in the depths of addiction. You will have hope where you had none. You will be able to laugh, experience joy, make friends, learn new things, perhaps even love again, or for the first time.

Everyone loves a winner. Going through all the things that you did to overcome your lifetime of substance abuse, you are a winner of the first magnitude. Be proud of what you have accomplished, and keep living in the present, alive and grateful for the gift of life that you have chosen for yourself. A few years from now, when you look back on the long-ago days when you wondered if you had what it takes to undo a lifetime of substance abuse, you will smile and acknowledge that, yes, indeed you did.

Make the choice today. Your life in recovery awaits.

Trying to Undo a Lifetime of Substance Abuse? is a post from: Drug Addiction Treatment

Beyoncé related how she first came to know the Brooklyn chapter of Phoenix House, the nation’s leading non-profit provider of substance abuse and prevention services, when she was preparing for the role of Etta James in the 2008 film “Cadillac Records.”

To play the part of the former heroin addict, Beyoncé met with women in treatment at the Career Academy, and she was so moved by their powerful stories of addiction and recovery that she later donated her salary from the film.

Last year, she and her mother, who is also her business partner and a fashion designer, conceived of the idea of Phoenix House’s new cosmetology program.

The Beyoncé Cosmetology Center, which Beyonce is also funding, will offer a seven-month cosmetology training course for adult men and women, teaching the theory and practical skills that clients need to pass the New York State Cosmetology Licensure Exam.

As Beyoncé is a spokesperson for L’Oréal Paris, the company is generously providing all makeup, skin care, and hair care products.

“We were thrilled when Beyoncé and her mother Tina approached us about creating a cosmetology center for our clients,” said Phoenix House President and CEO Howard Meitiner. “Their generosity and compassion toward the men and women we serve is extraordinary. With this tremendous gift, they have given our clients a route to achieve successful, rewarding lives in recovery.”

Tina Knowles recalled how some of the stylists in the Houston salon she once owned struggled with addiction and other problems, but when they got behind the styling chair they could “throw down” with the best of stylists, and that the trade changed their lives.

“We all make mistakes, but as I learned from my daughter, it’s not how you fall down, but how you get up,” she said.

Beyoncé Offers Cosmetology Training for Recovering Addicts is a post from: Drug Addiction Treatment

Writers in Treatment (WIT) is a recovery program unlike any other in that it offers support specifically for writers who are struggling with substance abuse, addiction, or a behavioral disorder.

Founded last fall by former publisher Leonard Buschel, WIT’s mission is to prevent writers from succumbing to substance abuse and depressive disorders while enclosed in their isolated work environments. Most writers work from home or in other solitary, nonsocial conditions, which may cause them to unnoticeably develop certain behavioral conditions such as depression or anxiety disorders, or engage in unmonitored levels of alcohol or drug abuse. Some writers may believe that their substance abuse, which may involve alcohol, narcotics, or a combination of both, may actually fuel their creative spark, like a muse.

The image of the tortured artist has often been romanticized throughout literary history, as in the idolization of Hemingway or Woolf, to the point where these emerging writers may excuse their risky behavior as custom to the lifestyle. However, these writers—ranging from journalists to novelists, playwrights, or screenwriters—do not realize that they are putting themselves in extreme danger. The abuse can carry on for unregulated periods of time, be taken in excessive doses, and lead to self-destructive behavior or overdose. The idea of slowly killing oneself while living and working alone in a dark, isolated state can be quite frightening; if something serious were to go wrong, it would be very hard for the individual to find immediate help.

Substance abuse and addiction may last for years, even after hitting rock bottom one or more times. It often takes a moment of epiphany for artists and writers to “wake up” and finally decide to get help. That’s where WIT steps in, offering a wealth of clinical, medical, and creative resources for writers to help them recover and overcome their addictions. WIT even offers financial options for residents without health insurance to help cover their expenses, such as no-interest loans that are set up to be repaid once the writer is reemployed.

Qualifications for WIT’s program require that the patient be at least 18 years of age and make at least a quarter of their income through writing. The goal is to remove the writer from that solitary struggle and into a group recovery effort. Writers can relate to one another while receiving proper treatment from trained counselors and medical professionals. WIT runs after-care programs, relapse prevention programs, and monthly meetings to help writers maintain sobriety, as well as cultural programming including book clubs, writer’s workshops, film screenings, concerts, networking opportunities, and seminars with celebrities and guest speakers.

This Saturday, December 12, WIT and It’s Perfect Malibu will be hosting a special gala holiday fundraising party called “Festival of Laughs” in Malibu starting at 7:30pm. The event will promote sobriety and creativity for struggling writers during the holiday season and will feature comedic standup and talks from a variety of guest speakers. Also, a new bookstore and 12-step store will be open to the public during the entire event. The Special Honored Guest, Christopher Kennedy Lawford, will be present to discuss and autograph copies of his 2009 success, Moments of Clarity.

WIT is aimed at teaching writers that there are other options available to them when it seems like their profession offers no other choice. The nonprofit organization offers outpatient and residential rehabilitation treatment backed by a strong advisory board of certified psychologists and other clinical professionals. WIT has partnered with other sobriety organizations such as the Betty Ford Foundation and colleges and theaters throughout the greater Los Angeles region.

Founder Leonard Buschel, who also struggled with addiction while living as a writer, sought help through rehabilitation once himself, and was inspired to create Writers in Treatment to help others writers overcome their addictions. Buschel hopes that WIT can help writers rediscover their natural muse and fulfill their writing aspirations through sober living.

Writers in Treatment: A Creative Outlet for Recovering Addicts is a post from: Drug Addiction Treatment