Kratom is a type of tree that grows throughout the countries of Southeast Asia. Extracts from the leaves of the tree have been used in regional folk medicine for a wide variety of ailments for hundreds of years, but two particular uses have sparked Western interest in it: pain relief [...]
Beating a drug or alcohol addiction can be a long and difficult road. Experts will often list a wide range of different steps to take on the road to sobriety, yet sometimes gloss over just how helpful a daily exercise routine can be for recovering addicts. Here are five amazing [...]
Addiction to street drugs like heroin has become a growing problem in the United States. Heroin is a particularly insidious drug because of the profound changes that occur in the brain when it is used. Heroin addiction can destroy careers, personal relationships, and health, and professional addiction treatment is necessary [...]
Whether it's alcohol, tobacco, prescription medication, or illegal drugs, addiction is a serious issue and debilitating condition. The combined healthcare costs alone amount to approximately $160 billion per year, reaching as high as $700 billion due to crime and lost productivity. Addiction to drugs, alcohol, or prescription medication affects approximately [...]
What is Addiction According to the American Society of Addiction, Medicine addiction is a primary, chronic disease of brain reward, motivation, memory and related circuitry. Addiction is characterized by an inability to consistently abstain, imparted behavior control, subject to cravings, diminished recognition of a significant problem related to one’s behavior, [...]
You know someone suffering from addiction; you scold, you cry, you punish, you continually step in to help pay the rent, make excuses for missing school or work—the seriousness of your behavior, though motivated by love and compassion, leads the addict toward death. Does that sound harsh? If you understood [...]
Addiction to drugs or alcohol is a medical problem that often causes profound shame and embarrassment. These feelings are even more intense when the individual is in law enforcement, a profession that depends on self-discipline, control and cooperative action. These individuals may be particularly reluctant to admit the depth of [...]
The relationship between work-related environments and substance abuse is not new. There are several models (mostly focused on work stress and alcoholism) that examine this dynamic. To begin worker substance abuse is a serious public health issue. The ramifications of substance abuse, either alcohol or other drugs, (also known as [...]
Addiction is nearly ubiquitous in contemporary society. It seems that everyone knows someone with an inability to control their dependency on some substance or medication or alcohol. While the battle for overcoming addiction lies with the person afflicted with the addiction, there is also a battle that rages for the [...]
Codependency is a term that's often used in the mental health profession and among people who work with addicts. However, as it's not an officially recognized disorder or mental illness, it isn't listed in guidebooks such as the DSM (there is a listing for Dependent Personality Disorder, but that isn't [...]
