How Does a Person Regain their Dignity in Recovery?
A non-profit organization in Texas called The Lost Closet exists for one purpose: helping released prisoners with a first step in regaining dignity. They do so by giving them an outfit to replace their prison clothes. If you are in treatment recovering from your addiction it can feel like you just got out of prison. Addiction is a prison that [...]
What are the Principles of 12-step Programs?
Psychologists used to believe that following a 12-step program was the pinnacle requirement for a treatment program to sustain a patient’s recovery. Modern science and psychology is now finding that there are alternative programs that can help overcome addiction. Many centers are now tailoring individual programs to individual needs. However, the principles of the 12-step program are still foundational for [...]
Picking up Morals is a Change in Pace for Life
Getting caught up in an addiction transports you into another world. Drug users get paranoid about bad drug deals that may leave them beat up and penniless, or worse. Alcoholics often wonder if they are okay to drive, hoping they do not get pulled over. Sex addicts often consider getting tested for STDs. The world created by addiction leaves many [...]
Will Living Without Drugs and Alcohol Get Any Easier?
Remember the old adage that time heals all wounds? Sometimes you cannot physically see the destruction addiction has wrought in your life, but it is there. It will take time to heal such a profound wound. You may always have to live with the scars of addiction, but living without drugs and alcohol will get easier. Here are some milestones [...]
How to be More Grateful in Your Recovery (and Why That’s Important)
How is it possible that the laughter of children can be heard in the slums of Indonesia? How can a person who just lost everything in a devastating flood still exude joy? The answer is mindset. Anyone has the power to change their mindset. Studies show that having a positive mindset benefits a person’s well-being tremendously. Gratefulness is identified as [...]
Is Leisure Considered a Life Skill You Learn in Recovery?
Looking back at your life before recovery is rough. You can probably scarcely remember being able to relax fully without sipping on your favorite cocktail. As you try to relax and enjoy free time in recovery you may discover you have lost the ability to enjoy leisure activities sober. In recovery you will learn that addiction has changed the structure [...]
Signs of an Overdose
The fear of many drug addicts and their loved ones is the thought of a drug stealing life; to get high and never wake up from it. For many addicts, the need to increase the amount of a drug for the same euphoric feeling can have dire consequences. Overdosing is not biased, and it only takes once to push it [...]
Is My Privacy Guaranteed in Treatment?
You have finally made the decision and want to begin treatment for your addiction, but you would rather it not be advertised to the world. As you begin searching online for treatment centers you begin to see stories and pictures of recovering people posted everywhere. At the end of your research your bigger question might be surrounding the issue of [...]
Signs of Opioid Addiction
Crater Lake is considered one of the greatest natural wonders of the world. The views bring tears to your eyes, and the crunch of the snow and landscape under your hiking feet will rejuvenate your soul. There is also danger in the midst of such beauty. Signs warn hikers everywhere to stay on the trail to avoid falling off the [...]
What Makes Self-Sufficiency Better Than Self-Destruction?
All over America there is a craze to become self-sufficient. People are growing gardens instead of landscaping their front lawn. Self-sufficient people make their own hygiene products instead of buying them at the store. The ultimate self sufficient person builds a tiny-house and lives off the grid in a remote place. What is causing this new wave of self-sufficiency? People [...]