addiction Archives - Page 20 of 27 - Enlightened Solutions

Addiction is a Family Disease

Written by enlightened solutions on December 13, 2017. Posted in Addiction, Family Recovery. Leave a Comment

While in the disease of addiction, one may feel that there is no way out. Denial can be so strong it might seem like tunnel vision. Friends and family members may begin to feel that there is no hope for recovery in their loved one- which is extremely depleting and frustrating. Those who have been enabling addictive behavior, must learn about the harms of enabling and why it must be immediately stopped. However, there should be no shame put forth onto the friends and family members of someone struggling with addiction. If there is to be any progress in getting a loved one struggling with addiction the help they need, it’s time for an intervention.

Interventions give those who truly care about their family member or friend struggling with addiction a safe place to have a necessary confrontation. There should be no judgment or prejudice. In no circumstances, should there be screaming and/or violence. Intervening in someone’s life must come from a loving place. There should be a plan put in place, such as detox and treatment. This is the first step in getting the person in the disease away from the substance’s tight hold. Loved ones may have a hard time standing firm, but they too need to accept the powerlessness of the disease. Things have to change and there’s no better time than the present.

There is always the chance that people will not accept help. If this happens there must be consequences. The enabling must stop and there will have to be new found means of survival or life without certain luxuries. The person with the additive behavior needs to hear from loved ones the harm they had caused and the pleas for action. Communication is key for an intervention to take place, which is why it is encouraged to utilize an intervention specialist. This way, family members can learn where they can go for help as well. If there is more than one family member in the addiction, arrangements will be made. It’s a solution for families as a whole because, in the end, it is a family disease.

Enlightened Solutions offers help with addiction, alcoholism and/or mental health. All whose affected will benefit from the healing process. Come to New Jersey and start fighting for a better life today. For more information call: 833-801-LIVE.

Be Good to the Earth and the Earth will be Good to You

Written by enlightened solutions on December 12, 2017. Posted in Alternative Therapy, Mental Health. Leave a Comment

When the disease of addiction is active, it is likely nothing matters except the next drink or drug. While in treatment and getting on a path to recovery, holistic programs encourage a connection with a higher power. This connection lays the groundwork for a new outlook on life completely. Becoming honest and accepting defeat over addictive behavior is a humbling experience. Clients must now look at what drives these thoughts to escape life. While there are a lot of negative aspects about this world, there are also many positives. In other words, if there were no dark, we could not see the light. When people can manage to get out of the mind’s grasp, new beauties and senses arise.

It’s important to learn early in recovery about how to be one with the earth. The connection that is discovered between a human and the earth can have an impact on confidence. Learning about the importance of recycling, composting, and working in a community garden can give more meaning to taking care of the earth. For those who have felt like a burden in the past, recycling and composting is a wonderful way to help see how that couldn’t be further from the truth. Patients can take this experience and realize how they are essential to this earth too. There are billions of people on this planet, and it is vital that we take care of the earth for new generations to come.

Working in the garden is a form of becoming nurturing towards another living organism. The sense of becoming one with the earth is very therapeutic for those with depression and anxiety. Often times, it’s easy to feel a void in the soul and working to sustain the beauty of this earth warms the body to it’s core. Surrendering to the disease of addiction can be difficult and painful, but it can also be freeing. Those who begin to see this can see life in as a whole new beautiful meaning. Clients who find confidence and self-esteem in working to keep our planet green, have a chance at finding a deeper sense of what life is all about. This is all part of the transformation into the light, out of the dark world of addiction.

If you are struggling with addictive behavior and/or mental health, find acceptance and serenity at Enlightened Solutions. Our clinical, holistic and 12-step approach is designed to help you balance the body, mind, and soul Call for more information today: 833-801-5483.

Manifesting the Future

Written by enlightened solutions on December 11, 2017. Posted in Mental Health, Recovery. Leave a Comment

Starting life as a recovering addict requires a shift in the mind. Up until the point of recovery, there may have been a dark, pessimistic mindset. When the mind is plagued with the negativity of the past, there will always be a struggle to stay in the present. If the mind relays the message that life’s experiences define the future, and this is believed, behaviors will likely stay the same. If there has been a problem with chronic relapsing in the past, it could be due to the way the brain had been wired to handle anxiety and depression. It’s critical to sincerely find true happiness and the confidence to succeed. It is no wonder those with tedious jobs, feel unhappy. This fact combined with addiction is a recipe for a never-ending cycle of misery.

Through the different kinds of therapy in treatment, clients will learn new coping mechanisms to defeat the omnipresent fear experienced in stressful situations. Art therapy is formulated to get patients out of the mind and into a safe space. There must be open-mindedness for life-changing results. Manifesting the future is what a person desires in life, and this can shift the into mind to the light. Positivity can change the course of life.

Painting, drawing, and sculpture are forms of art that let the patients delve into their subconscious feelings. Art therapists guide patients to portray their true selves. Those who are perfectionists are encouraged to let go and express the outpour of emotions freely through the this art expression. This will be a time when emotions will rise to the surface and this kind of outlet, can potentially lead to progression and breakthroughs. People with addiction are known to be talented and sometimes all it takes is a nudge in the right direction to open up the mind to a hopeful future. This hopeful mindset is the guide to success. This is the transformation.

If you are looking to enlighten your body, mind, and spirit, Enlightened Solutions is the right fit for you. Help is here waiting for you. Take back your life and call today: 833-801-5483.

Relapse Prevention

Written by enlightened solutions on December 8, 2017. Posted in Addiction, Recovery. Leave a Comment

Living in recovery is a chance to take back life, one day at a time. People with addiction must treat sobriety delicately. What many addicts don’t know at first is that relapse happens days, weeks, months before the behavior physically occurs. Keeping sobriety intact means there must be relapse prevention. There are many tools that help in staying sober, if the addict is willing to use them. Many times treatment centers will suggest 12-step meetings, such as AA. In these support groups, there are suggestions to live sober and sane. It’s a physical and psychological obsession, and there must be active work to keep both running properly. Once the additive behavior has been eliminated, there can be work on the emotional aspect. This is where it can get tricky.

After finishing what can be a brutal detox, it’s time to start on the real work of recovery. Recovery is a lifestyle, not a quick fix. Treatment facilities offer therapy and group sessions focused on how to handle life while still having an addicted mind. It’s as if the brain is being rerouted. It’s a daily struggle to continue down this path but the rewards are substantial. The goal is to work on new coping mechanisms. These must be utilized to fight the desires to fall back into old patterns. Often times, depression and anxiety can lead to relapse, which is why there are ways to keep these emotions at bay. Trauma therapy allows the processing of emotions that had been built up over the years. This paves the way for new emotions to surface and be dealt with appropriately.

Prescribed medications are sometimes necessary for those who are in need. This is vital with those with mental illness and that cannot solely be fixed with yoga and meditation. However, these are only prescribed by doctors, after a medical assessment. This helps keep the mind chemically balanced. Yoga and meditation can take form in different ways and people can choose what works best for their own connection to the soul. Taking care of the body and being out in nature is can also help in many ways. Having a healthy diet is especially important for its nutrients that keep the body systems running accordingly. Each of these mechanisms help in maintaining sobriety.

Enlightened Solutions partial programs offer those seeking recovery a life of sobriety through the mind, body, and spirit. Our dual diagnosis programs support recovery from substance use disorders and mental health related issues. Call us today for information: 833-801-5483.

Become the Yogi Within

Written by enlightened solutions on December 7, 2017. Posted in Healthy Living, Mental Health. Leave a Comment

In the typical clinical treatment center, there might not be a lot of associations with recovery and yoga. With a more holistic approach, patients are encouraged to enlighten themselves in a more spiritual sense. There are different kinds of yoga that benefit different groups of people. In treatment, meditative yoga practices mindfulness. This is essential for people to live in the present with a lowered amount of anxiety and fear. All humans struggle with fear on a daily basis. This cannot be combined with faith of any kind. Without faith in a higher power, there will be hardly any resistance to the first thought of drinking or using. The spiritual principles by which those with addiction learn in a 12-step program, help with practicing humility and gratitude.

Yoga is also a great tool for relaxation and stress. It may not be easy at first, but when the mind settles down, there can be progress. Being mindful is as easy as feeling the warm water on the hands while washing the dishes. This can be achieved easily, but not when the mind is consumed with the past and the future. Focusing on the breath is also a tool to stay in the present. While someone with addiction is in the beginning stages of acceptance, it is crucial to incorporate spirituality. Meditation can be useful for allowing a conversation with a higher power. It is suggested at this time to ask for guidance about the next right step. Having this connection helps in working alongside the intuition.

Having the patience that is practiced in mindful yoga, gives people with addiction the ability to learn how to sit with themselves, and to find who it is that they had been running from. People with addiction who suffer from shame and depression must accept that these past experiences do not define who they presently are. Actions from the past do not have to determine the future. Giving into mind games of constantly fighting with the intuition, will only cause people to back peddle. These realizations can and will be manifested on the yoga mat.

If you are struggling with addiction and want to find a way out, the answer is waiting for you here in New Jersey at Enlightened Solutions. Our partial program provides a healing blend of the body, mind, and soul. Don’t hesitate any longer and call us today: 833-801-5483.

Traumatic Time of Year

Written by enlightened solutions on December 6, 2017. Posted in Addiction, Mental Health. Leave a Comment

Traumatic events occur in the lives of everyone, and there must be a point made to heal for there to be any kind of growth. Often times people use an addiction to mask painful experiences from the past- a form of denial. Being in denial is extremely common. Denial can take on different looks in different people. Those who are resisting the pain, are simply putting it off. Over time, this will backfire and become an excuse for unhealthy behavior time after time. Taking responsibility for an addiction is similar to taking responsibility for pain. No one goes through life without feeling emotional pain. What needs to be understood is that from this pain, there is room for growth. Those who try to control pain by numbing it, will stall emotional growth from that point forward until they practice acceptance of this fact.

Proper healing involves different freeing techniques to move forward. Coming to a treatment facility will give those with addiction a safe place to let emotions run freely with a therapist who offers confidentiality and comfortability. Post-traumatic stress disorder can lead anyone down a road to isolation, which can many times coincide with addiction. People who don’t know of healthy ways to cope will almost always resort to addictive behavior. It’s easier to let distractions become the only way to get through uncomfortable feelings. The addict mind will justify and rationalize why it’s okay to act out in harmful ways, even when they hadn’t worked out well various times in the past..

Coming into the different scenarios, such as the holiday season, trigger traumatic emotions. Without the knowledge of alternative, healthy options for the addict, there will not be a strong enough amount of resistance against drinking or using. Things may even get worse as time goes on. Trauma can also become passed down from generation to generation if not taken care. The mind can get complicated with traumatic events. Sometimes trauma will be hidden and only therapy specifically geared towards the issue will result in becoming free from its bondage. There’s no reason for trauma to control life when there is help available.

If you are struggling with addiction, there is a solution! Enlightened Solution’s holistic, clinical and 12-step approach can improve the mind, body, and soul. Start growing and moving forward in life! Call us in New Jersey today: 833-801-5483.

How to Handle Holiday Stress

Written by enlightened solutions on December 5, 2017. Posted in Addiction, Addiction Recovery. Leave a Comment

The holiday season can be complicated for everyone. It’s important to start planning ahead of the season before it hits you like a ton of bricks. Being prepared for the madness of the season is vital. There will be stressors such as family, finances, sugar and other various issues that pop up. It is recommended for those who have depression and anxiety to keep up appointments with therapist, counselors, and other support. Staying close to the solution is the safest bet when entering such a chaotic time of year. People with addiction must use their tools and coping mechanisms to survive all of the holiday parties and events. One wrong turn can bring upon a preventable disaster.

Different customs permit for spending during the holidays and this can throw a wrench into a finely tuned budget. Being smart with money is easier said than done. Those with addiction who hold on to past behavior can lead to feelings of guilt and shame. Children who had been caught in the crossfire, now have sober parents back, and that may feel foreign. It’s easy for parents to want to make up for lost time by overcompensating. Speaking with someone about this urge will help with compulsively spending money. This doesn’t make up for past harm as much as spending quality time with loved ones presently. The stress will then rub off on the child, which defeats the purpose altogether.

To be realistic and without expectations, will take a person a long way. In early recovery, it’s easy to feel pressured into trying to make everything “perfect” again. Staying present and letting go of control during the holidays will give less of a reason to break down which could possibly trigger a desire to relapse. Going to support groups regularly will help with urges and offers the opportunity to talk about what’s going on. Having sober things to do can distract from old behaviors and habits. If there are parties that are triggering, simply don’t go. Do not let the holidays control your behavior and sobriety. This can be the biggest transformation of the year!

Enlightened Solutions offers solution-based tool and coping mechanisms to handle life at its best and worst. If you or if you know someone is struggling with addiction this holiday season, call us today for information on our partial care programs for recovery at: 833-801-5483. It’s time to take back your life!

Gambling with Gambling Addiction

Written by enlightened solutions on December 4, 2017. Posted in Addiction, Recovery. Leave a Comment

The disease of addiction finds people of all kinds who are prone to all different kinds of behavior. Gambling is a form of addiction that many struggle with today. Whether it be the slot machines, poker, horse races; each allow someone who is experiencing addiction to get the ‘fix’ that they need. Similarly to alcohol and drugs, gambling can lead to severe consequences. Those with the addiction will continue to gambling while ignoring the many signs of defeat. It becomes all the mind can think of and it may start to run life entirely. During stressful times the solution can be to simply hit the casino in attempts to numb uncomfortable feelings. It’s another way to escape from reality and after things get out of control, there doesn’t seem to be anyway out. It’s a safe bet that those with a gambling addiction begin to suffer financially. Obligations are put on the back burner, and the denial runs rampant. Family members and friends begin to worry about all of the time spent focusing on gambling.

While in treatment, a person with gambling addiction will learn how to handle stressful situations without harmful behavior. A healthy lifestyle by can be led by:

Finding new thrilling hobbies
Individual therapy
Exorcising
Finding a real job to pay for debt

Each individual will be able to find what works for them after they learn that gambling never really worked to fulfill their life in the way they wanted. Accepting there is a problem is the first step to move forward in life. There are support groups for people with addiction, such as Gambler’s Anonymous. The person with a gambling addiction needs to understand that if they gamble, they could get stuck in a deep hole once again, but there is a choice. Gambling addiction doesn’t have to control life anymore. Guilt and shame can be put in the past and the addict can accept the gift of a beautiful, bright future without gambling their life away.

Gambling addiction is often co-occurring with alcoholism or drug addiction. If you or a loved one are struggling with chemical dependency issues that have taken over your life, there is a solution. Enlightened Solutions offers a holistic approach to treatment for recovery of mind, body, and spirit. Call today: 822-234-LIVE.

Why AA Celebrates Milestones

Written by enlightened solutions on December 1, 2017. Posted in Addiction, Addiction Recovery. Leave a Comment

An addict’s first Alcoholics Anonymous meeting will be a very welcoming experience. Members of AA would describe it as a miracle. There are twenty-four-hour tokens given to its newcomers in their first 30 days of sobriety. Some members would describe this time as the most difficult. It’s important to give alcoholics in early recovery a positive first impression so that they keep coming back. It’s crucial that newcomers hear the experience, strength, and hope of those who came before them. It’s also important for the older members to see and hear what it would be like to drink again. The stories that are told by newcomers are reminders that while in the disease, it’s ugly and dark. Although life will never be perfect, newcomers can see there’s another way. Those working the 12 steps, can be proof for those skeptical that the program really works.

Newcomers are told they never have to drink again. Simple slogans such as one day at a time, easy does it, and keep it simple, are there as guides to stay present and grateful during such a challenging time. Members of AA can choose to count their days sober and that’s what gives them the chance to celebrate milestones. Each group has a set of different guidelines for the distribution of tokens, but on average groups will celebrate thirty days, sixty days, ninety days, six months, nine months, one year and thereafter. This gives alcoholics a sense of accomplishment and motivation. Some groups will ask that they tell the others how they did it but never pressure anyone to do anything that may feel uncomfortable. The point is to show newcomers that sobriety is possible, while in early recovery, it’s easy to feel hopeless.

Having milestones also gives the alcoholic something to look forward to. It’s not recommended to think about the future as much as it is to be given the chance to live sober. When others tell to the group how they did what seemed impossible, the explanation serves as a guide to give the newcomer tools to move forward. The 12-steps should always be suggested in order to achieve the gifts sobriety has to offer. No one has to do anything they don’t want. Sobriety the AA way only proposes suggestions. However, if the newcomer wants to receive the promises of Alcoholics Anonymous, there are a few things they must do and maintain. The program’s members lead by example. A sponsor is suggested to take newcomers through the steps as a way to stay sober themselves. It’s a beautiful cycle of alcoholics helping other alcoholics and that is a big deal worth celebrating. Now, let them eat cake!

Enlightened Solutions believes that a 12-step program will help maintain sobriety when re entering life after treatment. It’s crucial that the addict keep working on their recovery and we offer guidance into AA in our partial program treatment facility. Call 833-801-5483 today for information on our partial care programs in New Jersey.

Healthy Relationships

Written by enlightened solutions on November 24, 2017. Posted in Addiction, Relationships. Leave a Comment

Before an addict enters treatment there are many aspects of life are lacking. When abusing substances it is hard to main healthy relationships with friends and family. Depending on how functioning the addict was, the range of seclusion varied from those who had only good intent. Some were able to hide their addiction well, while others fell into a life of isolation only allowing others who were enabling their usage. Addicts in the disease push out everyone in their life who might get in their way of getting high. It may get to the point where the addict only communicates with other addicts and/or drug dealers. It’s an extremely lonely feeling for the addict and it becomes easy to slip into the victim role. Until the addict decides to accept recovery, more loved ones tend to slip away.

Upon entering treatment the addict is suggested to cut off contact with others who are still using. It’s time to move forward and never look back. When the addict regains their healthy state of mind, they will find that they will attract others who live healthy lifestyles. The addict who learns how to set boundaries with friends and family will find a new confidence within. There are those who are “people pleasers” and those who are more controlling but both need to know the balance between the two. Boundaries help the addict feel safe and secure in any relationship. Although it’s recommended not to get in a relationship the first year of sobriety, when the addict it ready, this applies to romantic relationships as well. The concept that “two sicks, don’t make a well” can offer a simple explanation. If a relationship doesn’t serve the addict, it’s okay to move on. No one is forcing a relationship on anyone and although it may be painful, it’s apart of life that will need to be handled properly. It may be uncomfortable but that’s part of the transformation.

The addict becomes aware again of the importance of the intuition. In early recovery, it’s essential to listen to the treatment staff or others who support the addict’s recovery. After some time of sobriety, the addict will be able to feel in their gut or intuition who they should surround themselves. Boundaries can difficult to set and it takes practice. It’s suggested the addict attend support groups which will be a learning experience in boundaries setting right off the bat. Following the recommendations of others who manage well in sobriety, can give the addict an example to follow. Once the addict establishes relationships in life, there will be less of a need to numb the resentful communications with others. The law of attraction will come into play, and the addict will be able to let go of the painful past a little more each day.

If you are struggling with addiction, Enlightened Solutions offers group therapy geared towards maintaining healthy relationships while boundaries. With our holistic, clinical, and 12-step approach, an addicted loved one can learn how to respect themselves and others. Come to New Jersey and begin your path to recovery today: 833-801-5483.

Tag: addiction