addiction Archives - Page 27 of 27 - Enlightened Solutions

Opioid Addiction Is Severe; Treatment Should Be Unique

Written by enlightened solutions on January 19, 2017. Posted in Addiction, Drugs & Alcohol. Leave a Comment

There’s a problem with claiming to have the solution to addiction. Addiction doesn’t look the same to everyone. That is why Enlightened solutions provides individualized recovery and treatment plans to each resident. Through a series of intensive screenings, diagnostics, and evaluations, the specific diagnoses of each resident is created. From there, our certified and experienced clinical staff is able to work with the patient to suggest and provides the best course of treatment possible. Meeting the needs of each individual client is a necessity to ensure successful treatment and contribute to lifelong sobriety.

Individualized Approach

Individualized treatment methods are important because not everyone comes to their addiction i the same way. Part of the appeal of twelve step recovery is learning that while each person’s story may be different, the generalities of addiction are the same. More often than not, however, treating only the generalities of opioid addiction will not lead to lifelong recovery. Opioid addiction especially needs to be treated with specificity.

Opioids are powerful narcotic substances which are highly addictive. Currently, America is undergoing multiple opioid crises, primarily in the Midwest, New England, and along the East Coast. While typical treatment has helped some up until now, professionals and government officials are calling for more. Recently, the US Surgeon General released a special report on the state of opioid addiction in the United States. The Surgeon General called form more funding for treatment, implementation of harm reduction practices, and more prevention services.

What Are Opioids?

Opioids can include:

Heroin
Opium
Prescription Painkillers
Synthetic Opioid Drugs

Derived from the opium poppy plant, opioids provide pain relief. Creating morphine in the system, opioid substances work with naturally occurring opioid receptors in the brain. Opioid receptors help to slow down the heart and increase feelings of euphoria to combat the onset of pain. Morphine and morphine based medications are used to treat patients recently out of surgery or having been through a traumatic accident. Synthetic opioids, as well as regular medications, are used for treating chronic pain patients.

Opioid addiction treatment requires a multifaceted approach. Enlightened Solutions offers a program combining spiritual practice with evidence based therapy as well as holistic healing. Our residential treatment programs are designed for men and women who are ready to live different lives. For more information, call 833-801-5483.

Should You Quit Social Media For The Holidays?

Written by enlightened solutions on December 6, 2016. Posted in Healthy Living, Mental Health. Leave a Comment

The holidays aren’t merry and bright for everyone. Though winter cheer is supposed to warm our hearts despite the frightful weather outside, for many, the holidays are a dismal time. Far from being a bah-humbug, some have experienced great loss, abandonment, or trauma during the holidays. Growing up without the picture postcard perfect holiday celebrations can make witnessing the celebrations of others difficult. Recovery is a time to redefine how you want to relate to and spend your holiday season. It is also a time to learn how to manage your fear of missing out, the way you compare yourself to others, and the way you feel about yourself. Even so, the holidays can be hard. For this reason, many 12 step meeting clubhouses around the world have 24 hour meeting schedules during specific holiday celebrations. There is usually a spike in sobriety dates during January as people hit their bottoms during the holidays.

Social Media Detox

Holidays are just a season and a single day in the year. As we’ve learned to do, we take it all in stride, one day at a time. The holidays will pass and there will be a whole other set of eleven months during the year until they return.

It is perfectly okay to feel slightly disturbed or uncertain during the holidays. Engaging in regular self-care is of critical importance during these times. One practice that might be beneficial to add to your holiday self-care regimen is quitting social media temporarily.

Getting Your Head on Straight

New research suggests that quitting social media, specifically Facebook, can increase your sense of happiness. However, the research is limited in its credibility. Many studies have shown that Facebook can increase feelings of FOMO, isolation, and depression. Going without Facebook long term has not been studied longitudinally or in a blind study. However, the results from such studies show that there is a definite difference between those who can give up their social media vices and those who cannot.

Taking A Holiday Social Media Detox

Set out a final post wishing everyone a happy holidays and sign off. With your free time, read a book you’ve been eyeing, pick up a new hobby like playing the guitar, or spend time exploring an area you’ve been wanting to see. Make the holiday season yours by creating your own memories.

At Enlightened Solutions we offer clients a way to create a new life for themselves integrating therapeutic practices and holistic lifestyles for total transformation. Our certified treatment center works to help those with substance use disorder issues as well as co-occurring secondary issues. For more information, call 833-801-5483.

Types of Detox Treatment Methods

Written by enlightened solutions on November 23, 2016. Posted in Healthy Living. Leave a Comment

Medically Assisted Detox

Medically assisted detox receives a lot of attention and controversy. Most medically assisted detox treatments involve the use of drug replacement therapy or drug substitution therapy. Famous name drugs like methadone or suboxone are prescribed to help someone slowly ween off of drugs like heroin, meth, and cocaine. Methadone and suboxone contain small traces of opioid, or morphine. Instead of enduring the unrelenting symptoms of withdrawal, someone can taper down through the process. Detox is the highest risk period of relapse. Medically assisted detox helps ensure against relapse.

However, that trace of morphine can be abused and become depended upon. Some people stay on substitution drug therapy treatments for years on end. While some practitioners see that as a success if the person does not turn back to illicit substances, others see that as not being true abstinence from being dependent upon a mind altering substance.

Naturally Assisted Detox

Naturally assisted detox is a relatively new treatment method for detox. With great sucess, NAD also reduces the symptoms of withdrawal, similar to the way medically assisted detox does. However, NAD relies on the intravenous administration of naturally occurring amino acids, vitamins, and minerals to replenish the body’s natural immune system, rather than morphine. Not only does NAD reduce symptoms of withdrawal, but it reduces the detox time period.

Cold Turkey

Putting an abrupt halt to the abuse of addictive substances can cause a range of health complications, which can include death. Detox, though it depends on how long drugs were abused and how severely they were abused, can be dangerous. When the body is detoxing, the brain is going through all the desperate measures it can think of to make the experience as awful as possible. One the one hand, the brain is in chaos- it doesn’t know how to function without the presence of drugs and alcohol anymore. Simultaneously, it wants to cause as much discomfort as possible through intense cravings and withdrawal symptoms so that it might make using sound convincing.

Quitting cold turkey and doing an at home detox is possible with some preparation. Having plenty of fluids, regularly taking temperature, and being monitored is important. Detox can cause seizure, heart attack, stroke, and passing out.

Enlightened Solutions proudly works with nearby detox treatment centers for patients looking to start treatment, but are in need of detox first. We offer treatment programs for men and women seeking recovery from their relationship with addiction. For more information call 833-801-5483.

The Ongoing Grief Of Losing A Parent

Written by enlightened solutions on November 22, 2016. Posted in Healthy Living. Leave a Comment

Many turn to substance abuse out of a need to cope with emotional pain. Feelings of abandonment, neglect, isolation, being different, or having the symptoms of mental illnesses such as depression and anxiety, can drive one to need a mind calming solution. Drugs and alcohol provide people the solace, escape, and comfort they need to get through challenging emotional circumstances. One of the most significant life events someone can experience is the loss of a parent. Grieving the loss of a critical life figure is emotionally taxing, spiritually breaking, and difficult task.

Grief, in all of its stages, can feel like it will never end. Losing someone special like a parent leaves a hole and a void in our lives that forever will go unfilled. Attempting to fill that hole with drugs and alcohol may anesthetize the pain temporarily. However, the longer we prevent ourselves from feeling through the cycle of grief, we only delay the inevitable. No drug and no drink, despite our willful attempts, can truly make that pain go away. Somehow, when it comes to emotional experiences, it is only by thoroughly feeling and processing grief that it can be resolved.

Being in the safe and therapeutic environment of treatment, at any level, is a considerable place to being working on grief. As you begin to dissect the relationship that might exist between your substance abuse and the loss of a significant loved one in your life, take these suggestions to heart:

It’s true, nobody could possibly understand unless they’ve experienced it

You might be quick to get angry, resentful, or write off people who try to sympathize with what you’ve experienced. Rightfully, you find it hard to relate to anyone’s sympathy if they themselves have not lost a parent. Try to remain open to receiving emotional support and seek the similarities in what your peers offer you, rather than focus on the differences.

Experience your emotions authentically and take care of yourself

Learning how to participate in self-care is a part of the recovery process when you are in treatment for drug and alcohol addiction. On particularly tough days, know that it’s okay to just not be entirely okay. It is also okay to do what you need to do to take care of yourself. Remember, though, you are learning what that means. There is a difference between isolating and taking quiet time for yourself. Help stay grounded in your choices by allowing others to guide you and listen to your needs.

Enlightened Solutions uses the spiritual healing of holistic practices supported by strong evidence based practice and 12 step philosophy. By seeking understanding through underlying circumstances, our program helps residents gain insight to their addictions. We offer certified dual diagnosis treatment for both substance abuse and other mental health disorders. For more information call 844-243-LIVE.

Identifying Traits Of Addiction Might Mean Identifying An Addict Early On

Written by enlightened solutions on November 14, 2016. Posted in Addiction. Leave a Comment

Temperament is defined as your nature and natural behavioral patterns. A new anti drug program being tested in different parts of the world is looking at helping children understand their temperament. The philosophy is that understanding one’s unique character traits can help children understand the different ways they might be at risk for drug use and addiction. Individualizing prevention, education, and awareness regarding drug addiction makes sense. One of the essential traits of choosing a treatment center for a loved one needing recovery from addiction is individualized programming. Snowflakes falling from the sky all look to be snowflakes. Put under a microscope, every single snowflake has an intricate design that is exclusively theirs. Addiction, as well as treatment for addiction, is not just snow falling from the sky. So to say, though there are many similarities, each person’s journey of addiction and recovery are completely different. Not every person is genetically predisposed for addiction, grew up in an abusive home, has a co-occurring mental health disorder, or experienced trauma in their lifetime. A most beneficial programming component for all who enter treatment for recovery from addiction is learning about the self and what underlying issues brought the self to become addicted to drugs and alcohol.

Four traits are highlighted by the program as being what makes a young person most at risk for experimenting with drug use and potentially developing addiction: Sensation-Seeking, Impulsiveness, Anxiety Sensitivity, Hopelessness. Author, journalist, addiction specialist, and recovering addict Maia Szalavtiz points out that each of these traits are connected to mental illness. Impulsiveness is a trait of ADHD, hopelessness is a trait of depression, anxiety sensitivity, is linked to panic disorder. Sensation-seeking, while not connected to its own diagnosis, is for many a form of escapism which could indicate social personality disorders.

Interestingly, divorcing the disease model of addiction from the negative associations of personality and character is the agenda for many addiction recovery advocates. Addiction is not an illness of immorality but of mental illness. Personality testing can identify the traits of both addiction and mental illness before the development of problematic drug use or experimentation.

Prevention and early intervention are two key approaches to fighting a new generation of young people addicted to drugs.

Enlightened Solutions works closely with each patient who comes through our doors to design a highly individualized treatment plan to address each unique part of their addiction. As a licensed dual-diagnosis treatment facility, we have the distinguished ability to treat both addiction and co-occurring mental health disorders. For more information on our levels of care and programs of treatment, call 833-801-5483.

Why We Get Attracted to Fear

Written by enlightened solutions on September 12, 2016. Posted in Recovery. Leave a Comment

Recklessness is a word that could be used to describe addiction. Under the influence of powerful drugs and/or alcohol, drug addicts and alcoholics make reckless decisions. Even if one isn’t addicted to substances, when they are under the influence they live on the edge. For example, people choose to drive drunk. Some substances cause euphoria in such a way that it makes people feel invincible. Under the influence of such drugs, people attempt all kinds of reckless acts. Even without the influence, addicts and alcoholics, or substance users alike, have a common characteristic of living dangerously. Listen to the stories of recovering addicts and alcoholics and be amazed by the death defying circumstances many have survived.

There are some who can’t seem to get away from such a lifestyle. As if the danger were part of the addiction itself, despite their previous brushes with death, they cannot get away. Using in and of itself is a game of russian roulette. Relapses weaken the body. Vulnerable to the potency of drugs after some time spent clean and sober, overdose is always a possibility. Yet, time after time, just like their drug, addicts return to the high of danger. They are attracted to the fear.

Why We Get Attracted to Fear

It turns out that the attraction to the “fear” associated with substance abuse is not so different from the attraction of substance abuse itself. More specifically, what makes substance abuse addicting also makes fear addicting. When we experience fear our bodies release different chemicals and hormones to compensate. Adrenaline is quite literally the body’s fight or flight response, the natural way of handling fear. Lesser well known for being produced in response to fear is dopamine. Dopamine is a neurotransmitter in the brain which is supposed to communicate pleasure. In the brain cycle of addiction, dopamine plays a very large role. The brain becomes addicted to, obsessed with, and dependent on excessive dopamine production.

For fear, much like with drugs and alcohol, some people don’t have a tolerance threshold. That is why some people can withstand haunted houses, scary movies, and thrill seeking while others jump at bumps in the night. Since dopamine is released, some actually enjoy the fear. In fact, the scarier the better.

Can fear be an addiction?

It is unlikely that the brain will develop an addiction to scary movies or corn mazes during Halloween. However, the brain can get addicted to receiving pleasure from dopamine production. Whatever it is that stimulates the brain in this way will become an obsession over time. Danger seeking behavior can be problematic in addiction recovery, acting almost like an addiction-swap.

ACOA Traits by Geoff Flower

Written by enlightened solutions on February 10, 2016. Posted in Addiction, Alcoholism, Family Recovery.

This week our Enlightened Solutions partial care group were educated on Adult Children Of Alcoholics (ACOA) traits. We have found that many of our clients have grown up in families in which substance abuse has been present. Addiction is a family disease and it affects all members of the family. According to ‘Adult Children of Alcoholics – The Expanded Edition’ by Janet G. Woititz, Ed.D the typical characteristics of alcoholic families include;

1. Adult children of alcoholics guess at what normal behavior is.

2. Adult children of alcoholics have difficulty following a project through from beginning to end.

3. Adult children of alcoholics lie when it would be just as easy to tell the truth.

4. Adult children of alcoholics judge themselves without mercy.

5. Adult children of alcoholics have difficulty having fun.

6. Adult children of alcoholics take themselves very seriously.

7. Adult children of alcoholics have difficulty with intimate relationships.

8. Adult children of alcoholics overreact to changes over which they have no control.

9. Adult children of alcoholics constantly seek approval and affirmation.

10. Adult children of alcoholics usually feel that they are different from other people.

11. Adult children of alcoholics are super responsible or super irresponsible.

12. Adult children of alcoholics are extremely loyal, even in the face of evidence that the loyalty is undeserved.

13. Adult children of alcoholics are impulsive. They tend to lock themselves into a course of action without giving serious consideration to alternative behaviors or possible consequences. This impulsively leads to confusion, self-loathing and loss of control over their environment. In addition, they spend an excessive amount of energy cleaning up the mess.

We worked collaboratively on identifying and processing how these characteristics have contributed to their own addictive behaviors thus influencing their past and current interpersonal relationships. The group engaged in different psychodramas depicting the distorted communication pattens within the family. Client’s were given the opportunity to practice healthier interactions in order establish more adaptive ways of being able to communicate needs for support within their recovery.

Breaking these patterns that have been engrained over a period of time is not easily done. The intention behind providing ACOA themed groups is to assist our clients in normalizing these dysfunctional pattens of behavior in order to bring about the beginnings of necessary changes. This is integral to the ability of our clients to move forward and build healthy meaningful relationships to aid in their recovery from addiction.

Tag: addiction

Opioid Addiction Is Severe; Treatment Should Be Unique

Types of Detox Treatment Methods

Medically Assisted Detox

Naturally Assisted Detox

Cold Turkey

The Ongoing Grief Of Losing A Parent

Identifying Traits Of Addiction Might Mean Identifying An Addict Early On

Why We Get Attracted to Fear

Why We Get Attracted to Fear

Can fear be an addiction?

ACOA Traits by Geoff Flower

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