Treatment Archives - Page 21 of 31 - Enlightened Solutions

How To Handle Trauma On TV

Written by enlightened solutions on March 21, 2018. Posted in Addiction, Healthy Living. Leave a Comment

On Valentine’s Day, February 2018, tragedy struck our nation once again. Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in a town called Parkland, Florida, was the site of another school shooting. A young man opened fire on his previous campus with an assault rifle, taking the lives of 17 people. Many more were injured. Hundreds of students were deeply traumatized. The tragedy has maintained headlines and news for weeks as the young people of the school have become focal points of not just the event but a growing revolution in talking about gun control, policy reform, and trauma. The teenagers and parents involved in the tragedy have spoken outright about their experiences coping with the shooting and the trauma they are facing.

People who go through a tragedy like a school shooting are not the only ones who face symptoms of trauma. When live video, carnage, tears, details, and information are being broadcast 24/7, viewers at home can suffer trauma as well. Research has found that trauma can be third party. Consuming large amounts of media regarding mass shootings can induce symptoms of trauma in people. Difficulty sleeping, disturbing thoughts, anxiety, depression, and more manifest as a result of trying to process something unfathomable. Empathy is critical for doing what one can to try and help a situation out of their control. When empathy becomes problematic and weighs on your mental or physical health, it is time to take a step back.

Professionals suggest doing a social media and news “detox” to limit your intake. Avoid the news for a few days or a week altogether. If you feel you must stay up to date, do so in small segments. Set a timer, set restrictions on your smart devices, and abide by your limitations.

Talk to your loved ones and support network about what is coming up for you. You may have experienced trauma in your life which is not yet resolved. Seeing others suffer can be triggering. There may be themes of the trauma which trigger other untouched themes from underlying issues in your life. Open up to those around you and be honest about your experience.

Spend extra time in self-care wherever possible. Survivor’s guilt is a common symptom of trauma. Even though you weren’t there, you might feel guilty that other people have to live through such horrible tragedies. As is the case with the Stoneman Douglas shooting, there are numerous ways to get involved and support the survivors. However, it is important to recognize you can only do so much from where you are. In order to do anything, including maintaining the responsibilities of your own life, you have to be in good health. Take care of your mind, body, and spirit, through self-care practices which keep you centered, grounded, and balanced. Get plenty of sleep, eat a healthy and balanced diet, and do the things you love to do.

If you are seeking transformation and looking for a dual-diagnosis treatment, our facility’s amazing program could be the answer you’ve been searching for! Enlightened Solutions offers a clinical, holistic and 12-step approach for the addiction recovery process. For more information call today: 844-234-LIVE.

Feel Your Heart Beating?

Written by enlightened solutions on March 20, 2018. Posted in Addiction, QA. Leave a Comment

Why are you alive today? If we struggle with depression, anxiety, addiction, any kind of mental illness, or just the sheer enigma of human existence, we might wake up and ask ourselves that question. Why? Why are we here? Why are we alive? We don’t always get a clear answer as to why. Moving past the why, we start to fall into the what. Our what usually has to do with our why and it falls under the word purpose. What is your purpose? We can assume that we are alive for some reason and that reason must have a purpose if it is not our purpose entirely. In the days when we wake up and ask ourselves why or ask ourselves what all we have to do is put our hand on our chest to feel our heart beating. Yes, we are alive. Yes, there is some purpose. Our heart is beating. We are alive. There is a reason for that because there is a reason for everything.

Our humanity is plagued with existential crisis. Men and women who have lived with addiction know the struggle personally, especially in the first stages of their recovery. Addiction is a purpose for many men and women. Having lost connection to other parts of their life, many a man or woman found themselves wondering if they had a purpose outside of addiction. What if, they wonder, this is it for me? What if this is all that I am? All that I am meant to be? What if this is the role I am meant to fulfill? What is this is my purpose? As soon as they realize they can make a decision to get sober and seek help all of the negative and hopeless perspective of addiction changes. Something else is possible.

As long as we are alive, we have possibilities. We have potential even when we don’t have a plan. It is always possible to get sober. It is always possible to seek help. It is always possible to find and change your purpose.

Your purpose on earth is not suffering and being sick. Your purpose on earth is to find and strive to achieve your potential along with all of its possibilities.

Everybody’s Got Something

Written by enlightened solutions on March 19, 2018. Posted in Addiction Recovery, Healthy Living. Leave a Comment

We use a term in treatment and recovery called “underlying issues”. Addiction is never just about addiction. There are few people in the entirety of the world who simply had a drug or alcohol problem without having a single other issue in their life. As a result of their drinking or drug use they might have developed problems in their life. Until then, however, things were relatively normal. For most, on the other hand, this is not the case. Most everybody in recovery has some kind of something that they experienced, that they felt, or who they were, which contributed to their drinkings. Anything from ADHD to a parent’s divorce, from getting bullied to feeling a pressure to be perfect, the tiny little “flaws” in a person’s history and make up predisposed them to addiction. Years of our life might be spent thinking we’re the only ones to have these life experiences. Through treatment, therapy, and recovery, we learn that everybody’s got something.

Discovering underlying issues is considered a necessary part of the treatment and recovery process. If there were a leak in the house that was causing the floor to flood would you merely lay down some towels or would you find the source of the leaking water? Underlying issues are like breaks in the pipes. Some might be small and cause a tiny leak while others are large and significant, causing big leaks. Since addiction is addiction and comes with a wealth of shame, stigma, and stereotype, the leaks get ignored. For too many years, treatment programs have focused on the flood on the floor- that is, the most obvious issue at hand. Treating the addiction alone left people with leaks, breakages in mind, body, and spirit. Sadly, many people relapse because they never confront their underlying issues.

Addiction is easy to blame. Drugs and alcohol are easy to pinpoint. “The Big Book”, Alcoholics Anonymous, best describes underlying issues when it states that for alcoholics, “our liquor was but a symptom.” We uncover our recovery, our true recovery, when we uncover our underlying issues. Recovery is, as the metaphor goes, like peeling back the layers of an onion. The more layers we peel back, the further away from addiction we get.

Ways You Can Do Music Therapy At Home: Part One

Written by enlightened solutions on March 15, 2018. Posted in Addiction Recovery, Alternative Therapy. Leave a Comment

Music therapy is as simple as listening to music and getting lost in the sounds. Professional music therapists are trained to guide a music therapy session over time and help their clients move through certain emotional barriers. Alone, however, music therapy can do the same thing because music is transformational. Music and the words in lyrics can help you learn about yourself, other people’s lives, and more.

Listen to music: Listening to music not only helps you with insight, but the vibrations from music help you heal energetically. Different kinds of music have different kinds of energy. Choose music to meet your mood or choose music to get you out of your mood. You’ll be surprised what different kinds of music can do for your state of mind. While listening to music, tune into your mindfulness. Notice how the music makes you feel. What thoughts come up? Do your muscles tense or relax? Do you feel like dancing or does the music bring out emotions like crying? If you cry, is it pain, sadness, happiness, or grief? Pay attention to how the music affects you and notice any patterns. You can learn from this experience and curate your music listening therapy more specifically next time.

Play music: Playing a musical instrument is described as meditation for many people. Playing music has beats and rhythms, chords and harmonies. When you play an instrument, the instrument emits energy and vibrations through the soundwaves which go right into your body. Playing music also helps take you out of your head. You have to focus fully on what you’re doing and how you’re playing. If you’re distracted, you won’t be fully present with what you’re playing. Find anything to play music on. If you are familiar with an instrument, turn to that. If you are learning an instrument brand new, have patience and enjoy the process of picking up a new talent.

Dance to music: Dancing is a music therapy and an expressive arts therapy. Ancient cultures have been using dancing for therapy for thousands of years as a way to heal, celebrate, mourn, detox, pray, and more. Dancing to music does the same thing that music does and more. You workup your heart rate, you break a sweat, and you internalize the energy. Dancing is vulnerable. You have to be comfortable to let yourself dance with yourself and in front of others. The process results in you feeling more liberated, having a great time, and cutting loose.

Enlightened Solutions offers a clinical, holistic and 12-step approach to the road to recovery. If you’re struggling with addiction and/or mental illness, our program is specialized in dual-diagnosis treatments. Don’t hesitate and call today: 844-234-LIVE.

peer support group member expresses empathy to fellow peer

Does Pain Cultivate Empathy?

Written by enlightened solutions on March 9, 2018. Posted in Healthy Living, QA. Leave a Comment

“We are not a glum lot,” the authors of Alcoholics Anonymous wrote. They described the fellowship of Alcoholics Anonymous as a group of people who would “normally not mix.” “We are average Americans. All sections of this country and many of its occupations are represented, as well as many political, economic, social, and religious backgrounds.” Despite the differences among the members, the authors emphasize, “…there exists among us a fellowship, a friendliness and an understanding which is indescribably wonderful.”

The authors explain that the fellows of Alcoholics Anonymous (AA), and by metaphor meaning anyone who is in recovery from drug and alcohol addiction, are like passengers on a ship being rescued from a shipwreck. “The feeling of having shared in a common peril is one element in the powerful cement which binds us. But that in itself would never have held us together as we are now joined.” Few people can understand the suffering, pain, and plight of living in active addiction to drugs and alcohol the way that an addict or alcoholic can. That “common peril” is what creates an innate and unique sense of empathy among individuals in recovery. Without that painful experience, addicts and alcoholics might not know how to support one another.

Empathy can be defined as “the ability to understand and share the feelings of another”. Humans experience pain. We all experience some kind of pain in our lives whether it is physical, emotional, psychological, or spiritual. Every human being can humble themselves to realize that their experience of pain is no different from anyone else’s experience of pain. However, it helps when two people have suffered a very similar pain, like addiction. Out of that pain, empathy is born.

Can we be empathetic without pain? We have to be able to recognize our own pain first. We also have to be willing to recognize the pain of others. As addicts and alcoholics we turned a blind eye of denial to our own suffering and as a result ignored the suffering we caused others as a result of our addiction. Coming out on the other side of pain gives us the perspective we need to confront and resolve our pain. When we see others suffering we are no longer suffering, but have suffered. We can offer them our empathy because, due to our pain, we have the ability to understand and share their feelings of suffering.

Suffering And Impermanence In Addiction

Written by enlightened solutions on March 7, 2018. Posted in Addiction, Healthy Living. Leave a Comment

All of life is suffering, said the great Buddha in his teachings. All of life is pain. There is freedom from pain and suffering, he offered, and that is enlightenment. Dukkha is the pali word for suffering and translates directly to suffering. Suffering isn’t always pain, however. Dukkha can mean a variety of emotional states and the suffering which comes from them.

“Dukkha refers to the psychological experience- sometimes conscious, sometimes not conscious- of the profound fact that everything is impermanent, ungraspable, and not really knowable” writes author Norman Fischer in Suffering Opens the Real Path. Fischer explains that we all know on some level that we are suffering. We know at our core the true nature of things, but we try to know something else. As a result we live in samsara, the cycle of existence and suffering we face when we tightly hold onto everything which is passing and impermanent- like our addictions.

Our phases of intoxication are impermanent. Only addicts and alcoholics know the true depth of this. We suffer in angst as we await the next time we are to be intoxicated. Even when we are relishing the euphoric effects of our drugs of choice, we subtly suffer, anticipating the moment when the euphoria ends. As we enter a stage of detox and withdrawal we suffer even more. We cannot hold onto the high and we cannot bear the come down. The cycle is relentless.

To anyone who has not suffered from addiction to drugs and alcohol, the cycle seems silly and self-imposed. Why would anyone choose to do that to themselves? Yet as human beings we are all prone to various “addictions” which keep us in the same cycle. We hold onto hopes that are unrealistic, pleasures which are passing, and expectations which only lead to disappointments. Why would we choose to do that? It is not until we become aware of the fact that we are choosing our suffering that we can find enlightenment and release from our suffering.

Through treatment and therapy we start the path to enlightenment by releasing our addictions to drugs and alcohol. Evolving on the course of our journey we confront other addictions in our life like our addiction to thoughts, feelings, actions, beliefs, and behaviors. We realize that our addictions were merely one manifestation of our suffering, one dukkha in our life of samsara but that enlightenment is possible in all of these areas. We slowly detach and find our way to healing, each moment of liberation a living nirvana.

Snapchat Filters Have Caused A Rise In Body Dysmorphia

Written by enlightened solutions on March 6, 2018. Posted in Recovery, Sober Living. Leave a Comment

Social media platforms like Snapchat have a growing list of problematic effects they are causing for their users. Ironically, it is the magical effects of Snapchat’s platform which draw people to it yet cause the most problems. Many social media platforms have followed Snapchat’s lead in developing filters which layer over a real time image to create an enhanced picture. Some of Snapchat’s filters include animal parts, like dog ears, nose and tongue. In most of their filters, however, it is the simple facial modifications which draw people into compulsive selfie-taking. Snapchat’s facial filters smooth the face, eliminate blemishes, and alter the eyes, lips, and eyelashes. Many of the “ideal” beauty modifications once restricted to major publications with advanced editing tools are now achievable with a quick selfie. Rather than compare themselves to models in magazines, people can compare themselves to themselves in just a few seconds. The contrast between what they see in the mirror and what they see through their Snapchat filters is causing many people psychological distress and resulting in the development of body dysmorphia.

Body dysmorphic disorder affects 1 in 50 people and causes a severe skew in one’s perception of themselves. Striving for “perfect”, someone with body dysmorphic disorder can turn to multiple surgeries and procedures to achieve the look they want. All of their worth and how they feel about themselves on the inside is defined by how they think they look on the outside. In the case of “Snapchat Dysmorphia” people want to look how their Snapchat filters make them look. They’re turning to plastic surgery to achieve those modifications. In the process, they’re developing a mental illness which could last a lifetime.

People start to believe that the way they look on Snapchat is the way they should look in real life. The hyperreal filters create a disappointment in what is truly real about how people look. People’s expectations are high not just for themselves but for others. Disappointment from such unrealistic high expectations can be deeply damaging, ruining relationships, and causing severe self-esteem issues in people with altered perceptions.

You Only Need 3 Things To Set Boundaries In Your Life

Written by enlightened solutions on March 5, 2018. Posted in Healthy Living, Recovery. Leave a Comment

Being in recovery from drug and alcohol addiction is being in recovery of the self. We tend to lose ourselves in addiction. Slowly but surely, we let go of the most core components of who we are. We do things we said we would never do. We act in ways we could never have fathomed acting. We go against morals, values, and ethics we are both aware of and unaware of. The consequences are exponential. Patterns of energy and habit are set forth which tell us that we have no boundaries within ourselves. By going against who we are and identifying ourselves only through our addiction, we lose sight of where our rights and our wrongs both end and begin.

You need to know who you are, mostly, at least:

Through the treatment process, we find ourselves again. Therapy, energy healing, spiritual experiences, and trauma resolution help us determine what our values, morals, ethics, and beliefs are. Empowered, we find ownership in who we are. Knowing exactly what we believe is right or wrong takes time because our brains, deeply affected by addiction, need time to heal. As we continue through our healing journey, we can set boundaries for what we are willing to accept, willing to tolerate, or what we are not willing to accept and tolerate.

Boundaries are set when we know who we are. Some of our boundaries are flexible while others are rigid. Either way, we know who we are in our highest vibrational being and we honor who that person is by respecting their boundaries.

You need to be able to communicate your boundaries:

Ask someone in the early months of their recovery how they are feeling and be met with a face of contemplation. Addiction deeply changes the brain. People in recovery use “feeling charts” to help them identify how they feel. Communication is a key part of life for interacting with any other being. Those who are in recovery have to first learn to communicate with and for themselves, starting with the very basics of “How do I feel?” From there, the communication can evolve.

We set boundaries within ourselves which apply to others. Though we know what our boundaries for others are, others cannot know our boundaries for them until we tell them what they are. Communication is the way that we effectively inform others of who we are and what we are accepting of- something we have to do with ourselves first.

You need to be mindful:

You build a fence to keep in a herd of sheep. These boundaries are meant to confine the sheep to one area. While you look away, trusting in your boundaries, a sheep somehow escapes. This can happen in our lives. Our boundaries aren’t flashing around us in neon lights. We have to tenderly and compassionately mind our boundaries and check on them in all situations. It can be expected that our boundaries will need maintenance and checking up on.

Sponsor Shopping

Written by enlightened solutions on February 23, 2018. Posted in Addiction Recovery, Sober Living. Leave a Comment

In Alcoholics Anonymous it is suggested to get a sponsor. A sponsor is another member of AA that takes the sponsee through the 12 steps. It’s important that the sponsor has what the alcoholic wants in life. Not materialistically, but spiritually and through ways, one can relate. It might take a few attempts until he/she finds the right fit. This is why it is suggested to ask a fellow member to be a temporary sponsor first. A sponsee might want to interview the potential sponsor to see if they are really willing to do the things asked of them. Everyone is different and personalities don’t always mesh well either. It’s important to let the sponsee know this in advance and make it clear that this process should never be taken personally.

A good way to find a sponsor is to go to meetings. Finding meetings that suit the sponsees taste, will be a proper guide to finding someone relatable and understanding. Sometimes people need a sponsor who offers tough love, and some prefer a more gentle approach. Some feel more comfortable with a sponsor who went through similar circumstances, but to some, this might not matter. It is suggested to ask a member of the same sex to sponsor. However, there are no real rules or guidelines about this. All that matters is that the sponsor is consistent with taking the sponsee through the steps because that is the way to stay sober.

While it seems like the sponsee would be the one getting the most out of the relationship, this couldn’t be further from the truth. When members of AA help another member, they are really doing this to stay sober themselves. It’s the act of helping another member is gratifying and feeds the soul. It keeps the sponsor in tune with what happens while in the disease. While going through the steps with another alcoholic, the sponsor is also going through them themselves in a way. Members of AA believe that in order to stay sober you must live in the steps and this is the way to do so.

If you are interested in becoming sober and have the willingness to go to any lengths, the 12 steps will take you there. Here at Enlightened Solutions, we encourage patients to dig deep and heal the body, mind, and soul for a brighter future. For more information call 833-801-5483.

Avoidance

Written by enlightened solutions on February 22, 2018. Posted in Family Recovery, Sober Living. Leave a Comment

While in the disease of addiction, it is an extremely easy to slip into isolation and avoidance. Life becomes bleak and pessimistic. There may be no hope. Although everyone has their own story, the commonality is that there is a bottom. High bottoms and low bottoms, each person has their own threshold of what they can take. Unfortunately, it’s not up to anyone who had already lost the choice to drink or use. This is because all of these ways have ceased to work and it is becoming more clear that things have gotten out of control. When the mind continues to tell someone with addiction that everything is fine, what is really important will begin to take a back seat. Avoiding the signs that there may be a problem, will almost always result in self-sabotage.

Some people will begin to avoid painful feelings that stem from the past. It’s true that you don’t have to feel feelings if you don’t want to, and a good way to do that is to numb with alcohol and/or drugs. Individuals with addictions experience an inevitable progression into a downward spiral. Over time a high tolerance builds up for the substance and chaos. Soon the person who’s sick will be spending more time focusing on the behavior and less on reality. Once things really take a turn for the worse, it’s easy to slip into isolation mode. This is simply avoiding people, places, and things that could possibly interfere with whatever troubling behavior.

At some point, the person who is sick has the ability to find themselves with other like-minded people. The people surrounding the abusive behavior are in actuality only attracted to the unhealthy habit because they are doing the same thing. If someone isn’t ready to get help, using pressure it not going to help. It’s up to every person to decide when they are finished with avoiding life. The disease of addiction is really a way to escape from reality. When people learn how to handle life’s stressors in a healthy way there can be hope. Accepting help and beginning to use coping mechanisms learned in treatment, there can be progress.

If you are trying to learn healthy ways to cope without alcohol and/or drugs, do not give up! Our partial program at Enlightened Solutions is clinical, holistic, and 12 step based. Begin to heal your body, mind, and soul. For more information call: 844-234-LOVE.

Tag: Treatment