Showing posts with label family treatment. Show all posts
Showing posts with label family treatment. Show all posts
Tuesday, December 15, 2015
Addiction Is A Family Disease
Addiction is a family disease. Many people don't realize just how debiulitating it is on the entire structure of a family. Most families have no idea what to do when a loved one is suffering from addiction. Coupled with that, many families don't understand that even when the sufferer gets clean and sober there is still sickness in the family.
At Clearbrook we have a program specifically designed for family members of our patients. The quality of our patients recoveries goes up exponencially when their family members participate. Please visit our "Families Helping Families" page on our website for more information.
Saturday, March 13, 2010
The Brain and Addiction: A Link?
The brain and addiction Pennsylvania... what is the relationship? There has been an ongoing debate for years about where addiction actually originates from. You will find some drug addiction treatment professionals who claim addiction is a lack of willpower, while others insist that addiction is a disease of the brain, complete with signs and symptoms. The truth about addiction, as concluded by the American Medical Association with research-based criteria, is that addiction is most definitely a disease that is chronic in nature not unlike cancer, diabetes or bipolar disorder.
Another critical outcome of the research-based study showed that the brain of the individual suffering from drug or alcohol addiction Pennsylvania is both chemically and physiologically dissimilar from that of the normal brain. This particular finding supports the theory that the brain and addiction are interconnected. This is critical to understanding addiction, its development and an individual's recovery process.
Addiction Definition
The word addiction is best defined as the obsessive thinking and compulsive need for and use of drugs, alcohol, food, sex or anything that is psychologically or physically addicting. Addiction can also be described by the development of tolerance with distinguishable withdrawal symptoms upon discontinuing the use of the particular drug or behavior. In addition to the development of tolerance with regards to addiction, the addict or alcoholic will experience intense physical cravings for the drug accompanied by an emotional obsession to take the drug regardless of the consequences.
The process of addiction Pennsylvania that leads the individual to experience the compulsive need for drugs regardless of the consequences is directly related to the change in brain chemistry affecting the process of thought.
Another critical outcome of the research-based study showed that the brain of the individual suffering from drug or alcohol addiction Pennsylvania is both chemically and physiologically dissimilar from that of the normal brain. This particular finding supports the theory that the brain and addiction are interconnected. This is critical to understanding addiction, its development and an individual's recovery process.
Addiction Definition
The word addiction is best defined as the obsessive thinking and compulsive need for and use of drugs, alcohol, food, sex or anything that is psychologically or physically addicting. Addiction can also be described by the development of tolerance with distinguishable withdrawal symptoms upon discontinuing the use of the particular drug or behavior. In addition to the development of tolerance with regards to addiction, the addict or alcoholic will experience intense physical cravings for the drug accompanied by an emotional obsession to take the drug regardless of the consequences.
The process of addiction Pennsylvania that leads the individual to experience the compulsive need for drugs regardless of the consequences is directly related to the change in brain chemistry affecting the process of thought.
The Drug Personality Syndrome
The "Drug Personality"
There is such a thing as a "drug personality." It is artificial and is created by drugs. Drugs can change the attitude of a person from their original personality to one secretly harboring hostilities and hatreds they do not permit to show on the surface.
A person with a drug personality Pennsylvania may:
■Have mood swings
■Be unreliable
■Be unable to finish projects
■Have unexpressed resentment and secret hatreds
■Be dishonest and lie to family, friends and employers
■Isolate themselves and withdraw from those who love him
■Appear chronically depressed
■Begin stealing from family and friends
Craving is an extremely powerful urge and can cause a person to create all kinds of "reasons" they should continue using drugs or alcohol, even once they try to quit. The person is now trapped in the endless cycle of addiction Pennsylvania: trying to quit, craving, fear of withdrawal, relapse.
Treatment Focused on Breaking the Cycle of Addiction
Traditional alcohol and drug addiction treatment Pennsylvania focuses mainly on spiritual talk therapy, while the disease's underlying physiology is never addressed. Modern, more effective treatments focus on correcting the neurological imbalances caused by substance dependence; those imbalances are the direct cause of cravings and withdrawal symptoms which, if left untreated, lead directly to relapse. This new approach, along with nutritional supplements and aftercare psychosocial counseling empowers the patient with the ability to stay on the road to recovery.
There is such a thing as a "drug personality." It is artificial and is created by drugs. Drugs can change the attitude of a person from their original personality to one secretly harboring hostilities and hatreds they do not permit to show on the surface.
A person with a drug personality Pennsylvania may:
■Have mood swings
■Be unreliable
■Be unable to finish projects
■Have unexpressed resentment and secret hatreds
■Be dishonest and lie to family, friends and employers
■Isolate themselves and withdraw from those who love him
■Appear chronically depressed
■Begin stealing from family and friends
Craving is an extremely powerful urge and can cause a person to create all kinds of "reasons" they should continue using drugs or alcohol, even once they try to quit. The person is now trapped in the endless cycle of addiction Pennsylvania: trying to quit, craving, fear of withdrawal, relapse.
Treatment Focused on Breaking the Cycle of Addiction
Traditional alcohol and drug addiction treatment Pennsylvania focuses mainly on spiritual talk therapy, while the disease's underlying physiology is never addressed. Modern, more effective treatments focus on correcting the neurological imbalances caused by substance dependence; those imbalances are the direct cause of cravings and withdrawal symptoms which, if left untreated, lead directly to relapse. This new approach, along with nutritional supplements and aftercare psychosocial counseling empowers the patient with the ability to stay on the road to recovery.
Monday, January 4, 2010
Senior Substance Abuse
Studies show that as many as 17 percent of American seniors may have alcohol abuse problems or alcoholism, yet this group is greatly underrepresented in addiction treatment programs.
Studies also show that when seniors do participate in addiction treatment programs, they show greater than average treatment compliance, are more likely to finish a recommended course of treatment and more likely to avoid relapse. Treatment for seniors works, but too many seniors never get the treatment they need.
Seniors are more susceptible to the effects of alcohol and prescription drugs. They do not metabolize these psychoactive substances as well or as quickly as younger people, and they are more likely to mix alcohol or psychoactive medications with other medications that can result in dangerous drug interactions. What may not seem like excessive drinking in an older adult may in fact be enough to cause significant intoxication and serious health consequences.
Once in treatment, seniors tend to stay committed to their long-term recovery. Convincing a senior who is abusing drugs or alcohol to get addiction treatment can lead to increased health and cognitive functioning, a decrease in the risks of mental health disorders, and in many cases, to additional years of life.
If an older adult you know and love is drinking too much or abusing medications, you can and should intervene.
Studies also show that when seniors do participate in addiction treatment programs, they show greater than average treatment compliance, are more likely to finish a recommended course of treatment and more likely to avoid relapse. Treatment for seniors works, but too many seniors never get the treatment they need.
Seniors are more susceptible to the effects of alcohol and prescription drugs. They do not metabolize these psychoactive substances as well or as quickly as younger people, and they are more likely to mix alcohol or psychoactive medications with other medications that can result in dangerous drug interactions. What may not seem like excessive drinking in an older adult may in fact be enough to cause significant intoxication and serious health consequences.
Once in treatment, seniors tend to stay committed to their long-term recovery. Convincing a senior who is abusing drugs or alcohol to get addiction treatment can lead to increased health and cognitive functioning, a decrease in the risks of mental health disorders, and in many cases, to additional years of life.
If an older adult you know and love is drinking too much or abusing medications, you can and should intervene.
Intervention is Sometimes Necessary
Myths:
1) An addict needs to hit rock bottom before they’ll ever get help.
2) An addict has to decide when to get treatment.
Those two pervasive myths about addiction stop too many well-meaning and concerned family members from intervening to help their loved one get needed addiction treatment.
Addicts and alcoholics never need to hit rock bottom. Waiting for things to get worse only makes treatment harder and less likely to succeed, and many people never find their own rock bottom, until it’s too late.
Many alcoholics and addicts enter into substance abuse treatment programs initially on the urging of concerned friends or family members, at the request of employers or as mandated by the courts. Statistics show that people who do not enter into treatment as self-motivated participants are just as likely to succeed as anyone else. It does not matter how you feel walking in the door to that treatment center, it only matters how you feel walking out.
Talk to the person you love about drug rehab treatment. Sometimes you can convince them to get the help they need – sometimes they’re just waiting for someone to ask.
Often, though, it’s not that easy. Addiction hijacks the mind and treatment threatens the very existence of this addicted mind. Some of the strategies commonly employed to deflect treatment include:
Denying the problem or the extent of the problem
Lying about what they plan to do
Agreeing to get help, but not following through
Reacting with anger, deflecting the conversation away from their problem and back onto you
In many cases, an intervention is required to convince someone who is reluctant to get help into the addiction treatment they need.
A family intervention brings together everyone close to the addict or alcoholic for a loving conversation, during which the addict hears what harms their drinking or using does to them and to others.
When everyone comes together to tell personal stories of pain and to demand treatment, it is tough for the addict to continue to deny the existence of the problem and the need for treatment.
Interventions work well, but they should never be taken lightly. They are serious, difficult and emotional events that require forethought, planning and preparation. Be sure to get educated about the process before attempting your own, and consider enlisting the services of a professional interventionist to facilitate the event.
1) An addict needs to hit rock bottom before they’ll ever get help.
2) An addict has to decide when to get treatment.
Those two pervasive myths about addiction stop too many well-meaning and concerned family members from intervening to help their loved one get needed addiction treatment.
Addicts and alcoholics never need to hit rock bottom. Waiting for things to get worse only makes treatment harder and less likely to succeed, and many people never find their own rock bottom, until it’s too late.
Many alcoholics and addicts enter into substance abuse treatment programs initially on the urging of concerned friends or family members, at the request of employers or as mandated by the courts. Statistics show that people who do not enter into treatment as self-motivated participants are just as likely to succeed as anyone else. It does not matter how you feel walking in the door to that treatment center, it only matters how you feel walking out.
Talk to the person you love about drug rehab treatment. Sometimes you can convince them to get the help they need – sometimes they’re just waiting for someone to ask.
Often, though, it’s not that easy. Addiction hijacks the mind and treatment threatens the very existence of this addicted mind. Some of the strategies commonly employed to deflect treatment include:
Denying the problem or the extent of the problem
Lying about what they plan to do
Agreeing to get help, but not following through
Reacting with anger, deflecting the conversation away from their problem and back onto you
In many cases, an intervention is required to convince someone who is reluctant to get help into the addiction treatment they need.
A family intervention brings together everyone close to the addict or alcoholic for a loving conversation, during which the addict hears what harms their drinking or using does to them and to others.
When everyone comes together to tell personal stories of pain and to demand treatment, it is tough for the addict to continue to deny the existence of the problem and the need for treatment.
Interventions work well, but they should never be taken lightly. They are serious, difficult and emotional events that require forethought, planning and preparation. Be sure to get educated about the process before attempting your own, and consider enlisting the services of a professional interventionist to facilitate the event.
Help a Loved One Recover
It can be heart-wrenching to witness a loved one’s descent into addiction or alcoholism. Feeling powerless to create lasting change is often the hardest part as we watch a friend, parent, child or sibling risk early death to keep on getting drunk or high. It’s unbelievable, but it’s reality.
Fortunately, although you may feel powerless, you have more influence than you realize. Here are six ways that you can help get a loved one to stop abusing drugs or alcohol.
Until you get educated about the problem, you can’t hope to provide workable solutions.
The situation may seem black and white to you – “just stop using what’s killing you” – but with addiction, what seems to make the most sense isn’t necessarily what’s true or needed. Addiction creates physiological changes in the brain that make it very difficult to just “say no.”
Addiction erodes impulse control. Without treatment and relapse avoidance techniques, constant cravings are difficult to overcome.
Read all you can about the disease of addiction. It will help you to understand what your loved one is going through, why treatment is needed and what types of treatment are most likely to work – and it may increase your feelings of compassion. You are going to need the help and support of others in the family as well, so it’s important that you offer informed opinions about what can and should be done to create real and lasting change.
Go to the library and read online. You should also plan to meet with an addiction specialist to get opinions and recommendations for treatment.
Addiction affects the family, and family affects the addiction. If at all possible, family members should participate in the addiction treatment process. Family counseling and family education sessions can help reveal family dynamics that may contribute to the substance abuse and may help mend some of the wounds inevitably caused by addiction.
Getting educated as a family also prepares the group to offer the kinds of relapse prevention support that can really make a difference in those first tough months of sobriety.
Fortunately, although you may feel powerless, you have more influence than you realize. Here are six ways that you can help get a loved one to stop abusing drugs or alcohol.
Until you get educated about the problem, you can’t hope to provide workable solutions.
The situation may seem black and white to you – “just stop using what’s killing you” – but with addiction, what seems to make the most sense isn’t necessarily what’s true or needed. Addiction creates physiological changes in the brain that make it very difficult to just “say no.”
Addiction erodes impulse control. Without treatment and relapse avoidance techniques, constant cravings are difficult to overcome.
Read all you can about the disease of addiction. It will help you to understand what your loved one is going through, why treatment is needed and what types of treatment are most likely to work – and it may increase your feelings of compassion. You are going to need the help and support of others in the family as well, so it’s important that you offer informed opinions about what can and should be done to create real and lasting change.
Go to the library and read online. You should also plan to meet with an addiction specialist to get opinions and recommendations for treatment.
Addiction affects the family, and family affects the addiction. If at all possible, family members should participate in the addiction treatment process. Family counseling and family education sessions can help reveal family dynamics that may contribute to the substance abuse and may help mend some of the wounds inevitably caused by addiction.
Getting educated as a family also prepares the group to offer the kinds of relapse prevention support that can really make a difference in those first tough months of sobriety.
Monday, November 30, 2009
Clearbrook Retreat
Family treatment is viewed as a vital and necessary component to enhance the recovery of the chemically dependent person, as well as to promote overall family recovery from the effects that chemical dependency has on individual family members. Family members suffer from another memeber's drug dependency, and these may include feelings of denail, guilt, and self-blame. This program is intended to help ease these feelings and help to build a healthy relationship again.
The Family Program is provided by Clearbrook for family members of the chemically dependent one weekend a month beginning at 5:30 p.m. on Friday evening and ending at Noon on Sunday. Families participate in group therapy and individual counseling sessions.
The 12-steps of this program are reinforced through this Clearbrook Retreat program. Alcoholics Anonymous and A-non are also reinforced through this program as well.
Clearbrook Treatment Centers are your #1 choice for ending your dependency on drugs and alcohol in Pennsylvania! They pride themselves on compassion and patient care to make sure that each patient gets the quality care they deserve. Choose Clearbrook Treatment Centers for your drug dependency recovery needs.
The Family Program is provided by Clearbrook for family members of the chemically dependent one weekend a month beginning at 5:30 p.m. on Friday evening and ending at Noon on Sunday. Families participate in group therapy and individual counseling sessions.
The 12-steps of this program are reinforced through this Clearbrook Retreat program. Alcoholics Anonymous and A-non are also reinforced through this program as well.
Clearbrook Treatment Centers are your #1 choice for ending your dependency on drugs and alcohol in Pennsylvania! They pride themselves on compassion and patient care to make sure that each patient gets the quality care they deserve. Choose Clearbrook Treatment Centers for your drug dependency recovery needs.
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