Rebounding After a Drug Relapse – Is It Possible?

June 5, 2018

Addiction treatment is one of the hardest and most rewarding avenues someone with a substance abuse problem can take. As with most journeys in life, addiction treatment and recovery can come with setbacks. Without the right support system in place, those setbacks can lead to a drug relapse. But what do you do if a drug relapse occurs?

Drug Relapse Vs. Slip

It’s important for anyone in recovery to know the difference between a slip and relapse and to know what to do if relapse occurs. When someone suffering from substance abuse and/or drug addiction experiences a slip, it typically occurs one time, either against their knowledge or in an extreme moment of weakness. When the slip is realized there is a sense of remorse and a renewed dedication to sobriety.

Relapse is not merely a one-time event, but is instead, continued use and a complete abandonment of the rehabilitation principles and sobriety. …

Recovery Coaches: Support Specialist or Scam Artist?

May 18, 2018

Category:12 Step Program / Addiction & Recovery General / Addiction Treatment Center / Addiction Treatment Centers / Avoiding Triggers / Best Treatment Centers Nationwide / Call to Action / Disease of Addiction / Drug Rehab / Heroin Treatment Options / Long Term Recovery / Recommendation / Recovery Coaches / Relapse Prevention / scams / Substance Use Disorder

A recovery coach is an individual who has gone through a nominal amount of training in order to provide paid support for men and women suffering from the disease of addiction. Namely, this includes drug and alcohol use associated with substance use disorder or SUD. Recovery coaches often work with both individuals in active addiction and people in long-term recovery. The support that recovery coaches provide however, will vary. But exactly what is the role of a recovery coach and what kind of support do they provide? Are they qualified to create or provide treatment? What about offering advice or counseling? Exactly how much training does a recovery coach have? Who hires them and what does a certificate in recovery coaching mean? Are recovery coaches true support specialists or sophisticated scam artists?

What is the Role of a Recovery Coach?

To determine the appropriate role of a recovery coach, I’d like …

A Young Woman’s Journey From Drug Addiction to Recovery

April 30, 2018

Category:Addiction & Recovery General / Addiction Treatment Center / Addiction Treatment Centers / Best Treatment Centers Nationwide / Depression / Disease of Addiction / drug addiction / Drug Rehab / Heroin Addiction / Heroin Treatment Options / Medicine Assisted Treatment (MAT) / Methadone / Recovery Stories / Relapse Prevention / Suboxone / Substance Use Disorder / Understanding Addiction

The below addiction and recovery story was submitted to us by a young woman who would like to be kept anonymous. However, she fervently wanted to share her experience in hopes that it would help others choose a life of sobriety and end their addiction. A special thanks to this young woman for sharing her story with us. To share your story or read more, visit our heroin addiction and recovery forum. You can join by clicking here.

The first time I experimented with drugs I was in elementary school. My dad kept a colossal coke cola tray under the couch that he kept his pot on. He didn’t roll as he went along. My dad would roll them all and leave them on the tray under the couch. So one day I just reached under the couch and grabbed one. My little brother and I ran out to …

Drug Court Resources – They’re Just Not Good Enough!

February 12, 2018

Category:Addiction & Recovery General / Addiction Treatment Center / Addiction Treatment Centers / Best Treatment Centers Nationwide / Disease of Addiction / drug addiction / Drug Court / drug prevention / Drug Rehab / Family & Friends of Heroin Addicts / Felony / Heroin Addiction / Heroin Epidemic / Heroin Treatment Options / Protecting Our Children / Recommendation / Relapse Prevention / Substance Use Disorder / Understanding Addiction

Countless people across America have been helped by Drug Court, but many more have fallen victim to the harsh sentences and nearly impossible rules set by the judges. Rather than take a “pro” or “con” position, perhaps it would be beneficial for the decision makers to host and have a discussion about how best to address drug use and how best to apply (and improve) the various drug court-based programs that go by the “drug court” moniker.

Disadvantages of Drug Court Related Programs

It’s critical to understand that drug courts, though they often connect people with addiction treatment services, are not a public health approach to drug use. They exist within a criminal justice system that demands punishment of individuals for a health issue.

Incarcerating people for a relapse, regrettably is a predictable and normal part of drug treatment and flies in the face of public health principles. Denying opioid dependent individuals access …

When a family member is addicted to prescription drugs

January 17, 2018

Category:Addiction & Recovery General / Addiction Treatment Center / Addiction Treatment Centers / Best Treatment Centers Nationwide / Call to Action / Detox Centers / Disease of Addiction / drug addiction / drug prevention / Drug Rehab / Family & Friends of Heroin Addicts / Heroin Addiction / heroin detox / Heroin Treatment Options / Klonopin / Opioid Addiction / Percocet / Protecting Our Children / Recommendation / Relapse Prevention / Substance Use Disorder / Support / Understanding Addiction / What to Expect / Xanax

Did you know that two million Americans are dependent on or abusing prescription drugs and painkillers? That being said, we need to redefine what an addict looks like today. It could be that businesswoman who appears confident and ambitious or that man who owns the local real estate agency. Did you know that according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention that painkiller overdoses now account for more than twice the deaths as cocaine and five times as many as heroin overdoses? A 2009 National Survey of Drug Use and Health by Columbia University found that the proportions of Americans addicted to opioids – oxycontin, vicodin, and Demerol tripled from 1991 to 2001. This article is about how to help a family member or loved one if they are addicted to prescription drugs.

Even as the faces of addiction change, so must our understanding of how best to help treat …

Things to Do When a Loved one Relapses on Drugs

January 15, 2018

Category:Addiction & Recovery General / Addiction Treatment Center / Addiction Treatment Centers / Best Treatment Centers Nationwide / Call to Action / drug addiction / Drug Rehab / Family & Friends of Heroin Addicts / Heroin Addiction / Heroin Epidemic / Heroin Treatment Options / Protecting Our Children / Relapse Prevention / Support / Understanding Addiction

Supporting an addict who’s relapsed can help save their life. Seeing a loved one return to drugs or alcohol after addiction treatment can be devastating to family and friends. It may make you feel as though everything you and the addict have done to address the addiction has been in vain. Naturally, you want to help the family member or friend with the dug addiction so they can regain their health and get back to life as it once was. You may feel like you would do anything — including sacrificing your own needs and wants to help your loved one. But experts say that’s not what’s best for those suffering from the disease of addiction. Below are some important dos and don’ts to keep in mind when a loved one relapses on heroin or other drugs.

6 Things to Do When a Loved One Drug Relapses

1. Do remember that …

7 Tips for Surviving Christmas When New to Addiction Treatment and Recovery

December 19, 2017

Category:Addiction & Recovery General / Addiction Treatment Centers / Best Treatment Centers Nationwide / Call to Action / Christmas / drug prevention / Events / God / holidays / Recommendation / Relapse Prevention / Thanksgiving / Understanding Addiction

The holidays, such as Christmas, Hanukkah, Kwanzaa and others earlier in the year are difficult times for people in addiction treatment or recovery. Simply put, emotions pour out from the heart and emotions are what brought individuals to drugs and alcohol in the first place. Perhaps it was the loss of a child, sibling, parent, etc. Perhaps it was a relational death such as a romantic break-up or a separation between best friends. Thus, we thought this article would be a guide to help people in this position get through Christmas and the holidays without using drugs and alcohol. Here are a few simple thoughts that can make the holiday experience a little more tolerable.

For most people, the weeks between Thanksgiving and the New Year are a special time of joy and celebration. Yet, it can be an extremely difficult and stressful time for those who are just beginning to …

Why AA Members Believe the 12 Step Program is the Only Way

September 17, 2017

Category:12 Step Program / Addiction & Recovery General / Addiction Treatment Centers / Alcohol / Alcoholics Anonymous (AA) / Best Treatment Centers Nationwide / Call to Action / Disease of Addiction / Heroin Addiction / Heroin Treatment Options / Medicine Assisted Treatment (MAT) / Methadone / Naltrexone / Narcotics Anonymous (NA) / Recommendation / Relapse Prevention / ReVia / Suboxone / Vivitrol

For members of Alcoholics Anonymous and even Narcotics Anonymous, the dogma that “AA is the only way” is far from offensive. In fact, the 12 step program has become a significant meaning of life for each individual regularly attending AA and NA meetings. However, for individuals seeking addiction treatment elsewhere, such as through medical means often referred to as medicine assisted treatment (MAT), hearing this can be overwhelming and even downright destructive for their individual mindset and addiction recovery. Many members of Alcoholics Anonymous believe that medicine assisted treatment and other modalities are simply not effective. What’s more, those who use Suboxone, methadone and even naltrexone (Vivitrol and ReVia) aren’t considered part of recovery. So why do 12 step program members feel this way?

Being Authentic at AA meetings

While the 12 step program has a long history of being effective for some men and women suffering from …

Tough love is Nonsense and Only Worsens Drug Addiction

July 28, 2017

Category:Addiction & Recovery General / Addiction Treatment Centers / Best Treatment Centers Nationwide / Call to Action / Family & Friends of Heroin Addicts / Heroin Epidemic / Myths About Addiction / Opioid Addiction / Protecting Our Children / Recommendation / Relapse Prevention / scams / tough love / Triggers / Understanding Addiction

Whether you’re a parent, partner or friend, you might be told that a drug or alcohol addicted person you care for needs tough love. Don’t believe it. Love has always been understood as the gentlest of emotions. You might have to be tough in war, politics, business or some other place, but love is the wrong place. Love is a place where you can drop your guard, care unconditionally, and show your softer side. Isn’t that right?

Yet today we hear time and again that love ought to be tough. Of course, this “wisdom” is typically directed at the most vulnerable members of society: a seventy-year-old wino, a drug addicted working girl, a street kid or a welfare single mother. Funny how our culture is much less inclined to get tough with those who could handle a hit: the CEO, the pro athlete, or even the one advocating tough love.

Why Tough …

“Just One More Time” – Drug Addiction

July 7, 2017

Category:Addiction & Recovery General / Addiction Treatment Center / Addiction Treatment Centers / Addiction Vs. Dependency / Best Treatment Centers Nationwide / Call to Action / codependency / Disease of Addiction / Drug Rehab / Family & Friends of Heroin Addicts / Heroin Addiction / Heroin Epidemic / New Age Recovery / Protecting Our Children / Recommendation / Relapse Prevention / Understanding Addiction / Xanax

There’s no way you suffer from drug addiction, at least that’s what you tell yourself. “Just one more time” you will say in attempt to convince yourself and others that you’ve got this under control. And you honestly believe you do, but after a while it becomes evident that “just one more time” has become an excuse to continue using masqueraded by the belief that you are not addicted to heroin, cocaine, benzodiazepines like Xanax and Klonopin, etc. But it’s time for a reality check, if you are continuing to tell yourself and others that you will use this one more last time, you are very likely addicted to drugs.

How did you become a drug addict?

A lot of people think declaring addiction a disease gives drug addicts an excuse to engage in illegal activity without personal responsibility or accountability. But if people understood the depths of the disease and …

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