Alcohol: Is It The Gateway Drug?
The Gateway Drug Theory
According to the US National Library of Medicine National Institutes of Health, The Gateway Drug Theory suggests that licit drugs, such as tobacco and alcohol, serve as a “gateway” toward the use of other, illicit drugs. Many people usually correlate this theory with prescription medication becoming a gateway to other dangerous opioids such as heroin or fentanyl, but there is some research to suggest that alcohol can be a gateway drug as well.
Some of the many gateway drugs include:
Alcohol
Marijuana
Prescription medication
Tobacco
How is Alcohol a Gateway Drug?
Alcohol is legal and ...
Source: Cliffside Malibu - July 2, 2019 Category: Addiction Authors: Jaclyn Uloth Tags: Addiction Addiction Recovery Alcohol alcohol abuse alcohol treatment alcohol treatment center alcoholism gateway drug Source Type: blogs
The Second-Hand Harms of Drinking
What Are Second-Hand Harms of Drinking?
An addiction to alcohol doesn’t just affect the person with the addiction. In fact, about one-fifth of adults in the United States have experienced some form of harm due to someone else’s behavior while drinking. These behaviors are ripple effects from the addiction and are known as second-hand harms of drinking. According to a study published in the Journal of Studies on Alcohol and Drugs, this adds up to nearly 53 million adults experienced at least one harm in 2015 attributable to someone else’s drinking in the past year.
Abusive Behavior
One of the biggest second-ha...
Source: Cliffside Malibu - July 2, 2019 Category: Addiction Authors: Jaclyn Uloth Tags: Alcohol Alcoholism alcohol abuse Alcohol Awareness Month alcohol consumption alcohol disorder alcohol problems alcohol treatment alcohol use alcoholics Alcoholics Anonymous second-hand harms Source Type: blogs
How Do I Pick the Right Facility?
How Do I Pick the Right Facility for My Addiction?
Finally making the decision to get help for your addiction is a huge, difficult step. Admitting you have a problem and expressing the desire to want to fix it is life-saving. Almost as difficult as making the decision to go to a facility is trying to pick the right facility. There are so many factors to consider, and finding the right facility can make all the difference in your long-term sobriety and recovery. As you do your research, we’ve compiled the most important points for you to keep in mind.
Staff and Accreditations at the Facility
When you are picking a facilit...
Source: Cliffside Malibu - June 22, 2019 Category: Addiction Authors: Jaclyn Uloth Tags: Addiction Addiction Recovery Addiction Treatment and Program Resources Behavioral Addictions Complementary Therapies Comprehensive behavioral treatment Drug Rehab Information Holistic Treatment Protocols Sober Living and Aftercare Substa Source Type: blogs
What Should I Treat First, Depression or My Addiction?
Depression and Addiction
Throughout life, everyone has bad days and low moments. We all get into a “funk” or have times when we feel the blues. While this is a normal part of life and reaction to stress or traumatic events, depression is an entirely different thing.
According to the American Psychiatry Associaton, Depression is a common and serious medical illness that negatively affects how you feel, the way you think and how you act. The condition causes feelings of sadness and/or a loss of interest in activities once enjoyed. It can lead to a variety of emotional and physical problems and can decrease a person’s a...
Source: Cliffside Malibu - June 17, 2019 Category: Addiction Authors: Jaclyn Uloth Tags: Addiction Depression Depression Treatment Dual Diagnosis and Eating Disorder Treatment antidepressants co-occurring disorder co-occurring disorders co-occurring disorders treatment co-occurring psychological disorders depression disorder Source Type: blogs
Is There a Cure for Addiction?
Addiction is a chronic condition that leads to overdose and death. Addiction ruins lives, families and devastates communities. If you are suffering from addiction, it can be normal to ask yourself hard questions such as, “will I suffer from addiction forever? Is there a cure for addiction?” While there is no magic wand that can cure addiction, it is a treatable condition. When addiction is treated, people can go on to live normal, happy, healthy lives. While addiction may cause a lot of destruction and fractured relationships in its path, people can repair and move on from them as well.
The Cure for Addiction: Treatme...
Source: Cliffside Malibu - June 14, 2019 Category: Addiction Authors: Jaclyn Uloth Tags: Addiction Addiction Recovery Complementary Therapies Comprehensive behavioral treatment Healthy Eating and Recovery Mental Health Sober Living and Aftercare Substance Abuse addicted to alcohol addiction help addiction recovery programs Source Type: blogs
Why is it So Hard to Get Help for My Addiction?
Reasons It Is Hard to Get Help for My Addiction
Breaking free from the prison that addiction holds you in is very difficult. It can often be a long, bumpy road to recovery because long-lasting sobriety takes a lot of effort. It can make many people stop to wonder: Why is it so hard to get help for my addiction?
Roadblocks of Getting Help for My Addiction
One of the many reasons you may be thinking, “why is it so hard to get help for my addiction?” is because there can be many roadblocks in the way. Some of these roadblocks include life obligations, the detox process, and the financial cost of treatment.
Life Obligation...
Source: Cliffside Malibu - June 14, 2019 Category: Addiction Authors: Jaclyn Uloth Tags: Addiction Addiction Recovery Addiction Stories Addiction Treatment and Program Resources Drug Treatment Substance Abuse addiction help admissions alcohol detox call for help drug detox medical detox medicated-assisted detox presc Source Type: blogs
What is SMART Recovery?
Understanding SMART Recovery
SMART Recovery is an acronym that stands for “Self-Management and Recovery Training.” According to the SMART Recovery website, the purpose of SMART Recovery is to “support individuals who have chosen to abstain, or are considering abstinence from any type of addictive behaviors (substances or activities), by teaching how to change self-defeating thinking, emotions, and actions; and to work towards long-term satisfaction and quality of life.”
SMART Recovery VS 12 Step
It is important to know that SMART Recovery is not a 12 step program, like Alcoholics or Narcotics Anonymous. In fact, th...
Source: Cliffside Malibu - June 6, 2019 Category: Addiction Authors: Jaclyn Uloth Tags: Addiction Addiction Recovery Addiction Treatment and Program Resources Drug Rehab Information Drug Treatment Sober Living and Aftercare Substance Abuse addiction recovery programs addiction treatment center drug addiction recovery full Source Type: blogs
5 Underlying Reasons for Addiction
What Are 5 Underlying Reasons for Addiction?
Addiction always stems from a root cause, also known as one of the reasons for addiction. It is extremely important to treat both the root cause of the addiction in addition to the physical addiction itself. Staying sober involves much more than just detoxing from drugs or alcohol and abstaining from them in the future. It also involves finding the underlying reasons for the addiction and treating that as well, so that it does not exacerbate the addiction in the future. This is why so many people fail when they attempt to quit using drugs or alcohol cold turkey.
While there can ...
Source: Cliffside Malibu - June 4, 2019 Category: Addiction Authors: Jaclyn Uloth Tags: Abuse Addiction Addiction Recovery Addiction to Pharmaceuticals Addiction Treatment and Program Resources Alcohol Alcoholism Anxiety Children Depression Depression Treatment Drug Treatment LGBT LGBTQ Mental Health Painkiller Source Type: blogs
Top 10 Warning Signs I Am Addicted to Drugs
Am I Addicted to Drugs?
Drug abuse can affect all people from any walk of life. Chances are, you have stopped and thought about whether or not your drug use has turned into an addiction. Whether you have been prescribed medication, have fallen into drugs through partying or have been surrounded by drugs your whole life, anyone can succumb to drug addiction. Knowing the warning signs of being addicted to drugs is important so that you can know when to get the help you need.
Addiction can look different on everybody. However, it can produce noticeable symptoms. If you or a loved one is experiencing any of the below symptoms,...
Source: Cliffside Malibu - May 29, 2019 Category: Addiction Authors: Jaclyn Uloth Tags: Addiction Addiction Recovery Addiction Stories Addiction to Pharmaceuticals Addiction Treatment and Program Resources Cocaine Drug Rehab Information Drug Treatment Heroin lsd Marijuana MDMA Methamphetamines Painkiller Substance Source Type: blogs
How To Tell If I Am Enabling
Am I Enabling?
Watching a loved one struggle with addiction can be one of the hardest things someone can experience. This is especially true for close family members, like children or parents. People who are suffering from addiction can become very manipulative in order to continue their substance abuse. The person who is at the other end of this manipulation and allows their loved one’s addiction to continue with little to no problems is considered to be enabling.
Signs You Are Enabling
You may have considered that you are enabling your loved one. Small acts, such as giving your loved one money when they ask or allowing...
Source: Cliffside Malibu - May 29, 2019 Category: Addiction Authors: Jaclyn Uloth Tags: Addiction Addiction Recovery Alcoholism Behavioral Addictions Children Drug Rehab Information Drug Treatment Parenting Relationships Substance Abuse drug addiction enabler enabling family family disease family involvement f Source Type: blogs
The Future of Psychiatry: Telehealth, Chatbots, and Artificial Intelligence
Could a chatbot, an online community, or a telepsychiatry solution offer meaningful help for people who are fighting mental health issues? Could virtual reality, artificial intelligence, or genetics appear as elements of assistance in the toolkit of medical professionals in the fields dealing with the human psyche? While we agree that medical fields requiring the most empathy and human touch will most probably not be swept away by new innovations, we looked thoroughly at how technology will appear in the future of psychiatry. Perhaps even help heal the cursed prince from Beauty and the Beast?
The human
touch is indispen...
Source: The Medical Futurist - May 23, 2019 Category: Information Technology Authors: nora Tags: Future of Medicine Virtual Reality in Medicine AI apps AR artificial intelligence digital health digital health technologies health apps Innovation mental health psychiatry psychology technology VR Source Type: blogs
SMART Recovery vs 12 Step
What is the difference between SMART Recovery vs 12 Step?
If you or a loved one is suffering from addiction and have made the decision to get help, choosing the right program can be difficult. There are so many options available as far as treatment centers, residential rehab, outpatient rehab, whether to go out of town, stay at home and more. There’s also the decision of whether SMART Recovery or 12 Step might be right for you. Finding a program that clicks for you will make all the difference, so read on to find out more about SMART Recovery vs 12 Step.
Understanding SMART Recovery
According to SMARTRecovery.org, SMART ...
Source: Cliffside Malibu - May 16, 2019 Category: Addiction Authors: Jaclyn Uloth Tags: Addiction Addiction Recovery Complementary Therapies Comprehensive behavioral treatment Sober Living and Aftercare Substance Abuse addiction treatment alcohol treatment drug addiction treatment drug treatment drug treatment center SM Source Type: blogs
How to Get My Loved One Into Rehab
Do You Need to Get a Loved One Into Rehab?
Watching a loved one struggle with addiction can be one of the most painful things in the world. Addiction can take hold and completely spin someone’s life upside down, often taking family and loved ones along with it. One of the biggest difficulties of addiction is making the decision to get help, and more often than not, help gets offered from loved ones. If you are ready to get your loved one into rehab, make sure you go about it the right way. It could be your only chance.
Research All Options
One of the scariest things in the world, to most people, is the unknown. This is e...
Source: Cliffside Malibu - May 8, 2019 Category: Addiction Authors: Jaclyn Uloth Tags: Addiction Recovery Alcohol Rehab Information Sober Living and Aftercare Substance Abuse family family disease family involvement family program family support family therapy friends military families treatment treatment facilitie Source Type: blogs
What are the Different Drugs Used for Heroin and Opioid Detox?
Understanding Heroin and Opioid Detox
When someone is struggling with addiction to heroin or opioids, it can be almost impossible to quit cold turkey. This is due to unpleasant withdrawal symptoms, as well as intense drug cravings. When someone quits cold turkey, they will have to experience all these debilitating withdrawal symptoms and manage strong cravings on their own. This is extremely hard to do without the assistance of medication during heroin and opioid detox.
According to Medline, about 948,000 people used heroin during the past year. In the same year, about 11.5 million people were nonmedical users of narcotic ...
Source: Cliffside Malibu - May 7, 2019 Category: Addiction Authors: Jaclyn Uloth Tags: Addiction Addiction Recovery Addiction Treatment and Program Resources Detox Resources for Alcohol and Drugs/Opiates Painkiller Substance Abuse drug detox heroin heroin addiction heroin users luxury heroin rehab medical medical det Source Type: blogs
Preventing Youth Suicide: Strategies That Work
American children are taking their own lives at an alarming rate. Over 7 percent of high school students say they engaged in non-fatal suicidal behavior, while 17 percent say they seriously considered suicide within the previous year, according to a nationwide survey. For children under 15, the prevalence of death by suicide nearly doubled from 2016 to 2017. Considering these sobering statistics, it’s no surprise that suicide has become the second leading cause of death for youth between the ages of 12 and 18.
Sadly, many parents don’t recognize the signs of depression in their children until a crisis occurs. It can b...
Source: World of Psychology - May 6, 2019 Category: Psychiatry & Psychology Authors: Rachael Reeder, LCSW Tags: Children and Teens Communication Depression Parenting Suicide Source Type: blogs
