Consumption of cannabis/marijuana leads to the onset of drug addiction in a significant number of users, even when use only occurs on an occasional basis. As is true with other forms of addiction, people recovering from cannabis addiction run the risk of relapsing back into active substance intake after establishing an initial pattern of abstinence. …
Exercise Helps Prevent Marijuana Relapse, Study Finds Read More »
Recovering addicts need all the friends they can get. Social support from friends, family members and the community is essential to a good recovery and to maintaining abstinence. As the friend of someone in recovery, you can be an important part of that social circle, but you might not be sure how. It’s normal to …
Now that David Clark has run 100-mile races through mountains and deserts, it’s hard to picture him during his first weeks of sobriety. To the stunned clerks of a running store, he announced his plans to run a marathon. His basketball shorts had a waist size of 50. He weighed 320 pounds. When he got …
Getting sober doesn’t mean living a life that is always dreary and somber. Some of the best days of your life are still ahead, but it may not seem like a lot of fun at first. You may feel nostalgic when you think of some of the parties you’ve attended and the wild excitement of …
No matter what they’re addicted to, all addicts lack the ability to tolerate frustration. They become easily dysregulated and are unable to self-soothe, which leads them to depend on substances, people, or processes (self-injury, cyber porn, video games, compulsive sex) to stabilize themselves. Because of this dependence, addicts don’t develop internal support and healthy coping …
How to Help an Addict Develop Frustration Tolerance Read More »
When you’re in recovery from alcoholism or drug addiction, you’re on a continuous journey of learning to live life sober. Each day presents new lessons on coping with life chemical-free, and some lessons are more challenging than others. One of the biggest challenges people in recovery may have to face is dealing with illness and …
Making it through detox and rehab are major accomplishments, but transitioning back into the real world isn’t always easy. There is no graduation date for recovery, and getting out of rehab is just a step on our journey. In a lot of ways, time spent in a treatment center is safe and sheltered. We are …
After spending months or years revolving your life around drinking and drugging, spending time in a rehabilitation facility has helped you get a fresh start. You are probably beginning to understand the nature of alcoholism and addiction. Treatment has separated you from your drug of choice and allowed you to start to get used to …
When you’re overcoming an addiction, staying sober is a full-time job. Whether it’s the rigid schedule of a rehab center or your own internal battles with cravings, you have a lot on your mind in the earliest stages of recovery. But then it all falls away—fewer rehab commitments you’re just spending less time thinking about …
Getting sober can be a scary experience. In order to live a life that doesn’t include drugs or alcohol, you have to give up the substances that have been giving you at least some degree of relief from the uncomfortable feelings that often happen in life. You may also have to give up habits, such …