Between a Rock and a Hard Place: 3 Reasons You Can’t Ignore Trauma

Relapse Prevention Therapy

Between a Rock and a Hard Place: 3 Reasons You Can’t Ignore Trauma   When you face difficult times, you have two options: work through the difficulty you’ve encountered or try to avoid it. For many who have lived through a traumatic experience, going around or burying traumatic memories can feel like the only feasible […]

Yes, You Can: Four Ways to Strengthen Your Resilience

The Role of Family in Alcohol or Substance Addiction Treatment, two people hugging at treatment.

Yes, You Can: Four Ways to Strengthen Your Resilience Everyone knows someone who’s been through a horrifying experience, yet somehow manages to keep smiling. People like that usually come to mind when we lose it over small things, like having trouble finding a parking spot or unloading the groceries only to realize we forgot the […]

Why Me? Four Ways Spirituality Can Help You Cope with Difficult Experiences

Cliffside Malibu natural surroundings, woman looking off of the deck.

Why Me? Four Ways Spirituality Can Help You Cope with Difficult Experiences   People have always sought answers to the unexplained. From our earliest days humanity has searched for a deeper meaning to existence, especially in the face of unbearable conditions and experiences. Despite the long-running rift between science and spirituality, new research suggests that […]

Therapy and Horseplay: Four Things You Need to Know about Equine Therapy

Overcoming Addiction

Therapy and Horseplay: Four Things You Need to Know about Equine Therapy When it comes to equine therapy, I’ll be the first one to advocate for its use. I’ve been an avid rider all my life, and there were many times I walked away from the barn feeling more relaxed and rejuvenated, and emotionally healthier […]

Stop, It Hurts! Three Reasons to Avoid Prescription Pain Medications

Brunette woman looking at man, thinking about overcoming addiction.

Stop, It Hurts! Three Reasons to Avoid Prescription Pain Medications   When your body hurts, you want the pain to stop as soon as possible. Opioid-based pain killer medications are now a commonly prescribed antidote to meet patients’ chronic pain needs, and as the number of prescriptions have increased there has been a parallel rise […]

The Dangers of Kratom

The Dangers of Kratom

The Dangers of Kratom Kratom is an herbal substance, sometimes described as a medicinal tea, that can produce opioid and stimulant-like effects. Used for centuries in Thailand as a medicinal herb, over the last few years there has been a surge in its use domestically, with corresponding levels of hospitalizations from its harmful effects. Consider […]

How to Talk to Someone Recovering from Addiction

How to Talk to Someone Recovering from Addiction   It can be hard to know what to say when someone we care for is in crisis. It can feel safer to simply do nothing in order to avoid the messy feelings and uncomfortable communication many associate with difficult events in their lives. But what your […]

Six Ways to Maintain Your Sobriety at a Thanksgiving Celebration

Six Ways to Maintain Your Sobriety at a Thanksgiving Celebration I first tried to quit drinking on November 11, 1995. By Thanksgiving of that year, I was clean, but I was scared to death of facing a holiday dinner without a drink. I remember standing by the bar in my grandmother’s house, downing Diet Coke […]