Category: QA

While addiction may be genetically inherited by some of us, many others living with addiction can’t determine familial predisposition to be the cause for us. We might be the only ones in our families struggling with addiction. When genetic traits for addiction are not involved, what are some other risk factors for addiction? An extremely […]

With drug use on the rise, and addiction and overdose so common, we can feel that the epidemic is utterly hopeless. We’ve experienced addiction destroy our lives and those of loved ones. We hate to see it affecting more and more people, including young children. There are some things we can do to curb drug […]

Drug use, abuse, dependence and addiction are all on the rise in this country. We see addiction devastating families, communities and entire towns. Overdose rates are also on the rise. More people are experimenting with different kinds of drugs, and at earlier ages. Drug use is becoming common in young people, even in small children. […]

Resistance is something we often hear discussed in terms of mindfulness, mental health and emotional well-being, but what do we mean by it? Resistance is any way in which we try to block the flow of energy, to try to stop something from happening, to push something away rather than allowing it to happen. When […]

For those of us who have been living many years, or most of our lives, addicted to a substance or behavior, our addiction has become our comfort zone. As painful and destructive as it can be in our lives, it is what is familiar to us. We therefore have a very hard time accepting any […]

We know that substance use can lead to abuse and addiction, but can it contribute to other kinds of addiction, such as sex addiction? We tend to think of our drug use and our sexual lives as separate, but for those of us struggling with addiction, they can be very much related and intertwined. As […]

“Gateway drugs” are substances that lead to experimentation with other drugs, that act as gateways opening us up to trying stronger drugs and developing addiction. The gateway drug we hear about most commonly is probably marijuana, and marijuana smokers and proponents are often quick to dispel the idea of gateway drugs as a myth. There […]

Even though addiction is a common phenomenon in our society, affecting so many of us and our families and communities, there are still many misconceptions about addiction in our mainstream culture. The negative stereotypes surrounding addiction and addicts, coupled with serious confusion and misinformation, cause many people to believe things about addiction that simply aren’t […]

Many of us living with addiction were genetically predisposed to it. We were raised in families where addiction ran rampant. We inherited traits and learned emotional patterns that conditioned us for addiction. Could we have stopped our addiction before it took hold? Is there a way to halt addiction in its tracks, before it gets […]

Think back to your childhood. Do you remember displaying any worrisome signs such as experimenting with drugs and then finding relief from your emotional pain in them? Did you show signs of being self-destructive or self-harming, such as cutting yourself or having risky casual sex? Did you drive drunk with your friends, or steal your […]