It takes two elemental factors to produce an addicted individual… First, it takes a substance or behavior that stimulates the reward center of the brain. The reward center is located in an area called the limbic system, in the midbrain. The midbrain lies below the prefrontal cortex, under the “thinking” brain that thinks consciously and…
So what is addiction treatment? why can’t most drug addicts just quit on their own? How effective is addiction treatment, when is it necessary, and is addiction treatment worth the cost? why isn’t more treatment available? what can we all do to help? There are about five federal government agencies now tripping over each other…
I tell people who don’t believe marijuana is addictive to go to a Marijuana Anonymous meeting, where they will see and hear people whose lives have been ruined by marijuana. Anytime you smoke something, it’s harmful. When you inhale smoke, whether it’s tobacco smoke or marijuana smoke, inhaling heated smoke is inherently unhealthy. In addition,…
One of the problems practitioners encounter is that people now hear about many medications due to the hype of pharmaceutical company advertising and the promises made on TV commercials, and they think that’s the solution to their problem. Just take a pill and that will “solve my depression.” People often learn the hard way that…
Once people stop using, the challenge is to stay stopped, and for most that involves engaging in the process of recovery. Many people need a support or mutual-aid program to accomplish this. The most popular support groups for addiction are found in the various twelve-step programs. Twelve-step programs—Narcotics Anonymous (NA), Alcoholics Anonymous (AA), and others—are…