addiction counselor

Running To Help others With Mental Illness

A group of 6 individuals who have a history of mental illness decided to run across the country to raise awareness and to help others who also suffer from mental illness

VIDEO: Jodie Sweetin Opens Up About Her Struggle with Sobriety on DWTS

Jodie Sweetin is most popularly known as Stephanie Tanner, from the 90s sitcom, Full House. Full House was a part of Sweetin's life from when she was 5 to 13. In the video below she describes leaving her Full House family as a "big shift" in her life. She also states that this was the first real loss she had ever experienced, and because of that she didn't know how to grieve. This lead her to getting involved with drugs and alcohol. Watch Sweetin open up about her sobriety in the video below:

Adult Children of Alcoholics

There  a quite a few adults who lived with an alcoholic while growing up. According to an article on Psychology Today, Ann Smith says, 18% of adults grew up with an alcoholic. As a child they may not realize that they are living with an alcoholic or that living with one is affecting them. Most don't even realize the scars, until they get older. Therapy is effective in helping adult children of alcoholics. Below are some important elements of effective treatment and recovery.

Help With Your Drinking or Drug Use Can Begin with an Addiction Therapist

It’s rather common for a person to come home from a long day at work and have a glass of wine or a beer. However, when the body and the brain come to rely upon having that drink then there might be a problem. If you’re drinking or using drugs regularly, then addiction treatment might be necessary. Working with a therapist before, during, and after treatment might be the best way to ensure ongoing sobriety. 

Video: Putting a Face on the Rising Heroin Addiction Rates

Heroin addiction rates are on the rise in the United States. More and more younger people are becoming addicted to heroin. Sarah Jacoby, a contributor writer for Refinery29, wrote an article about  a young addict who lost her life to addiction. 

Teens and Marijuana Addiction

When parents have a teenager in the house they begin to worry about the use of alcohol and drugs. A drug that more and more teens are using is marijuana. When kids get to this age, most parents want to know what are the signs that their kids may be using marijuana. It can be hard to figure out if your teen is using but the following may be some sign of it:

How to Avoid Getting Stuck in the Revolving Door of Rehab

Addiction is not something that is easily cured overnight. Addiction is something that people will have to battle for the rest of their lives. Addiction doesn't end when your done with rehab. There is still work that has to be done after to keep from entering back into the addiction. Most people who have an addiction end up going to rehab more than once in their lives. Addiction.com has some tips on how to avoid getting stuck in the revolving door of rehab. 

Dealing with Divorce and Addiction

Some people who suffer from addiction, can be really good at hiding the fact that they have an addiction. Because of this, a lot of people may not know that they are marrying an addict. Another thing that is common is that the addiction is developed later in the marriage. This can later lead to divorce. A contributor writer for "Divorce Magazine," says choosing to divorce can be a difficult for both people. The writer writes about how to deal with divorce and addiction. 

Warning Signs of Serious Alcohol Dependency

Alcohol dependency is something that we may not notice in ourselves. We may not realize the daily drinking or binge drinking could eventually lead to alcohol dependency. Richard Taite, a contributor writer for Psychology Today, says there are some signs that mean you could be alcohol dependent. 

10 Things the Adult Child of an Addict Wants You to Know

When looking at most adults, that last thing to cross our mind would be to wonder if they grew up as a child of an addict. Most people don't understand what it is like to grow up with a parent or parents that are addicts. Joni Edelman, a contributor writer for the Huffington Post, says there are things that adult children of an addict want you to know: