Hijack.  That word initially reads as a bit dramatic, doesn’t it? We hear the same couple of phrases and expressions quite consistently in the addiction field: “It’s not that serious.” “Drugs and alcohol don’t control me.” “I’m still the same person.” But you’re not the same person right now. Biologically and statistically – you’re not.  A quick definition of “Hijack”: take over (something) and use it for a different purpose. The way that substances abuse, use, manipulate, change, and control the brain – kind of sounds like hijacking, right? The focus here is on the pleasure of life ..read more

“What’s my purpose now?” In your journey of rediscovery after overcoming addiction, many people find themselves asking this exact question. This thought process is absolutely valid, and we’re glad to know you’re asking yourself the right questions now – because you’re tuning into what you want, not what your addiction wants. Connecting yourself to your intuition’s whispers and trusting your inner voice’s wisdom is a huge step to take because it means you’ve really begun to heal. Your inner guidance, often drowned out in the chaos of addiction, can now serve as a compass leading you toward your ..read more

Healing Wounds and Fostering Connection The first step towards rebuilding and repairing relationships after addiction is to rebuild yourself. Before repairing relationships with others, you must consider the damage that your actions have caused. It’s impossible to fix what’s broken if you can’t see how you’ve hurt the ones you love. Addiction is a chronic disease that negatively impacts a person’s health and life. The truth is that addiction is a family disease, something many people are unaware of. The disease doesn’t just make the victim sick but also hurts their family, friends, colleagues ..read more

“Recovery isn’t easy – at first. It takes time. Sometimes, it takes a lot more work than you may think you are willing to put in. Even though the journey is hard, it is worth every scare, every tear, and every moment of fear that comes with it. It’s worth it because the trade-off is this: you let go of your addiction, and you get back your life.” – National Clinical Director, Everett Lamb.  When it comes to addiction recovery and sobriety, understandably, people have many questions. If you’re struggling with addiction – you’re struggling with a chronic disease that affects your brain and ..read more

Life is full of twists and turns, and you rarely get to be in the driver’s seat controlling when they happen. Because of this, people face daily situations and experiences that can cause fear, stress, and trauma. In order to cope with stress and anxiety, you must learn to possess certain skills to find healthy outlets so that you don’t turn to damaging behavior, such as substance abuse. These skills are known as healthy coping strategies. Managing challenging moments, such as losing loved ones, financial difficulties, relationship breakups, and substance abuse, is very possible with the help o ..read more

Chaos. Complete disorder and confusion. An addictive feeling if you’ve leaned into it for far too long. So, can you be addicted to the chaos in your life? Unfortunately, yes, and it can create a multitude of issues later down the road if you have yet to realize that you’re suffering from it.  Even though being “addicted” to chaos and stress seems absurd, the condition is much more widespread than most people realize. The term chaos addiction is relatively new since it’s an abstract addiction that can be hard to quantify. A chaos addiction occurs when an individual actively seeks opportuni ..read more

My gratitude goes out to this wonderful universe. It is a blessing to have shelter and food. I am grateful for all the opportunities that come my way. It is a privilege to be myself. The ability to give and receive love is something I’m grateful for. Life is precious to me, and I am grateful for it. Focusing on the bad instead of the good is easy when we get caught up in negative thought patterns. There are multiple facets of therapy that can help with this, but one of the first ones to try is gratitude affirmations and gratitude meditation. The practice of gratitude affirmations and meditatio ..read more

People struggling with addiction often mistakenly believe they are only affecting themselves. Yet, children in the environment of these conditions can be affected just as much or even more than the ones drinking. These children, also known as adult children of alcoholics (COAs), are wounded in ways that most people will never be able to comprehend. People who have been raised knowing they are loved may never understand the depths of self-doubt that children who have been impacted by their parent’s alcoholism suffer silently every day. Whether someone’s parent is an alcoholic, drug addict, narc ..read more

Individuals who come to treatment are often conflicted. Substance abuse has negatively impacted their lives, but they cannot imagine a better or different future without it. The goal of cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) is to help individuals change their lives by placing more emphasis on things they need to value, rather than what their addiction is telling them to value. CBT helps them envision how their lives would improve if they pursued aspirations aligned with their values. When individuals reflect on their values and aspirations, they can see their actions’ short-term and long-term eff ..read more

We’ve all seen them: the memes, the social outings, the trends, and the posts from friends and families on their Facebook that are centered (possibly unknowingly) around excess or unhealthy ways of consuming alcohol. Multiple alcohol and drug trends have started sprouting their own cultures. Information gets around so quickly now that once an idea pops up, it’s typically forged into a trend that people want to repeat, retweet, or replicate. Unfortunately, what was once meant to be light-hearted has actually turned a little facetious in the face of substance abuse. Life is full of trials and tr ..read more