How You Can Prevent Going Back to Your Old Ways of Drinking and Drugging.

Relapse is a cardinal feature of addiction, and one of the most painful.

Most people who struggle with addiction will have one or more relapses - the return to drug use after a drug-free period - during their ongoing attempts to recover. This can be extremely frustrating for patients and for families, as they have already experienced great pain.

What leads to relapse?

Multiple - and often interactive - factors can increase the likelihood of relapse. These are some of the commonly cited precursors:

* drug-related "reminder" cues (sights, sounds, smells, drug thoughts or drug dreams) tightly linked 

   to use of the preferred drug(s) can trigger craving and drug seeking

* negative mood states or stress

* positive mood states or celebrations

* sampling the drug itself, even in very small amounts

The motivation to seek a drug, once triggered, can feel overwhelming and sometimes leads to very poor decision making: the user will pursue the drug, despite potentially disastrous future negative consequences (and many past negative consequences).

Individuals have different brain circuitry

Brain-imaging is helping us to understand the paradox of the decision to pursue a drug reward despite such consequences. For example, very recent imaging research shows that visual drug cues as short as 33 milliseconds can activate the ancient reward ("go") circuitry, and that this process does not require conscious processing - it can begin outside awareness.

By the time the motivation does reach awareness, and is recognized and labeled, the reward circuit has a strong head start. This head start means the frontal brain regions may be less effective. This area of the brain is responsible for weighing the consequences of a decision and for helping to "stop" or inhibit the impulses toward drug reward.

Imaging research also shows that some individuals have less effective "stop" circuitry. For these people, the job of managing the powerful impulses toward drug reward may be even more difficult.

 

When it comes to the vulnerability to relapse, and to addiction itself, we are not all created equal. We differ both in our brain response to drug rewards and in our ability to manage the powerful impulses toward drug reward.

Hope through research

Relapse is a long-term vulnerability, but intensive ongoing research is targeting the problem. The tools of brain imaging and genetics promise to help us understand our vulnerabilities - and our strengths - to help us realize more effective relapse prevention.

Relapse prevent is a major feature of our program so if you or someone you love is in the grips of ANY addiction, call us for immediate HELP and begin the admission process into the your recovery.

IF YOU OR SOMEONE YOU LOVE IS IN THE GRIPS OF AN ADDICTION CALL US TODAY FOR IMMEDIATE ASSISTANCE, PHONE 07 560 66315

Web: www.coachingwithsubstance.org.au

Email: info@coachingwithsubstance.org.au

ABOUT COACHING WITH SUBSTANCE (WINNER Best Not-for-Profit 2014)

We are Australia's leading award winning addiction treatment and rehab consultants for gambling, drugs, alcohol, sex, eating and internet addiction, along with eating behavioural disorders and co-dependency for Australasia and New Zealand. Call us on 07 5606 6315 if you want to speak to an Addiction Specialist.

Our Founder, Maria Pau is a 4x No. 1 best-selling author on the subjects of addiction and co-dependency and spiritual wellness. She is the Program Director of Coaching with Substance, the first of its kind in Australia as registered public benevolent institution, charity and not-for profit association that focuses on wellness using coaching principles of peak performance. She is currently completing her PhD on Recovery Coaching and is the first registered Recovery Coach in Australia.

We run a cutting edge holistic addiction treatment program and outpatient rehabilitation consultancy firm that ensures you are released from the shackles of addiction once and for all. Primary care at CWS is personalised to treat each individual using programs that integrate mind, body and soul. CWS programs are enhanced by highly effective group coaching and therapeutic processes as well as individual coaching, spiritual insights, therapy and extensive aftercare assistance.

All clients are thoroughly assessed by a highly trained and experienced recovery coach, registered provisional psychologist, ordained Taoist Monk, mental health officer and certified naturopaths (including Ayurveda and Acupuncturist). Clients may also be referred for psychometric testing and assessment, if needed. International clients welcome.

We welcome enquiries from all English speaking people from Asia, Europe, Africa, India and South America.

Gambling Addiction is Related to High Suicide Rates

 PATHOLOGICAL gamblers are risking more than their money, they are also three times more likely to commit suicide than non-betters. A new Montreal inter-university study has shown these gamblers are also plagued by personality disorders. These findings, published in a recent issue of the Psychology of Addictive Behaviours, may have implications for developing improved targeted suicide prevention programs.

"The World Health Organization estimates that suicide is one of the top ten causes of death in the Western world," says study co-author, Richard Boyer a Université de Montréal professor and researcher at the Centre de recherche Fernand-Seguin at the Louis-H. Lafontaine Hospital. "In addition, pathological gamblers account for five percent of all suicides. These staggering statistics motivated us to study the difference between gamblers and non-gamblers."

Gamblers have more personality disorders

The study examined 122 suicides between 2006 and 2009, of which 49 were pathological gamblers. Data from the coroner's files were compiled and psychological autopsy interviews with families and friends of the deceased were completed.

"Our findings showed that those gamblers who commit suicide had twice as many specific personality disorders as other suicide victims," says co-author Alain Lesage, also from the Université de Montréal.

"These personality disorders seem to significantly increase the risk of suicide for compulsive gamblers," says Boyer. "Three lethal elements are generally recognized: depression, alcohol or drug consumption and a personality disorder. These psychiatric disorders can in-turn interact with each other. For example, the depression can lead to the alcohol or drug consumption, which in turn leads to greater financial problems, which amplifies the depression."

Gamblers don't consult health professionals

The study also showed that gamblers who committed suicide were three times less likely to have consulted a health service in the year preceding their death.

"Gamblers don't consult professionals because they believe the problem will solve itself," says Boyer. "They believe their financial or alcohol or drug problems are the result of gambling and therefore they seek a solution in gambling rather than get help."

Twelve percent of gamblers admitted to a friend or family member having spent over $5,000 in a given day. And 70 percent had borrowed the money to play.

"Parents and health professionals should be more vigilant in looking for signs of suicide among pathological gamblers," says Boyer. "The sooner this disorder is diagnosed the sooner therapy can begin and the better chances for success."

Editor's Note: This article is not intended to provide medical advice, diagnosis or treatment. If you or someone you love are in the grips of Pathological Gambling call us today for immediate confidential help.

About Coaching with Substance

We are Australia's leading award winning addiction treatment and rehab consultants for gambling, drugs, alcohol, sex, eating and internet addiction, along with eating behavioural disorders and co-dependency.

 Ph 07 56 066 315 (7days)

Email: info@coachingwithsubstance.org.au

 Webiste: coachingwithsubstance.org.au

 

Maria Pau is a 4x No. 1 best-selling author on the subjects of addiction and co-dependency and spiritual wellness. She is the Program Director of Coaching with Substance, the first registered public benevolent institution, charity and not-for profit association in Australia that focuses on wellness instead of illness, using coaching principles for peak performance. We run a cutting edge holistic addiction treatment program and outpatient rehabilitation consultancy firm that ensures you are released from the shackles of addiction once and for all.

Primary care at CWS is personalised to treat each individual using programs that integrate mind, body and soul. CWS programs are enhanced by highly effective group coaching and therapeutic processes as well as individual coaching, spiritual insights, therapy and extensive aftercare assistance.

All clients are thoroughly assessed by a highly trained and experienced recovery coach, registered provisional psychologist, ordained mystic, mental health officer and certified naturopaths (including Ayurveda and Acupuncturist). Clients may also be referred for psychometric testing and assessment, if needed. International clients welcome.

We also welcome enquiries from English speaking people from Asia, Europe, Africa, India and South America.

Link Between Emotions, Feelings and Addictions.

ADDICTIONS AND FEELINGS

Real addiction is not about the drug, but to the high. The real addiction is not physical, but emotional, the psychological dependency, the belief in the need and continued use in spite of harmful consequences. Anything that removes or alters unwanted feelings – anger, pain, fear, sadness, anxiety-can become an addiction.

The process of addiction is reinforced by the fact that the more we use-whatever vehicle we use to relieve the feeling-the less ability we have to deal with that feeling, so the more we need the addictive activity or substance. For example, some people hate anger. Whenever they have a conflict, they tend to eat. In fact, they watch "refrigerator" the way some people watch TV. They open the door, the light goes on and they watch things grow old and mold, They watch things disappear. While they are watching "refrigerator", the conflict is escalating while their ability to deal with the conflict is decreasing. This means they need to use food all the more to deal with their anger. Food has enabled them to deny and disconnect from any feeling of anger. At the same time, the unwillingness to fight, to deal with the conflict, escalates the conflict.

Passive Aggressive

This unwillingness to deal with the conflict might even become the conflict. This “eating at someone” when we’re mad may be called passive aggressive. It’s a very common posture. We don’t get mad: we get even. We do this by withdrawing, by using our drug of choice , going away physically or emotionally. Leaving often causes the other person to become aggressive-aggressive, even out of control, raging, or bitchy.

The passive aggressive posture is a controlling posture. We shut down, go away and leave our anger with the other person to deal with, along with their own anger and their rage about our leaving. We keep our anger inside. Passive aggressive is like a big dog with its paws on your shoulders, licking your face and peeing on your leg at the same time. You don’t always know you’re getting it, but you are.

In families, there is no passive. Sometimes we think we had one parent who was a raging lunatic or angry, aggressive and hostile. The other parent might have looked gentle, quite and withdrawn, but in reality the gently quietness is often the passivity. In relationships and families there is not passive, there is only passive aggressive. The withdrawing, the quietness, is punishing to others.

Addiction is a process of decreasing choice, a compulsion is like an urge that limits choice. The repetitive acting out of compulsive behavior eliminates choice. Addicts seem to have choice; occasionally they can choose not to act out their addiction or to limit their use. Even periodic acting out without choice that results in harmful consequences is addiction. Sometimes we act out with food or alcohol for a period of time to cope with stress or crises. This may not be addiction, it may be a release or trade off or meeting needs and we don’t hold on to much denial about it. It may not be repetitive or cause major life problems.

Addictions are primarily about feelings, a need to alter, avoid, or distract us from our feelings. Some of the questions that are raised include:

. Why do we need to do this?

. Why do we need to medicate our pain to distract ourselves from our emotional reality?

. Why do we protect our addictions?

If these addictions are feeling diseases, then where do we learn about our feelings?

. What did we learn about our feelings?

. How did we learn to express them or repress them?

In childhood we find out whether or not our feelings are OK. Feelings are part of the flow of life. They are present, expressed, affirmed and then go away. We pass through them on our way to new feelings. Feelings that we don’t express, that don’t get affirmed, become repressed and acted out. Addiction is one of the more common ways that we act out the feelings we can’t express. With feelings, we either talk’em out, work’em out, or act’em out.

Addiction involves a set of compulsions, highs, habits, fantasies, rituals, settings and beliefs that become repetitive, designed to produce a desired goal. If we can’t do the addiction, we can do the ritual or we can seek the setting or fantasy.

Addiction is a complex disorder and treatment must address our emotional life, including trauma, not just modifying behaviour, however we have to modify the behaviour first (stop the medicating) before we can deal with the emotional problems.

If you or someone you love is in the grips of ANY Addiction call us today for assessment.

 IF YOU OR SOMEONE YOU LOVE IS IN THE GRIPS OF AN ADDICTION CALL US TODAY FOR IMMEDIATE ASSISTANCE. PHONE 07 560 66315

Web: www.coachingwithsubstance.org.au

Email: info@coachingwithsubstance.org.au

ABOUT COACHING WITH SUBSTANCE (WINNER Best Not-for-Profit 2014)

We are Australia's leading award winning addiction treatment and rehab consultants for gambling, drugs, alcohol, sex, eating and internet addiction, along with eating behavioural disorders and co-dependency for Australasia and New Zealand. Call us on 07 5606 6315 if you want to speak to an Addiction Specialist.

Our Founder, Maria Pau is a 4x No. 1 best-selling author on the subjects of addiction and co-dependency and spiritual wellness. She is the Program Director of Coaching with Substance, the first of its kind in Australia as registered public benevolent institution, charity and not-for profit association that focuses on wellness using coaching principles of peak performance. She is currently completing her PhD on Recovery Coaching and is the first registered Recovery Coach in Australia.

We run a cutting edge holistic addiction treatment program and outpatient rehabilitation consultancy firm that ensures you are released from the shackles of addiction once and for all. Primary care at CWS is personalised to treat each individual using programs that integrate mind, body and soul. CWS programs are enhanced by highly effective group coaching and therapeutic processes as well as individual coaching, spiritual insights, therapy and extensive aftercare assistance.

All clients are thoroughly assessed by a highly trained and experienced recovery coach, registered provisional psychologist, ordained Taoist Monk, mental health officer and certified naturopaths (including Ayurveda and Acupuncturist). Clients may also be referred for psychometric testing and assessment, if needed. International clients welcome.

We welcome enquiries from all English speaking people from Asia, Europe, Africa, India and South America.

How Bipolar Contributes to or Exacerbates Addiction Issues

Bipolar Patients with Comorbid Substance Use Disorders; Diagnostic and Treatment Considerations:

Comorbidity of bipolar disorder (BD) and alcoholism and substance use disorders (SUDs) represents a serious public health problem and a major challenge to treatment systems.

Bipolar disorder is among the top causes of disabilities worldwide, and reportedly the fourth leading mental illness as a source of disease burden in established market economies. Large epidemiologic surveys in the United States have consistently confirmed a high association between bipolar disorder and SUDs. The Epidemiological Catchments Area Study reported bipolar I and bipolar II disorders as having the highest association with SUDs when compared with any other major psychiatric disorder.

The prevalence of lifetime alcohol abuse or dependence in persons with bipolar I disorder and bipolar II disorders were found to be 46%, and 39.2% respectively.

Similarly, the National Comorbidity Survey reported respondents with mania to be 8 to 9 times more likely to have an additional lifetime disorder of drug or alcohol dependence compared with the general population. The most recent and largest epidemiologic survey of more than 42,000 respondents in the United States, the National Epidemiologic Survey on Alcohol and Related Conditions (NESARC), reported that mania and hypomania were associated with very high rates of SUDs. Those with mania were 6 times more likely to have alcohol dependence and 14 times more likely to have drug dependence over the past 12 months.

Research from; Psychiatric Annals, Volume 38 · Number 11, NOVEMBER 2008

IF YOU OR SOMEONE YOU LOVE IS IN THE GRIPS OF AN ADDICTION OR BIPOLAR EPISODE, CALL US TODAY FOR IMMEDIATE ASSISTANCE. PHONE 07 560 66315

 

Web: www.coachingwithsubstance.org.au

 

Email: info@coachingwithsubstance.org.au

ABOUT COACHING WITH SUBSTANCE (WINNER Best Not-for-Profit 2014)

We are Australia's leading award winning addiction treatment and rehab consultants for gambling, drugs, alcohol, sex, eating and internet addiction, along with eating behavioural disorders and co-dependency for Australasia and New Zealand. Call us on 07 5606 6315 if you want to speak to an Addiction Specialist.

Our Founder, Maria Pau is a 4x No. 1 best-selling author on the subjects of addiction and co-dependency and spiritual wellness. She is the Program Director of Coaching with Substance, the first of its kind in Australia as registered public benevolent institution, charity and not-for profit association that focuses on wellness using coaching principles of peak performance. She is currently completing her PhD on Recovery Coaching and is the first registered Recovery Coach in Australia.

We run a cutting edge holistic addiction treatment program and outpatient rehabilitation consultancy firm that ensures you are released from the shackles of addiction once and for all. Primary care at CWS is personalised to treat each individual using programs that integrate mind, body and soul. CWS programs are enhanced by highly effective group coaching and therapeutic processes as well as individual coaching, spiritual insights, therapy and extensive aftercare assistance.

All clients are thoroughly assessed by a highly trained and experienced recovery coach, registered provisional psychologist, ordained Taoist Monk, mental health officer and certified naturopaths (including Ayurveda and Acupuncturist). Clients may also be referred for psychometric testing and assessment, if needed. International clients welcome.

We welcome enquiries from all English speaking people from Asia, Europe, Africa, India and South America.

Alcoholic blackouts

Alcoholic blackouts were first documented by E.M. Jellinek in his book "The

Disease Concept of Alcoholism."

An alcohol-induced blackout (a blackout caused heavy drinking) is a period of time during a drinking episode when a person is functional but cannot remember what they were doing.

A "blackout" is not to be confused with "passing out.". 

Passing out means having episodes of unconsciousness during drinking when the drinker is not functioning and appears to be asleep

If you or someone you love is in the grips of addiction call us today for immediate help.

Coaching With Substance is Australia's No. 1 provider of Recovery Coaching Services and  WINNER of 2014 Best Not-For-Profit in ALL Addictions.  

Call us 07 5606 6315 (7days) Confidentiality assured.

Website www.coachingwithsubstance.org.au     

Email info@coachingwithsubstance.org.au

We are Australia's leading award winning addiction treatment and rehab consultants for gambling, drugs, alcohol, sex, eating and internet addiction, along with eating behavioural disorders and co-dependency for Australasia and New Zealand.

Maria Pau is a 4x No. 1 best-selling author on the subjects of addiction and co-dependency and spiritual wellness. She is the Program Director of Coaching with Substance, the first of its kind in Australia as registered public benevolent institution, charity and not-for profit association that focuses on wellness using coaching principles of peak performance. We run a cutting edge holistic addiction treatment program and outpatient rehabilitation consultancy firm that ensures you are released from the shackles of addiction once and for all.

Primary care at CWS is personalised to treat each individual using programs that integrate mind, body and soul. CWS programs are enhanced by highly effective group coaching and therapeutic processes as well as individual coaching, spiritual insights, therapy and extensive aftercare assistance.

All clients are thoroughly assessed by a highly trained and experienced recovery coach, registered provisional psychologist, ordained Monk, mental health officer and certified naturopaths (including Ayurveda and Acupuncturist). Clients may also be referred for psychometric testing and assessment, if needed. International clients welcome.

We welcome enquiries from all English speaking people from Asia, Europe, Africa, India and South America.