Addiction

Integrative Approach Training – Addiction & Attachment

An EFT Externship exclusively for addiction treatment program clinicians – by invitation only and limited to 21 clinicians Addiction & Attachment – 4 Day Externship Tuesday, Nov. 27, 2018 @ 4 pm to Saturday, Dec. 1 @ 1 pm Louisville, Colorado Facilitated by: Choice House 315 W. South Boulder Rd, Suite 109 Louisville, CO 80027…
The slippery slope of polysubstance abuse

The Slippery Slope of Polysubstance Abuse

Polysubstance abuse, or the abuse of one more than one drug at a time, sometimes starts innocently enough: The individual taking certain prescription medicines who doesn’t realize he shouldn’t be drinking while taking his meds. The person struggling with anxiety who takes a prescription sedative but then uses her son’s ADHD meds to supply a…
12-Step Program Benefits

Don’t Go It Alone: Find Your Support Village in a 12-step Program

Making a one-size-fits-all claim such as “12-step programs work” will likely always elicit spirited discussion from those who disagree. Few, however, would dare say that 12-step programs never work. Life at times can get lonely, and exceptionally so if you’re struggling with alcohol or substance abuse. This is one of the main reasons that Alcoholics…
When progress isn’t a good thing: Identifying the stages of alcoholism

When progress isn’t a good thing: Identifying the stages of alcoholism

  Although the opioid crisis is currently getting more press coverage, there’s another insidious disease that’s quietly wreaking havoc on personal goals and aspirations, families, career plans, financial health, and untold other instances of unrealized potential. It’s the same condition that claims around 88,000 lives each year (roughly twice as many as opiate overdoses). Those…
Understanding Dual Diagnosis or Co-Occurring Disorders

Double Jeopardy: Understanding Dual Diagnosis

If you know someone who’s struggling with substance abuse, and you’ve ever thought, Hmmm, I feel like he/she might also have depression/ADHD/generalized anxiety [insert any mental health disorder], you’re observing something known as “dual diagnosis.” Also sometimes referred to as “co-occurring disorders,” the condition describes a situation in which an individual has both a mental…
The Case for Connection - ChoiceHouse.com

The Case for Connection

Building a Case for Connection For a long time, “abstinence” was considered the opposite of addiction. Just put systems in place to ensure the person doesn’t have access to his or her substance of choice… and – ding! – addiction solved. Fortunately, the research and understanding around psychological and physiological addictions continue to evolve, and…
Stop the enablement train with these 5 tips

Stop the Enablement Train with these 5 Tips

It’s only natural to want your friends and family members to be happy, successful, and financially stable. But sometimes, even our best intentions overstep the line of support and venture into the realm of enabling, a situation that ultimately benefits no one and one that frequently creeps into formerly healthy relationships when substance abuse is…
How to Spot the (Sometimes Slow) Tipping Point: When Habit Becomes Addiction

When Habit Becomes Addiction: How to Spot the (Sometimes Slow) Tipping Point

It’s a familiar progression: What starts out as an “I’ll try this once” turns into “maybe just a couple more times” … and before you know it, a momentary lapse in judgment has snowballed into a full-blown, life-altering chemical dependency. So how can you tell when a habit has entered the harder-to-break realm of addiction?…
How to Start the Conversation About Rehab

How to Start the Rehab Conversation

Maybe there was an incident. Or maybe not; perhaps it’s a wholly unremarkable occasion, just the latest in a frightening, lasting pattern of behavior. Everyone’s path to addiction is different, but the one commonality is that at some point, change is no longer an option. It’s mandatory. The decision to talk to a friend or…