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World Mental Health – A New Survey on Wellbeing

  A new survey by Sapien Labs and The Mental Health Million Project, shows a comparison of the mental wellbeing profiles of eight countries. It also highlights differences across age and gender groups, and addresses lifestyle factors that drive mental wellbeing. The survey also includes the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on worldwide mental health. […]

Anatomy of Addiction Episode 1: Brain Science (101)

  We are inundated with information about the rise in alcohol sales during the pandemic. The opioid epidemic and drug overdose deaths are headline news. Likewise, there is breaking news daily about the co-occurrence of substance use disorders and anxiety.   Brain Science 101 But what exactly is addiction? How do you know if you […]

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Recovery Expectations vs Reality – I’m Sober, What Now?

  We have a nasty habit of glamorizing โ€œgetting well.โ€ Our recovery expectations envision peak healthโ€ฆ how our lives will look (perfect) and bodies will feel (also perfect)โ€ฆ The thoughts weโ€™ll have and the ones we wonโ€™t. Sometimes, we use the idealized and far-off future to excuse our behavior. Once Iโ€™m not using, then Iโ€™ll […]

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Announcing Anatomy of Addiction Podcast!

  It seems like everyone is creating a podcast these days. But that’s because podcasting is a wonderful way to provide information, education, and entertainment while folks are on the go. At Sanford, we take educating the community about mental health seriously. In fact, Founder, Rae Green, and other Sanford staff members are often “on […]

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Reduce your Risk of Cancer? Stop Drinking Alcohol

  By now, we have all read or heard that the pandemic has caused a surge in alcohol sales. We also know or intuit that misuse of alcohol can result in a substance use disorder. And after an overindulgence, we might begin to understand that alcohol touches and can damage every system in the body. […]

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Older Adults’ Addiction Treatment – Rae Green at U of M

  It was my pleasure to speak to the School of Social Work at the University of Michigan last week. The topic was “Alcohol and Other Substance Use Treatment and Monitoring” for a class addressing “Interpersonal Practice with Older Adults”. Higher education continues via zoom during the pandemic. And I can say that I have […]

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8 Reasons Lake Michigan is Good for your Health

  Why do we gravitate toward water? Why is it so hypnotic to watch the waves? There is a reason every stretch of waterfront is laden with houses and parks – it’s where we want to be. Those who live near the ocean swear by the healing powers of the salty sea. And there is […]

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Age, Mental Health & Alcohol Use During COVID-19

  Two new surveys by Preventive Medicine (Volume 145, April 2021, 106422), “aimed to examine whether age modified the association of anxiety and depressive symptoms with alcohol use during the COVID-19 pandemic”. Almost six-thousand people in the U.S. responded to their online questionnaires.   Age, Mental Health and Alcohol Use 29% of respondents said they […]

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Eating & Substance Use Disorders – Why They Coexist

  Did you know that 50% of individuals who struggle with eating disorders also misuse alcohol or other drugs? This is a rate 5 times higher than the general population.ย  Similarly, 35% of individuals who misused or were dependent on alcohol or drugs have also had eating disorders โ€“ a rate 11 times higher than […]

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Working from Home – A Mental Health Battlefield

  Itโ€™s almost always an uncomfortable experience to be at the whim of something out of our control. It leaves us feeling vulnerable, hopeful, and stressed all at once. Like most others, I had anticipated this COVID-19 situation would last a few months, maybe more. As we approach the year-mark since the first few cases […]

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