Addiction Stigma – How Person-First Language Helps
Stigma is defined as “a mark of disgrace or infamy”. Stigma in addiction comes mostly from the symptoms of a person’s behavior and other aspects of a substance use disorder. Addiction Stigma It is known that persons who are addicted to alcohol and/or drugs can behave aggressively or dishonestly with erratic behaviors and judgment which […]
Life on Mars – Addiction Therapy Then and Now
If you have yet to see the television show Life on Mars, in which a police officer is transported back 33 years from 2006 to 1973, you should. It does a credible job of comparing that distant past world to the near-present. For example, DNA testing, penetration of the blue wall, acknowledgment of “compassion […]
Announcing! Sanford Comprehensive Treatment for Eating Disorders
Announcing Sanford Comprehensive Treatment for Eating Disorders! Sanford Addiction Treatment Centers has taken the next logical step in expanding treatment services in West Michigan by partnering with Gail Hall, LMSW, DCSW, CEDS-S, and her talented team at Comprehensive Treatment for Eating Disorders (CTED). When somebody is ready to engage in treatment and get […]
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 […]
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 […]
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. Similarly, 35% of individuals who misused or were dependent on alcohol or drugs have also had eating disorders – a rate 11 times higher than […]
Mrs. D- From New Zealand with Love
One of the positives from the 2020 social distancing mandates was the development of new technology for making connections. Video conferencing tools made it possible to commune with far flung loved ones. And in the case of Sanford and Lotta Dann (known to many as Mrs. D), Zoom made it possible to “meet in […]
Continuum of Care, MAT, Telehealth: Limelight Interview
The “continuum of care” in addiction treatment describes a system in which individuals enter treatment at a level appropriate to their needs. As monitoring progresses, they step up to more intense treatment or down to less intense treatment as needed. Care is individualized and incorporates the following, no matter the level in which a […]
Mixing Medications With Alcohol? Harmful Interactions by NIH
Since April of 2020 we have experienced a unique set of circumstances as relates to our physical and mental health. With the pandemic came physical distancing and isolation: a sense of being on our own to handle our problems. And with isolation came an increase in both the use of telehealth and the purchase […]
The (Sometimes Surprising) Milestones in Recovery
When we have a loved one who begins treatment for a disease, it is normal to want to know what to expect. Can we look forward to a cure or are we just trying to get more quality time? Will it be something they live with forever? How will we assess the effectiveness of […]
