Cognitive Behavioral Therapy has become a buzzword in addiction treatment. Learn the most important part of the theory here.
Category: Self-Help
World Series Baseball, Pain Medication, Addiction Falsehoods, And Existential Questions…
Addiction myths permeate our entire culture, even news coverage of the World Series. Which falsehoods are being spread, and how can we debunk them? Does pain medication cause “addiction” or “relapse”?
Can a Self Help Book Work To End Addiction?
Do self help books really work? Can self help books really work for addiction and “recovery”? Research on so-called “bibliotherapy” shows that self-help books can be quite effective, even for problems such as addiction and depression, which we’re told can only be overcome with medical treatment.
Substance Use, Abuse, and Addiction – Defined.
Learn some more helpful and constructive definitions of substance use, substance abuse, and addiction.
Martin Seligman on Prospection: Being Motivated by our Vision of The Future
Should you focus on the past and feel as if you’re doomed to repeat it, and that you’ve created immutable character defects, or have changed into a permanently diseased addict or alcoholic doomed to relapse? Should you beware of your disease, avoid overconfidence/arrogance and simply take things “one day at a time”? Maybe it’s better to believe that you can change permanently, and to envision a better future for yourself. Maybe it’s better to simply think about those things that would make you happier than a cheap high and to work towards those things. That’s what I think anyways, and I think Martin Seligman would agree.
Can A Former Drinker Go To Bars?
Many people are taught in “recovery” that they’re incapable of entering a club or bar without relapsing. This keeps people in a state of irrational fear rather than empowerment.
Musings On The Choice Model
We look at what a Choice Model of Addiction implies, by use of an analogy.
Stop Recovering. Start Living.
I don’t spend a single day worrying about how to get through it without a drink or drug. I don’t spend a single moment thinking about it. I did, back when I was in the recovery culture. But then I started living – I started focusing on building the life I wanted. I haven’t achieved all of my goals, but I’ve stayed free of drug/alcohol use problems for 9 years now, and I’m a heck of a lot happier focusing on all my new interests rather than worrying about struggling with an imaginary disease. I am not “in recovery.” I refuse to struggle like that. I stopped recovering and started living my life.
Feelings & Realities
Feelings don’t always reflect reality.
Choice and Will Power
Will-Power is often confused as being the key element in a choice based model of addiction. One needn’t deny their will in order to solve a substance use problem. Just because addiction is not a disease, that doesn’t mean that one must live with constant “cravings” or desires to use drugs and alcohol. Learn more about a choice based model of addiction here.