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What Came First? The Chicken or the Egg?

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Co-Occurring Disorders

Co-Occurring Disorder is the medical term for someone who is diagnosed with both a substance use disorder and another mental health disorder such as depression, anxiety, etc.

What can be difficult to tell though is which one came first.  

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Some people have underlying mental health disorders that are triggered by substance use.  For example, someone may be schizoaffective but the symptoms were dormant until they started to heavily drink alcohol or smoke marijuana.

Substance Use Can Cause a Mental Health Disorder that Was Never There to Begin With

Sometimes, a mental health disorder is caused by substance use or abuse.  For example, someone who drinks too much alcohol may later be diagnosed with depression due to their excessive alcohol use.  Or someone who does too much meth may be later diagnosed with anxiety which was caused by their excessive meth use.

A Mental Health Disorder Can Cause a Person to Use Substances to Relieve Symptoms

A third scenario is those who are were diagnosed with a mental health disorder prior to taking substances.  For example, someone who was diagnosed with ADHD, depression, or anxiety as a child may later turn to drugs or alcohol to help relieve some of those symptoms.  

It’s important for mental health professional and chemical dependency professionals to understand what came first or at least try to understand so the underlying issues can be treated.

Chemical Dependency Professionals Must Screen for All Scenarios

It’s also important for chemical dependency professionals to understand that some substance use disorders mimic mental health disorders and not to jump to a diagnosis conclusion too soon.  For example, someone who displays schizoaffective symptoms but uses a lot of hallucinogens or other substances may find the symptoms disappear after abstaining from substances for a period of time.

Chemical Dependency Professionals must be willing to reserve judgement until a complete evaluation is done and a period of abstinence is obtained.  Chemical Dependency Professionals must be willing to work with people who have symptoms of a co-occurring disorder but must also know when it’s time to refer out when the condition is outside their expertise.

No Fine or Jail Time for Possession or Dealers?

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Life here in the UK is vastly different from life in US. I know this may seem like a shock to many but having lived in both countries, I can say that the differences are clear. While both countries appear to be quite similar, the approach to health, social services and a desire for better outcomes for all, couldn’t be more apparent (let’s not talk Brexit right now!)

Let’s take for instance drug addiction and the approach that law enforcement takes. In fact, let’s focus on a narrow section of the UK who were recently in the news. For those unaware, Durham Chief Constable Mike Barton just announced that after a 2 year trial, they will stop arresting people who use drugs and ‘low level dealers’ in favour of sending them to a rehab program.

There are many things to unpack within this announcement and the impacts are incredible. While the US clings to its War on Drugs (with some of the more liberal states at least legalizing marijuana), more progressive countries realize that the way to help people who use drugs is not through jail time.

Avoiding prison means that people who struggle with an addiction don’t have to be punished once they get sober.

What do you mean by that?

Well for many people who struggle with an addiction, coming out of jail with a conviction basically eliminates them from many jobs (even though discrimination like that is likely illegal) and severely limits prospects for the future. So, then what happens? They go right back to using again.

It’s a familiar addiction recovery story we hear all the time. But it looks like Durham will be trying something a bit different this time around.

‘What’s the point in an addict going to court and getting a £50 fine? If they pay it at all, they will only steal or sell five bags of heroin to fund it. How does that help us?’ argued Mr Barton.

Well said.

You can read the entire article HERE.

Obviously, my hope for you is that you can obtain a life free from addictive substances so you don’t have to worry about being caught and having to face a fine or jail time.

We have a course, that helps people who struggle with opioids, learn how to kick their habit from home.  Check out our course HERE.

To Your Recovery

Effects of Psychoactive Substances

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psychoactive substances

Behavioral Effects of Psychoactive Substances

Psychoactive substances affect the behavior of people using.  Different substances affect different behaviors.  For example, those who abuse alcohol may behave violently or belligerently.  Those who abuse opioids may behave neglectfully.  Not everyone behaves the same of course but it’s important for addiction professionals to understand how different psychoactive substances affect behavior.

Psychological Effects of Psychoactive Substances

The age old question: what came first?  The addiction or the mental health struggle?  This is important for addiction professionals to understand and uncover when working with clients.  For example, did smoking marijuana cause their client’s anxiety or did their client smoke marijuana to try and get rid of their anxiety?  Different substances have different psychological effects and it’s crucial for professionals to recognize this.

Physical Effects of Psychoactive Substances

Psychoactive substances have different physical effects too.  While some effects are behavior related it’s important to know what kinds of physical effects different substances can cause.  For example, opioids can cause constipation and alcohol can cause high blood pressure. Outward physical effects are more noticeable but the addiction professional should always ask the important questions and provide resources to a medical doctor if needed.    

Social Effects of Psychoactive Substances

Some psychoactive substances are more social than others but when thinking about the social effects it is important for the addiction professional to gain cultural knowledge.  For example, alcohol is often culturally accepted and when someone quits alcohol it can be shown as a sign of weakness.  Other social factors to consider would be poverty and wealth.  Addiction doesn’t just affect the poor it equally affects the rich but in different ways.  Just because someone has a ton of money and can dress and look the part, doesn’t mean they are struggling any less. Addiction professionals need to be aware of this.

Effects on Significant Others

All of these effects can affect significant others incomprehensible ways oftentimes leading to exhaustion. Also, it’s important to connect the relationship between infectious diseases such as sexually transmitted infections and substance use.  Significant others can be impacted.

Addiction professionals need to be sensitive to all of these influences and how the development of addiction progresses.  I.E. initiation, intoxication, harmful use, abuse, dependence, withdrawal, craving, relapse, and recovery.  [clickToTweet tweet=”Addiction professionals need to be interested in new research and findings so they can bring the latest developments.” quote=”Addiction professionals need to be interested in new research and findings so they can bring the latest developments to their practice ” theme=”style6″]to benefit their continuous efforts when working with clients.

Understanding Addiction

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There are many addiction concepts and it’s important for professionals to be fully competent if they are working directly with clients.

An Addiction Professional must be Knowledgeable

There are very basic concepts of addiction that professionals need to know.  The elemental recognition of how drug use is affected by cultures, economics, politics, and sociology is crucial.  History plays a significant role in how each of these concepts have evolved to where they are today and both legal and illegal substances are to be identified. It’s imperative that addiction professionals know how to identify the risk and resiliency for using alcohol or other substances.

Addiction Professionals must have Strong Attitudes

Attitude is everything and oftentimes addiction professionals go off of their own past experiences, whether personal or professional, to treat their current clients. While past experiences can certainly benefit their present practice, it’s critical that they recognize the importance of these contextual variables as well as the differences that all cultures present and being appreciative of their uniquenesses.

[clickToTweet tweet=”If you are thinking about becoming an addiction professional you must have an open mind. #AddictionRecovery ” quote=”If you are thinking about becoming an addiction professional, you must have an open mind,”] have the ability to think critically, and if needed, forget about everything you once thought about addiction.  Research and science is constantly presenting new insights and it’s our responsibility to be open to all possibilities.     

When Your Partner Drinks – And You’re Trying to Stop

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It’s Extremely Difficult to get Sober if Your Partner doesn’t Give it Up Too

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If you have a partner that drinks or is not willing to give up alcohol when they are around you, getting sober will be very hard.  It is so important, and I mean so critically important, that your partner is there to support  you and does not drink around you, or gives it up entirely. If they are not willing to, I am here to tell you that you will need to have the strongest will power or you may need to take a break for a few months until you can stabilize.

Why Communication is Important

I want you to be open with your partner.  It’s important to have strong communication skills so your partner knows exactly how hard this is going to be for you and having their support can mean the difference of obtaining full sobriety or not.  Most people who do not have supportive spouses fail.  That’s not to say it’s impossible but if you have a supportive partner, it makes things much easier. 

Does Your Partner Have a Problem Too?

One thing you are going to want to evaluate is whether or not your partner has a problem too.  If they don’t have a problem then not drinking will be easy for them. They’ll be able to not drink around you or give it up completely.  If they have a problem, it might not be that easy for them and then perhaps, you should try and get sober together.  If they’re not ready to get sober but you are, don’t give up on yourself.  Take a break, get some distance, and when you are strong and able, you can go back to help them.  

Your Action Item

Is your partner on board or not?  If not, are you ready to take a break – get some distance for a few months?  Take some time to figure this out. Once you’ve made a decision, communicate this with your partner.  To eliminate conflict, it’s important for them to understand that it’s about you and when it comes to alcoholism, the best thing you can do is help yourself first.  In the end, you’ll come out stronger.

We’ve helped hundreds of people get sober from home.

Our students are:

– Happy
– Sober
– Clear Headed
– Free from the chains of addiction
– Motivated
– Energetic

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