The Five Core Competencies of Drug Treatment

Contributed By: Robert Pfeifer, MSW, Founder of Sober College August 2015 marked the four year anniversary of the American Society of Addiction Medicine’s (ASAM) monumental change in redefining addiction from a behavioral/character disorder to a brain based disease. This definition change is well entrenched into the drug and alcohol treatment community, however the methodologies and [...]
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Preparing to Make Amends is Tougher than it Seems

Contributor: Lexi de Coning writer for Beachside Rehab Taking part in a 12-Step program can be daunting, regardless of your type of addiction, how long you’ve been an addict, or how long you’ve been sober. Part of what makes this approach to addiction treatment so challenging is that it’s not simply about abstaining from alcohol [...]
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Gender Specific Issues for Women in Addiction Treatment

Contributor: Marie Tueller, MEd, LAC, Canyon Crossing Recovery, CCR-OTC The differences between services and programming provided for men and women in substance abuse treatment is an ever-growing issue that has gained increasing attention over the past decade. Historically, addiction has been considered primarily a male issue, and many treatment modalities continue to base their approach [...]
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Breaking through Denial in Addiction

Contributor: Krista Smith is an author and lead facilitator at Gulf Breeze Recovery in Gulf Breeze, Florida. Four hundred years ago, Galileo looked at the night sky with the newly invented telescope and declared that the Earth revolved around the sun, rather than the other way around. Despite the ever increasing evidence to support his [...]
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Using Prescription Medications in a Foreign Country

Contributor: Crystal Karges, MS, RDN, IBCLC Special Projects Coordinator at Eating Disorder Hope/Addiction Hope Prescription medication use in the United States is regulated by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), which monitors the safety and effectiveness of new and approved drugs. Outside of the United States, the governing bodies and organizations that oversee prescription drug [...]
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