Abstinence from Alcohol or a Life of Addiction! Are These my only Two Options?
Anyone who has any knowledge of rehab for an addiction knows that abstinence is the common “solution” to addiction in America today. Addiction in this disease-centered perspective is seen as a lifelong condition, and therefore no amount of drugs or alcohol are...
Abstinence from Alcohol or a Life of Addiction! Are These my only Two Options?
Anyone who has any knowledge of rehab for an addiction knows that abstinence is the common “solution” to addiction in America today. Addiction in this disease-centered perspective is seen as a lifelong condition, and therefore no amount of drugs or alcohol are...
5 days into my rehab and I was told my insurance would not pay anymore – I was left with a hefty bill
With the passing of the Affordable Care Act (more commonly known as Obamacare) in 2010, all insurance providers were mandated to provide coverage for treatment for addiction. Many people took this to mean that insurance would have to pay for all inpatient treatment...
Alcohol Use in the Elderly as a Result of Loneliness
Over the past 30 years I have personally witnessed as hundreds of people over the age of 70 have enrolled in The Freedom Model System at our residential retreats. For many of them, alcohol was their drug of choice, and most explained that loneliness became their...
Harm Reduction and MAT – A Marriage on the Road to Nowhere
Harm reduction at face value seems to make sense. After all, common sense tells us that better is better. Providing a path for heavy substance users that “reduces harm” is logical on its face. Needle exchanges to avoid disease, Narcan to keep addicts alive, and...
Drugs don’t cause addiction or drug deaths—recovery does
We Need a New Way of Thinking About Addiction Drugs don’t cause addiction or drug deaths—recovery does Article by: Stanton Peele, Ph.D - Author of The Life Process Program Since the turn of the 21st Century, when the National Institute on Drug Abuse promulgated what...
30 Day Rehab Near Me? Be Cautious
In this age of social media and instant searches for anything and everything, there are benefits to the “instant search” features of the internet we have all become accustomed to. However, there is a dark side to every coin – and in this case, there is as much fraud...
A Parent’s Nightmare – Heroin
There are few things more terrifying to a parent than finding out that your son or daughter is using heroin. But if you’re going to get through this devastating development, you need to find a way out of the panic. Your fear is valid, but in the long run, it won’t...
Mandated by the Legal System to Attend Addiction Support Group Meetings? Here are 3 Things You Need to Know
It is estimated that 20% of people who go into treatment and 12 step meetings are forced there by the legal system. If you find yourself in the legal system due a drug charge or DUI, or if you are in a fight for custody of your children and your ex has accused you of...
There are 3 things every lawyer should know about addiction when dealing with addicted clients
1. Addiction is a choice and is NOT a disease or disorder Your client is responsible for their issues related to their use. Regardless of the fact that the public opinion sways in this regard and tends to see addiction as a disorder or disease, in the court of law,...
Recognize that Addiction is NOT Your Problem
The title of this article presupposes that you believe you’re addicted to something. We will assume it’s a drug of some type, and we will further assume that you are asking yourself whether addiction is the issue causing some sort of discomfort in your life. We make...
3 Reasons to Choose a Non 12 Step Program
They say that the 12 Steps are the proven way to deal with a substance use problem, so why would you choose anything else? Because you want a solution rather than a label. In 12-Step programs, you’re essentially taught that you are permanently handicapped with the...
Top 5 Reasons to Choose a 12 Step Program
If you are struggling with a substance use problem and you begin seeking help, most people will immediately tell you to go to a meeting. The meeting they are talking about is Alcoholics Anonymous, Narcotics Anonymous, or one of the other myriad of 12 step self help...
5 Costs In Addition to Drug Treatment that Can Arise from Drug and Alcohol Addiction
When calculating the costs of addiction many people only think of the rising costs of treatment and that is understandable. More than $36 Billion is spent annually on addiction treatment in the United States and that's expected to rise to more than $40 Billion by...
1960’s Hippies Today – Do They Need Treatment? Are they Recovered?
This title is obviously loaded. It implies that all hippies from the sixties were in fact a population that struggled with drugs and alcohol. It also implies that there is something to “recover from”, and depending on your point of view that might be addiction or it...
12 Reasons to Stay Away From 12 Step Programs
12 Step programs are the foundation of the addiction treatment industry in the United States. Unfortunately, addiction treatment isn’t successful. At least 65% of alcoholics relapse within a year following treatment, and for other drugs, such as opioids, the relapse...
10 Questions to Ask Treatment Providers Prior to Choosing a Program
Finding the right addiction treatment provider and rehab program for you or your loved one struggling with an addiction can be daunting. Like most people you likely begin your search online by using search terms such as, 'addiction treatment in my area' or 'drug...
Deprogramming from Alcoholics Anonymous (AA)
I was steeped in AA and treatment since my first memories. I came from a 12 step family. My mother was a NYS certified alcoholism counselor, some of my eleven siblings went through multiple rehabs, and eventually I too fell into the 12 step prophecy that I would...
How do I explain to the Kids about my Spouse Getting Help for Addiction?
How do I explain to the Kids about my Spouse Getting Help for Addiction? One of the most difficult aspects of drinking issues or a drug problem is how to explain to your children why your spouse left for a period of time to go get help for a substance use problem....
Getting on with Your Life after Treatment
Getting on with Your Life after Treatment This is a common topic when someone calls us for help for their drug or alcohol issue. “What kind of aftercare do you provide once John completes his stay with you?” “Is there relapse prevention so Donna will have the tools to...
Video Gaming Addiction – Virtual or Reality?
The World Health Organization (WHO) has declared that video gaming can cause an addiction much the same as substance use and gambling. In the most recent article I've read on the topic of addiction written by Lindsay Tanner, an AP medical writer she asks the question,...
My Loved One Seems Worse After Rehab. Is This Normal?
It was 1988, I was 18 years old, I had a significant drug and alcohol habit, and I found myself falling apart at the seams. I was emotionally depressed, and filled with anxiety. I knew adulthood was looming over the horizon, and I felt totally lost and ill-equipped to...
An Open Letter to Those with an Alcohol or Drug Problem – “Are You Ready for a Solution?”
An Open Letter to Those with an Alcohol or Drug Problem – “Are You Ready for a Solution?” Have you been to rehab and thought to yourself, “How is this possibly going to help me?” Or maybe you have family members or friends who have gone to treatment, AA, or NA, and...
Is Urine Drug Testing Useful or a Money Grab?
What You Need to Know about Drug Testing in Addiction Treatment You pee into a cup and they test the urine for drug use. It seems a simple enough process and it is. Yet that simple process is making some people rich running rehabs and sober homes across the US. Some...
Is Track Palin Struggling with Domestic Violence and Drinking after Military Service?
Track Palin, oldest son of former Alaska governor and vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin, was arraigned Sunday December 17th on domestic violence charges including felony burglary, misdemeanor reckless assault, and misdemeanor criminal mischief for property...
There is Still Time to Make a Change in 2017
Here we are again, another year almost over. Festive holiday decorations dot the landscape and there is a buzz of activity and excitement in the air everywhere you turn. Everyone has their holiday time traditions; baking cookies, watching cheesy Christmas love stories...
When Holiday Cheer Gets Out of Hand – 3 Strategies to Keep You and Your Loved One Off the Naughty List
For many people, the holiday season holds memories of celebrations past and anticipation of new memories to share together. For some, the holidays can feel like an obstacle course through a minefield. If you have a loved one who uses drugs or alcohol to excess...
Addiction Treatment and 12-Step in the Media
You can't turn on a sit-com, drama series, or watch a movie without hearing about someone who is an "alcoholic" going to AA or a drug addict who just got out of another treatment program and must go to meetings. Some of the most popular series of the 21st century have...
Everyone Loves the Holidays….Don’t They?
Substance Use Doesn’t Have to Ruin the Holidays or Their Life When You Know How to Get Help A crispness fills the air and everyone is hurrying with packages, scurrying to meet friends and family that we may see often or only once a year. Bright lights are dancing on a...
Do Drugs Have Power Over Us? The Addiction Religion a ‘Breathing Monster’ – VIDEO
There is so much misinformation about drugs, alcohol, drug addiction, and just addiction in general, that it is hard for most people to know what is true and what isn’t. Well, let's begin with the facts: Addiction is not a disease, nor is heavy use of substances a...
TedX Talk – Our Relationship to Addiction.
Mr. Steven Slate of Saint Jude Retreats was given the opportunity to present at a Tedx Talk in Tahoe City, CA on September 17th. Mr. Slate discussed “Our Relationship to Addiction”. He explains the unique approach taken by Saint Jude Retreats in their upcoming work on...
Is Living a Life Free of Addiction a Choice? Why the Answer Matters to the Fitness Community
Before we begin this report, it is important to understand that this survey was just that; a survey. This is by no means a scientific study, but rather a method to gain the opinions and views of the physical fitness community specifically; and to understand the...
Shall Not Be Infringed: How Common Sense Gun Control Means Labeling All Addicts ‘Crazy’
This is not a piece about how Obama wants your guns. It's not a piece about how liberals are evil and conservatives are patriots. You can get enough of that elsewhere, and, for the most part, it's just noise. Keeping you enraged rather than engaged. It works on both...
AA’s 20 Questions Prove Everyone’s An Alcoholic
Our video below reveals the truth... AA is more interested in creating alcoholics than actually helping people with drinking problems. Want to create lifetime dependents? Lifetime evangelists? Lifetime customers? Tell them they're chronically ill, and the only way to...
FYI, ADHD is BS
To an increasing degree, people are having prescription drug issues. Nationwide, prescription drug use kills more people than heroin and cocaine combined, so there is a rising need for people outside the medical community to rise up and question the tactics of those...
ADHD Meds: the New Meth? Protect your kids from addiction.
Over-medicating kids has become a major issue, an issue more and more parents are forced to address as an increasing percentage of our children are diagnosed and medicated for ADHD. Naturally, the idea that over 1 in 10 children is suffering from a chronic disease...
Everything You Need To Know About Detox. Our Latest Radio Show
If you or a loved one ever needed a detox chances are the horror picture that is painted in our culture about that it is, came to light. Listen to Dr. Gallus dispel the myths about detox and show you that a more gentle and humane approach is available to you and your...
Is Suboxone the Answer to Heroin Addiction?
If we want to actually help people create an abstinent lifestyle or one of reduced use, the answer lies not in fear tactics, but in addressing why someone makes the decision to continue their use. This is the source of all use – one’s desires and motives for a brief moment of satisfaction, relief and happiness. By sidestepping the actual reasons people create to continue their use while convincing that individual that they can’t stop or reduce without suboxone’s magic, we are continuing the false belief in the “power of heroin.” It’s time to let go of drug mythology and address people where they are and why they make the choices to use or not to use. Because in the end, no one, not even the hardened and tired “addict” does anything they don’t want to do.
Addiction Treatment Wouldn’t Have Stopped The Chattanooga Shooter
In the media’s mad dash to blame anything for the actions of the Chattanooga shooter, we’re now hearing that an untreated dual-diagnosis of depression and addiction was the cause. An AP report put a familiar storyline out there, stating “Several years ago, relatives...
How The Government Wastes 1.4 Billion Dollars Per Year on Addiction Treatment Research
The thing about being a taxpayer is that it essentially makes you an involuntary investor in the country. Our investment dollars are our taxes... our brokers are our legislators... but the fact remains we invest in the country every day. Some of that money goes to our...
My Son Is A Drug Addict. Now What?
At Saint Jude Retreats, we realize that substance use often affects family members in long-lasting and difficult ways, but not all of them are inevitable. Just as your son can choose to cope with setbacks without using substances, you can choose to deal with his...