International Self-Care Day

Today is International Self-Care Day! Self-care is a big part of recovery; it’s about doing things that support healing. What is Self-Care? Self-care is often portrayed as bubble baths or spa days, and while there is nothing wrong with those things, that’s a misrepresentation. Self-care is taking an active role in your own well-being. It […]
What Role Does Trauma Play in Addiction?
The links between trauma and addiction are well-documented. While not everyone who has an addiction has experienced trauma, and not everyone who has had a traumatic experience will develop a substance use disorder, trauma is a common factor in addiction. One study found that 70% of adolescents in treatment for addiction had a history of […]
Coping With Obsessive Thoughts in Recovery

Many of us with histories of addiction deal with obsessive thoughts. During active addiction, we might have channeled them into—or numbed them with—alcohol or drugs. Not everyone with addiction is obsessive, but I certainly have this trait even nearly six years into recovery. It’s one I share with many of my sober friends. Telling Unfounded […]
Minority Mental Health Awareness Month

While May was Mental Health Awareness Month, July is Minority Mental Health Awareness Month. The reason for the specificity is to recognize racism’s enormous impact on mental health. Minority Stress Minority stress is the stress experienced by marginalized groups from repeated discrimination and oppression. Often, many factors compound on one another, making maintaining mental health […]
PTSD Awareness Day

Today is PTSD Awareness Day. People with PTSD may experience involuntary and intrusive flashbacks of a traumatic event where they relive a trauma. When we are in fight or flight mode, it significantly impacts our behavior; this is one reason it’s worth noting that you don’t know what the people around you are going through. […]
What are Psychotropic Medications?

Psychotropic medication is an umbrella term for meds used to treat mental health disorders. They work by adjusting levels of the brain’s neurotransmitters, such as serotonin, dopamine, and norepinephrine. There are several types of psychotropic meds. Some of these are anti-anxiety medications, selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors antidepressants(SSRIs), serotonin norepinephrine reuptake inhibitor antidepressants (SNRIs), anti-psychotics, and […]
Using Things Outside Yourself to Cope With Emotional Pain

I’ve heard addiction described as—among other things—using something outside of yourself to cope with painful feelings. This can happen even after you quit using substances; it’s one of the reasons many people with substance use disorders also struggle with other, behavioral addictions. Looking to things outside yourself to “solve” your emotional pain often leads to […]
Recent Seasons of the shows POSE and Feel Good Deliver Honest and Complex Portrayals of Addiction

Attn: Spoilers TW: Sexual Assault, AIDS, Death The most recent seasons of the shows POSE and Feel Good both deal with addiction. While the two are very different, each illuminates the links between trauma and substance use disorders. This last season of POSE, season 3, takes place in 1994; previous seasons were in the late […]
Sober Stories: Bailey*

How’d you decide to get sober? I knew that my drinking had gotten heavier in the pandemic. As I started getting better with my eating disorder, I didn’t have an outlet for anxiety. When COVID hit, I had recently started my business [as a therapist]. I had to change everything to telehealth and figure out […]
What is Ketamine?

Ketamine is a drug used by physicians as an anesthetic. It is sometimes misused by people outside of a medical setting in order to get high. Ketamine is a dissociative, meaning that it makes people feel detached from reality. The colloquial phrase for this sense of disconnection is “falling into a k-hole.” This drug also […]