How to Calm Anxiety Creatively Every well-being advice column is chalk full of tips on alleviating anxiety- you know the tired, rehashed advice we’ve heard our entire lives. Breathe deeply. Distract yourself. Remind yourself with positive affirmations that “everything is going to be okay.” Well, sometimes things are NOT okay....
5 Reasons To Get Sober in 2019
Anyone who has ever struggled with substance abuse knows how difficult it can be to remain sober. Positive support and expert guidance are necessary to successfully conquer drug addiction. In the most recent Survey on Drug Use and Health (NSDUH), it was estimated that almost nine percent of Americans needed help with substance abuse but...
Sober Holiday Events in South Florida
The holidays: a time for family, cheer, and giving. For many it’s also among the most stressful, emotionally difficult times of the year. Strained family connections, grief for lost loved ones, feelings of isolation, and other physical and emotional triggers can make it a struggle to get through to the...
Submission: “Growing Up with Prescription Drug Addiction” by Christine F.
I grew up with a mother who had a prescription drug addiction. This disorder started when my mother broke her ankle when I was just four years old. Her life went downhill after that, and it affected my life in ways that still haunt me. The Early Years It didn’t...
What You Need to Know About Addiction, Your Immune System, & Lung Cancer
What You Need to Know About Addiction, Your Immune System, & Lung Cancer Drug Abuse’s Suppression of the Immune System It’s lung cancer awareness month! Drugs are bad, m’kay? But, did you know addictive substances are detrimental to your immune system? Opioid use depresses the respiratory system and inhibits one’s...
Pride Month: Substance Abuse in the LGBTQ+ Community
Happy Pride Month! Each June we recognize and celebrate love in all its shades, encourage living in one’s truth, and fight back against intolerance and harmful stigmas. Established in 2000 then amended in 2009, Pride Month is intended to be a month long celebration of inclusivity in love. Unfortunately for...
Submission: “Hopeless to Dopeless” by Alicia Mason
The following poem is a submission written by Alicia Mason and published with permission from the author. A hopeless dope fiend, broken down and beat A needle junkie with nothing left in me But guilt, shame, remorse, obsession, self-defeat No longer seeing light in this empty hollow me No longer...
Mental Health Awareness Month 2018
May is Mental Health Awareness month, a time designated to raising awareness and challenging the stigmas that stand in the way of meaningful treatment and recovery. Because mental health disorders and addiction are often co-current, understanding how your mental health impacts substance abuse recovery is essential to maintaining long-term clean...
Submission: “Loving an Addict” by Andrea K. Johnson
I desperately wish I didn’t know what it was like to love someone with an active drug addiction. But the fact of the matter is that I do. I know what it’s like to be overwrought with fear and hopelessness, to fall asleep terrified of their future, to wake up...
5 Reasons Out-of-State Treament is Best for You
Most people seeking an addiction recovery program do their research in a very specific, restricted area: within about 10 miles of their home. Sometimes that radius can be expanded to include the entirety of the state, but rarely does one consider the broader horizons that out-of-state treatment can provide. This...
